Too many politicians sacrifice national unity for survival

Our readers have their say on Trump, cats and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

US President Donald Trump's problems have grown this week as scandal engulfs his administration. Saul Loeb / AFP

I refer to Hussein Ibish's opinion piece As Trump's aura of invincibility dims, he will seek to intensify racial and cultural divides (December 16). That, sadly, might be the only option US President Donald Trump sees for himself now, as scandal engulfs his administration and his promises fail to come to fruition. Too many politicians sacrifice the culture, unity and integrity of the nation for their own sake. This is a trend across the world now, widely seen by unscrupulous politicians as the best strategy to divert attention from the grim realities that many people face in their lives and ensure electoral support.

Name withheld by request

Cats are getting injured trying to eat fish in Abu Dhabi

I write in reference to your article New pet abandonment law only solves 'part of the problem' (December 16): I regularly feed the stray cats around the Big Flag Pole by Abu Dhabi Theatre. Many of those cats have the advantage that people regularly fish in that area. Whenever there is a fisherman, you will certainly see a cat standing guard. Those cats get good fresh food from the fisherman. But sometimes there is a terrible unintended consequence to this. When fishermen discard hooks inside fish or with some fish flesh attached to them, cats get hurt when trying to eat the fish.

I have already seen two cases of cats with hooks in their mouths and it is a heartbreaking sight. The affected cats are not only suffering greatly but they are also unable to eat once this happens.

On Saturday, December 15, a small cat got a fishing hook stuck in its mouth in front of a large gathering of families. Everybody was in shock, specially the kids, while the cat screamed and ran away in pain. Something needs to be done about this. It would be very helpful if the municipality could install signs making fishermen aware of this issue. It’s a problem of awareness.

Inma Roca, Abu Dhabi

Kudos to Justin Trudeau for his thoughtful policymaking

I write in reference to your piece Paying people to reduce their carbon footprint could be the answer to climate change (December 19): Rashmee Roshan Lall's article was a very interesting read. She has nicely compared the ongoing  yellow vest protests in Paris, sparked by fuel tax hikes by French President Emmanuel Macron, which became violent riots, with a more dynamic Canadian policy. In the latter country, people are benefitting financially from the neutral carbon tax policy implemented by their prime minister, Justin Trudeau. It is a reminder to political leaders that any policies their administration comes up with should  not pinch their citizens. Kudos to Canada.

K Ragavan, Bengaluru