POSTBAG
Web grinds to a halt
Just recently all foreign websites have become incredibly slow in Rayong. It is not possible any more to watch a news video on the website of my European newspaper and streaming coverage of the stock exchange is also lagging. Is the internet not workable any more for foreigners? How can a foreign company work here?
Thailand an IT hub? Don’t let me laugh. It looks like the Great Firewall of Thailand has already been erected.
Poor Thailand. Progress is far away and so is the prosperity of the people.
Dr AF Engelkes
Justice must prevail
Re: “Punish graft in the courts”, (Editorial, Oct 15).
No matter how much damage our country has suffered as a result of the rice scheme of the Yingluck Shinawatra government, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha should not use his special powers to claim compensation from the former premier — and supersede the courts of law in the process.
Justice must be seen to be done. The PM intervening in this case would only destroy his credibility in the eyes of the world.
Justice should definitely be allowed to run its course without interference. As Buddhists, we should pacify ourselves that if the law of justice cannot right the wrong that has been done, then the law of karma will.
Two wrongs don’t make a right.
Vint Chavala
Smoke and much ire
Despite the signs prohibiting smoking that are posted at the entrances of all BTS stations, it is now nearly impossible to walk to and from the trains at Phrom Phong station without being assaulted by the stink of cigarette smoke from tobacco junkies lounging in front of EmQuartier.
It is ironic that an establishment intent on portraying itself as modern and hip would allow a minority of individuals to defile that desired image with anything so retrograde and declasse as smoking.
Or is this part of their current “Whenever you feel…” campaign, which apparently seeks to pair the Me – I mean Em – District with self-indulgence? In that case, an additional ad reading “Whenever you feel like fouling the air that other people have to breathe…” might be in order.
Otherwise, smokers should be relegated to street level with the other smoke-belching throwbacks to the mid-20th century.
Emphysemic in Em District
Brew-ha-ha
The latest brew blow-up over Chang beer involving celebrities who advertised it is to be laughed at (BP, Oct 23). Chang, Leo and a few other inexpensive beers would not even receive the title of beer in many countries.
A good beer is in itself a good meal. Chang, like its associated beverages, is a thin, hopsy tasting, bitter brew with little to contribute to the drinker aside from getting him drunk at minimal cost. I suspect that is the main reason so many people drink this stuff. If people want a good beer, try what the Bangkok Post once changed in a writer’s letter from the name of the beer, (I understand free advertisement is a no-no), to “An Island Beer”.
As for celebrities, that too needs to be looked into. Thais tend to put a lot of stock in actors and actresses, whose only claim to fame is their looks, and scandals printed in the Bangkok Post Sunday Mae Moo column, certainly not their acting abilities.
David James Wong
Quality conundrum
Re: “Samui hotels hold room rates”, (Business, Oct 20).
What is your definition of a quality traveller?
Quality travellers usually go to the Maldives or the South Pacific. They do not come to Thailand. What about the backpackers who spend more money on the vendors, small bungalow owners and small shops? Do the quality travellers spend money on these hard-working people? You need both.
Again. How do you define quality travellers?
Brian
Samui
Times have changed
Traditionally showing “Thainess” was about showing kraeng jai towards others — especially people higher up in social standing. This trait has been ingrained in us since birth because of our paternalistic society. People knew their place. No more (a good thing), so Thailand needs more black and white rules for people to follow.
An example is the buffet in Chiang Mai or coffee shop meetings (ThaiPulse, Oct 21). Make it clear — relying on kraeng jai worked in Siam in feudal times but it’s the global information age now.
Jay
Blogging incredibility
Mr Gibney in the Oct 16 article “Social media sleuths cracked MH17 missile case” believes that it is utterly useless to conduct time-consuming investigations involving great number of experts from various countries to establish the cause and those responsible for the Malaysia Airlines Boeing tragedy that claimed 298 lives.
It turns out that the case has long been solved. The thing is that a sharp-eyed British blogger, Eliot Higgins — a true Sherlock Holmes of our times — was able without any delay to unravel the truth. Of course, the MH17 was downed by a missile fired from a Russian Buk anti-aircraft weapons system.
After reading that piece of journalism a logical conclusion jumped to my mind: There is no reason to waste large sums of money on feeding the investigators, rescue workers, searching for black boxes, inquiring into the causes of various catastrophes and etc. We have social media that can crack any mystery in no time.
Let me share a few of my thoughts on this matter.
Firstly, Western media and social networks seemed to “appoint” (not to find out) the culprit of the tragedy right after (or maybe even before) the accident. Sure, it was “ruthless Russia”. At this point it is important to note that the United States whose satellite was directly over the area where Boeing crashed has never submitted any related data. Make no mistake: If they had any proof to that claim it would have been disseminated immediately.
Secondly, to support the credibility of Mr Higgins, the author refers to his “important role” in exposing the use of chemical weapons in Syria by the “Bashar al-Assad regime”. I would like to remind people that this was not confirmed. At the same time many cases of the use of toxic agents by the rebels supported by the US were revealed. And crediting him with the exposure of the US Air Force’s bombing of the Kunduz hospital doesn’t make sense: The American military officials admitted doing so themselves.
And thirdly, neither Western mass-media nor online bloggers deemed it necessary to report the results of the investigation conducted by the Russian aviacorporation “Almaz-Antey”. Its conclusions are straightforward: If the MH17 aircraft was downed by a missile then such a missile could only be in service with the Ukrainian armed forces and could only be launched from the area at that time controlled by the Ukrainian forces. And that area even has a name — Zaroshchinskoe, not Snizhne, as claimed by E Higgins and J Gibney.
Finally, I would like to express my regret that it is becoming harder and harder to obtain unbiased information in today’s world. However, broadsheets, including the Bangkok Post, always very scrupulously select sources of information.
There is a saying in Russia: It is the thief who cries the loudest “Catch the thief!” Don’t you think it’s true?
Kirill Barsky
Ambassador of the Russian Federation
Graft is everywhere
Re: “Anti corruption crusade”, (Opinion, Oct 22).
Corruption permeates all sectors of Thai society. It would be inappropriate just to blame politicians for all the ills. One wonders why after 20 or more military coups, corruption continues to plague Thai society.
Embezzlement of funds by bureaucrats, kickbacks in contracts, high-flying monks, road-side police bribery, corrupt judiciary, jet-ski scams, double pricing for tourists, widespread copyright and patent infringements of product and services have become integral parts of society. In the education sector, use of tea money, plagiarism and selling diplomas is also quite common. A recent Transparency International survey measured public perceptions of corruption worldwide. This shows that no country is exempt from corruption. In this survey of 175 countries and territories Thailand was ranked 85th with a score of 38/100.
Thailand can learn from a few best practices used in European countries and also in its immediate neighbourhood in Singapore. First, to combat corruption the current regime should promote transparency and integrity in all sectors, including military operations. Fighting corruption requires that the “rule of law” is not applied selectively. Second, it should develop adequate measures to raise the quality of education and retrain bureaucrats, police and the judiciary.
Lastly, creating a virtuous cycle of checks and balances in businesses, whereby all actors commit to fundamental positive ethical principles. It may not easy, but it can be cultivated over time to change the culture of corruption. There are many Thai agencies working hard to deal with the systemic problem of corruption. Corruption is a reflection of society’s twisted ethics and morals. It is rather naive to just blame the politicians. One wonders why they have to spend billions of baht to get elected. Charles Bukowaski, a German-born American poet and writer once wrote “Are there good governments and bad governments? No, there are only bad governments and worse governments.”
Kuldeep Nagi
All talk, no action
Re: “Peak resorts fall under the microscope”, (BP, Oct 23).
The comments and statements made by authorities regarding this resort are all correct. The only question is why those actions were not taken before the resort was developed to such a large scale.
RH Suga
Lamphun
Teen births class issue
Re: “Law to halt teen births poses risks”, (BP, Oct 20).
The recent reports on teen pregnancies does not mention the social groupings. It is my feeling that they are mainly coming from the lower classes. These people have a mindset that is not in tune with middle-class remedies.
From my interviews and Facebook contacts, a young Bangkok lady typically drops out of free education in the 9th grade and at age 15. She moves in with a peer-group lover and begins making babies. The couples are not stupid but have no interest in IUDs, pills, condoms or abortions.
The saving feature is that the National Health Security Office offers free sterilisation after two births for those over 18. The Thai fertility rate is very low at 1.6 per second female. At this rate you might not have an army in 20 years.
So the problem is also elsewhere. The girls have not had a proper teen life. No karaoke or discos until age 20. They can sing but cannot dance. Their grooming is inferior and they have trouble walking in high-heel shoes.
Frank Lombard
Rich ... and stupid
The commentary, “Car park spat sparks vitriol against the rich” (BP, Oct 20), should have added the words “and stupid”.
A Thai admiral arriving in full uniform at his wife’s command to appear in a police station makes me wonder if the poor hen-pecked admiral is really fit to run the navy.
He should have told his wife to settle her own problems and be done with it. I guess he is still floating his rubber duckies in his admiralty bathtub, dreaming of playing with his future submarines.
Hen-Pecked Mango
Black and white issue
This week’s white skin/darker skin discussions are interesting. A very pale, white-skinned Thai lady sitting next to me on a train once asked me if I thought she was beautiful. I asked her if she was ill or suffering from any sickness that caused her to be so pale. She was shocked.
I patiently explained to her that where I come from, extreme whiteness is associated with working indoors, never seeing the sun, such as in factories and ill-lit rooms. Healthy people have a bit of “colour,” a tan or whatever, because it indicated they could spend time outside enjoying leisure activities. She said, “Oh”, and stopped talking.
Jack Gilead
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