Futile escalation

A cooler night, making it easier to sleep, but my strained shoulder kept me awake more than my bladder. I didn't sleep for long enough and had to contend with persistent drowsiness into the afternoon. Maybe it's the restorative quality of sleep that's lacking. We went to the St Catherine's Eucharist. Fr Rhys celebrated the anniversary of his ordination anticipating the feast of St Peter the Apostle the traditional ordination day. The congregation was unaccountably half its usual size. There's no extreme heat warning today, it's breezy, 20C with bright sunshine delivering a mix of strong heat and cool gusts. It reminds me of alpine weather in early spring, thirty years ago. Glaciers melt more rapidly now as winter snow covering ancient ice doesn't last as long. 

Fighting has broken out again in the Straight of Hormuz, after an Iranian drone attack on a commercial vessel, asserting its control and ownership of the waterway, America responded by bombing oil export infrastructure and military targets in a vain attempt to force Iran to accept truce proposals. Iran retaliated by attacking Kuwait and Bahrain, where the US Navy's Middle East Headquarters has been significantly damaged. It's Iran's response to Trump's claim that future control of traffic through the Straight is in his hands. Confronted with Trump's bellicose rhetoric, Iran demonstrates its defiance militarily, adding to the anxieties of America's Gulf State allies. Escalation and threats of escalation can only undermine cease fire negotiations in the light of Iran's strategic advantage, possessing the Straight of Hormuz as its border.

Meanwhile, Israel has instigated a process involving the Lebanese army in disarming Hezbollah militias as part of returning full control of the country to its government. Will this work, after Israeli troops have displaced a million people, destroyed homes and killed more than eight thousand? The Lebanese government is too weak and divided to disarm Hezbollah on its own, but trusting Israel which has so forcibly deprived Lebanese people of their sovereignty is a lot to ask in these circumstances.

We had falafel with red cabbage and new potatoes for lunch. Afterwards I slept soundly for three quarters of an hour in my armchair but it didn't entirely dissipate the drowsiness, not even after walking in Llandaff Fields for another three quarters of an hour. I spent the evening until bed time watching a couple of episodes of 'Blanca' as I didn't have the energy for writing.