I'm strongly in favour of Deputy Prime Minister Paiboon Wattanasiritham's Community Organisation Council bill, supporting villagers in setting up people's councils so they can influence and monitor their community's development. The reason is simple: it will empower villagers in each locality, giving them a key voice in determining their own destinies - and that's what democracy's all about.

Yes, Interior Minister Aree Wongsearaya et al, are strongly opposed to the bill, citing administrative overlapping, but consider that Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has just tied kamnans and village headmen to the centre, by making them appointed by provincial governors (who are Interior Ministry appointees) - not by direct local elections. The kamnans and village headmen will be accountable to the Interior Ministry - not their localities, and their tenures run until retirement. This arrangement harks to our dark past, and has turned these two groups into effective canvassers for national politicians.

Accepting Abraham Lincoln's definition of democracy as "government of the people, by the people, and for the people", people's councils are essential in bringing about government by the people and thus for the people.

Those who know a locality's problems best will be those directly elected by the villagers affected - not appointed by Bangkok mandarins.

Vibrant people's councils will provide a vital check-and-balance mechanism to the centrally-appointed kamnans and village headmen, and enable we the people to be heard.

How ironic that a prime minister allegedly in favour of democracy is so intent on maintaining control from the centre and against letting the villagers speak out. Deputy Prime Minister Paiboon's bill deserves your support - now.

Burin Kantabutra

Bangkok

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Pro-Thakin group's rise a bad sign for democracy

Re: "Group 'aims to topple junta'", News, June 7.

The newly founded "Love Thaksin, No Dictatorship" group states their aim is not to reinstall Thaksin as prime minister Hilarious! Why use his name? Trying to eat from two plates by using his popularity and to appease non-Thaksin supporters?

After Sonthi Boonyaratglin's proposal for amnesty, his position is very much compromised and he should retire now.

To allow people to participate in the democratic process the government should introduce village council groups as proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Paiboon Wattanasiritham to avoid political parties using the people as a tool for own gain. Responsible politicians should introduce policies concentrating on creating an environment in which the population can earn a decent income instead of populist policies given away like sweets but which have cost a doubling of household debt in the last six years.

As this new group was founded by a part of Thai Rak Thai and, despite the overwhelming evidence of corruption during his tenure, this group is still pro-Thaksin, I fear nothing will be changed for the better in this country.

Egon

Bangkok

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Profit at all costs could be ex-PM's teaching niche

Re: "Ex-PM 'wants to continue'", News, June 8.

Thaksin states his latest noble aspiration is "to spend part of [his] life sharing [his] experience and knowledge with the younger generation - that is, teaching". What an interesting statement given his history of  corruption, perversion of the system and dictatorial behaviour. However, lets provide some balance to the above statement. We can say, without a doubt, that Thaksin does know how to make money. If business is about making money, then Thaksin surly qualifies in spades. Should the Kingdom welcome the good criminologist back for academic considerations, one might suggest that he be required to teach business and general ethics as a condition of that generous invitation. 

Tong

Bangkok

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'Sky-high' amulet sale a work of marketing genius

Re: "Sky is the limit for talismans" Business, June 6.

Growing up in the West we had the "lucky rabbit's foot" and four-leaf clover to cover the "good luck" aspect and St Christopher medals for the protection aspect. None of these were close in popularity or belief in their powers as what we have here in the cult of Jatukam Ramathep. St Christopher medals were primarily for Catholics but many non-Catholics also wore the medal.

Here in the Kingdom, today is the day that the "sky high" editions of the Jatukam Ramathep talismans will be anointed in the cabin of Orient Thai's new MD-82 aircraft on its flight from Bangkok to Nakhon Si Thammarat. The popular belief is that the higher the location of the anointing, the more likely the "Holy Spirit" will be drawn to the talismans. The public relations and marketing department of the amulet makers, temples and others in the trade who deal in these amulets are to be complimented on their business acumen, as millions of baht is expected to be had from the vending of the "sky high" edition. Of course there is a modest Bt1 million from the total earmarked for the repairing and rebuilding of schools in troubled Pattani. This may be one of the dhamma moments we were told we could expect from this article and its sale by religious authorities.

Mr Bill

Bangkok

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Solutions, not platitudes, needed from Apirak

Re: "Apirak's pollution drive deserves citizens' support", Letters, June 7.

It is easy for politicians like our own Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayodhin to jump on the bandwagon against global warming and win supporters without much effort. I also believe air polluters such as old city buses spewing out black carbon dioxide as they rattle down Sukhumvit Road should be banned. However, as usual, politicians have a clever way of avoiding the issue and sticking with easy, popular changes to win support.

The air sucks, yes, but the real issue is the horrible traffic jams. Governor Apirak, fix the traffic jams, or at least alleviate them with tangible changes. Go ahead, build more underpasses at crowded intersections, such as Asoke and Sukhumvit. Fine anyone who double parks, causing rubber-necking. Build a walkway under the Skytrain so pedestrians do not block intersections, such as at Nana and Sukhumvit. Tow cars that park on the wrong side of streets. We need more discipline and solutions to ease the traffic problems. This is your team's job, why aren't they doing anything about it?

It is easy to change our agenda and suddenly go after air polluters.

They are a small bunch of renegades whom everyone detests. But the core problem remains.

Apirak, fix the traffic jams, then go after the polluters. You are skipping over the hard priorities, but we shall not let you off the hook. You are first and foremost accountable for improving Bangkok traffic.

Now get it done.

Outraged Taxpayer

Bangkok

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Climate-change debate decidedly one-sided

Nasa's head, Michael Griffin, is the latest expert rudely educated to the fact that global-warming hysteria has now evolved into a quasi-religious movement that brooks absolutely no dissent. Any middle or high school kid might have told him as much.

Forced to sit through replays of Al Gore's one-sided documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" even in language-arts classes, they know this issue is one on which the angels themselves must fear to tread if they value their ethereal jobs.

Dr Griffin's forced mea culpa on Wednesday was for the heresy of seeming to question the level of global-warming hype in the media, which is too bad; there is simply too much we don't know even about the climate changes of past ages, never mind this one. And as the receding polar icecaps of neighbouring Mars provocatively insist on suggesting, something very like solar warming is afoot.

With truly convincing facts supporting their rhetoric continuing to elude the "climo-hysterians" among us, their current strategy appears to be to simply declare the earth's carbon asphyxiation as politically-correct dogma and to do away altogether with the tiresome requirements of scientific proof.

This shouldn't be passively accepted by the rest of us - if for no other reason than to provide our kids with a lesson in the merits of open debate.

Ron Goodden

Atlanta