POSTBAG
Tom Hritz in his letter (''Major News Ignored'', Postbag, June 28) shows incredible arrogance about what he thinks is important news for the Bangkok Post to carry.
Submitting his letter from Boulder, Colorado, he complained the Post didn't cover a US Supreme Court ruling about the right to own handguns in the US. For some reason, he thinks this is important news that all readers of the Post should know about.
This US court ruling has absolutely no relevance to Thailand or to any non-Americans, whereas ''small-town news'' from within Thailand, which he considers unimportant, is relevant to Thai people and expatriates.
There are already too many posts by Americans about US politics and other American issues, and now Mr Hritz thinks that we should all be made aware of internal US court cases, too.
Many American contributors to Postbag have an amusing tendency to assume that American news is important or interesting to everyone else.
It isn't.
I suggest Mr Hritz read a Colorado newspaper for American news and the Bangkok Post for Thai news.
JUSTIN
Bangkok
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Must have been a joke
The unbelievable letter by Tom Hritz demanding to know why the Bangkok Post didn't report on a US Supreme Court ruling must have been a joke.
Mr Hritz makes a wild correlation between the omission by the Post and the possibility the editors were afraid to notify the Thai people that citizens of Washington, DC can now keep loaded weapons in their homes.
He postulates that this freedom afforded the folks in Washington was now being hidden from Thai people because they were deprived of this right..
Mr Hritz, if you meant your missive to be humourous, it was. If you're serious, think about the millions of poor here that just want to eat and provide for their families. Starting a gun collection or buying firearms for protection is not near and dear to their hearts.
The US right to keep and bear arms which has been around for more than 200 years is not news in Thailand.
DAVID BARKDULL
Bangkok
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Freedom is beautiful, but must have limits
I was truly perplexed by Tom Hritz's Postbag letter, criticising the Post for not reporting online the US Supreme Court's gun ruling.
I will never understand the lack of gun control in the United States despite the many reports of gun misuse causing injury and death of innocent citizens.
Freedom is a beautiful gift to all human beings, but should be restrained when it affects the safety of others. I am certain that worldwide more countries are tightening gun control than following the US Supreme Court's decision.
I therefore can see why the Bangkok Post ignored this story which has no excitement or news value to the rest of the world.
SONGDEJ PRADITSMANONT
Bangkok
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Fearless and unarmed / The message I got from Tom Hritz's letter is that here is one frightened American.
And my question for him is: If America is such a wonderful place to live, why are there so many people like yourself who feel they need a gun to protect themselves?
This country has a lot of problems, but so far I haven't felt the need to have a gun to protect myself.
However, I probably would if practically anyone were able to buy a gun as seems to be the case in America.
A READER
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MPs need to learn fine art of speaking
Watching an old lady crocheting a blanket would be more fun than watching the censure debate. The problem was opposition MPs neither organised or rehearsed their speeches. They rambled on and on until their time was up and then pleaded for more time. Worse, some even read to the audience.
I wish parliament would offer a course to MPs on public speaking and teach them how to organise their presentations. For example, teach them the three basic parts of a speech: the introduction (say what you are going to say), the main body (say it), and finally, the conclusion (summarise what you have said). The course could also teach them that visual aids help only if the audience can see them.
Use every minute efficiently. Do not spend half of your time telling listeners about your childhood and how your first pet died. Try to get to the point as quickly as you can.
If the speech is about making Samak look bad, focus on Samak, not Thaksin, his family or the Tak Bai incident. Hit Samak with solid evidence, not irrelevant facts.
One MP who is also a medical doctor irked me when she said Samak was psychologically unfit to be prime minister because he ate cake with soda pop!
Censure debates can be interesting and educational if MPs want them to be.
MEECHAI BURAPA
Chiang Mai
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Nationalist lament
Regarding the Post's most recent attack on nationalism, this time by Sanitsuda Ekachai (''Nationalistic puppets, we'', Commentary, June 26), can anyone at the Post please explain your obsession with nationalism?
According to my dictionary, nationalism is a doctrine that a nation has the right to constitute an independent political community based on a shared history and common destiny.
When we talk of Thainess we talk of nationalism, don't we? So what, exactly, is it about devotion to the interests and culture of one's nation that the Post finds worrisome?
Nationalism is premised on the obvious conclusion that the interests of nations are better served when acting independently rather than collectively.
Blame for many of the problems mentioned by Khun Sanitsuda, like economic disparity and rural poor, should be laid at the door of globalisation rather than nationalism. It also seems rather obvious that nationalism, which is the sense of common identity among people who have never met one another, is not the cause of southern unrest but its solution.
LEK
Krabi
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