Arresting calendars
Re: "Authorities question Thaksin-Yingluck calendar owner", (BP, Nov 5).
\When I first glanced at a picture of the Thaksin-Yingluck calendar, I thought it was a wanted poster of the two issued by the authorities, which gave me an idea.
Why not issue "wanted calendars" for Thaksin and Yingluck? The wanted calendars for 2019 could be given away free, featuring front and profile mugshots of both, descriptions of the crimes, the bounty for each, the words "dead or alive", a warning if they are considered armed/unarmed and dangerous/harmless.
If the authorities are serious they should offer a gargantuan reward. A hundred million baht for each would create an army of bounty hunters. Two hundred million baht is cheap considering the crimes both have committed. Yingluck's rice subsidy alone has cost the country over 500 billion baht, according to the Democrats.
But I doubt it very much if they are serious about arresting the two, for if they were, I'm sure they can and both would be in jail by now.
Somsak Pola
Digital mine disaster
Re: "Bitcoin mining uses so much electricity", (Business, Nov 7).
The phenomenal, extravagant waste of electricity dedicated to the largely unproductive "mining" of bitcoin is finally revealed. Imagine, processing one year's worth of bitcoin blockchain transaction takes up more electricity than the entire population of Denmark.
It would take about 30 power plants the size of the proposed Krabi coal-fired power plant to drive all the cryptocurrency processing going on in the world today.
The profligate consumption of power is all the more dubious when one recognises that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are mainly vehicles for illegal and "dark" transactions. With cryptocurrencies, shady characters are able to hide their wealth from taxation, scam honest people of their hard-earned legitimate money (think ransom of hacked computers through malware), and mask shady transactions of various types, including drugs and weapons deals.
Rather belatedly, people are also taking note of the environmental toll of such electricity waste. Interesting that more than half of the servers processing cryptocurrency transactions are grinding away in China -- already one of the most polluted spots on Earth, thanks to the thousands of coal-fired electric power plants spewing out noxious emissions.
It's time to do the environment and the world's population a favour by banning bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Samanea Saman
Songtaew madness
Local media reported this week about 20 kids who were crammed into a van. Twenty! The Department of Land Transport is prohibiting 10-year-old intercity vans from renewing route licences, demanding these vans be replaced with minibuses.
However, the ministry has not bothered to issue rules and regulations for school vans or songtaew that transport students to and from school along upcountry routes. These songtaew pack in 16 sitting students and another four standing, dangling off the rear platforms. These vans and songtaew speed along at 80-100kph, on roads visibly signed for 60kph.
It seems the further one gets from Bangkok, the easier it is to totally disregard safety and speed limits. The Department of Land Transport needs to coordinate with local area police to actually send inspectors out onto these rural routes, not just issue printed warnings.
I'm sure a ruling will be issued immediately after an accident results in serious injuries or worse, deaths.
Charcoal Ridgeback
Selfish hawkers
Re: "Thai street eats? No, it's 7-11, 24/7", (Opinion, Nov 8).
First, food hawkers promoted in Singapore don't cook and serve food on public pavements. The venues also provide necessary sanitation, so you'll never see one dumping greasy water into public sewers directly.
They don't look like street vendors in Bangkok, in fact they are more like the food courts at MBK, Siam Paragon or other malls.
Second, it's good that 7-11 introduced 24/7 made-to-order food. While I may not be its customer, but if it is successful, the public may have their footpaths back from the selfish hawkers.
James Debentures
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