LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Earthquake a wake-up call for those complacent about disaster-proofing measures
Re: "Earthquake rocks far North", News, May 17.
Yesterday's earthquake, which registered a magnitude of 6.1 on the Richter scale 800 kilometres away came at an opportune time to wake up many people who are involved with the future of the rundown Din Daeng flats. It reminded them that it is not very smart, and downright dangerous, to fool around with the laws of physics. Statistically alone, as we may recall, a 5.1 earthquake last year already served to forewarn the sceptics that the next one could be expected anytime. So, since the science of earthquake prediction is no more than an educated guess, we can at least extrapolate from it a little and predict that next time around (next month? next year?) an earthquake with a magnitude of six or seven on the Richter scale could send us in Bangkok into a high orbit for real. And, who knows, the epicentre of that quake might not be as far as the one yesterday. How far away is Kanchanaburi anyway? Dr Vichit Phanumphai Bangkok --------------------------- Natural disasters pound nation and Rain is on the way
Natural disasters hopefully will not visit Thailand too often. Rains have attacked Thailand for two years in a row. This year looks more serious. Look at the rain every day starting from May 1 till now and this is not a rainy month. We hope the earthquakes will not come anymore; with the traffic already causing so many problems, can you imagine the effect if some buildings in Bangkok were to collapse? It would bring many things to a standstill. May heaven protect this amazing country. Out of curiosity, is the organiser who is bringing the Korean "Rain" to Bangkok for a concert reconsidering whether this is a wise move? Web Reader Bangkok --------------------------- Quake did not shake up Californian in Chiang Rai
Sitting at ground level in Chiang Rai, I felt a small shaking for about five seconds, then a two-second stillness, then a slightly stronger undulation for another five seconds. The four-story glass-faced building across from me had one of its open glass panels set at an odd angle, which was the only physical change I saw at that moment. Small stuff, but then I'm from California. Bramburgers Chiang Rai --------------------------- Configuration of Thai keyboard baffles typist
Who came up with the configuration for the Thai typewriter keyboard? Was it an individual or was it configured by committee? Methinks it was the same ilk of scholars who came up with such obtuse transliterations for Thai words (to Roman letters) - which render many Thai words to be pronounced differently than their proper pronunciation - and who insist on adding a plethora of H's to transliterations (th, ph, kh) ... ad "unnecessarium". As for keyboards, what were they thinking when it came time to place numbers? "Let's see, the farang keyboard uses the numbers zero through nine, and we Thais have adapted the same numbers - so we could use the same designated keys or ... Oh, what the heck, let's place our numbers on completely different keys - and let's do the same for all the 50 or so punctuation marks and other symbols that are shared by farang and Thai languages." Virtually all Thai typists switch between typing in Thai and Roman characters. What would prompt someone to intentionally complicate the process. It may seem like a small thing (to be concerned about keyboard configuration) but it affects the efficiency of myriad writing projects, which require a Thai keyboard. A more sensibly configured keyboard could possibly save millions of hours of typing time. Ken Albertsen Chiang Rai --------------------------- Only the rich would benefit from a congestion charge
Re: "Congestion charge for downtown Bangkok still a dream", News, May 17. While, at first glance, a congestion charge seems to have worked in London, its major benefit has been to the rich. Just look at the proportion today of Bentleys, Ferraris and Porsches driving freely in the central area, compared to regular family cars and the ratio 10 years ago! The rich have won again! Salvation for Bangkok must lie in the rapid expansion of the BTS Skytrain and the MRT with fares that all can afford. F O'Dowd Dublin --------------------------- Writer overstated possible repercussions of patent stand
Re: "Drug stand a short-term fix for a long-term problem", Letters, May 17, 2007 The writer's points are logical that a selected decision has future consequences except that his expected consequences on the Aids/Abbott brouhaha were based on his own wishful thinking. He opined that the Thai government's unprecedented declaration of "trade war" would cause losses to Thailand in the long run. Thailand would simply have to do without a new cure and a few expensive drugs and can expect fallout in the tourism sector. Wow! What wild perceptions! Did Thailand declare a trade war? No, we rely on a provision in the World Trade Organisation's rule on compulsory licensing. The rule provides for negotiations in lowering the prices of these expensive drugs for the benefit of the poor. Thailand did try to negotiate but the affected parties were dragging their feet and hoping that the demand would just go away. Now they have met their match in the name of Public Health Minister Mongkol na Songkhla. One company's attempt to ostracise Thailand from having future new drugs has already been greeted with disgust from a group of American and international activists and even its own stockholders. Because of Mongkol's action, the writer also opined that Thailand's tourism sector would crumble. That is a far-fetched consequence. Since the action, I still see all sorts of articles in the international press lauding Thailand, especially Samui, Phuket and Pattaya as "must" places to visit. As a native, I don't see the greatness of our attractions. Songdej Praditsmanont Bangkok --------------------------- Better education would lessen need for HIV/Aids drugs
I find it difficult to argue with the good-hearted nature of Anon, from Chon Buri ("Platitudes easy until HIV debate becomes personal", Letters, May 17) or Stan's point on the WTO rules ("Compulsory licensing permissible under WTO"), concerning Abbott Labs, and their pricing and availability standards. But, the cold hard fact is that Abbott Labs is a company that was created to make money, primarily for their stockholders, and it was not their purpose to be the "good guys" and look for cures just to hand out drugs at the lowest prices. Aids has been around since 1984, and millions of dollars have been spent on trying to educate people, including the poor, about how these diseases are transmitted. Yet many refuse to care about preventing their own death and continue to play "Russian roulette", and then expect countries, individuals and companies to come to their rescue. Possibly, the Bt2,800 that Anon so generously spends to help two souls would have been unnecessary if that money was spent on flyers and ads in the Thai language, and handed out in rural areas, as well as here in Pattaya, but that, of course, is now a moot point. I am not cold-hearted, nor ignorant concerning the problem, as insinuated, but I am a realist, and "A rose by any other name is still a rose", and it is still my stance where patent theft or infringement is concerned. By the way, I spend Bt27,000 per month on the education of my four Thai kids and their insurance, so that they never have to be uninformed where their lives are concerned. We are both doing our part, just in different ways. Hyde Parke Chon Buri --------------------------- Malaysia's visa policies friendlier to foreigners
Recently I spoke to a German national who lives in Penang, Malaysia. When his three-month visa runs out he crosses over the border into Thailand, crosses back and gets a new three-month visa at no cost. He can do this as often as he likes over the years without penalty. I cross into Thailand when my visa runs out and I have to pay the Thai embassy in Penang roughly Bt1,000 for a two-month visa, and should I require a third month I have to go the local immigration office to apply again at a cost of Bt1,900. So, over the year I pay almost Bt12,000 to live here and he pays zero. It doesn't matter if you spend years of your hard-earned savings here, and buy a condo that pumps money into the local economy; you're no better off than a short-stay holidaymaker or backpacker. Welcome to Thailand. Chiang Mai Mike Chiang Mai --------------------------- Than Shwe responds to force, not letter-writing campaigns
The 59 world leaders who begged for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi may be "singing to a buffalo". Than Shwe only understands "sign" language - especially B-52s, cruise missiles and aircraft carriers. If you want Than Shwe to be reasonable, you have to send an American aircraft carrier battle group to Burma. The strategy of non-violent dialogue has fully and completely failed in Burma. You could not dialogue with the likes of Saddam Hussein and Slobodan Milosevic. Than Shwe is the only dictator that signed treaty alliances with both of these world-class criminals. The Burmese Resistance wishes to thank the caretaker government of Thailand for facilitating and expediting the resettlement of almost 10,000 Burmese refugees during the past year. Myint Thein Senior Adviser to the Burmese Resistance Dallas, Texas
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