Animals should not be in zoos

Zoos keep animals in confinement for only our entertainment, which is affecting their health adversely and this needs to stop immediately.

Some people think that zoos educate the public about these animals. In front of every enclosure there is a board displayed with information related to the animal. But we can get this information on the internet and various other books also.

I think zoos should be banned.

Hajra Nauman,

Lahore

So much has changed

I never heard of the words ‘quarantine’ and ‘pandemic’ until now. When corona cases were first reported in China back in December 2019, the whole world was busy in making “memes” and they didn’t realise that their world will soon turn upside down.

The corona outbreak folded our ordinary lives into something unexpected. Handshakes and hugs are no more rituals. No more going to work, school or anywhere else in general, and we all get to hear this word “virtual” — virtual classes, virtual meetings and even virtual hugs.

There were times when sneezing and coughing were common in public places and you would hear sweet gestures like “God bless you” or “Peace be with you”. But, now sneezing and coughing in a public place seems like no less than a scene from a horror movie. Sanitizers and masks have become as mandatory as wallet and ID cards when you go out.

Our normal is no more normal. But all this has taught us how ungrateful we were. It made us realise the importance of our normal schedule and it gave us a great lesson of being thankful for little things in life.

Mahan Aslam,

Turbat, Kech

Why are cartoons important

This is with reference to Ahmed H. Nadeem’s article “Why are cartoons important”, published on July 18, 2020. The points raised by the writer are correct, that we can learn in many ways from cartoons as they are made with a lot of thought to not just entertain children, but also teach them various important lessons.

In many families, watching cartoons or movies is considered bad or a waste of time, although it is not true in most cases as children learn a lot through the entertaining way in which information and messages are given in them. They are just as good as storybooks and sharpen their skills during the earlier years.

But nowadays there are many cartoon, movies and games for children that are full of violence which definitely have a bad effect of children and these should be avoided at all cost.

Maria Sohail,

Karachi

Published in Dawn, Young World, August 1st, 2020