Letters: The scales of British justice

When Jack Straw, the Justice Secretary, lifts the veil that hides from public view what goes on in the law courts, will it indeed be justice we see at work (Podium, 22 September)?

The equal scales represent equality of treatment of both the victims of crimes and of those who are accused of committing them. Equality here means equally important, equally valuable, and equally deserving of time and money spent on getting it right. Just as any of us can become the victim of a crime, so any of us could stand accused and appear in the dock. Should we stand there, whether guilty or innocent, we too would be vulnerable to terrible wrongs. I am thinking of false accusation, perjury, prejudice, of being the victim of the negligence of the criminal justice system and of the horrors that can be faced on remand and in the cells.

And even if one of us was found guilty by the courts, the equal scales still apply. Each person remains as important as any other before the law, no matter how heinous the crime. That, Mr Straw, is the true test of justice.

It is a grievous thing to suffer a terrible crime. And certainly feeling safe at home and as one goes about one's business is a blessing. But who could sleep safely in their bed should justice be taken from us by those to whom it has been entrusted?

Roger Gibbard

Wigan

Who is to blame for the crash?

Dominic Lawson's article "The borrowers must take their share of the blame too" (26 September) leaves me puzzled as to how he reaches the conclusions he does from the evidence he produces.

I worked in retail and merchant banking for 40 years and was able to see both the actions of my colleagues and those of the public. To put the blame for the banking debacle on the cupidity of the borrower is comparable to blaming a fat dog for over-eating.

Human beings are basically animals and, given the opportunity, many will eat until they burst. The blame lies with the banking directors who have approved lending to those unable to repay mortgages and loans, and they who gave themselves large share options and bonuses when their stock and money traders came up with huge profits.

This is not a new phenomenon. Twenty-five years ago, my son received through the post an Access credit card with no questions asked. Not surprisingly, he got into debt and had to be bailed out. Correct reaction: one shredded credit card. Give a dog a bone and it will chew it.

Peter Wing

Bishops Stortford Hertfordshire

In response to Gordon Brown's decision to support the US's $700bn bail-out plan, I can only express absolute disgust.

Henry Paulson, the US Treasury Secretary and former Goldman Sachs boss, is effectively demanding $700bn of taxpayers' money with no strings attached. This is the financial equivalent of the Patriot Act of 2001: using fear to blackmail the American people into giving up their freedoms. The "bail-out plan" represents a bloodless financial coup by a cabal of individuals whose goal is to grab as much power as they can before their time is up.

Tom Cunliffe

Oxford

I agree that it is right for the UK and US governments to lend money to the banks to prevent a financial disaster for everyone.

However we should not forget that the unsound lending policies of the financial institutions led to this crisis. Future profits should not be an excuse for the banks to award themselves excessive personal bonuses. The Government needs good negotiators, who should not allow the banks to dictate the terms. Too often, private companies have better negotiators than the Government, as in the case of the public-private-partnership.

A Wills

Ruislip, Middlesex

Gordon Brown is suffering from historical amnesia. This is the man who has been telling us for the past 10 years about the need to remove red tape and the merits of a flexible labour force. (Flexible translates as making people easily sackable and reducing basic rights to pensions and holidays).

Removing the red tape has allowed the banks and other institutions to behave in a totally reckless way, to the cost of the country. Now, Brown sees the need for regulation and believes he is the only man to sort out the problems.

Paul Donovan

London E11

Am I being naive or are we witnessing the "failure" of capitalism much as we witnessed the "failure" of communism nearly 20 years ago? Was greed the underlying reason for both failures and where on earth do we go now for a model that will work?

Martin Haddrill

Barnstaple, DEVON

President Bush must be relieved that, thanks to the US financial crisis, his term of office won't be remembered for the brainless panic and massive expenditure of his wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Colin V Smith

St Helens, Merseyside

So all those years spent reading up on Marxist-Hegelian dialectics were not utterly wasted. Soon even members of the US Congress will come to appreciate how market capitalism transforms itself into its oligopolistic state-nurtured antithesis.

Ivor Morgan

Lincoln

The right way to teach creationism

Few people have considered an obvious solution to the question of whether to teach creationism in schools: treat it as part of the history of science.

Young Earth Creationism was a mainstream theory until at least the 17th century. Scientists only began to reject this account as evidence came to light which was increasingly hard to reconcile with the idea of a young Earth, and the process went through many stages. As recently as 1900, Lord Kelvin believed, on the basis of thermal calculations, that the Earth was about 20 million years old. I am sure that many students would be interested to follow the story of how scientists gradually converged on the currently accepted consensus of 4.5 billion years.

Above all, it would highlight the difference between science and religion. Science is not mechanical repetition of received dogma; it is a system of provisional theories which constantly change as new information becomes available. No theory can ever be proven beyond all doubt, but some, like Young Earth Creationism, can be disproven.

Manny Rayner

Cambridge

If, as it seems, creationist parents are encouraging their children to engage in a form of guerrilla warfare against evolution in science lessons, then atheist parents should encourage their children to do the same in RE lessons.

Get them to ask how the fossils of extinct sea creatures got half-way up mountains, and why on earth a god would plant them. Get them to ask why so many bits of animals are so poorly designed – why can't chickens fly well enough to escape foxes? Get them to ask why we have to heat food to such a high temperature to kill bacteria that it burns our mouth.

I suspect that the proponents of creationism and intelligent design will very quickly call for a truce, if only because we will be wasting as much of their time as they do of ours.

Harry Perry

Leicester

Doctors' dilemmas over Ritalin

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence has performed a public service in opening up the debate on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) ("Ritalin over-prescribed to children", 24 September).

It is estimated that there are many thousands of young ADHD sufferers who are currently undiagnosed, and many others whose diagnosis hasn't resulted in appropriate treatment to manage the condition. Perhaps we will now see a movement towards consistency across the country both in diagnosis and treatment.

However, there are other issues. Some children have been diagnosed as suffering from ADHD when they have mental health problems or when their behaviour is inappropriate because of social or parenting factors. Some GPs take the easy way out, diagnose ADHD and hand out Ritalin, rather than seek access to scarce child and adolescent mental health services or tackle the thorny issue of inadequate parenting. Some parents pester doctors for a diagnosis of ADHD in order that they can claim attendance allowance.

If these issues can also be addressed as a result of NICE's guidance then they will, indeed, be the guardians of clinical excellence.

Shaun Pye

Leeds

Colourful views on the new look

The "new-look Independent" – I have noticed! Spare me the gloss, the colour coding, the endless magazines I don't read. Give me back my 20 pence. I liked The Independent as it was. Plenty big enough for my letterbox (although I would like a bit more cricket!)

Alan Broadhurst

Nottingham

It's good to see that The Independent is moving with the times: better layout and colour and an effort to attract new young female readers. But like the banking establishments' attitude to old customers, perhaps you are forgetting the ones you already have.

Although the paper is still very good value, I fear it is losing its edge. I am most disappointed that you have traded in Cooperman Mini Maserati for a Skoda.

Lynn Bird

London SE23

Can you please explain how having colour splattered on every page is an improvement? It is proving a wholly unwanted distraction.

What is The Independent trying to be and do? And what is to be your next "improvement" – a centre-page pop-up leader, or perhaps background music? All this is incongruous with the tenor and quality of your excellent news and comment content. Could you perhaps gently take a few steps backwards?

Stan Underwood

Lincoln

I wonder if you really do believe that readers of The Independent have been longing for "handy colour-coded signposting to make it easier to navigate" the main section pages?

I felt amazement and dismay this morning, at the jumble of colours and the feeling of gimmickry. And I was not consoled by your happy assurance that the new second section, Independent Life, "will have a strong consumer emphasis". How horrible! We are all stifled by consumer emphasis in every aspect of life at present.

I have loved reading The Independent for the last four years, because it seemed to me more thoughtful and grown-up and much better written than my previous daily paper. I am very sad that you have dumbed it down with distracting, expensive colour.

DIONE JOHNSON

Marlborough

Wiltshire

How about a feature in the new Independent Life section on the Ten Best Magnifying Glasses, so that we can all read the TV schedules?

Ian Grundberg

Exeter

Devon

Religious divide

You refused to publish the Danish cartoons, presumably because they would be offensive to Muslims. But you are happy to publish a cartoon (25 September) that is offensive to Catholics. When it comes to causing offence to religious believers, you clearly operate with double standards.

Dr Paul Gorner

Stratford-upon-Avon

Bed bugs

Peter Day does not need the now-idle physicists at the Large Hadron Collider to explain why all his bedding ends up inside the duvet cover (letter, 25 September). This is easily answered by turning to the basic properties of time. He clearly doesn't have enough of it to bother doing up the fastenings on the bottom of the duvet cover before placing it in the washing machine.

Darren White

Watford, Hertfordshire

Sweetcorn dreams

Thank you for your article on David Mwanaka and his white sweetcorn fields (24 September). I saw some yesterday in my local Sainsbury and we had them for supper last night – delicious! Perhaps the Leicestershire police canteen should offer it on their menu, with a note as to its provenance? Keep up the good work, Mr Mwanaka.

Judi Fendley

London SW20

Don't let it be

At least Paul McCartney mentioned "Palestine", the entity denied by the Zionist narrative ("Bethlehem welcomes a quarter of the band 'bigger than Jesus'", 25 September). But John Lennon would never have played Israel or been ushered away from Palestinian misery. McCartney re-mains the shallow thinker. Your caption is headed "We have worked it out". Hardly.

Stan Brennan

London N8

Headline news

I was bemused by the headline used in The Independent's advertisements promoting home-delivery, "Good news travels fast". If "The me-thane time bomb" (26 September) is good news, please spare me from the bad.

Roger Ottewill

Southampton