Tag: letters

Letter: What a wonderful world?

Dear Editor

Great dangers exist for all life on this planet, caused in the main by human activity. This activity is increasingly being moer understood worldwide.

All species of life depend on each other for survival, but it would appear that some authorities – like those in Botswana, Namibia, Zambua and Zimbabwe – have a different view, stating that they intend to allow the shooting of elephants.

Why is such a dreadful thing thought about, let alone acted on? They are also lifting the ban on sales of ivory: it takes very little skill to add two and two together!

These backward steps must be opposed and stopped. NOW!

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens

 

Letters: Thank You from Cats Protection

Dear Editor,

This Volunteers Week (1-7 June), I would like to take the opportunity to thank our fantastic volunteers who give so much of their time, skill and dedication for the benefit of cats in our care.

At Cats Protection we were grateful to involve over 11,200 volunteers during 2018. Volunteers are truly the foundation and life-blood of the charity. Whether volunteering in our shops or populating our social media channels; researching advocacy campaigns or fostering kittens, they ensure that every day we move closer to our vision of a world where every cat is treated with kindness and an understanding of its needs.

Without them, we would not have been able to help rehome or reunite 44,000 cats and neuter around 143,000. Nor would we have delivered 1,693 education talks to 52,343 people. They are vital to every aspect of everything we achieve.

I would also like to thank players of People’s Postcode Lottery who are supporting volunteering across England, Scotland and Wales. Their support for our Volunteer Team Leaders means that we can share best practice through our adoption centres and out to our network of volunteer branches and shops.

We will be sharing a new animation for Volunteers’ Week on our social media channels about the many volunteering roles available with us and would love to hear from cat lovers who would like to help cats locally. They can visit www.cats.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering to find out more.

Yours sincerely,

Julie Meredith

Head of Volunteering Development

Cats Protection, National Cat Centre, Chelwood Gate, Haywards Heath RH17 7TT

Letter: Assange must be protected

Dear Editor

Sweden is a country associated with the better side of human activity: it is a reputation to be respected and treasured.

Recent events around the situation of Julian Assange is doing harm to this reputation, which must be a concern for the Swedish people.

Included in this letter is an appeal to the authorities of Sweden in the UK to use their good offices to secure justice for, and the protection of, Julian Assange from others.

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens

Letter: voice of the people?

Dear Editor

In future elections politicians both local and national must change their approach and attitude to the electors: from one of ‘what we will do for you, if elected’ to one of ‘we will carry out your decisions, if elected’.

This is how a democracy should and could work in the people’s interests.

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens 

Letters: Splash Now for meningitis charity

Dear Editor

Meningitis Now and the Swimming Teachers Association would like to invite parents and their children to take part in a new water-based challenge to help us fight deadly meningitis.

Splash Now can be held in your local pool during swimming lessons, in a paddling pool in your back garden, in the sea – anywhere, as long as it involves water.

All we ask is that participants use the opportunity to raise some money for Meningitis Now and raise awareness about the signs and symptoms of the disease.

We think this could be a really fun way to encourage babies, toddlers and older children to get involved in swimming or just to enjoy cooling down on a hot summers day as well as to help us to support families that have been impacted by meningitis.

To find out more and to register for the event please visit our fundraising pages on the Meningitis Now website.

Yours sincerely

Kat Hollywell

Community Fundraising Assistant, Meningitis Now

Letters: young people lead the way on environment

Dear Editor

It seems that young people are showing their elders how to protest with effect. People have talked around, on and about climate change – but have not pushed hard enough for changes: now it is more than likely we have at most about twenty years to do so. Continue reading Letters: young people lead the way on environment

Letters: Capitalism cannot control the greedy

Dear Editor

It never fails to amaze me to see the varied skills and knowledge of working people and their dedication. This is made clear to each and every one of us when we need help.

Working people are the largest section of the total population; they make and design everything that we use and need.

The importance of each and every one cannot be overstated: it is the skills of the working people that make things – no investor or financial institution can or does produce anything. Their contribution, if investing can be called that, is to buy the abilities and skills of people for a weekly wage. Then, they lay claim to everything that has been produced, making even more profit from the labour of working people.

This is how the society in which we live operates – it is called Capitalism, an outdated system that works for the benefit of the wealthy.

It buys the labour power and skills of working people, as many hours as possible and for as little pay as possible, and when the goods are made takes them as theirs to sell for their own profit. What an incredible system we tolerate!

To change this blatant exploitation of working people needs examples of where public ownership of such industries as Gas and Electicity, railways and other public passenger transport; water companies, too, would also benefit not just the people employed but the public at large.

Capitalism cannot control the greedy, or solve any problems.

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens

Letters: Brainwashed Britain?

Dear Editor

The banking organisations, through incompetence, nearly made the country bankrupt but the debt was passed on to the people to shoulder. They had to accept a lot of unemployment, higher prices in the shops, frozen wages and severe cuts to public and social services.

To avoid any resistance, the authorities launched a campaign of diversion and blame. Everyone can remember how different sections of society were blamed in turn: the unemployed for not working, the disabled for being on benefits – all were targets to be blamed.

This went on for many years and people had taken enough of austerity; there was a growing mood for change, calling for the authorities to take the banking industry into public ownership and impose tighter controls over financial institutions.

This fast-growing popular demand was greatly feared by the political elite. It took them quite a while to develop an idea to divert these demands, but after eight years they were successful. It was a continuation of the blame game, but this time not blaming our own people but any and all those coming from Europe – and the idea of a Referendum was born. They concentrated on three main issues: Control, Laws and Migration.

  1. Since the referendum we have lost thousands of people wh o formerly worked in our social services and the NHS: these services are now struggling to keep going.
  2. Most laws from the EU have been beneficial, adding to workers’ rights and conditions of employment. EU laws also protect the environment. The UK Parliament as a law-making body remains in control.
  3. This is the most mentioned issue. For whom are the demanding control? The British people have already said they wanted the banks to be publicly owned and demanded tighter controls on financial institutions. Control is such a loose word that can be manipulated by individuals for the benefit of the few.

The promoters of the referendum conducted a continuous campaign of national ‘brainwashing’. Putting relentless pressure on people is not a new idea, as a look back at recent history will confirm.

But unfortunately nearly 50% of the population were aware of the implications of a break with Europe that is our biggest trader of imports and exports, and closest.

A. Delahoy,

Silverknowes Gardens

Letters: Essential utilities must be publicly owned

Dear Editor

Every one of us needs the supply of electricity and a lot of people also need gas for heating and cooking. We all need a supply of fresh water: yet all of these industries are owned by private companies, able to fix prices to maintain multi-million pounds of profit for investors.

This supply of electricity, gas and water is essential and is provided by workers in those industries.

Why, then, should such essential services be in the hands of private companies? These basic essential services should be publicly owned.

The control of these basic essential services cannot be left to private individuals and groups of investors. It is backward thinking; it is greedy and immoral however measured.

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens