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Right to bear arms...

| 09:14 UK time, Tuesday, 17 April 2007

It's a familiar debate, and unfortuntately, not the first time has been the event to spark it.

We spoke last night about the shootings in the Virginia University which left 33 students, including the gunmen, dead. This morning, people are coming to terms with the news, and asking to the fact a gunman was on the loose. There was a gap of two hours between the shootings, 30 people were killed in the second one.

Student Billy Bason, said:

"I think the university has blood on their hands because of their lack of action after the first incident."

President George Bush is "shocked and saddened" by the incident. I remember how shocked I was during a World Have Your Say trip to Chicago, when we entered Gage Park High School through metal detectors. I'm guessing it's the norm in American scools, and perhaps it will be one day in the UK, following the recent gang shootings in London. Let's hear your reaction.

Iraq government turmoil
Six cabinet ministers loyal to the anti-American Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr pulled out of Iraq's national unity government yesterday. They've said it's because prime minister Nuri al-Maliki has refused to commit to a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops, effectively ignoring the "will of the people". Muqtada al-Sadr has called for police and soldiers, many of whom support him, to oppose the occupation. According to a recent poll, 78 per cent of Iraqis oppose the presence of US forces in Iraq. How much worse will things get in Iraq if this much "will" is summoned?

Cultural taboos
The actor Richard Gere has "insulted Indian culture" by kissing Shilpa Shetty at an Aids awareness rally in New Delhi. Protestors in Mumbai burned effigies of Gere, whilst Shetty played down the indiscretion. Public displays of affection are largely taboo in India - shouldn't Gere have paid more respect to the country he was visiting? , and that she didn't look too upset to be in the arms of Richard Gere either! Shall we hear from some people angered by the kiss?

How do you do?
Is what you should say should you ever be introduced to the Queen of England. and went on to cause even more offence by asking for directions to the toilet, and not the lavatory. Could this be the real reason for the split of the young couple at the weekend? Kate - the daughter of a former air hostess - simply wasn't posh enough? Is the class war still raging in the UK. Royal biographer Penny Juror says:

"I don't think the royal family themselves are that snobbish. But I think William's friends certainly are. His polo-playing set are pretty snobbish"

We'll have a think about that over the sound of the socialites dusting down their ballgowns to the news that Wills is back on the market.....

Happy?
After a wonderful weekend in glorious sunshine, I wasn't particularly happy at having to enter back into the world of work yesterday. So I totally disagree with the European Social Survey, that says the sunshine makes no difference to people's happiness. Denmark's cold but it is the most contented place in Europe, and Italian's are the most miserable apparently. Brits are getting more depressed by all accounts, even with the better weather! So what makes you happy?

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