• Paddy's lucky escape

A country where parliament has a role in sentencing a journalist to death for blasphemy is hardly likely to be open to the ministrations of one of the greatest liberals in the past few decades.  Coupled with the thought of having to shore up the ailing powerbase of former oil man and Bush placeperson Karzai, I reckon Paddy's had a lucky escape this time, despite his obvious enthusiasm and qualifications for the role he was set up for.

I reckon we may as well pull our troops out of Afghanistan.  If the Afghan government doesn't think they areworking for them the last ting we want is years, perhaps decades, of bogged down forces losing British boys and girls for a country that doesn't want us there.