OPINION

Station confusion

Re: "Yet another missing rail link", (Editorial, June 4) and "Partial Pink Line launch urged as traffic worsens", (BP, June 3).

I have seen articles and letters about the imminent opening of the Yellow Lat Phrao/Ratchada to Samrong (monorail) service recently, but nothing on the northern Pink (monorail) line. This service runs from Nonthaburi via Chaeng Watthana to Lak Si and on through Bang Khen and along Ram Intra Road past Fashion Island to terminate near the Eastern Outer Ring Road at Min Buri.

I have seen test vehicles running, and it looks like the stations are complete, so when can we expect it to open?

I have to say that after living in London for many years, it seems the station names are a problem on the Bangkok system as they are on Transport for London services. There are identical station names for destinations that are a long way apart. Without the help of an A-Z map, I think people should check they are going where they want to be before getting on a train.

Instigating chaos

Re: "S112 teen can still go to school", (BP, June 15) and "Lawyer group calls to screen lese majeste complaints", (BP, May 27).

During the past four to five years, a group of men and women who called themselves "young and progressive Thais" instigated chaos by slyly directing young students to insult one of the nation's respected institutions.

Later, when those children were arrested for defamation, these people collected money from "good Samaritans" to bail the youngsters out -- and help them "fight" against the "old-fashioned and unjust law".

This comment is not an accusation. But it can be verified by many Thais as factual. Let's allow some time for history to decide on that.

Voting irony

Re: "Kiddy's democracy", (PostBag, June 3).

"I probably wouldn't have voted for Pita Limjaroenrat," says Jason Jellison, which rather begs the question of who he would have voted for. Given his recent proud admission of being a die-hard Trump supporter and his triumphant claim in July of last year that Fox News had been the most consistently reliable information source through the Covid pandemic, it would appear that lies and autocratic inclinations are what appeal to him. I leave readers to decide which party and leader might have best suited him as a voter in the recent Thai election.

For all his unctuous advice to Thai senators to support a popular win by MFP and Pheu Thai, it is more than a little ironic that Khun Jason will almost certainly cast his vote in the 2024 American election for a man who still claims the 2020 election in America was rigged, and will almost certainly incite civil unrest if he is the Republican candidate and loses in 2024.

For the little difference it would make, we should be grateful that Mr Jellison's influence in Thailand is limited to ponderous and simplistic advice via PostBag on everything from the Thai healthcare system, through Thai elections, to his disjointed marijuana policy.

West's Ukraine lies

Re: "Ideals vs reality", (PostBag, June 9).

I am surprised that Kuldeep Nagi's article indicating that the media of the collective West are running fake news on the war in Ukraine was published by PostBag.

Contrary to the fact that the Ukraine war has so far claimed hundreds and thousands of young Ukraine lives, up to this day, the Western media is still falsely proclaiming that Russia is losing.

Major Western news media like CNN and BBC rarely report on why Russia invaded Ukraine in the first place. They are reluctant to inform their readers about the breach of the Minsk Agreement by the West, the expansion of Nato to the doorstep of Russia threatening its security, and the suppression of Russians living in the four Ukrainian oblasts -- Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia before their annexation by Russia. Nor have they paid any interest to who actually sabotaged the Nordstream pipelines.

Having said that, I sympathise with Ukrainians who have suffered in this war, although several regular writers to the Post will probably jump in tomorrow and label me a "Putin apologiser", as they have done before. In reciprocation, perhaps the name "US collaborator" can be bestowed on those "democracy and freedom" writers who never criticise the numerous wars initiated by the US, from Vietnam to Afghanistan and from Iraq to Syria, that claimed millions of civilian lives.

Go home, America

Re: "Ideals vs reality", (PostBag, June 9) & "The eyes of the world are cast upon Ukraine", (Opinion, June 7).

I agree with Mr Nagi. Wherever America goes, bloodshed follows. In the last few months, I was at the War Museum in Saigon, where I was reminded of the horrible, endless atrocities America committed in Vietnam -- all in the name of freedom, of course.

Then two months ago, I was at the killing fields in Cambodia where some of the worst atrocities in modern history were committed and whose government at the time was supported by the "Mr Human Rights" President Jimmy Carter when Cambodia was at war with Vietnam.

Just yesterday, I was watching a news programme about how Julian Assange is rotting in jail because he exposed American war crimes in Afghanistan. And, of course, Israel can commit any atrocity it wants and still get billions of dollars of military aid from the United States. And let's not forget how America supported Saddam Hussein until he invaded Kuwait and threatened American oil interests.

So anyone who thinks America is supporting Ukraine because America cares about war crimes and human rights is wrong. While no one knows for sure how that war will end, it seems as though the war is achieving nothing but more and more suffering on both sides. And the possibility of a nuclear disaster is quite real.

Has anyone ever wondered how much more peaceful the world would be if America would mind its own business?

Climate folly

Re: "Be clean and green", (PostBag, June 10).

Ann Chow Ngan Ming obviously means well. She cites two main points: reduce carbon emissions and increase green coverage. Nasa reported a study called "Greening of the Earth Mitigates Surface Warming", which shows that "increased vegetation growth during the recent decades, known as the "Greening Earth", has a strong cooling effect on the land due to increased efficiency of heat and water vapour transfer to the atmosphere". The study used high-quality satellite data from Nasa's MODIS sensors and was originally published in the Journal of Science.

Making up a mere 0.04% of the atmosphere, more CO2 is good for all living creatures. It facilitates the growth of plants and, therefore, food. The greatest explosion of life on earth occurred during the Cambrian period when CO2 levels were up to 10 times greater than they are today. Historically speaking, we are living in a time of very low CO2.

The notion that human activity is responsible for heatwaves in Southeast Asia and sea level rises is a lie fabricated by those who would benefit from equally unscientific manmade efforts to "remediate climate change". The Earth itself is intelligent and responds intelligently to everything. To presume we should interfere with this magnificent display is the height of man's folly.

The M-Flow trap

A few days ago, I received a letter from M-Flow saying that I had missed the one-week deadline for payment of 30 baht for passing through their expressway gate. As a result, I was informed that I must pay a fine of 10 times the original amount, totalling 330 baht. I must admit that I inadvertently used M-Flow and was unaware of the consequences.

I am left wondering who gave M-Flow the authority to charge such a high penalty for those who miss the payment deadline, especially since I never received an invoice or reminder. I am also curious as to why the fine is 10 times the original amount and where this money goes.

This situation seems incredibly unfair to motorists and appears to be a trap. I urge M-Flow to review its policies and communication methods to ensure that its customers are not unfairly penalised in the future.