HOW MANY HURRICANES DOES AN ANGRY GOD HAVE TO SEND BEFORE FLORIDIANS GET THE MESSAGE?: My brother says this reminds him of when Major won the '91 election over Kinnock - and there are a surprising number of parallels, thinking about it: a weak candidate who's been the butt of jokes for his lame-duck nature, defending a postion he hadn't won through any proper electoral process; a challenger who was intellectually superior but who had trouble connecting with people; going right down to the last minute of polling time; coverage of the count suggesting it would be probably a victory for the challenger at the start - but with predictions moving further and further right as the election results came in.

And, of course, the sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach as you realise that people have gone and voted that way is identical...

Of course: the Major administration was a fiasco, and the mixture of sleaze and stupidity has resulted in the largely unelectable Tory party we have now... so, let's hope the parallels keep coming.

(We're aware of the differences, not least that the British system left Major trying to work with a parliament that offered him dwindling support - not a problem for Bush who seems to have all sides tied up nicely in his favour now.)