benchwarmer

Labour: "If we'd had a candidate Galloway wouldn't have won". Starmer nowhere to be seen. I despair. Let's nail the lie that only Muslims care about Gaza. Two-thirds of the UK population (and, remarkably, the US population too) now want an immediately ceasefire. We're utterly ashamed of our governments allowing Israel to use our weapons to annihilate Gaza.

Last night's events had very little to do with Gaza and nearly everything to do with it being a general election year. Gaza was collateral damage in the political bloodletting that can only get worse between now and November. In terms of winning votes Labour has probably come off worst, but no one has emerged with any credit whatsoever. The overwhelming response of the electorate, no matter where they stand on Israel/Gaza, is utter contempt. For the sake of British democracy, KICK THEM ALL OUT NOW.

I wonder if the death of Alexei Navalny will be a wake-up call for Ukraine's allies? Not exactly what Putin intended. Did he use the West's flagging support as an opportunity to eliminate him?

After Biden's latest faux pas, a senior Democrat was asked for his reaction: "I slept like a baby - woke up every two hours crying and wetting myself" Only in America . . .

That's a no then . . . Brexit has left us with no other options when it comes to foreign policy. America's poodle, that's all we are now. Sovereignty my a*se. Now who would we like to be the next US President? Do we get a vote? Thought not . . .

This is getting serious now. For three months, Israel's allies led by the US have tried to restrain the excesses of the Netanyahu government in Gaza. Said government has responded with a two-fingered salute. What does that tell the rest of the world? That the US has lost its influence in the Middle East. How far will the US go to try and regain it? That's the name of the game now; yesterday's air strikes were far in excess of a proportional response to the attack on the US base in Jordan, and had no direct bearing on the war in Gaza. And how far will the UK go in support? Do we even have a choice?

Impeachment by the Senate is not impartial. It isn't the equivalent of a trial in a court of law. A two-thirds majority is required for conviction. The makeup of the Senate was almost evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. A record number of Republicans did vote against their President, resulting in a simple majority of 57-43, but a two-thirds majority was never a remote possibility. Trump's acquittal by the Senate has no bearing on what a court decides.

I was thinking more in terms of canine welfare - promoting responsible ownership - than the nuisance issue. I take your point about enforcement though - it could be done quite easily with digital records but only if the political will was there.

Bring back dog licences and make chipping compulsory. Reintroducing dog wardens would also be a good idea but I guess they're gone forever, like bus conductors. This is what's known as progress.

For years I've resolved not to make any, but in 2024 I shall stop using old age as an excuse for bone idleness and learn enough about tech to upload and post wildlife pics from my camera.

My grandmother wouldn't have drink in the house, except for a bottle of Stone's Green Ginger Wine at Christmas.

I find coriander rather unpleasant but didn't realise there was a gene involved. Cheers Herman.

Many Christmas foods - stuffing, stollen, panetone, cake, trifle, mince pies etc. - contain gluten so are off limits for me. Most gluten-free options aren't a patch on the original so I tend to look for alternatives. The exception though is GF Christmas pudding which more than compensates for less stodge with more fruit and of course alcohol . . .

So do I. I only discovered recently that it wasn't universal after getting blank looks when I mentioned it. As I understand it, everyone's urine is affected but not everyone can smell it. I like sprouts btw.

Festive fact of the day: Scientists mapping the human genome have discovered a gene which influences whether we love or hate brussels sprouts. Yes, really. (There's also an asparagus gene which means that some people can smell it in their urine.)

On Christmas Eve afternoon my mother used to make mince pies with Nine Lessons and Carols from Cambridge on the radio, while darkness began to fall outside. It's my most enduring memory of family Christmases.

On the Ipswich Star website, today's second most popular item is . . . the full list of Xmas and New Year bin collections Yes it's true The match report was nowhere

I used to work in local government admin, and the gradual withdrawal of central government funding from local authorities has been going on for decades. Council tax rises are also limited for political reasons, hence the growing reliance by LAs on exorbitent parking charges, sale of assets such as land and buildings which used to provide a regular source of income, and half-baked business enterprises.

Their keeper letting one in through his legs was not bad luck . . .

Hooper's mistake is a handy diversion from the fact that Man City conceded three goals at home against seriously understrength opposition.

Slightly OT, but I wonder if the English word "scrimmage" is related to the Scottish word "stramash"?

Does Sunak realise that he's absolutely miles out of his depth, especially when it comes to foreign policy? His "I hope you win" cricket fan comment to Netanyahu was a schoolboy error and so was the Marbles fiasco. It's been made to look as though he was the one who chose Cameron as Foreign Sec, but I doubt it.

Agreed, the Hermes/Evri courier where I live has better local knowledge than most of the others. Right now Amazon is the worst.

I think there's more to it than that. Charles's father was a member of the Greek royal family, born in Corfu the son of Prince Andrew of Greece

Today I went to post a calendar to my sister in New Zealand. They told me it had to go by parcel post and tried to charge £17 for standard delivery. The calendar cost £8.99. I drew the line at, that and have now found one small enough to go by letter post, but it will probably cost at least a fiver to send it. Two or three years ago it was about £3.