OPINION

Why go silent on singer

Re: ''Covid measures in place for Phuket's NY countdown", (BP, Dec 30).

I think someone owes the people an explanation of the Andrea Bocelli fiasco. For weeks all we heard were rumours about his appearance in Phuket.

On Dec 27 the Post confirmed that preparations were underway with Bocelli confirmed to perform. The stage was set for 3,000 confirmed guests sitting two metres apart to watch Bocelli and 20 prominent Thai artists.

No tickets were ever offered, no venue mentioned and the photo spread in the Post of the nationwide events included nothing about this event. Better to have said nothing than to suddenly drop all mention of it, I think.

Smarten up to fight covid

Re: "10,000 Covid cases a day", (BP, Jan 6).

Covid is back -- but we're now up to herd immunity level, with boosters. We should not be afraid but keep our guard up and use science to subdue the pandemic.

The number of available hospital beds is far more important than the number of new cases. Some 95% of new cases are Omicron -- which is much less virulent than Delta.

The danger is that our hospital system will run out of beds, not so much that a patient will die. For example, Los Angeles County just saw a massive 1,600% rise in Covid cases, but few beds were needed for them.

Mask up indoors and where you cannot maintain social distance. Prayut and Anutin now have our vaccination/boosting systems on track, with boosters, so keep your jabs up to date. Clean your hands often. Test with ATKs before mingling outside your household.

Keep classes open and on-site, not online, because the CDC found that cases between staff were more numerous than those involving students. Fully vaccinate/boost all staff, including outsourced and those authorised to drop off/pick up students. Split classes into cohorts and minimise contact between cohorts.

There's just one chance in 300,000 that a person under 18 will die from Covid-19 (source: US CDC). But the Thailand Research Development Institute reported that 16% of Thai youth were malnourished, affecting mental development, and that was pre-Covid. So, instead of vaccinating them, use those resources to give our youth healthier meals.

Use your brain, not emotions, to fight Covid.

PostBag in need of a shot

Re: "10,000 Covid cases a day", (BP, Jan 6) & "Vaccine fatigue", (PostBag, Jan 6).

The Department of Disease Control head was quoted as saying, "Public transport should be avoided for inter-provincial trips." He went on to warn, "We could have over 10,000 new infections [daily] very soon." Well, that was a shock!

I could not help but wonder why this nugget of advice was offered a few days after many people had just risked life and limb to make return inter-provincial trips. Finally, I must thank David Brown for his sanity and sound advice. I, for one, am sick and tired of receiving the views of conspiracy theorists who peddle their prejudices.

Alternatively, why does the Bangkok Post not simply give Eric Bahrt his own weekly column so that I can ignore it altogether, given the fact that it is getting close to a letter a day from him or another anti-vax "contributor" like Michael Setter? I used to buy my daily Bangkok Post for PostBag to enjoy the often witty, intelligent and relevant contributions. Sadly, its contents have also been "infected" by Covid.

The hidden tolls of new year

Re: "7 deadly days", (BP, Jan 3) and "Road safety campaign curbs deaths to 333", (BP, Jan 5).

The annual stats for accidents and deaths during the "seven deadly days" of the New Year holiday always make for interesting if depressing reading.

Somewhat strangely, this year the figures were issued by the Department of Probation after five days, with the final tally from the Department for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation!?

As usual, motorcycle riders comprised the vast majority of fatalities; hardly surprising when roadside checks found 23,000 without helmets and only a slightly lesser number unlicensed.

Most worrying for me is that for all the self-congratulation from the RTP about their enforcement efforts, there is no mention of how many of the roadside checks resulted in charges for driving under the influence (DUI) and how many speeding drivers were detected by roadside radars.

As one would expect, there is also no mention of the revenue generated by the 78,000 charges laid.

If one assumes a modest average of 250 baht, the total is close to 20 million.