OPINION

Think for yourselves

Re: "On liberty, conspiracies and vaccinations", (Opinion, July 8).

I agree with the author that is not beneficial to stifle the ability of individuals to voice their opinion, even if conspiracy theories are way out of what most of us call reality. Who would be the arbitrator and what opinions are the correct ones allowed to be voiced? On the other side of the spectrum of vaccine conspiracies we have another group of people who I would say are over-righteous, I guess a branch of the woke train.

They typically want harder Covid measures, longer lockdowns, and anyone opposed is labelled detractors and should not be able to express their opinions even as it is apparent that in most cases none of this works -- at least not for long. Unfortunately, the author will run into problems with these groups as direct harm will be argued as "we are not safe until everyone is safe" and those anti-vaxxers will harm others by not achieving "herd" immunity (a word I do not particularly like as it is a very low hanging fruit for anti-vaccine conspiracies).

If someone had told me two years ago that within half a year almost all so-called democracies around the world would copy a totalitarian state's approach and apparently succeed in handling the spread of Covid, I would not even consider it a conspiracy theory but just a bad joke. Shutting down whole countries, shattering small businesses and restaurants, prohibiting older people seeing their close ones and letting them die alone, incarcerating people and children in their homes and criminalising going to work.

So, let us provide as much accurate information as possible and have an open discussion where everyone can have an opinion, even loonies. I have full confidence that people can make up their minds of what is right or wrong and that we do not need someone above to do the thinking for us.

Rich wallow in misery

Re: "Thailand's richest 2021 list", (BP, July 9).

One could not avoid the juxtaposition of images from Friday's Bangkok Post front page.

At the top were people preparing to spend the night on the pavement at Maha That waiting in a queue to get tickets for Covid testing.

Immediately below was a row of faces representing a list of the top five of Thailand's richest in 2021.

Should we all be pleased to learn the 50 richest Thais have added 908 billion baht to their coffers in the last 15 months?

Ah well, it's an ill wind, as they say.

If one needed "Thailand's tragedy" encapsulated -- here it is.

Stop living in fear

Re: "Community isolation threat", (BP, July 4).

Telemedicine? Grabbing doctors out of Aids wards to treat a different disease (for which they are really not trained), which has a 99% survival rate? X-rays of the lungs which might be all but mandatory?

Since this hysteria over an aggressive coronavirus (or flu) seems to know no logical end, I'd like to say that I had Covid-19 back in March, around when I returned to the United States, and even though I have many underlying conditions, it was not a big deal.

It was basically nothing more than a normal flu; with the exception that it caused some temporary heaviness in the lungs, which lasted about six hours. Then, I was fine. I think it is time for people to stop living in fear.

The virus is here to stay and, if you are strong, you'll survive. If you are weak, you won't, and no government is going to save you.

Time to do the research

Finnish medical people have apparently devised a simple technique that allows vaccinators to increase the number of doses that can be obtained from one vial of Covid 19 vaccine. They claim the technique will allow seven doses to be extracted from one vial of AstraZeneca instead of five. For Pfizer and Moderna they say 12 doses can be extracted instead of only 10.

The technique is so new that little has yet been published in English. I urge the Bangkok Post to print this letter so the information can gain some publicity.

I can only write to the newspaper, but medical personnel can conduct their own investigation to confirm the facts. Perhaps the Finnish embassy could be of assistance in this matter.