OPINION

Straighten out cops

The Royal Thai Police seem corrupt through and through. Yes, there are some honest and sincere officers but they tend to conform to the overwhelming forces of corruption which govern every aspect of police conduct.

The latest charade at Wat Dhammakaya and the recent entrance exam scandal illustrate the urgent need for reform. As it stands, the police are incapable of serving the public interest and are not interested in establishing the rule of law.

Only Thailand's highly respected prime minister is capable of tackling this enormously destructive problem. Prayut Chan-o-cha, please help us put an end to this foul societal disease.

On Monday, Air Asia sent out a mass email called "2017 Early Bird Sale". The asking prices were okay, but not surprisingly, it was a ruse.

I tried booking one of the flights advertised. A bit later, I couldn't continue unless I committed to paying one of two add-on prices. The cheaper one was nearly 500 baht extra.

After trying to bypass that scam, I then opted to click it. But even with agreeing to pay the additional sum, I couldn't proceed with the payment process. Apparently, Air Asia compels clients to go for the more expensive of the two add-ons. I don't know, because I gave up by that time.

The moment I saw the Air Asia "bait and switch" ad, I knew it had to have hidden added costs. Why can't companies like Air Asia deliver on their stated offers?

Re: "Beating the bullies", (PostBag, Jan 11).

Reading that the Chinese are going to be sending large vessels down the fragile Mekong River system is a horrendous prospect.

And, to whose benefit really?

Generating electricity from solar now costs less than coal or natural gas, at least that's the situation at a new site in California. Springbok 2 Solar Farm is generating electricity which costs less than 2,000 baht (US$58) per megawatt/hour. How much does electricity cost per Mw/hr in Thailand currently?

Solar-generated electricity would be viable for Thailand, particularly at far-from-grid locations like Pai and Mae Hong Song, and also for islands.

I read the news story, "Unhappy customers to sue TrueVisions", (BP, Jan 11). Okay, sue away. But I don't understand the addiction to TrueVisions or any other entertainment media. If these customers would simply unsubscribe, cancel their subscriptions, TrueVisions would go out of business.

But, as in all businesses, there will always be someone else waiting to fill the vacuum. All the time, energy, frustration, complaining and so on amounts to nothing in the long run. TrueVisions viewers seem as addicted to their TVs and programming as drug addicts to their fixes. It is indeed baffling.

Twenty years ago I installed one of those universal cable things that pulled in a hundred or more channels from around the world.

A week later I sold it all to a neighbour for next to nothing to get rid of it. The neighbour sold it for less than he paid me for it a few weeks later as well.

If you really want brain-rot, try swimming in the Gulf of Thailand at some Pattaya beach. It achieves the same result, for free.