Letters

 Death

The Death of Burd Ellen, 

John Faed (1819-1902)

Photo Credit: Glasgow Museums [CC BY-NC-ND] 

Sir, Miriam Margolyes is right: there is a “conspiracy of silence”, and Britons struggle to talk about death and dying (“Harry Potter actress confronts fear of death”, Mar 11). However, there is also the growing subterfuge of the euphemisms “passed” and “passed away”. Sadly, people do die, it’s a fact; pass it on.

(Dr Jim McDermott, Whitwick, Leics, The Times, 13.3.2019)

Sir, I recommend attending a death café, where all matters pertaining to death and dying are discussed in an open-hearted and lively manner and without euphemisms.

(Ceri Wolfe, Witchampton, Dorset, The Times, 14.3.2019)








Wine Consumption

The Vintage in the Claret Vineyards in the South of France, 

Thomas Uwins (1782-1857)

Photo Credit:Tate [CC BY-NC-ND] 

I see (Report, 28 March) that the French are upset by the suggestion they should limit wine consumption to two glasses a day. When I visited Paris in the early 1950s there were posters saying: “For your health’s sake, do not drink more than a litre of wine a day.” Plus ca change plus c’est la meme chose.

(Tony Meacock, Norwich, The Guardian, 2019)

*Your article (Report, 28 March) and subsequent letters regarding the French guidance on maximum consumption of wine reminded me of a colleague who was asked by his GP why he drank as much as a bottle of whisky a day (following the demise of his wife). His response was “That’s all I can afford.”

(Steve Vanstone, Wolverhampton, The Guardian, 2019)

*Re the letter (30 March) comparing French advisory daily wine intake (2019/1950s), my wife and I have no difficulty with either two glasses a day or a litre a day. Our glasses each hold half a litre.

(Colin Steward, Wallington, Surrey, The Guardian, 2019)


Maggots

Sir, Further to Harriet Lear’s letter (Mar 23) about the absence of flavour in maggots, I was fortunate to discover this early enough to enable me to take advantage of a bumper crop of maggots in our raspberries and achieving the status of champion maggot-eater by the age of ten.

(Margaret Midgley, Winchester, The Times, 2019)

Notre Dame

Notre Dame, Reflections, 

Geoffrey Scowcroft Fletcher (1923-2004)

Photo Credit: Grundy Art Gallery [CC BY-NC-SA]

Strange world. Big fire in tower with flats, ordinary people dead – no rich person donates anything. The famous are silent. An old building with stuff in it gets burned. Rich bloke donates part of his unbelievable wealth towards its restoration.

(Marc Langley, Stroud, Gloucestershire, The Guardian, 2019)

So far three rich businessmen have pledged money to the Notre Dame rebuilding. But surely the first donation should come from the Catholic church itself – from the fabulous wealth possessed by the Vatican.

(Adrian Greeman, Tooting, London, The Guardian, 2019)




Critical Thinking

Are US college courses teaching how not to be duped by bullshit really necessary (‘Calling bullshit’: the college class on how not to be duped by the news, the guardian.com, 17 April)?

If students haven’t developed their critical thinking faculty by the time they get to college, they are probably lost to the agencies of disinformation and manipulation…

(Geoff Naylor, Winchester, Hampshire, The Guardian, 2019)


Altruism!

A Capital Joke, 

unknown artist 

Photo Credit: Preston Park Museum & Grounds [CC BY-NC-ND]

Sir, May I add a footnote to your report on the savings to our education system made possible by those who pay privately? We should also be grateful to those who spend millions on private homes and estates around Britain, plus apartments in London and the home counties, as this prevents them cluttering up waiting lists for council properties and similar low-cost accommodation.

We should also thank those who eat in five-star restaurants and so reduce the numbers using food banks and buying fish and chips. Altruism such as this, at considerable cost to those who engage in it, cannot be overlooked in any profile of modern Britain.

(Dr Ian Flintoff, Oxford, The Times, 2019)


Huawei

Sir, All the recent negative debate about Huawei is unsettling for those of us from the North East. For a couple of hundred years, we Geordies have used “Huawei man” as words of encouragement.

(Bob Smith, Clifton, Beds, The Times, 2019)