Readers' corner
How many more?
Sir-- As an Egyptian living abroad, it's heartbreaking to see the death of innocent people because of the failures of the railroad system ('Tragedies in the making' Al-Ahram Weekly 24-30 August). It has been announced many times in the past by government officials that action was being taken to improve the ailing railway system and make the trains safe. We have seen no improvements. I wonder how long we will have to wait and how many more accidents we will have to endure before we take it seriously and do something about it.
Hani Shindi
Alabama
USA
Lost hope
Sir-- I am an Arab citizen who has been forced to lose hope. I have always had hope that change may be on the way, but when you know that the last Arab bulwark is falling to the hereditary model of government you only lose hope. Is individualism so instituted in the Arab mind and rationale that we have lost any collective sense of our selves as an indignant nation capable of reconstituting ourselves as a true civil society with a modern and competent form of government and do away with despotism? Who is accountable for the thousands of lives lost or destroyed every year due to the incompetence of our governments?
Suliman Rashid
New Jersey
USA
To be appreciated
Sir-- I refer to the article concerning the visit of the Egyptian delegation to Lebanon. When President Mubarak decides to delegate his son to accompany this delegation, the pathetic accusation is made that this is done in order to further the cause of the accession of Gamal Mubarak, the president's son. Has no one bothered to consider that the president, who was deeply involved in state affairs at a very difficult time, considered that this was a gesture to the Lebanese government that would be appreciated? I sometimes wonder as an Egyptian whether one should take any further notice of the negative comments by some members of the press on issues that have no relevance to the situation.
Kamel Wassef
London
UK
Did right
Sir-- Throughout the past few weeks, every time I had gone through your Readers' Corner, I had the impression that some of your readers are misguided into believing that Hizbullah was responsible for the war in Lebanon. The fact is that what Hizbullah did was rightly a legal act of self-defence. Israel has been occupying the Lebanese Shabaa Farms since June 1967. On the other hand, while Israel has gotten into the habit of abducting Arab civilians, the West is always ready to wink and condone such acts, though kidnapping civilians, not capturing soldiers, is the flash point of terrorism.
Israel unleashed this latest internecine war in collusion with the US to carve out a new Middle East. They wanted to enhance the spirit of defeatism and subservience among the Arabs.
If Israel wants to live in peace in the region, it should cede to the word of truth for once and leave Shabaa Farms to their Lebanese owners. Occupation and peace make no bedfellows. If Israel is serious about co-existence with its Arab neighbours, it should listen to the sound of logic, comply with UN resolutions, evacuate the occupied Golan Heights, and let the Palestinians have their own state in Gaza and on the West Bank.
Israel should realise that the upcoming wars and conflicts will never be a face-off between two standing armies but against civilians, infrastructure and residential areas. Taking into consideration Israel's confined strategic depth and its diminutive population, we can say for sure that the upcoming wars and conflicts will never be in Israel's favour.
Israel should always remember that the myth of its invincibility has been shattered on the Lebanese front twice in less than six years.
Mahmoud Elewa
Cairo
Egypt
In defence
Sir-- Doesn't Israel also have a right of resistance, that is to resist its destruction by hostile neighbours whose stated objective is Israel's annihilation ('Division spells disaster' Al-Ahram Weekly 24-30 August) or should Israel play Hassan Nasrallah's hostage game?
Jay Shaw
Cleveland
USA
First things first
Sir-- Reading 'The American Way of War' ( Al-Ahram Weekly 24-30 August) I found that your historic time line is incorrect. First, capitalism has indeed worked for many countries including Arab countries. Imperialism was definitely expedited by England, France and Spain, in their quest to colonise the world. The US entered this quest later to keep up economically first and then strategically. Second, the US was brought into WWII because of bombings at Pearl Harbor by Japan. This led to the Allies and adding more strategic bases around the world. Third, the wonderful thing about the US is that its government officials (president and presidents elect) change every four to eight years. This brings with it a different perspective.
I agree that the big nations all have divided the globe as if it were their own. However, the Arab countries have done the same within the Middle East and will most likely continue. It is the quest of any great country (that has land, resources, economy, artillery, manpower and very close allies).
Natalie Felder
Pennsylvania
USA
Language of style
Sir-- While I am not in the habit of writing to people to whom I have not been introduced, I felt that having read '100 years of relativity' by Lubna Abdel-Aziz ( Al-Ahram Weekly 24-30 August) I could not but write to say how much I appreciated the way you have been able to cover the whole of Einstein's life in the space of this article.
As a physicist with an interest in the history of science, I can appreciate how carefully you have researched for this article. Actually, this is evident in all your writings. Also and while I certainly do not want to sound in any way patronising, I wish to add that I admire your command of the language and your elegant and very personal style of writing.
Dr Fadel Assabghy
Cairo
Egypt
E = MC2
Sir-- You are one of the few writers who oblige me to refer to an advanced dictionary. However, in reading the article about Einstein, smart and educational as any of your writing, this time I had to refer to my education and profession as an engineer.
The energy equation E = MC should be written as follows:
E = MC2 ie the energy (E) equals the mass (M) multiplied by the square of the light speed.
I know it could be a printing mistake, but I think it is wise to correct it.
Mostafa Waly
Cairo
Egypt
Al-Ahram Weekly regrets the typographical error, omitting the symbol "squared" (2), integral to Einstein's equation, E=mc squared, in the article "100 Years of relativity". Unfortunately the symbol is not available on our computer library. The equation E=MC2 is also incorrect.
Aspirin for sun
Sir-- I'm surprised that neither your consultant from Bayer nor your dermatologist was aware that aspirin can greatly minimise or eliminate sun burns ('Sizzling skin' Al-Ahram Weekly 17-23 August). As I learned many years ago working on a project at University of California Medical Centre at San Francisco, aspirin blocks protoglandin synthesis, a critical phase of the sun burn process. A normal dose, taken six to 10 hours after the overexposure, pretty much eliminates the painful consequences. Of course, this has no impact on the danger of skin cancer. I've had many occasions over the years, being responsible for children, both my own and school children on class trips under California's unforgiving summer sun, to use this remedy with unvarying good results. Aspirin itself has some counter indications as it relaxes capillaries and can increase bleeding from a variety of causes, but it sure can prevent a lot of suffering. Why doesn't Bayer know about this?
Andy Fahrenwald
California
USA
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