Letters to the Editor: Money for bombs but none to fight starvation

People carry their belongings on a boat after their homes were destroyed by floods in Wad Ramli village, about 60km north of Khartoum, Sudan, earlier this month; millions are starving in the region. Picture: Marwan Ali/AP

Tonight, more than 733m people — nearly the equivalent of the population of Europe — will go to bed hungry. On this World Food Week, as we celebrate abundance in our own lives, we must pause and face this moral outrage. Hunger is not an accident; it is a failure of justice, compassion, and human responsibility.

In parts of East and West Africa, millions of families are enduring one of their worst hunger and food crises ever. Across parts of Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and other areas, parents watch their children waste away as drought, conflict, climate change, and soaring food prices steal both harvest and hope. The soil is cracked, livestock are dead, and the world remains largely silent.

We live in an age where suffering is live-streamed from Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Congo, Haiti, and many other places and yet compassion is rationed by geography. Some lives make headlines; others are ignored.

But there is no hierarchy of human worth. Every hungry child bears the face of Christ. Every grieving mother is the mother of Sorrows.

St Paul reminds us: “We are sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet enriching many; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” (2 Corinthians 6:10). Faith is not meant to be comfortable. To see hunger and look away is to betray both our faith and our humanity. Silence is not neutrality, it is complicity.

Our world spends €2.7trillion annually on weapons, while millions die for lack of bread. Always money for bombs, rarely for food or for life. These are not accidents, they are choices.

My prayer for today is simple: “When there is no light, shine forth. When there is apathy, show caring for another. When there is famine, be bread to the hungry soul. When there is despair, inspire someone. When there is drought, be a wellspring of hope.”

On this World Food Week, may we refuse to look away. May our prayers become action. May our comfort be disturbed until every child is fed, and no mother has to whisper apologies to her hungry child.

We cannot feed everyone, but everyone can feed someone.

Ronan Scully, Knocknacarra, Galway

Gavin’s not gone

I was shocked and surprised to learn that the votes for the ‘withdrawn from campaigning’ candidate Jim Gavin still count, and was still more surprised to hear he could still be president. The worst part is though, that I don’t believe many people realise this and that many think voting for Jim Gavin would be a spoilt vote. I think that this reality should be comm-unicated over the coming days. Also, if Jim Gavin doesn’t want to be elected, he should clearly tell us that.

Mary O’Brien, Clare

Spoiled votes are a snub to democracy

We are lucky in this country to have a stable democratic system. For much of our history, we were governed by a foreign power which tried its best to wipe out much of our identity, culture, and heritage. Twenty-six counties gained independence more than 100 years ago. As part of that we have the right to elect our public representatives. That is voluntary, not an obligation.

In every election there are spoiled votes. People do this for various reasons, generally in low numbers. To spoil your vote is a perfectly democratic way of engaging with the electoral process if only to show your disdain for the process.

To urge people not to spoil their votes is an affront to democracy. We have the right to do whatever we wish with our votes.

Tommy Roddy, Galway

Online price-match removed by Tesco

I want to highlight Tesco Ireland’s recent decision to quietly remove the price-match safeguard on online grocery substitutions — a change that means customers can now be charged extra for replacement items without prior consent.

I rely on the Tesco delivery service, as do thousands of others who don’t have transport.

When I questioned why we should pay more for substitutes we never approved, Tesco replied with what they called their “final position”.

They confirmed: They will not reinstate price-matching; they will not disclose who authorised the decision, and they advise customers to “just select the no substitutions option” essentially suggesting we go without essentials if we don’t want to be overcharged.

Their exact closing line reads: “This response reflects our final position on this matter. Should you wish to pursue further action externally, this is entirely your choice.”

It’s a cold, corporate response from a billion-euro retailer that continues to post record profits while Irish households stretch shrinking grocery budgets further every week.

For a company that claims to “value its loyal customers”, this policy, and the dismissive tone of its response, says quite the opposite. It also raises a broader question about how retailers can unilaterally change the terms of online sales and expect customers to simply accept it.

At a time when families are being forced to make every euro count, telling customers to “just go without” rather than fix an unfair pricing policy isn’t operational sustainability, it’s corporate indifference.

Carmen Prevost, Blessington, Co Wicklow

Vat rate reduction leaves a bitter taste

Prices are soaring in terms of groceries. The same is true with insurance costs. The same is true now with student fees.

The Government is now putting petrol and diesel on the board.

Burger King, Supermac’s, McDonald’s, Starbucks and many others like them can now avail of the 9% Vat rate.

I didn’t want any of those companies to get the 9% Vat rate. However, there is no mechanism to exclude them from the Vat reduction.

It’s things like this that leave a bitter taste in the mouths of the citizens striving to make ends meet in this cost of living crisis.

John O’Brien, Clonmel, Co Tipperary

What's your view on this issue?

You can tell us here