Breed out of hand ?sx I AM disturbed that the Government should allow itself to be panicked by the tabloid press into sentencing to death without trial 10,000 pit bull terriers plus other so - called 'fighting dogs' .sx Whatever happened to the British sense of justice and fair play , and love of dogs ?sx To condemn and slaughter thousands of innocent dogs just because one or two of their breed get out of hand suggests a killer lust in those who bay for the mass extermination .sx I write this letter with stitches in my badly bruised face and my right foot in plaster because of broken bones , which forces me to use crutches .sx Why ?sx A few days ago I was attacked from behind outside my flat and beaten , not by a dog but a so - called human mugger .sx Can someone tell me the difference between the elderly being mugged and children attacked by dogs ?sx If statistics can be produced I am sure they will show far more unprovoked attacks by human animals than our canine friends who never even asked to become 'humanised' in the first place .sx By using the Government's yardstick , all males between the ages of , say , 15 and 25 should be put to death because they are of potential mugging age .sx Better get rid of the lot than risk another person being mugged .sx For my part , I am sure that had there been a faithful pit bull terrier , rottweiler or German shepherd beside me , I would not have been mugged .sx Reg Shay .sx 58 Kendal Tower , .sx Malins Road , .sx Harborne , .sx Birmingham .sx No reserved seats - even for the Welsh .sx COMPARISON of Wales with Kuwait ( " Too Late to Save Wales " , Letters , May 19 ) ignores one major difference between the two countries .sx People choose to live and work in Kuwait for financial gain .sx Of Wales , the converse is true .sx Alun Jenkins , of Stevenage , and others like him were no more driven out of Wales than other expatriate workers were driven into Kuwait .sx Having left the land of their ancestors for essentially selfish motives , it might salve their consciences to claim force majeure .sx But the fact is , they freely chose to make a better living for themselves on someone else's patch .sx And why not indeed ?sx Sauve qui peut !sx .sx When an expatriate's financial goals are realised , he may choose to return whence he came .sx On the other hand , he might not .sx Population movement is a universal fact of life .sx And there are no reserved seats .sx To believe that Wales is the victim of plots and has been uniquely selected for persecution is to stray beyond laudable nostalgia into the realms of paranoia , a most dangerous mental condition .sx Colin W. Parsons .sx Lower House , Woodstock , .sx Haverfordwest , Dyfed .sx BY FAR the greatest of all British inventions is Britishness , that unique combination of English , Scottish , Welsh and Irish , which transcends any one single component .sx A federation more real than the inferior unities of the USSR , Yugoslavia etc. I am English/Scottish .sx My wife is English/Welsh .sx We and millions like us never claim to be English ; we are British .sx Southern Scotland , north Wales and eastern Ireland can never be anything but a weird and successful mix of Angle , Saxon , Dane and Norman :sx the mongrel is healthier than the pedigree .sx As such , the word English becomes abusive shorthand for London , the South , the rich , the middle classes .sx I propose we all use British in future and forget the mere subdivisions .sx J.W. Saunders .sx 17 Benton Road , .sx Middlesbrough , .sx Cleveland .sx Famine in Africa is a disgrace to the human race .sx THE UNITED Nations has to decide urgently whether or not it has a mandate so save the Third World .sx Natural disasters like the Bangladesh flooding cannot be prevented , but their consequences can be alleviated by forward planning as well as aid afterwards .sx Famine , on the other hand , is entirely preventable , and its continuing ravages across Africa are a disgrace to the human race .sx We all know the problems - inefficient local logistics , corrupt governments , warring tribes , and sheer ignorance .sx There is only one solution - efficient control of aid and establishment and development of resources on the ground by the UN .sx There will be all sorts of reasons put up against this , including that interfering in another country's business without invitation smacks of fascism , but this does not alter the facts , nor prevent misery and death .sx The United Nations should set up :sx 1 , A standing army capable of moving swiftly into disaster areas and stabilising them to allow 2 , A controlled relief programme conducted by experts , which not only provides immediate amelioration of the human condition , but the processing of long-term solutions providing resettlement areas with a proper water supply , land conservation , planting of trees and crops , grazing control , and medical services .sx In the end this may not cost more than we give at present in charity with no guarantee of effectiveness .sx Charity is ultimately demeaning .sx Why should these unfortunate people have to depend on someone passing the hat round ?sx If the rich countries have to raise taxes to get rid of the misery , so be it .sx Who would object ?sx P.C. Raine .sx The Through , .sx Forest Place , .sx Waldron , .sx Heathfield , .sx East Sussex .sx Dangers for NHS .sx THE BRITISH Medical Association and the Association of Community Health Councils have listed many reasons for opposing the NHS trusts and GP budget systems .sx The Nursing Association wishes to see how the present trusts are helping the patient before approving any expansion of the system , which seems reasonable .sx When the average GP refers a patient to hospital , his only consideration is for the standard of care for that patient and , as I would do , he tries to make an appointment with a surgeon by whom he himself would like to be treated .sx It is not just a matter of searching around for the cheapest and least waiting time for an operation .sx Lord McColl , who is Professor of Surgery at the United Medical Schools of Guy's and St. Thomas's hospitals and director of Surgery at Guy's , appears to consider the situation in that very impersonal and completely commercial way ( " Leading surgeon backs NHS reform " , May 19) .sx Lord McColl gave a GP a date for an operation on a patient which was far sooner than that of the local hospital .sx However , he advised the doctor to tell the local hospital that he proposed to send the patient to him and he would find that the date would be automatically advanced , which is what happened .sx The inference is that most local hospitals would react in this way , and so he is accusing them of not doing a proper job within the National Health Service and of course this must be corrected !sx .sx May I make the following observation :sx after two years in a very busy general hospital and 25 years in general practice , I came to the conclusion that the more expert a surgeon was clinically , the less time he was prepared to spend on administration , which he preferred to leave to others .sx The poll tax was a disaster , and , similarly , the NH trusts and GP budgets , which are being pushed ahead without adequate study and discussion with all branches of the medical profession , may also prove disastrous .sx W.I. McGregor , BSc , MB , .sx ChB , .sx 55a Spa Road , .sx Weymouth , Dorset .sx Too much hype about a not very ladylike tomato .sx WHEN editors of stuffy newspapers start devoting their boring columns to Madonna ( Profile , May 19 ) , it proves that her formidable publicity machine is getting to more than little girls , irritated feminists and writers of " yours disgusted " letters .sx I suspect that underneath all that hype the lady is , among other things , intelligent , shrewd and very tough .sx She plays it her way and will probably achieve everything she aims for , including an audience with the Pope and a hair dye which does not turn her roots orange .sx As for any weedy little old man contemplating wrestling off her cone-shaped bra , he would have to consider that he may end up being gob - smacked by one of her steely little fists .sx The most he can do is fantasise about whether a particular tomato tastes as good as it looks whilst safely sticking to the sour grapes !sx Yours , with amusement for once , .sx J.M.H. Creagh .sx The Old Rectory .sx Market Weston , .sx Diss , Norfolk .sx I AM writing to comment on your article about Madonna .sx I must first confess that I do own a copy of Madonna's latest album , The Immaculate Collection , and while I like quite a lot of her music , I don't like the woman herself .sx I feel that all the comments made in the article are fair as Madonna seems to have no shame and is obviously prepared to do anything to attract publicity for herself .sx It appears to be the more outrageous , the better ; the more she can appal people , the happier she is .sx It would seem from your article that you don't think too highly of her either .sx However , I think that giving up nearly half a page of your paper to merely say that she isn't really worth writing about is also drawing people's attention to her .sx That is exactly what she thrives on .sx Surely it would be better not to bother with her at all , no matter how much you criticise her in the article .sx After all , the worst form of publicity for a person of her sort has to be no publicity at all .sx Heather Rawlin .sx ( aged 14 ) , .sx 186 Tom Lane , .sx Sheffield .sx UK Scan safety record .sx I READ with interest the account " Magnetic Peril of Scanner " ( May 12 ) referring to some of the accidents that have occurred , particularly in the United States , with the operation of these important diagnostic instruments .sx I should stress that in the United Kingdom to date the safety record has been very good , and that at our own centre we have very strict and extensive safety measures in force , and have operated for over five years with a high field system without any serious incidents .sx New centres starting up do need to have staff in post who appreciate and are regularly trained in the safety measures required .sx It is also important that , when such installations are designed , independent advice is taken to ensure proper safety provision is made .sx It would be a shame if funding constraints or the need to compete for business eroded the good safety record , and thus the public's confidence , in this revolutionary diagnostic work .sx ( Dr ) Martin Leach .sx Co-Director , CRC Clinical .sx Magnetic Resonance .sx Research Group , Institute .sx of Cancer Research , .sx 17a Onslow Gardens , .sx London , SW 7 .sx YOUR report may have raised unnecessary fears in many people's minds .sx This is particularly unfortunate as we are in the middle of a pounds2 .sx 5 million appeal to buy an MR Scanner for the Southampton University Hospitals .sx A keen awareness of the safety aspects of every item of medical equipment is obviously of prime importance at all times .sx I know of no cases in this country where a patient has sustained burns during an examination .sx Patients with pacemakers or other metal implants are never admitted to the MR environment until it is known that the object is magnet safe .sx MR imaging gives us the opportunity of going straight to a full diagnosis and dispensing with less effective , expensive or unpleasant investigative techniques .sx Experience throughout the world has shown that MR imaging is very acceptable to the patient and cost-effective compared to other diagnostic techniques .sx ( Prof ) Michael Whitehouse .sx Appeal Chairman , .sx Southampton University Hospital , .sx Southampton .sx Telescope theory of Europe .sx WHEN Margaret Thatcher signed the Single European Act , she , and probably the majority of the British people , failed to realise that the steps to political integration are interlocking like the sections of a telescope ; pull one , and the rest follow .sx In securing an opt-out clause on single currency , and deletion of the social chapter from the new treaty at the Maastricht summit , John Major is simply looking through the wrong end of the telescope in order to distance himself from the final show - down between Britain and the rest of the Community .sx This act of self deception will not save this country from those Europhiles who have used an economic initiative to achieve political ends , namely Eurofederalism .sx