Rhys Jones

OK, so we've got some more hype over a killing. Now it is a very sad death and no one can possibly argue otherwise but the hype is incredible.

I have to say though that in many ways I go along with it because it serves a purpose. It serves to show the whole city united in horror and disgust at the murder and to possibly shame some key youths into squealing. It appears to be working and I expect it to die down now.

The whole problem with youth violence and other lower level crime is that the media have to report significant incidents but it is not reflective of the situation. What I mean is that it can't be denied that plenty of crime is committed by youths but it simply isn't anarchy UK either. Crime is falling but crime is still "bad" and should be combated and this tension beign mishandled by the media makes for a distortion of the wider truth.

Nasty crimes and accidents always come about in the school holidays but the obvious signs that adolescents can get their hands on guns is a worrying development. I'm sure the police are working on getting to grips with this supply but in a more intelligence driven method, not so much in the public glare. Too much hype will make getting guns trendy, the next must have after some make of trainer or other. They should try to calm fears and suggest only scumbags use guns. Make it unglamorous.

Gonzales has buggered off at last. But, as with Rove, the timing seems a little too convenient and will only serve to reduce the damage further Senate probing can cause. The impeachment of Bush is long overdue and he has been protected solely because the US is in two wars it can't get out of. If this were a peace-time president and all the non-Iraq scandals had happened, he'd have been out on his ear within 4 years. But Iraq did happen and that is the biggest of all reasons for an impeachment, ironically. If Iraq had been over by now, again impeachment would be more than just a dream.

I saw Barack Obama on the Daily show recently and the difference between him and Bush is like the difference between Cartman and Stephen Fry. America needs someone like him to bring some semblance of sanity and real humanity to the White House. I think Americans are sick to the back teeth with dogma and rhetoric and want someone who will shake sense into the Beltway and the Executive.

He seems to be essentially a more bearable Clinton with all the charisma of a Kennedy but less of the ultra-elite-wanting-to-run-the-show about him. All other candidates in the far-too-long campaign are either far too hot, blunt and thuggish or so cold and/or calculated they make Thatcher seem homely. We appear to have a wily but ultimately passable prime minister in office here and if we can just get Obama in power over there we would have a fairly decent pairing on our hands. I just think that having Obama as president would be too good to be true and therefore, something will stop it. It will either be more GOP corruption messing with the election or something else.

The GOP candidates range from the annoying - Guiliani - to the most cynical politician on this side of the universe - Romney. Not one of them have learnt from Bush's utterly miserable presidency. Not one. In fact, several of the front-runners seem to think that acting like Bush on steroids is the way to go! What are they on??!