LIKE your Sunday National correspondent Ivor Telfer (Letters, Sep 19), I sometimes despair for the future of mankind. It almost seems as if the whole of man’s progress has been aiming towards his own extinction, either by starvation, nuclear annihilation or rendering the planet uninhabitable.
It’s a sad fact that whenever a new invention or innovative idea comes along, the military immediately adapt it to better kill people. Rutherford’s splitting of the atom, Nobel’s invention of dynamite, Wallis’s hovercraft – all could have benefited mankind peacefully, but were turned to military use as well. If only the same urgency applied during warfare could be directed at reversing climate change, what a difference it would make.
READ MORE: Fire service told to prepare for more floods and wildfires due to climate change
The climate crisis demands the same commitment as warfare; unwelcome and sudden removal of freedoms taken for granted such as burning fossil fuels; encouraging new ideas to counteract global warming; and massive investment of public money governments will say we cannot afford – but which we have to.
Shackled as we are to a UK Government peopled by millionaires, who probably naively believe they can egoistically buy their way out of some climate inconvenience, independence for Scotland to light the way becomes more and more essential with each passing day. Optimistically, I share Ivor’s hope that decisive, binding decisions will be taken at the Conference of the Parties in Glasgow; for without hope, what is left?
Richard Walthew
Duns
CLIMATE change will pose problems for food production. Madagascar is a case in point. The south of the island has faced four years of back-to-back droughts. As a result the country has had to deal with severe famine. More than a million people face extreme starvation. They’ve become reliant on raw cactus fruits, seeds and locusts to stay alive.
The United Nations Food Programme says it’s one of the first famines directly caused by climate change. And it shows how climate change particularly hits countries which have little wealth and which produce little CO2.
Alan Stewart
Glasgow
READ MORE: Airbnb makes COP26 promise to try and get more Scots to list properties
WHAT’S all this nonsense about lorry drivers being required to save Christmas? Leave them at home where they were sent and are in no rush to leave. Consumerism will fuel the end of our existence if we don’t get a grip.
There is enough good-as-new reusable plastic and stuff lying in toy boxes, cupboards, wardrobes and garages awaiting an appropriate recycling scheme.
It is said that once upon a time, two fishes and a few loaves were found to be enough to feed thousands when it transpired there was in fact already enough stashed away. Christmas! Something about giving apparently. Or was that a different guy?
You can bet your life, on Christmas Day overindulgence shall be rife among those who have enough already, while many others will be desperate and can’t wait for tomorrow.
Tom Gray
Braco
IF the UK Government is going to move heaven and earth to avoid the current fuel crisis, I do hope that they are not going to put them in the ditch Boris was going to die in.
Watson Crawford
Melrose
STARMER is preparing for government by NOT being Labour, never mind socialist.
Nationalisation of utilities off the agenda. Minimum wage of £15 off the agenda. Mince around the difficult questions like independence.
Becoming more and more like Boris every day – say anything to win votes and get into government. A pale version of Tony Blair with no charisma, no passion and no hope.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer repeatedly heckled during Labour conference speech
And the next person in Labour who says they need Scotland to win just shows how poor their maths is – there are 59 seats in Scotland and EVEN if they won every one it would only dent the 80 majority the Tories have. Their arithmetic is just as bad as everything else.
Then to cap it off, a clip has gone viral of Sir Keir completely blanking a young activist outside the conference hall while saying hello to various people on the way – instead of praising her for being Labour and being a green activist he ignores her – says all you need to know about Sir Keir and Labour.
Winifred McCartney
Paisley
IT was striking to note Jackie Baillie MSP, Scottish Labour’s deputy leader, claim that Labour cannot return to power at Westminster without a revival in Scotland.
Since the General Election of 1945 there have been only two elections where the return of Labour MPs in Scotland has been essential to the return of a Labour government.
In the 1964 General Election, Harold Wilson became Prime Minister after defeating Conservative Alec Douglas-Hume, securing an overall majority of four, and in February 1974 he defeated incumbent Prime Minister, Ted Heath, by a mere three seats.
Alex Orr
Edinburgh
IF the Scottish people “have to re-engage with UK politics” as Ian Murray claims, then either the Scottish people do not engage in politics – easily disproved – or they are not in the UK. Has Mr Murray just granted us independence?
Mary Pattison
via email
AS 12-15 ages start to receive Covid jags, might it be possible to carry these out mainly in the attended high school, and while there the vaccination teams could deliver boosters to the over-70s who can manage to attend?
M Ross
Aviemore
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