‘Blood Price’ For Blair's Policies?

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:

British Parliament member George Galloway is refusing to back down from his claim that Prime Minister Tony Blair was to blame for the terror attacks in London, insisting, "if you go on bombing other people they will go on bombing us."

Galloway told the Socialist Workers Party's "Marxism 2005" Conference — held around the corner from the site of Thursday's bus bomb — that "people in Iraq and London are paying a blood price" for Blair's foreign policy. Galloway, who was thrown out of the Labour party in 2003 for his anti-war remarks, said he "doesn’t believe Mr. Blair or Mr. Bush are capable of solving this problem — I believe they are the cause of this problem." He does not explain why terrorists attacked the U.S. before the war in Iraq.

Homeland Security

Terrorist attacks anywhere always make lawmakers wonder what can be done to guard against them here. And some in Congress whose states are facing base-closings are making a fresh argument against them.

Democratic Senator Kent Conrad, who is fighting to keep the bomber wing at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota, says the terrorist attacks show the need for strong bases in the "northern U.S." We're guessing he means North Dakota. And House Majority Leader Tom DeLay says the London bombings are proof that removing the F-16 fighters at Ellington Field in Texas is a bad idea because "Houston can't afford to be left unprotected."

‘Terror’ Ban

The BBC's website called the multiple explosions there Thursday "terror attacks" — and while the term may be perfectly appropriate, it turns out that using that word goes against company policy. The BBC instructs its reporters: "The word 'terrorist' itself can be a barrier rather than an aid to understanding. We should try to avoid the term, without attribution."

In Israel, the BBC has repeatedly refrained from using "terrorism" to describe Palestinian suicide bombings. In 2001, the BBC declined to use the word "terrorism" to describe deadly attacks in Haifa and Jerusalem killing 26 Israelis, but did use the word "terror" to describe the Israeli response.

Council Sick of Complaints

The city council in the small town of Yelm, Washington, was sick and tired of residents complaining about Wal-Mart's plans to build a superstore in the region. In fact, they were so sick of citizens demanding a moratorium on so-called big-box stores, that they barred residents from even mentioning the name "Wal-Mart" at meetings — and banned the terms "big-box store" and "moratorium" for good measure. Now, the ACLU is officially protesting the restriction, calling it unconstitutional. But Yelm's mayor says he doesn't expect the protest to change city policy, adding, "We don't answer to the ACLU."

— FOX News' Michael Levine contributed to this report