Is your country failing its war veterans?
| 15:05 UK time, Thursday, 13 September 2007
Hi all...welcome to World Have Your Say....we're off air now..but you can follow the conversation here...
The trips are coming thick and fast at the moment with shows in Phoenix and San Francisco fixed up in the last day or so. All trip dates are at the bottom of this post. Here are today's subjects.
IS YOUR COUNTRY FAILING ITS WAR VETERANS?
The Royal British Legion is claiming today that Britain's retired soldiers . It says that they don't receive the financial and personal support that ought to, in particular those who have been injured.
I remember last time WHYS was in the States this was a huge issue there after conditions at one military hospital were widely criticised.
So what about your country? Does your country look after your servicemen and women as you believe it should?
IS THE SWISS WAY OF TREATING IMMIGRANTS ACCEPTABLE TO YOU?
One British newspaper called Switzerland because of some of its laws which affect immigrants and asylum seekers. Some of you have called them 'racist', and the Swiss Federal Commission on Racial Discrimination . Clearly the Swiss MPs who voted for the laws, and who are campaigning for further legislation, couldn't disagree more. What about you? Do you think the existing laws, and some that are proposed, are acceptable?
Some examples:
- Communities vote on whether an immigrant becomes a Swiss citizen.
- Being born in Switzerland brings no right to citizenship.
- The Swiss People's Party wants a new law which would allow for families of an immigrant who commits a crime to be deported. It campaigned for the law with posters of white sheep kicking out a black sheep.
- New laws cut welfare payments to those asylum seekers whose applications are rejected, and restrict applications from those unable to produce identity documents. (The UN has called this regrettable, supporters say it'll stop dishonest applicants.)
JAPANESE PM PRESSURE
It's a decision any politician would find tough. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe resigned from his post only a year after he took office. That was yesterday and today with a stomach complaint probably caused, his doctors say, by extreme exhaustion and stress.
Is Japan asking too much of its leaders? Is there too much attention and pressure, or does that come with the territory? Did Shinzo Abe simply struggle to find his feet in a job that most of us would find very hard?
UP-TO-DATE TRIP ITINERARY
September 21 - Windhoek, Namibia
October 8-12 & 15 - South Africa (certain to include Johannesburg and Cape Town)
October 31 - Phoenix, Arizona, US
November 3 - San Francisco, US
If you'd like to come to any of the shows, you're very welcome. Email worldhaveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
BLOG PROBLEMS - UPDATE
I'm told by the people who have the power and know-how that our blog is being worked on. Ninety-nine per cent of the time you should be able to leave comments perfectly well, but sometimes the blog blocks comments. If it does, send them to me and I'll make sure they get up. I can't promise when it'll get fixed, but we are at least heading in that direction.
Another overly long post comes to an end. Just as well the show has to finish after an hour or on this form I could rabbit on for hours. Speak to you later.
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