Sochi is not a word or a place that immediately sprung to mind when we walked into the new year. It is, I suspect, a place we will hear much more about in the coming weeks. It is a place which is hosting the Winter Olympics while, and at the same time, advertising bigotry and repression. Bit of a dodgy balance to maintain. At the moment the serial on Women's Hour on the BBC, available on Podcast near you, is the biographical story of the Russian journalist, Anna Politikovskaya who was murdered in 2006 and its a timely reminder that speaking out is a still a dangerous pastime in the world. There are some who say we should boycott the games. I have sympathy with this but I wonder if participation may not draw more attention. Its a fine balance, I am no diplomat and only time ever tells with these things. However, I suspect we will hear a lot of noise before the games come to a close. Let's hope there is a lot of positive protest and no terrorism, which is also a possibility. We live in a strange word. I may have a bit of a smug look on my face (above) and I have no reason not to have a little smugness in my wonderful life (for it truly is) but I worry about the pistol what could be termed as the Devil's Right Hand.
