A fifth of the population are so thick (or disinterested in anything more cerebral than Big Brother) that they probably think the Gaza Strip is Paul Gascoines old England shirt. However, for the rest of the population, this present crisis is very serious and intractable.

People’s views tend to be coloured by their stance on Israel. I am a supporter of Israel, (no surprise there) which does not mean that I agree or understand their every action.

It has to be blindingly obvious (to all but Hamas)that if you poke a Hornets nest then you must expect to get stung.

Much has been spoken about ‘proportionality’ – well there’s a thing. If I took a sneaky punch at Mike Tyson could I moan, upon regaining consciousness, (through swollen lips and broken teeth) that his response had been disproportionate?

What sort of world do these people inhabit?

Israel should take lectures on proportionality from Britain, who participated in the ‘Shock & Awe’ war on Iraq?

Again, people have tried to compare Britain’s response to IRA terrorism but the comparison is false. If Ireland itself, rather than a few fanatics, had been firing rockets at mainland Britain then our response would have been similar to the Israeli action.

The rights and wrongs concerning the establishment of a Jewish homeland in 1948 are immaterial. We are where we are.

Evil men with secret agendas are pulling the levers in the Middle East. This power struggle is not even about religion it is about wiping Israel off the world map. If you can’t see that then nothing I say will persuade.