For goodness sake, close your mouth, I can see your socks! Yes, I know it's unusual rare unique for me to raise even a half cheer for 'ol' Big Ears' in the White House but his press statement yesterday - it wasn't a press conference because the press were, as usual, totally ignored - delivered in his normal sonerous tone - the NHS should consider using records of his speeches as an anaesthetic, think of the money they'd save! - amounted to a policy of say nothing, do nothing, and, given the ineptitude of current American foreign policy, think nothing! Actually, that is a little unfair because when you are in a position of not being able to do anything very much then it is wise not to do anything very much! One can remember one or three past American presidents who never quite got the hang of the 'do nothing' philosophy. At this particular moment, one dreads the thought of Dick Cheney being an influence!
As I am setting new records in this post, let me create another one by quoting - God help me! - Neville Chamberlain:
How horrible, fantastic, incredible it is that we should be digging trenches and trying on gas-masks here because of a quarrel in a far away country between people of whom we know nothing.
Alas, a few months later he was doing exactly that, although to be fair, it was a different country and under different circs. Anyway, Ukraine fits his description exactly. It matters infinitely more to the Russians than it does to us so our involvment should be minimal. If, by the expenditure of a little bit of money and a lot of tea and sympathy (but no soldiers!), we can entice western Ukraine into western Europe then so be it and 'Vlad the Impaler' whose spear looks a bit bent to me, is welcome to the remainder. So well done, Barry, for doing, er ,well, nothing, really!