Letters | What the US should look for in its president
- Readers discuss the decline in the quality of discourse during the American presidential election season, and Ukraine’s plumetting prospects
Decades ago, during election years, we would huddle inside some sweaty university dorm lounge listening to debate speeches eloquently and elegantly delivered by candidates. They were respectful, cultured, magnanimous and not one sentence was out of line. The broadcasts on television often featured Dr Martin Luther King’s and John F. Kennedy’s most famous speeches – for example, the “I have a dream” and “ask not what your country can do for you” speeches – to contrast with presidential candidates’ speaking styles and talking points.
If the 2024 US presidential election sets the tone for the next four years, shouldn’t the country be worrying more about the after-effects that would linger for decades or even centuries? If I were a US citizen, I would want my children and grandchildren to look up to their president as a decent human being and a role model.
Philip S.K. Leung, founder, Small Talks Circles Education Foundation
Ukraine stands to lose more if war continues
The personal tragedy faced by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is nothing compared to the disaster that has befallen the Ukrainian people, who have paid with civilians killed and massive numbers of homes and infrastructure destroyed. It is estimated that reconstruction after the destruction caused by this war will cost hundreds of billions of dollars and take years to complete. Many Ukrainians have been displaced, with some fleeing abroad as refugees.