Environmentalists?

As a new reader of your magazine,I'd like to denounce the attitude of some hard-core, self-appointed environmentalists who, with their permanent finger-wagging, patronising views and absurd actions, not only make fools of themselves at times but, which is much worse, do a greaty deal of damage to the otherwise beneficial and necessary green movement.

I'll mention but two revealing examples to illustrate my view. In the first place, most readers will recall the release of dozens of minks from farms, carried out by some so-called ecologists to protest against the fur industry, as the magazine itself featured recently. It's common knowledge-apparently not to the protesters though-that minks are voracious predators, so their wandering free in the woods will result in environmental imbalance: the cure is worse than the disease.

Another, more fundamental issue is raised in my second argument: I'm fed up with some green groups saying no to everything, including wind power stations, every time the authorities intend to set up one on a mountain crest; even if that may be the most suitable site, they will only regard the well-being of certain birds or claim that it is an eyesore. Even admitting all that, we must think realistically, not dogmatically: we need energy because we can't go back to the caves, so we should promote clean, renewable power sources instead of dangerous or polluting energies. As a result, we can't oppose everything systematically: we can't help but choose the lesser evil.

I'm aware that my views may seem anti-green at first sight; nothing could be further from my mind. Though not a radical myself, I try to apply some basic measures to my everyday life: use public transport whenever possible, reuse and recycle, save energy and consume less... I'm convinced that is the way to help our ailing planet. We also need sharp, clear minds who can argue successfully in favour of sustainable growth, because there is too much at stake-and it might be too late.However irresponsible, bombastic demonstrations only have an adverse effect on the movement to save a planet in distress.

The animals are not to blame

The first thing that I want to state before I go on with my complain is the fact that I neither hate dogs nor am I against having them as pets. It's undeniable that dogs and humans have been best friends for long and so it's amazing to see what close bonds are developed between some owners and their pets. However, what owners easily forget is that they have an animal, which implies they are responsible for their proper care, that is not only food and water but also shelter, safety, regular veterinary care, exercise and so on.
Why am I complaining then? Above all because I'm fed up with the owners' irresponsibility about their pets. A valid-license and a rabies and ID tag doesn't mean that you can let the dog roam freely everywhere. Once it is your property, the dog must be on leash, because they can scare children and other adults who are unable to tell if the dog is friendly or aggressive. Besides, walking your dog in public might requiere a cage-type muzzle depending on the animal's breed.
Finally, what makes matters worse is having to put up with dog mess anywhere. Don't owners realize how disgusting it is to step in a dog poo -pardon me- or smell it or just see it clearly in the path? Why don't they pick it up and dispose it properly?
The majority of readers will agree with me that perhaps not only the animals should be trained but the owners should also be taught to take rsponsibility for the animal they have chosen to have.

Whale Hunting

Happy New Year to all of you!!
I am sending my Letter (sorry for being so late!) and I must apologise for not being able to attend lessons these next three weeks (I sprained my knee on the mountains)
Keep weel and see you soon. marifé

Dear Sir
I am writing to your magazine to support the UK's opposition to the resumption of commercial whaling on the grounds that this killing is cruel and no longer necessary.
The pro-whaling High North Alliance, insisting on the fact that there is no humane method of killing whales, thus justifying the use of explosive harpoons among other techniques, pointed to apparent inconsistencies in the policies of some anti-whaling nations. They drew comparisons between commercial whaling and recreational hunting, saying that the United Kingdom allowed the commercial shooting of deer without these shoots following the standards of British slaughterhouses, but said that whalers should meet these standards as a pre-condition before they support whaling.
The countries in this Alliance also stated that whaling is an essential condition for the successful operation of commercial fisheries and that whales put a heavy predatory pressure on commercial species of fish, which should be available for humans.
Recently the Chilean government promised to seek support from other countries to obtain a worldwide prohibition against whale hunting, and popular protests have taken place in front of the Japanese embassy in Chile against Japan's planned whale hunting in the Antarctic region.
Even though today some international organizations try to protect the whales, making reports to explain how important and endangered they are and trying to stop ships that hunt them to give them a chance to escape, it is obvious there is still a lot of work to reach this goal.
Yours sincerely,