Monday started like Sunday ended: wet and miserable. However, by midday, the rain let off and the sun started to come out intermittently. Not too bad at all by the end of the afternoon.
Tomorrow, Queen Elizabeth II will visit the Republic of Ireland for the first time. It is the first visit to Ireland by a reigning British monarch since the country gained independence in 1922. The relationship between the UK and Ireland is historically fraught. The so-called troubles in Northern Ireland are firmly tied in with the separation of Ireland and Britain, and these continue to rumble today. A terror group with republican leanings has threatened violence on account of this royal visit, and I have my doubts about the wisdom of this visit.
Some people find it pleasing to see the head of the International Monetary Fund in jail for alleged sex offences. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a potential candidate for the presidency of France, was remanded in custody today after accusations were levelled against him that he had attempted to rape a chambermaid in New York. I hope that justice is seen to be done, irrespective of Mr SK's position. The depiction of justice, a blindfolded woman holding scales, suggests as much.
I hope that the international arrest warrant against Muammar Gadaffi will be executed, in order that he can face justice too over the way he has treated the people of Libya over the past 40 years or so. We already knew he was unsavoury, but he has shown his true colours over the past few months. Osama bin Laden did not deserve a better fate than he got two weeks ago. Muammar Gadaffi in court will be a sight to behold.
