Other golfers get a chance

The decline of Tiger Woods has been a great thing for golf, a letter-writer says,because every sport needs competition. Other letters touch on Syria, Greece, Libya, obesity, and beach crime.

Tigers Woods reacts disconsolately to a missed putt in a tournament earlier this year. Responding to a question posed in yesterday's Sports section, a reader says golf is better off with more competitShow more

The media should have more stories like your obituary today on Vicco von Buelow (Germany mourns its comedian, August 27).

What I like about stories of this kind is that they give us insight into another culture.

So much of the news we see in the paper and on TV and online deals with bad news - war, disaster, hatred, sabre-rattling.

But there is a lot more than that to the world, a lot of culture and humour in daily life, and that's what I would like to read more about.

Karen Guard, Abu Dhabi

Syrian divisions must be solved

I refer to your article Syria opposition must learn from Libya's council (August 24).

The problem is that the Syrian opposition is divided along ideological lines. However, we will all continue our effort to achieve that objective.

HK, Canada

Greece still has timeless beauty

How nice it was to see something positive about Greece in the news for a change.

Your travel-section story Greek promenade (August 27) will remind people, I hope, that beyond the headlines about debts and strikes, Greece still has all the history and natural beauty that visitors have been coming to see for as long as there has been tourism.

Julia Maskoulis, Dubai

Any sport needs competition

I refer to your sports story Is Woods' slump good for golf? (August 27).

I think the front page which posed this question also answered it quite clearly.

Just look at all those other happy golfers wearing the green blazer or lugging home the hardware after winning various tournaments in the last couple of years.

Golf is competitive again since the fall of Tiger Woods, and that's certainly good news.

He was great fun to watch in his prime, and may be again. But any sport needs competition.

Reno Livato, US

Varying penalties for one crime?

In the story Beach sex couple gets one-month sentence (August 25), two people were each given one month sentence for having sex.

But in a recent story about another similar case, one teenager was jailed six months and another had 100 lashes and one year in prison.

Why are they different? The beach case even deserves tougher punishment because there the offence was public.

KJ, Dubai

Libya awash in dangerous arms

Your story Who controls Qaddafi's weapons stockpiles? (August 25) reveals a great danger.

Col. Qaddafi's arsenal of weaponry, which could contain tonnes of mustard gas, may be used to target insurgents and Nato forces.

Or it may be sold in the black market to Al Qaeda.

DH, UK

I was struck by the photo with your story Rebels focus on rebuilding Tripoli (August 27).

The little of large-calibre rounds under the young man's feet makes me realise that Libya must be completely awash in small arms today.

It will remain a dangerous place for years to come.

Joseph Longstreet, Dubai

Recovery wishes for rugby hero

Trevor Stott-Briggs, best wishes for your recovery (Injured rugby veteran struggles to get back on this feet, August 26). A true rugby hero.

Francis Scott, Dubai

Don't blame junk food for obesity

Doctors may know medicine, but they don't necessarily know as much about public policy.

In your story Government urged to fight obesity through taxes on junk food (August 27) medical researchers pin much of the blame for increasing obesity on certain snacks and drinks.

True, those products don't help, and marketing aimed at children can be terribly effective. But in most countries many other policies do as much or more harm.

In my own country, the US, for example politically-driven subsidies for corn mean that many foods are sweetened not with sugar but with cheaper high-fructose corn syrup, which Princeton University researchers have shown leads to easier weight gain.

If the US Congress would end that subsidy, and reduce sugar tariffs, developing countries could sell more sugar and Americans would get fat more slowly.

William Watson, US