Simon Tisdall (It’s right to remember the dead of 1939-45. But keep the anger about current wars too, 4 May) asks of current global conflicts: why is this carnage tolerated, even normalised? He cites several reasons, but the one I identify with most is the overwhelming nature of it all – a world weariness shared by western governments. It is especially relevant to Gaza, which is in an extremely parlous state, yet the silence on its almost complete annihilation is thunderous. It is of great credit to the Guardian that it continues to publish articles on this.
Sheila Hancock (My VE Day was nothing like our image of it today. I hope we can honour what it really meant, 3 May) raises the sadness surrounding the decline of the legacy of that conflict, when “never again” and the building of a better world was the mantra – something that for a while was achieved for some. As Tisdall writes, people feel powerless to change any of it, but I cannot help but observe that governments calling bad actors to account more publicly might have some effect.
Jillian Forster-Walmsley
Skipton, North Yorkshire
