YP Letters: Muslims must stand up and be counted

I TOTALLY agree with Theresa May when she says “enough is enough” (The Yorkshire Post, June 5).

The Manchester bombing of young children and their parents was a game changer. It’s a great shame it has taken three recent tragic events to bring everyone to this point.

The answer here lies within the Muslim community itself. For far too long the Muslim community has come out with too many meaningless phrases like “Not in our name”. However you dress this up, it is in the Muslim name and it’s time for the whole Muslim faith to come together and put a stop to this madness in our society, and in the wider world.

The answer lies in the mosques. I want to see the best of the Muslim community and I would like to see it sooner rather than later. So I say this to the leaders of the Muslim faith – let’s see you stand up for what’s right, do the decent thing and help us stamp out this curse in our society.

From: Laurence J Sowden, Far Lane, Kettlewell.

LAST week you printed my letter calling on the Government to call a state of emergency and intern those suspected of terrorist activities. Days pass with plenty of platitudes and soundbites from all sections of the political spectrum.

Then we have another atrocity carried out. More dead and more maimed, but still nothing is done. How many more have to die before the Government and security services stop pussyfooting about and round up those with no respect for our laws or values?

Our human rights mean nothing to these fanatics and it is high time we showed no respect for theirs.

From: ME Wright, Harrogate.

THE New York Times claims that we are “a nation still reeling”. They haven’t grasped that, in circumstances such as Manchester and London again, we don’t reel, we get on with it.

Though not a Twitter fan, I recommend the tweets relating to things that do make us reel: to which may I add ‘American laptops which dare to question my spelling’? The topic is beautifully summarised by “We’re made of stronger stuff –tea and biscuits mostly”.

Reminiscent of “Brexit means Brexit”, Mrs May has declared “Enough is enough”. Rather than adding yet another tiresome mantra to her lexicon, dare I suggest that she thinks long and hard about the wisdom of police cutbacks?

From: Robert Craig, Priory Road, Weston super Mare.

THE first duty of a government is to defend the people. That means all the people: not just the “important people”. Theresa May was a useless Home Secretary, and now she is a useless Prime Minister.

Opinion split on eve of poll

From: Jennifer Toal, Crowland Road, Sheffield.

I URGE voters, particularly those still undecided, to vote against the Conservatives. They are undeserving of our vote.

All they really have to offer us is a hard Brexit: we actually did not vote for that, merely to come out of the European Union. The party has been hijacked by an extreme right-wing faction who do not represent most Tory voters.

And notice how the party is almost denying its own name and what they stand for – Theresa May’s name is splashed across the buses, but the party name is so small you have to look for it.

If you believe this election is about reaffirming the Leave vote, look harder. In reality, if we re-elect the Tories, we can look forward to more cuts to the NHS, policing and schools.

From: John Edwards, Carlisle.

ARE we sleepwalking towards the election? If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Beware of the wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Our current economy is the admiration of Europe. But we still have an enormous debt left to pay back following the irresponsibility of the pre-2010 former government. And the SNP will be delighted to influence the whole of the UK and not just Scotland. Sad to say Yorkshire has nowhere near the same possible influence.

We have been well governed for the past few years. Take heed how you vote.

From: Sylvia Milner, Spring Lane, Bempton.

THE Conservatives say they carry out the will of the British people, for example, in leaving the EU. Not so with fracking. In Lancashire the Conservative government ignored massive public opposition to fracking 
and overturned the council’s decision not to allow it there.

If implemented, the Conservative manifesto will remove fracking from the planning process. Just as they will ignore the will of the majority of British people and allow the cruel sport of fox hunting again, the Conservatives will roll out fracking across the country, wherever it is possible.

From: Graham Branston, Emmott Drive, Rawdon.

UNLIKE many individuals who are prudent and plan for their retirement, successive governments have not done so for the consequences of an ageing population, which they have known about for decades.

Governments will continue to increase the state pensionable age because it reduces the financial burden on the Treasury, but may result in more demands on the NHS. In my view, the inadequate forward planning by politicians make a blanket retirement age of, say 70, outrageous. After a long working life, people deserve to retire while they are reasonably healthy.

From: Elisabeth Baker, Leeds.

DEMOCRACY? Virtually every Conservative poster in my area has been spray painted over with the word ‘scum’. Whoever did this certainly does not believe in democracy.