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| Friday, 28 September 2001 |
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Letters | |
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Dehiwela town has been afflicted by a plague of soft drinks kiosks. These have come up like mushrooms all over Dehiwela causing great inconvenience to residents, pedestrians and bus commuters. Complaints made to Coca Cola Beverages Sri Lanka Ltd., RDA, Dehiwela Police and the Municipal Council have fallen on deaf ears. A case in point is the illegal, red, fibre-glass kiosk located barely a 200 yards from the Dehiwela Police station on Hill Street near the Nedimala bridge. This kiosk is adjacent to a bus commuters' shelter made of cement. Gradually the commuter shelter has been acquired by the kiosk owner to park his bicycle, store and cut king-coconuts, keep his dustbin etc. Needless to say the bus commuters have been driven away from the but half causing great inconvenience to them. Residents and commuters who have complained to the soft drink Company, RDA, Dehiwela Police and the Dehiwela Municipal Council have witnessed a classic case of passing the buck. One justification that concerned people bring for their action is that these kiosks are better looking than wooden sheds that were there previously. In the case of the above mentioned kiosk at Hill Street, this location never had any kiosk. What has in fact happened is that a bad precedent has been set. These kiosks also provide the ideal base for a future drug operation with its easy access. These kiosks are definitely well-patronised but the customers are ones who used to frequent shops in the vicinity, which pay their legitimate dues to the Local Government Authority. These shops now have seen a decrease in their business. This is an appeal to those responsible to do something now and nip this problem in the bud before the cancer spreads. Self employment projects are well and good but only if they are legal and do not inconvenience the general public. M. FERNANDO -Dehiwela.
Which appears to have been necessary and compulsive at the time of a birth of a religion, the concept of Holy War written into Holy Scriptures of many religions has caused havoc to humanity in the name of God since its inception, and it continues with equal venom and fury even today. The Muslim fundamentalists who are suspected of being behind the attack on American targets believe that they are being commended by God to destroy 'Satanic' America. They believe that one day the whole world would embrace Islam and it appears that they are working towards that goal. The Christian fundamentalists for most of whom America is the home, inspired by the concept of Holy War are on an agenda to convert all the "Satanic" followers. All of them, of whatever religious persuasion are, religious fanatics. Those who die in defence of religion or the motherland, whether Muslim, Christian or any other, believe that they would get immediate access to heaven upon death. There lies the motivation for war, murder and terror. So who does not like to be born in heaven with the least effort of courting mere death. To be born in heaven to exist into eternity instead of a year or two more 'suffering' in this world is, worth million times more. When it comes to war in defence of religion or the motherland, the dividing line ends nowhere because there is no war that does not involve religion or the motherland, and God is believed to be behind them right throughout. So, first and foremost, if we all genuinely wish to bring peace on to the earth, we have to stop claiming exclusivity to any one particular religion, and the concept of Holy War should be banished from the mind of the ignorant believers. Otherwise, we will be stuck in this muck for ever, and we will have no peace on earth, and let us say "good bye" to peace, then. E.M.G. EDIRISINGHE -Dehiwala
A news item had appeared in DN that a University in India has introduced Astrology leading to research in its curriculum and that some scientists had seeked to prohibit such an action on the grounds that it is irrational. It looks as if these scientists consider anything beyond their comprehension as irrational; anything that does not fit into the dimensions of the knowledge they had acquired on their short sojourn on this earth, is irrational. They seem to forget that these dimensions have boundaries and it is irrational and superstitious to believe that the dimensions of their knowledge are without boundaries. Of course, the dimensions of knowledge expand. There was a news item that the established scientific theories have to be revised and that new dimensions hitherto unknown to these 'scientists' exist. It is possible that within these new dimensions fall astrology, telepathy, thought-reading, spiritualism, God, ghost and such. For ages, mankind knew and "felt" that further dimensions apart from the 'scientific' dimensions existed but could not prove to the 'scientists', say, by recording God or ghost on a film roll to satisfy the limited knowledge the scientists had acquired. A. PARAMESWARAN -Chunnakam
Due to frequent droughts experienced, the plantations including livestock is adversely affected as well, making the effects of the drought more harmful to the people. To overcome the above to some extent, it is essential to restore all abandoned tanks available, including those on plantations. This would accumulate as much water as possible during the monsoons, serving as a reserve to be used when necessary to sustain the above. Also providing adequate water for human consumption as well, thereby protecting the above, which is extremely essential for our survival. Droughts remind us the value of water, which is precious, hence should not be wasted. TOMMY WANIGASINGHE -Kurunegala
I cannot help seeing the similarity of the attacks by the LTTE and the attack on the United States establishments by terrorists. The United States should investigate the LTTE especially its London and Toronto establishments and they may well find that the LTTE has masterminded this attack. Britain and Europe will also pay the price for harbouring such ruthless terrorists who will train others in their devastating methodology. The West by providing sanctuary and legitimising such terrorism have swallowed a pill deadlier than the cyanide pill of the LTTE. K. S. FERNANDO -Kandana |
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