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Macca v Mucca: A bitter divorce

We鈥檙e hearing some choice soundbites from central London.

Geeta Sidhu-Robb, a lawyer, has some experience of divorce: 鈥淢en use money. Women use the kids. You are really polarised 鈥� that鈥檚 the way the law works.鈥�

Anna: 鈥淢y grandmother and grandfather split. There was nothing for them to divide. It was very nice even at the end. My grandmother even moved back in with him when he got ill.鈥�

Kiki: 鈥淭he two of them are obviously having problems. Divorce is one-sided where men are treated like criminals. Lawyers charge about 拢1,000 a month . . .鈥�

Geeta: 鈥� . . an hour.鈥�

Kiki: 鈥淢y divorce cost me 拢35,000. My wife was on legal aid. The legal system is there to take property away from them. The Child Support Agency said I had to give her 拢800 per month. They over estimated my income.鈥�

Geeta: Why didn鈥檛 you just give her that 拢35,000 and maintained the relationship instead of giving it to a lawyer?鈥�

Kiki: 鈥淚 wish I鈥檇 had that option. It鈥檚 difficult to be amicable. Lawyers will often pour petrol on the fire.鈥�

Geeta鈥檚 not too pleased with that!

Richard: 鈥淚 am the amicable divorce. We sat down and decided how we were going to divide stuff. We did not require an attorney at all.鈥�

Some texts just in:

Divorce becomes messy because of lawyers, especially if big money on one part is involved.
Leo, kuwait

Rather than get a divorce, just save all the time and bother, buy a house and give it to someone you hate.
Barry in Smethwick.

An e-Mail just in:

When people can remain respectful through admittedly difficult circumstances, a divorce can be conducted with a minimum of bitterness.
Neil, Detroit

Geeta has the final word and she鈥檚 remarkably candid: 鈥淵es, the people earning money out of divorce are the only ones who win.鈥�

A comment in from someone who plainly didn鈥檛 take the easy option:

I don't think it's possible to have an amicable divorce. My estranged parasite of a husband is presently trying to take me to the cleaners, despite assuring me he would not do so.
Alison in Aberdeen, Scotland

It鈥檚 the halfway point so we鈥檙e just breaking for the news . . .be right back.

Wake up. the only winners in a divorce are the lawyers. The systems built that way.
Dee in Berlin.

We鈥檙e back and Rabiya and Richard are summarising the massive response we had to last night鈥檚 programme featuring Ginnah Muhammad, a veil-wearer in Detroit.

. . . the e-Mails are still flying in on this . . . keep 鈥榚m coming.

Israel and Lebanon: the aftermath.

. . . meanwhile we鈥檙e going to hear from some folks in Lebanon and Israel.

Zakaria: My life is getting back on track. For other Lebanese people it鈥檚 not. Many Lebanese people lost many relatives. Israel is based on the army. Everything is based on power. They don鈥檛 like to negotiate. What I鈥檓 saying is a fact.鈥�

Someone just stuck up for Israel: 鈥淲e negotiated with the Egyptians and the Jordanians.鈥�

The debate is heated but a mail just came in:

I am profoundly surprised at the amount of time World Have Your Say has dedicated to the subject of Paul McCartney's divorce. This show is able to connect people throughout the world and today it has wasted its capabilities to such a subject that is materialistic and centers on stupid worthless celebrity culture. Why is this topic sharing an hour with such an important and critical topic as the developments in post-summer-conflict Lebanon and Israel. World Have Your Say, you have disappointed me.
From Ryan, Virginia, USA

A post to our blog

Israel-Hezbollah war showed that only ordinary and deprived people affected by it remain under the pressure to cope with its consequences. As for politicians they keep carrying out their business either in government or opposition without risking being brought to trial by their people or the international community through an international court.
Abdelilah Boukili

Nicolas: 鈥淢ost have open hearts for Hizbollah. They brought us victory we didn鈥檛 see for many years.鈥�

Rabiya has asked our Israeli guests for their view:

Moty: 鈥淲e are very suspicious of whatever the Lebanese government does. It is clearly influenced by Hizbollah.鈥�

Ben: 鈥淭here is wide criticism of the actions of the government and whether it was wise to start this war. Safer since the conflict? Unchanged.鈥�

Jason has posted to our blog

Here is my pacifist point of view with this war: Violence Begets Violence. Lebanese violence in the form of kidnapping soldiers begat Israeli violence in the form of bombs and bullets. If you are going to start a fight, you better be sure you are prepared to fight it. You cannot blame other people for responding. Maybe it is time for the Arabic Islamists to embrace non-violent resistance. Jason / Wisconsin

That鈥檚 it for tonight. Good night and sleep tight!