Foolish storm names belie their danger | Short letters

Had Storm Bert been called Kraken or something suitably threatening, the meteorologically illiterate might have taken the warnings seriously (Forecasters and flood defenses under scrutiny after Storm Bert ordeal in Britain, November 25). If we have to personalize cyclonic weather events rather than giving them semantically unloaded numerical references, like say 2024-30, then let’s at least choose names that reflect their destructive power. Bert sounds like a jovial uncle and that’s probably why the warnings were ignored.
Michael Heaton
Warminster, Wiltshire

I admire Nell Frizzell’s zeal for throwing things away (Are you still holding on to your old diaries and teenage photos? Throw them out – and start living, November 24), but may I offer a word of caution to readers who are inspired are to follow her? I am in my mid-seventies and have been keeping a diary for over fifty years. Now that my memory is not what it used to be, these diaries provide refreshing entertainment.
Sam White
Lewes, East Sussex

Elizabeth Winder (Letters, November 25) rightly draws attention to the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool. To the east we have the fantastic Wilberforce House Museum in Hull, which, unlike Liverpool’s, will be open within the next three years.
David Cordingley
Lincoln

Among the worst offenders encouraging the overuse of salt in cooking are TV chefs, who then add it out of habit for no apparent reason (The Truth About Salt: How to Avoid One of the World’s Biggest Hidden Killers, November 24) . When have you seen a pasta recipe that didn’t mention using salted water? Unnecessary!
Neil Angrave
London