Should he quit?

 Passages from  his book in which he describes paying for sex with boys in Thailand were hardly noticed when it first came out four years ago, before he was in government. But French Culture Minister Frederick Mitterrand’s  defense of Roman Polanksi  means that his book, The Bad Life  may cost him his political life.

Talking Points 25th September

Are we losing the chance for peace in the middle east? Today 21 Aid agencies working in the region have accused the Middle-East quartet (Russia, the US, the EU and the UN) of fundamentally failing in its mission.

On Air: Is the response to Sarah Palin sexist?

Hi, it’s James here. With Ros off to the US, i’m stepping up to the mike to host the discussion today.

Following her speech to the Republican convention, lots of you have been talking about Sarah Palin here on the blog, so today we’re going to run with it on air.

Talking Points for 30 July

Thanks Nelson for looking after us last night.

On to some ideas for today’s programme…

World Trade is dead, or at least it has fallen into a deep sleep.

I’m not going back

There are two debates suggested in the Talking Points page that we think warrant their own post. This from ZK. ‘Canada, traditionally a refuge for American military deserters, is preparing to begin deporting some back south to face trial. Any thoughts on this? Is Harper’s government right to do so?’ The man at the centre of this is American Corey Glass. Here, he makes his case for refusing to fight. Are you convinced? Are there circumstances where soldiers should be able to refuse to go to war?

Should we try and lower fuel prices?

I might not need to ask Spanish truck drivers and French fishermen to know their answer, but there’s a fierce debate surrounding the fuel prices that are affecting everyone’s live. There are protests all over the world. Here are some of the arguments being made.

Fuel for thought

If you want to get a heated discussion going around the watercooler anywhere in Europe, then bring up one topic: the rising cost of fuel. For the past few days across Europe, truckers and fishermen have been holding protests against rising world oil prices, demanding government action to hold down prices at the pumps. Yesterday in Britain, hundreds of truck drivers shut down highways in protest against green automobile taxes. Do they have a point? Or do they need to accept that the world is changing and oil is a finite commodity which is only going to get more expensive? If you live in Europe, would you be willing to pay higher taxes to combat climate change? Let us know what you think: would you prefer lower petrol prices, or a cleaner environment? Or can we have both?

I’m from Oregon and this is who I’m voting for and why

Primary time in one of WHYS’ favourite states. If you tune to OPB to hear WHYS, let us know who you support and why. Barack Obama is getting very close indeed to an unassailable lead in the delegate count (that’s not including the super-delegates). If he gets there, should he declare victory?

On air: Is is time to get aid into Burma – with or without permission?

We’re off air now. But you can still email your viewpoint to worldhaveyoursay@bbc.co.uk or leave your comment on this very blog.

To download a podcast of the show click here

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There are three clear options emerging. Which one do you support?

On air: Happy Birthday Israel?

Israel is 60 today. Are you celebrating? Do you think Israel has justified its creation? And how would you like Israel to evolve?