Humiliating
I am irritated by the ban on beards and veils on buses in China (‘China bans beards and veils from Xinjiang city buses,’ Gulf News, August 7). Yes, I am a Muslim, but regardless of being a Muslim or not, I cannot find a reason to humiliate people for who they are. I cannot find a reason for punishing anyone because of their religion. Their religion is their choice and it’s not hurting anyone. Just because someone in the world doesn’t like how you look shouldn’t mean you should be humiliated for who you are. Place yourself in their shoes and think.
From Mr Rahaf Al Otaiba
UAE
Facebook comment
Oppression
Didn’t China earlier oppress Buddhists in Tibet? When hundreds of monks committed self immolation in protest, the world was silent during that time as well.
From Mr Rama Moorthy
UAE
Facebook comment
Saving one
The power of people in numbers (‘Watch: ‘People power’ frees man trapped by train in Australia,’ Gulf News, August 7)! When there is a will, there is a way out. I would like to thank all these people for being human. On one side of the world, thousands are being killed and on the other side, many are saving one.
From Ms Maria Monteiro
Dubai
Anything is possible
It’s good to see things like this. It really shows how anything is possible if we all are united. When we work together, we can achieve things much more easily.
From Mr Manish Garg
Dubai
Website comment
Not effective anyways
What is the point of checking the ratings of schools, when people believe that the schools turn things upside down to please the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) staff to get the best ratings (‘Many parents don’t view KHDA results online,’ Gulf News, August 7). I don’t think it is an effective evaluation of the school.
From Mr Rob Jones
Dubai
School drama
Sometime before, during an undercover investigation by a newspaper, it was revealed that the schools do a lot of rehearsal to impress KHDA during inspections. Teachers and students were taking the pressure because the school management wants to show the KHDA that they are good, so that they can increase the fees.
Perhaps everyone is aware of this drama by the schools, and so people are not giving importance to those reports anymore. At the same time, KHDA’s efforts to create and improve standards should be praised as well.
From Mr Raj
Sharjah
Website comment
Not important
What’s the use of checking the results anyway? Only the school with very high fees are the ones that top the KHDA list. Of course, being a middle class resident and earning an amount that is only enough for my day to day needs doesn’t allow me to afford the fees of those schools.
We are better where we are and all I wish is that God will make my son a good human being and a successful person in life, even if he studies in a school that has the lowest grade in the KHDA reports.
We don’t have big dreams; we believe that God will help our children just like he did when we were children. Our parents didn’t have these reports in their time and we turned out to be good people. I personally believe that it’s not the school that is important – it’s the home first, the parents and then the family. The least important is the school and the teachers.
Read books to your children always.
From Ms Tiya
Dubai
Website comment
Probability of survival
This is an interesting article (‘Are planes crashing more frequently?,’ Gulf News, August 7). While air travel does seem to be the safest mode of transportation, due to the number of passengers it carries the accident rate is very low, many statisticians do not consider one important parameter while jumping to this conclusion: Accident-fatality rate correlation.
The odds of a person surviving a plane crash are almost zero. If we compare that statistic to driving, car accidents occur in the hundreds of thousands on a daily, global basis, but how many of them actually result in fatalities? Based on the number of accidents, the fatality rate is marginal.
We all have been involved in road accidents or know someone who has been involved in one and has survived. But ask yourself this: do you personally know anyone who has survived a passenger plane crash? There is good reason why the fear of flying is well documented. Probability dictates that the average human will never be involved in an aviation disaster in his lifetime. But if he is, he surely won’t be reading this!
From Mr Rishi
Dubai
Website comment
Scary to think about
It seems that maybe nowadays, the news channels are highlighting it more but it does seem that plane crashes have considerably increased and this is scary. Is it because of the lack of training, lack of security measures or lack of proper maintenance? It’s very scary, especially when travelling with children - you never really know.
From Ms Vanitha Iyer
UAE
Facebook comment
Reality versus internet
Although there is very useful information on Google (‘The dangers of Dr Google: Dubai doctors warn against self-diagnosis,’ Gulf News, August 7), it has its risks. It is good to remember that not everything and anything is available on the internet in one click!
From Ms Shreyas
Mumbai, India
Website comment
Agree with services
I look forward to seeing improved utilisation of the endless free options online, such as Dr Google. Whether it was by a verified and confirmed doctor database with online chats and appointments at low fees or free service to help humans as humans and not as cash bags walking into hospitals, having to pay loads of money even before getting a diagnosis report and proper answers that is difficult to justify.
From Mr M. K.
Dubai
Full name withheld on request
Aggression lost, resistance won
Wars are fought with weapons, but they are won by sacrifices. Evidently, Israel’s strategic defeat is in sight (‘Loved ones in Gaza finally laid to rest,’ Gulf News, August 8). More and more innocent victims have not helped Israel winning on ground. On the contrary, Gazans’ resistance has appeared invincible.
Amazingly, billions of dollars of military aid to Israel has gone in vain. Knesset members on both the right and left have censured the security cabinet’s decision to withdraw from Gaza without sealing any agreements with Hamas. The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is in trouble. No other option is left on the ground except agreeing on withdrawal.
Ariel Ilan Roth, the Executive Director of the Israel Institute, in his analysis of ‘How Hamas Won’, published by the Council on Foreign Relations, writes: “War is not an exercise in fairness, but in the attainment of strategic objectives. And, on that score, Hamas has already won. It has shattered the necessary illusion for Israelis that a political stalemate with the Palestinians is cost-free for Israel.”
The entire world’s condemnation of Israel’s actions and its solidarity with Gaza is evident. Latin American countries have cut diplomatic ties with Israel. Even, pop stars like Madonna, Rihanna and actress Selena Gomez are promoting a ‘Free Palestine’ movement on twitter.
Despite banning pro-Gaza protests, France’s foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, found himself compelled to say that Israel’s right to security does not justify the ‘massacre’ of civilians. Even, Netanyahu’s Likud Party has agreed that the unilateral withdrawal marked a victory for Hamas.
Therefore in the near end of conflict, it seems rather clear that Israel’s aggression lost the ground.
From Mr Nasser Farooq
Karachi, Pakistan
Human conscience
What has been going on in Gaza for the past month is a sad story of man’s inhumanity towards other men. It reflects the devaluation of human values. As a matter of fact, it was genocide at its worst that has been going on with computer precision and deadly accuracy.
Sadly, all the Israeli aggression has been amply supported by the West and the US. The indifference of other nations, shows the callous and criminal attitude towards the continuance of peace in the different parts of the world.
Gaza is a part of the world that is inhabited by all of us. But why on Earth are these people behaving with such beastly indifference and criminality?
The other more important point is that the brutal aggression is targeting women, children and even infants in arms. Terminal patients in the intensive care unit are butchered like nobody’s business.
The situation of man’s inhumanity to man is going on without any light at the end of the tunnel. Even the United Nations, who is supposed to oversee peace in the world, has been totally indifferent.
From Mr Thomas Mattew Parackel
Kerala, India
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