30x30 Challenge
To my surprise, the Dubai Fitness Challenge has been going really well for me. Initially, it was hard for me to slot in 30 minutes of exercise in my day, as it was not part of my routine (“Dubai Fitness Challenge draws huge crowds at Burj Park”, Gulf News, November 11). However, over time I have seen my energy levels go up after exercising in the morning. After recognising this benefit, I am now making a conscious effort to exercise every day, even if it is just walking around my community. I used to make a lot of excuses when it came to exercising, to the point that I barely exercised in the last two years. Now, I enjoy the 30 minutes of exercise I do every day and what makes it fun is that I try to do something different as often as I can. It is an easy way to add a little excitement to your everyday life.
From Ms Divya Suri
Dubai
Where is our empathy?
While that is completely unacceptable that an Indigo airline employee attacked a passenger, for whatever reason, what is even more disturbing is to see the viral videos circulating on social media which show the indifference of the co-passengers (“Tired Indigo pilot refuses to fly aircraft”, Gulf News, November 12). No one seems to even bat an eyelid when someone next to them is being assaulted, seemingly without any provocation from the person concerned. Why is it that we as a society feel like it is not our duty to help someone who is in trouble or who is being attacked? Or that as long as it is not us being attacked, we don’t have to bother? We need to seriously rethink his insensitive, indifferent and selfish attitude. It’s time we learnt to stand up and try to do the right thing. Only then can we become a better society.
From Ms Sarita Sankaran
UAE
Captain cool’s contribution
It is really surprising that some of the retired cricketers are keen to chop our cool player, Mahendra Singh Dhoni from the Twenty20 (T20) team (“Dhoni launches his first ever academy”, Gulf News, November 12). For a change, I fully endorse the views of cricketer Sunil Gavaskar that no one looks at the fact that our openers perform well, once in four matches. But it is Dhoni, who hardly gets three to four overs to bat, and is criticised for his few failures. I feel like he should be promoted in the batting order to the number four position, especially when there is a collapse at the top. Above all, his wisdom and guidance on the field is more useful to our current captain. As in the case of Test Cricket, once he realises that he is not contributing to the team, he would definitely not stand in the way of promising youngsters.
From Mr N Mahadevan
India
Actor disaster
Initially, our legendary actor Kamal Hassan proved to be a novice, with his recent ‘Hindu terror’ remarks (“Kamal Haasan should be shot dead, says political leader”, Gulf News, November 6). He has proved that he could become a real political leader. Like the Congress party, he too has realised his folly in giving colour to terror, to be in the good books of the Hindu vote bank. Only time will prove whether he will stick to his revised statements.
From Mr N Viswanathan
India
Trash versus treasure
The creative idea of Ramon Benitez and Lalaine Chu-Benitez is indeed an innovative one (“Stuff for free: It’s in giving you receive”, Gulf News, November 7). Many things can be exchanged and used by people fruitfully, without being thrown away. There are many people who buy things and reach home only to feel like they do not need it. Some people are badly in need of such items that their financial capability only allows them to dream of those things. There are many incidents where commodities that are still useful and in good condition find themselves being binned. This initiative really adds value to people’s lives.
From Ms Annie Rathi Samuel
USA
Too early to judge
It is too early to predict the outcome of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s demonetisation, which started last year (“Modi big ban theory fails growth test”, Gulf News, November 7). As an observation, in my native city, there are visible advantages of demonetisation. It is well known that some people were affected, but it has been seen that dealings in black money have greatly reduced in the real estate sector. As a result, the prices of apartments have been reduced by almost 20 per cent. There is more of a use for plastic money and online transactions now. It is better to wait for a couple of years to evaluate the effects of the great move, which the Prime Minister decided to take in the interest of the nation.
From Mr Ganesh J. H.
UAE
Editor’s note: Is there a news report that you feel strongly about? Something that has to be addressed in the community and requires resolution? Email us on readers@gulfnews.com. You can also post a comment on our Facebook page or tweet to us @GNReaders.
