Were it to be on the market she could not possibly afford to buy back

Were it to be on the market, she could not possibly afford to buy back her old house.MICHAEL HART Osmington, Dorset Examining Einstein Sir: Einstein’s “flunked” exam for entrance to the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (report, 30 December) should be seen in the context of his applying at an age some two years younger than normal, and his having spent a year out of the school system living with his parents in Italy. It also provides a unique Sunday morning social gathering, with families taking part, either playing or on the sidelines encouraging. To unthinkingly remove all that contradicts what the Olympics is about. The Games offer everyone a chance to shine, so to deprive a large community of a starting point in learning the joys of a sport and becoming a team player is absurd.Think again London; there are alternatives.EVELYN KNOWLES Cambridge Priced out Sir: Thank you to Roger Clifton (letter, 30 December) for pointing out that some relief in the obscenely high level of house prices is not bad news for everyone.

Whenever this debate rears its head, you can be assured that someone in a flat cap or Barbour coat will spout the one about the fox killing everything “for the fun of it”.The fact is that chicken enclosures are unnatural environments for a fox, who will normally hunt in open fields, picking off an opportunity. When faced with a small space packed with abundant food, the fox’s natural behaviour is to slaughter everything, take what it needs, and return repeatedly to remove the other corpses for larder storage.The obvious answer to anyone (including us “uninformed” townsfolk) would be to ensure that vulnerable livestock is kept safe and secure in well-maintained enclosures that predators cannot burrow through.ANTONY S THOMAS Port Talbot Hackney Marshes Sir, How can the Olympic bid leaders even consider ploughing up the Hackney Marshes for an Olympic coach park (report, 1 January)?This training ground for the young and, so often, the most deprived players has been the starting point for so many. Surely the role of the Prime Minister should be to lead the response to this ghastly disaster strategically, collaboratively and from the front.Dr NICK MAURICE Marlborough, WiltshireSir: Compare and contrast our Prime Minister’s relaxed approach to the worst catastrophe in Asia in living memory, with his hyperactive, near-hysterical and ongoing reaction to the destruction of the World Trade Centre in New York. At 150,000 Asian lives to 3,000 US lives, it is clear where Mr Blair feels his political interests lie.STEPHEN GOLDBY Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk Sontag in Sarajevo Sir: When Susan Sontag directed Waiting for Godot in Sarajevo, Bosnia’s capital was under a murderous siege and Sontag’s only entry route was the hazardous tunnel down Mount Igman. Only Samuel Beckett’s literary estate could be so anally protective of their author as to complain that Sontag and her cast were mounting an “unauthorised” production.CORIN REDGRAVE London SW17 Counting chickens Sir: Ann Stewart’s account of the mass killing of her daughter’s chickens by a fox (letters, 30 December) is the same tired old argument used by supporters of hunting.

Izetbegovic’s Bosnian government was appealing to western powers to lift the siege and was in no position to provide official assistance. Our governments, which could and should have lifted the siege, did nothing.Every Sarajevan I have ever met saw Sontag’s visit as a rare, courageous and wholly welcome act of solidarity. John Calder’s obituary (30 December) wonders why “no one asked questions about the cost of official and governmental assistance she must have received to make her visit possible”.Indeed, they did not because, to anyone but Calder, the answer would have been blindingly obvious. While you could argue that he is on a hiding to nothing whether stays away or is accused of making political capital out of coming home, surely the overriding reason for coming home is that here is a real case for joined-up thinking and action between government departments and the military, who in principle have the capabilities and resources to act and deploy quickly.