I read your report (Jan 29) on an article by John Martin of the Center for Research and Globalization in Montreal, Canada on a part of our history that is not on the national consciousness yet, like the Great Famine. But it is getting there.

It’s 2013. No one should be cold or hungry or afraid in their homes because they don’t know how they are going to put food on the table and pay their mortgage.

Considering the untold human sacrifice and financial and material expenditure that was required to defeat fascism in Europe and elsewhere during WWII, it is a tragedy that there are efforts by megalomaniacs such as Silvio Berlusconi to sanitise, rehabilitate and resurrect this evil menace.

John Leahy (Letters, Jan 29) failed to mention that enormous savings have been achieved by the Croke Park Agreement or the fact that all reports show that progress thus far is well ahead of expected targets.

The passport for Cork displays a singular, and insular mentality, which creates a focus of resentment from its neighbours, and would only reduce Cork’s capacity to develop, rather than promoting Cork.

We at the Irish Property Owners Association (IPOA) have accused the Government of what we call “taxsault” — assault by taxation.

The reputation of the Irish food industry has been severely undermined across the world after it has been disclosed by Tesco on Jan 30 that the adulteration of frozen hamburgers is attributable to the use of meat (not merely meat additives) that did not come from a list of approved suppliers.

Father Michael Cusack’s comments at the funeral of Detective Garda Donohoe were a stark reminder to all of us of the anger that is out there in relation to crime and how the vulnerable in our society feel at being isolated and, more importantly, how these thugs are getting away with their crimes.

In the condemnation of the killing of Det Garda Adrian Donohoe, there is a trend to link criminality to republicanism.

I have just returned from the funeral ceremony for Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe in Dundalk and I feel I must write to say I was honoured to have been in the attendance to listen to the words spoken by Fr Michael Cusack at the mass.