Britons cheer Brown for attacks response

AP on Yahoo ^ | 7/3/07 | Jill Lawless - ap

[NormsRevenge]

LONDON - Gordon Brown doesn't do charisma. In contrast to Tony Blair, the new British leader has offered no emotive sound bites, no promises of tough new laws and no talk of a "war on terror" since the failed attacks in London and Glasgow.

The stern Scot's few public statements have been somber, measured and brief. Many Britons welcome the change, saying the lower-key approach may better reassure a rattled nation and prevent racial tensions from exploding.

"We need to be calm about it," said Duncan Walls, 64, a retired lawyer walking through a London on "critical" terror alert after Friday's failed double car-bombing and Saturday's fiery Jeep attack on Glasgow airport.

"I'm glad to say the abrasiveness of Blair and (former Home Secretary John) Reid, in particular, is no longer evident," he added.

Brown's response to the attacks has won praise from allies and foes alike.

On Tuesday, the head of the Muslim Council of Britain, Muhammad Abdul Bari, lauded Brown and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith for the "calm and reassuring tone of their responses to the recent attacks."

Nick Clegg, home affairs spokesman for the opposition Liberal Democrats, welcomed the change from "the somewhat breathless way Tony Blair used to always rush to try to make, frankly, political points on the back of these events."

In a crisis, Blair could always be counted on for a memorable turn of phrase. After the death of Princess Diana, he extolled her as "the people's princess."

Hours after four suicide bombers killed 52 London bus and subway passengers on July 7, 2005, Blair delivered a speech with echoes of Winston Churchill, vowing: "When they try to intimidate us, we will not be intimidated ... we will not be changed."

Brown's message — in one brief televised statement and a longer TV interview — can be summarized as "keep calm and carry on." Speaking in the gruff Scottish brogue that is his trademark, he said the country faced a "sustained" threat and urged Britons to "stand together, united, resolute and strong."

He has largely remained behind the scenes, leaving public briefings to police and senior officials. Brown chaired a meeting of the government's emergency committee Saturday, but left later meetings to Smith — who as home secretary is equivalent to Britain's interior minister — and other officials.

The low-key Smith also stands in contrast to her pugnacious predecessor, John Reid, whose tough talk on terrorism was sometimes criticized for inflaming ethnic and religious tensions. In a speech to lawmakers Monday, Smith called terrorists "criminals whose victims come from all walks of life, communities and religious backgrounds." Brown has spoken of "al-Qaida" attackers but not of "Islamic" or "Muslim" terrorists.

Instead of announcing new anti-terror legislation — as Blair and Reid did after the July 7 bombings — Brown has said he wants to work with opposition politicians to build a consensus on what steps to take.

"This is not the time for rushing into new legislation," said Brown's official spokesman, Michael Ellam.

There is evidence the public approves of Brown's cautious approach.

"I'm impressed with the fact that (Brown) and Jacqui Smith speak pretty calmly," said Londoner James Freeman, 32. "They're focusing on terrorists as criminals, rather than people of a religious persuasion. I think (Brown) is going to continue to stand firm."

An opinion poll released Tuesday gave Brown's Labour Party the support of 37 percent of respondents, up four points from a month earlier and three points ahead of the opposition Conservatives.

Seventy-seven percent of those polled considered Brown a strong leader, up 14 points from a month ago.

Polling firm Populus interviewed 1,504 adults by telephone between Friday — the day of the London attack — and Sunday. The margin of error is plus or minus two percentage points.

Brown biographer Tom Bower cautioned that even if there are no more terrorist attacks, Brown's honeymoon is likely to be brief. Brown's decade as Blair's Treasury chief and right-hand man will make it hard for him to set himself apart, he said.

"The nation rallies round him, rightly, and party politics is suspended at a time like this," Bower said. "The real Brown, the vulnerable Brown, will emerge after the summer. The test will come when politics resume in the autumn."

___

Associated Press Writer Lindsay Toler contributed to this report.

[NormsRevenge]

Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown speaks in the House of Commons in London, Tuesday July 3, 2007. Prime Minister Gordon Brown told Parliament on Tuesday, Britain will set up a new National Security Council to send 'out a clear message' of vigilance. Brown said the new group would regularly publish a national security strategy, setting out potential threats, but gave no further details. The group would guarantee 'at all times we will be vigilant and we will never yield,' he said. (AP Photo/PA)

[processing please hold]

What fools the British have become.

[NormsRevenge]

a little over a year ago.. FRom the FR archives..

02/12/2006
Britons Must ‘Wake Up’ To Terror Risk, Says Brown ^
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1577130/posts

[george76]

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Message to the Brits:

If you opt to bury your head in the sand, please be aware what part of your anatomy you’re leaving fully exposed.

[weegee]

Brown's message — in one brief televised statement and a longer TV interview — can be summarized as "keep calm and carry on."

It can be characterized that way if you can accept his demand that the term "war on terror" be suppressed along with any association between the terrorist groups and "Islam".

[weegee]

I’d suggest they report his message as “Nothing to see here, move along...”

[Asclepius]

On Tuesday, the head of the Muslim Council of Britain, Muhammad Abdul Bari, lauded Brown and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith for the "calm and reassuring tone of their responses to the recent attacks."

Thank you for not drawing attention to our activities.

[rhombus]

Don’t make ‘em mad....don’t make ‘em mad... give ‘em what they want...

We see plenty of this in the US too.

[AU72]

Prime Minister (don’t calling those Muslim terrorists Muslim)Gordon Brown

[avacado]

" Many Britons welcome the change, saying the lower-key approach may better reassure a rattled nation and prevent racial tensions from exploding.

"We need to be calm about it,"

[stm]

They praise the very person who just said you can’t use terrorism and muslime in the same sentence because you are not being mindful of their sensitivities?

Have the limeys gone entirely mad? Wake up and smell the plastique limeytards!!!

[Little Ray]

What is going on over there?

[hometoroost]

"Many Britons welcome the change, saying the lower-key approach may better reassure a rattled nation and prevent racial tensions from exploding."

First of all who are the "Many Britons" who are saying this? If there are many why couldn't the writer directly attribute that quote to someone or site some source. I suspect it's because the "Many Britons" he refers to are Muslim radicals or employees of AP, the BBC, Reuters, etc.

Second, the only thing those "Many Britons" want to see explode in Britain are car bombs.

[John123]

"keep calm and carry on."

Oh that'll work just fine...

keep calm and carry on -- ignore all those dead bodies and blown up buildings...

[Vigilanteman]

We need to be calm about it,"

Only if you are calming and methodically rounding up Islamofacists and hanging them.

[Proud_USA_Republican]

The moors are reconquering Europe.

[Altura Ct.]

I’m not quite so sure about that. No doubt they have their fair share of mushheads but I’m sure they have the same press issues that we have over here. Maybe more so because I understand their press is even more liberal then ours.