Banish pavement bikers
Well done to Thai Pulse/Bangkok Post for mentioning the wild behaviour of foreign cyclists in Chiang Mai. There is no excuse for them -- they should behave properly in this country where we foreigners are all guests -- so I hope one day the No 1 plague in Bangkok can be solved as well.
Two days ago, I walked from Phrom Phong to Thong Lor and back again. I was shocked to see in this short distance more than 250 motorbikes using the pavement on both sides, swerving and weaving from left to right. Motorcycle taxis, courier services, food deliveries, private motorbikes and even the police force joined in this suicidal behaviour.
On the way back, as I walked towards Sukhumvit Soi 49 on the pavement, one motorcycle drove fast onto me from the back and hit my underarm with its mirror. About 10 metres later, he almost hit a young mother and her toddler.
These brainless idiots are making this city unsafe and no authorities are taking any action to solve this long-standing problem. For sure, there must be an excuse for this crazy behaviour, although we foreigners will never know because, after all, this is Thailand.
Huubie Lowlands
Defending the indefensible
Re: "Clean up dirty politics" (PostBag, July 16).
Vint Chavala did an excellent job rebutting the ambassadors of 22 Western countries and the head of the European Union delegation who dared to give Thailand an unsolicited lesson on freedom of speech.
The junta should hire Vint as a spokesman (maybe with JC Wilcox as an assistant) to deal directly with foreign governments who don't understand Thai culture, Thai ways and the Thai mind.
The dynamic duo could explain why students who criticised the junta's draft charter must be arrested and shackled, why "attitude adjustment" is necessary, and why we are allowed to discuss the pros of the proposed constitution but not the cons.
Meanwhile, I like Vint's writing style. He usually starts with a little compliment that makes you grin. Then comes the big "however" followed by a row of vitriolic, abrasive and sarcastic remarks. Bam! Pow! Awk! Ouch!
Somsak Pola Samut Prakan
Listen to criticism
Kuldeep Nagi (PostBag, July 16) exposes the hypocrisy of Vint Chavala for telling me to read books critical of America when he supports the junta that arrests people for reading books they don't like (for example, Nineteen Eighty-Four).
Just for the record, not only have I read The Ugly American but I saw the movie. I have also read numerous books by Noam Chomsky, who rarely has anything nice to say about America.
But I believe that only by listening to criticism can you learn from mistakes and improve. Conversely, the junta apologists regard anyone who disagrees with the Thai government as being someone who either hates Thailand or is on Thaksin Shinawatra's pay roll. I should be so lucky! And that's the difference between you and me, Vint.
Eric Bahrt
China on dodgy ground
Yingwai Suchaovanich claims that the United States is engineering arbitration for the South China Sea verdict that favoured the Philippines over China (PostBag, July 16).
Yingwai also suggests that China has historical claims to the islands in dispute as well. Would Yingwai kindly present us with facts to support China's claims?
Perhaps France should void the Louisiana Purchase and reclaim its territory in the United States. Perhaps Russia should invalidate the sale of Alaska to the United States and reclaim that parcel of land too. China's so-called historical claim comes from the word of an old fisherman who claimed he had a 600-year-old book passed down through the generations that cited his ancestors fished in those waters. But here's the catch (no pun intended) -- he threw the book away.
This may be historical proof for China, but not the rest of the world. Khun Yingwai, if we all were able to claim validity to what our ancestors owned or occupied, Japan would own parts of China, the Korean peninsula and more. Britannia would still rule the waves, and the maps of Europe and Asia would also be quite different. Myanmar might indeed have the right to claim the rest of Thailand as its territory. Do you speak Burmese, Yingwai? It might come in handy one day.
Jack Gilead
Fisherman's tall tale
I loved the reasoning behind Yingwai Suchaovanich's letter (PostBag, July 16). The writer questions the validity of the South China Sea ruling but should instead question China's invalid claim based on a so-called manuscript found by an old fisherman who claimed it was so damaged that he threw it away.
China needs very little in the way of historical accuracy in its pursuit of territorial claims. China occupied Tibet on such an invalid basis. However, Yingwai need not worry about Thailand.
China already subtly owns a lot of the Thai economy and investment, and it will soon own the Thai public inter-provincial transit system. No takeover validity will be needed. Perhaps Yingwai will be appointed as foreign minister or Chinese ambassador to the US, or be given a seat on the Permanent Court of Arbitration when it happens.
David James Wong San Francisco
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