Robin McKie’s account of his 40 years as the Observer’s science editor is as deeply absorbing as it is a warning to humanity (“What I’ve learned after 40 years as the Observer’s science editor”, Focus). He takes us back nearly 50 years to British glaciologist John Mercer’s warning that continued use of fossil fuel could lead to a 2C temperature rise by the mid-21st century threatening, among other potential catastrophes, a 5m sea level rise.
His warnings, since echoed by swelling numbers of scientists, point out that climate change “threatens to displace hundreds of millions of people from their homelands”. Tragically, McKie reports, “large parts of society turn their heads and deliberately reject the truths that have been presented to them”. Our increasingly busy roads and airports illustrate this. His article needs to be read by government ministers, reported widely in the press and studied in schools.
Richard Vernon
Oxford
Everything on Earth is thermally driven, the warmer it gets the more dangerously active it becomes. So it is vital that we keep Earth’s temperature within safe limits. In addition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions, we must achieve zero waste if we are to avoid rendering our planet home unsustainable. In terms of Earth, we are a dangerous species, so we are going to need all our philosophical wisdom and our best scientific achievement if we are to hang around much longer.
John Stone
Thames Ditton, Surrey
This bill is a humane reform
I have great respect for Sonia Sodha, so I took her notes of caution about the proposed assisted dying legislation seriously (“In the rush towards a law on assisted dying, the vulnerable have become expendable”, Comment).
My beloved partner of 40 years, Bob, died almost five years ago of cancer. He had the “decent end of life care” that Sonia argues should be the gold standard: he had palliative care from hospitals, district and Macmillan nurses. Nevertheless, he suffered greatly towards the end: medicine can’t always magic pain away, whatever the palliative care teams promise. He also hated the inevitable loss of dignity in his last few weeks.
I helped to provide the loving care until his last day, which, as Sodha rightly acknowledges, is a privilege that many relatives and friends cherish. But the dying have rights too and their wishes, should they want to shorten that period of their suffering, deserve respect and should be paramount. This bill is for Bob – who didn’t have the option of assisted dying – and one day, perhaps for me too. Yes, there have been safeguarding failures and NHS scandals. The challenge is to work to prevent repeats of those, to strengthen the bill and not to abandon this important opportunity for humane reform.
Jane Drinkwater
Didsbury, Manchester
Sonia Sodha issues a timely warning of the consequences of ignoring concerns about Kim Leadbeater’s bill, proposing state-endorsed suicide. Over 2,000 years ago Aristotle posed a question: “Who is harmed by suicide?” Society’s care of the terminally ill reflects our deepest shared sense of humanity. The humane answer to Aristotle’s question is that we are all diminished by a person’s suicide.
Dr David Jeffrey
West Malvern, Worcestershire
Why resurrect the extinct?
Martha Gill must have been eavesdropping in the offices of every conservation organisation around the world (“Why resurrect the dire wolf when existing animals are facing extinction?”, Comment). Colleagues and I at Fauna & Flora were reeling at Colossal Biosciences’ colossal investment into the claimed de-extinction of the dire wolf.
Pouring millions into de-extinction is like starting to build a new home rather than calling for the fire brigade when your house is on fire. If we have any hope of saving this failing planet, we need to focus on the now and next – protecting real species, in real places, before they too become long lost mythical creatures.
Kristian Teleki
Fauna & Flora, Cambridge
That sinking feeling
One aspect of Jeff Bezos’ wedding not mentioned by Catherine Bennett is that Venice is sinking, and that its sinking is partly linked to Bezos: the carbon emissions of Amazon and pointless trips into space (“No union and forget staff toilet breaks, but hey, at least Bezos can buy Venice for his wedding”, Comment). Is Bezos trying to rub it in that he can buy Venice for his party while simultaneously destroying it?
Michelle Wilson
La Pera, Catalonia, Spain
Rainbows by moonlight
In her solution to Guess the Painting, Laura Cumming describes the phenomenon in Caspar David Friedrich’s painting Mountain Landscape with Rainbow, as “a rainbow somehow occurring by moonlight” (New Review, print only). But this was most likely not just in his imagination. About 10 years ago, we were astonished to see a “moon bow” in Derbyshire: as the full moon rose and shone at a low angle into the rain over the top of Padley Gorge, a silver bow appeared across Hope Valley. When I googled it, I found “moon bows” were rare but most often witnessed in Hawaii.
Cora Greenhill
Grindleford, Derbyshire
Steel is a shared resource
Your leader examines the security concerns of primary steel making capacity (“British Steel is saved for now, but for how long?”). After the Second World War, production was seen in terms of shared, rather than national, sovereignty in the shape of the European Coal and Steel Community. Similarly, because of the war in Ukraine, increasingly prosecuted through European defence cooperation, a European energy and steel union could be founded.
John F King
York
Rhyme of the times
I very much enjoyed William Keegan’s article last Sunday, especially the witty clerihew provided by Martin Bell (“After this, what more proof does Britain need that it can’t ‘cosy up’ to Trump?”, Business & Cash). It calls for a response, so here goes:
Though clerihews often amuse
A limerick’s what I would choose
But I really don’t mind
They’re two of a kind
But please steer well clear of haikus.
John Radcliffe
London N1
