Sometimes Hollow

There have been three 'Freedom Flotilla' attempts to transport token quantities of aid to Gaza. The first was well publicised, because Greta Thunberg was onboard, the second and third voyages have had a lower profile. The third boat was called 'Handala' - the name of a cartoon refugee child that is emblematic of the Palestinian cause in the Arab world

Israel surrounded the Handala with armed boats, boarded it in international waters and detained all on board. You might think that would be an act of piracy, calling for some kind if response. Israel announced it had intercepted the 'Navarn' - this is correct, because it is the ship's registered name. The registration page shows that the ship is registered to the United Kingdom. You might think the response would come from us and be less than cordial

We are still making our way through podcasts about Britain's 19th century 'Opium wars' with China. Today we learned that the second of these started because a suspected Chinese pirate ship, with a Chinese crew, was intercepted by the Chinese authorities and its flag taken down. That was a Union Jack, because the ship had an expired registration in Hong Kong. The insult to the flag was observed and reported to the British parliament; war followed. Times change

Our neighbour is away and we are on watering and chicken-farming duty. MrsM came back and said his apple trees have lice! I don't think they are lice, but I'm not sure what they are. Maybe an early life-stage of a Reticulated Ladybird, or of something called a 'scale insect' (there are 8,000 species of the latter). Some, but not all of them, are cast off exoskeletons, left behind as the insect has grown