A Letter to the Minister about Animal Mistreating

There have been recent reports of cats and dogs being mistreated. You are writing to the relevant minister, drawing his/her attention to the issue and offering your suggestions on how to address the issue. The letter should consist of three paragraphs. The first paragraph should set out the purpose of the letter. The second one should give the details of the issue. The third one should set out your suggestions on how to address the issue. The letter should be at least 250 words long.

 

Dear Minister,

 

       I write to express my concern about report reports of cats and dogs being mistreated and put forward some suggestions on how to address the issue.

 

       In recent weeks, there has been wide coverage on the plight of pets. Just last week, the public came to know the rescue of an abandoned dog which had been starved for nearly a week. The dog weighed less than half his normal body weight and had to be rushed to a vet for urgent treatment. In another incident, a boy was caught shooting at stray cats with an airgun. He had the audacity to justify his action by blaming the cats for causing nuisance in the first place.

 

       It is important that your ministry take the lead in addressing this issue. First, public education is essential. Pet owners should be taught to be responsible for the well-being of their pets. Pets are not toys; they deserve care and love from their owners, whose commitment should be lifelong and start from the moment of purchase. Under no circumstances should pets be neglected or even abandoned as they will no doubt be in distress. Your ministry can organize publicity campaigns to publicize the importance of being responsible pet owners. Second, enforcement action should be stepped up against those who mistreat pets or stray animals. To make it easier for the public to report such cases, your ministry should set up a hotline. Any cases reported should be followed up expeditiously. The levels of penalties for such offences should also be raised to underscore the fact that such mistreatment is not tolerated in our society. Third, stray animals are a public health nuisance. Whilst I do not support any action to kill them, a more responsible approach is for your ministry to put in place a program to neuter them so that their population will decrease over time. It is also important to impress upon pet owners not to abandon their pets. I am sure that with our concerted efforts to be led by your ministry, the issue will go away.

 

Yours faithfully,

Chris Wong

Residential Development

 

A private developer has identified a site in your neighborhood for a major residential development. You strongly believe that the site should be used for open space and recreation. Please write a letter to the government planning authorities expressing your views. The letter should consist of three paragraphs. The first paragraph states the purpose of your letter. The second paragraph sets out your position on the project with reasons. The third paragraph should focus on the alternative use of the site. The letter should at least be 250 words long 

 

Dear Sir,

 

      I write to object to the proposed major residential development in my neighborhood and would be grateful if you would abandon the project in the public interest.

 

      The project involves the construction of six apartment blocks with a total number of about 2,000 apartments and associated facilities such as a shopping mall and a huge car park. The development is planned to be located on a vacant site which has been reserved for years for open space and recreation. I am concerned about the visual impact of the buildings in question and the additional traffic expected to be generated from the development. Our neighborhood, famous for its low-density housing, is not suitable for this type of development. The roads in the neighborhood are narrow and can be congested during rush hour. They can hardly accommodate the expected additional traffic.

 

      From the locals’ perspective, the site in question is more suitable for open space and recreation, as reflected by its town planning zoning. We have been calling on the government since 2010 to build a park there because the neighborhood is short of recreational facilities and the proposed park will significantly address the shortfall. Instead of proceeding with the residential development, the government should indeed accord priority to the construction of a park, which will no doubt be welcomed by the locals and in the best interests of the public. I therefore would like to ask the government to abandon the housing project.

 

      I look forward to hearing from you on this matter.

 

Yours faithfully,

George

The Characters between Men and Women

 

Some people think that women are generally more peaceful than men as their characters are naturally more nurturing than aggressive. In the first paragraph, please state the current situation you have observed from your reality. In the second paragraph, share your opinion about what extent do you agree or disagree this?

 

     I have been studying in a co-educational school for the past years. Nearly two-thirds of my classmates are girls. They care for others and stand ready to help others. On a number of occasions, I was in desperate need of help and all my female classmates lent me a helping hand, be it snacks, study notes, or simply time to listen me out. There are no bounds to their generosity. I still remember vividly how my best friend, Mary, spent an entire Saturday afternoon explaining all the difficult concepts of trigonometry before an examination the following Monday. I was overjoyed when I knew I had passed the examination with flying colors. On the contrary, most of my male classmates are aggressive in nature. They do not necessarily mean bad for me, but there is this desire of theirs to outperform others. This is well shown in their tendency to care for themselves rather than others and to think twice before helping others.

 

     I therefore agree to a large extent that women are generally more peaceful than men as their characters are naturally more nurturing than aggressive. This might be attributed to their DNA and, if not, to their upbringing when parents tend to take more care of daughters than sons. It is common for parents to keep an eye on their daughters whilst letting sons go free outside. Over time, girls have picked up this nurturing trait from their parents and shown it well in their behavior. Another possible reason for women to be generally more peaceful is that they are under less pressure to succeed. Unlike men, they are content with who they are and are less likely to measure their success in terms of career achievements or social status.

A Letter to My Best Friend

Your best friend would like to quit college to pursue a singing or acting career. Write him/her an email (of about 250 words). In the first paragraph, you should state how you have become aware of his/her idea and understood the reasoning behind it. Your second paragraph should explain your stance with reasons.

 

Dear Chris,

 

        How’s life treating you? It has been some time since we last met up. When I saw Peter yesterday after a soccer game, he mentioned that you are seriously thinking about quitting medical school to pursue a singing career. It seems that you are under tremendous pressure at your studies and would desperately like a break. And you are hugely attracted to the idea of becoming a singer as you have a good voice and a flair for performance. Indeed you are prepared to give up your studies for this aspiration.

 

        No doubt you are musically talented. I have heard you sing and I must say I do enjoy your singing. However, it takes a lot of effort to become a singer. There have been much-publicized stories of people as talented as you are failing to make the grade and having to cope with the overwhelming disappointment of a failed journey in singing. It would be prudent for you to consider how you can really embark on a singing career, particularly how to transition from one step to another. This is particularly essential as you are already in your twenties, which can be a late start for a new singer. Any misstep can have disastrous consequences. I was also wondering if your interest in a singing career might be a means to stay away from your medical studies. If so, I suggest you think twice before deciding to quit medical school. After all, you have invested a lot in this, starting from high school when you put in extraordinary efforts to get good grades for admission to the best medical school in the country. You have always wanted to become a doctor and help the disadvantaged in society. It would be a pity if you changed course now. If you wanna a chat, I will be there.

 

Yours truly,

David