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Published on July 9, 2007

I read with astonishment this front-page lead with its "What they do online" at-a-glance statistics. The first thing that entered my mind was the aphorism "lies, damned lies and statistics", attributed to (19th century British PM) Benjamin Disraeli and others to caution against the blind acceptance of statistics. 

My immediate observation would be to question the sample size, the demographic source and the lack of a control group of say 34- 50-year-olds, and what they do online. Without these the aphorism rings very true. And is the list comparative or cumulative? Do the 50 per cent who use webcams meet online friends? Are the 15 per cent who meet for sex contained within the 44 per cent who watch explicit videos? Whilst titillating to your readers, these statistics reveal very little of real scientific or social value as they are not anchored in any relevant context.

This article is as sensationalist as the Bangkok-sex-capital-of-the-world myth, which is often peddled - along with the nonsense that westerners flood to Thailand and are responsible for this besmirching of the nation's good name. It is time for home truths. The corruption of Thai youth may not be from the plentiful supply of online pornography but from the desperately low standards of moral behaviour they are shown by their elders.

Dr John Patterson

Bangkok

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High society is not so high, after all

Re: "Actions of 'spoiled rich kid' simply inexcusable", Letters, July 7.

I am in complete agreement with Jim Brown's statement concerning the recent bus/car episode, but I would like to take it a step further. I am not sure who is in greater need of a "head doctor", the son or the father, after his inane threat of lawsuits and statement "uneducated, low class people". It is a true indication of much of today's hi-so attitude in not obeying the law and trying to reverse blame and admit no fault to anything.

This boy intentionally killed a person and should go to jail and also pay a heavy fine (daddy will no doubt carry this burden) no matter how many tears are shed or how bad he feels, after the fact. If he had done what most people do when two vehicles have a scrape, exchange insurance and personal data, along with a police report, and gone on their way, this fatal result would not have occurred. Apologies and pay-offs do not erase this. It is time to pay the piper.

Hyde Parke

Pattaya

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Just be cautious of aggressive drivers

Re: "Poor visibility the least of the dangers on roads", Letters, July 7

The Alien from Chiang Mai helps to prove my point on vision. As he says, many drivers have seen him and in those cases no accident seems to have resulted. The drivers he mentions showed poor driving attitude and skill, but no lack of vision and no accident. Reports from police who investigate accidents in Thailand generally quote the driver as saying "I didn't see...." as the major excuse for the accident. My premise is that any impairment to vision is a hazard to driving. The impairment can come from windshield clutter, improper lighting, alcohol or drug impairment, physical impairment, drowsiness, or weather. In spite of such drivers as the youth in the Mercedes Benz - most people will try to avoid hitting something that they can see.

There is no lack of aggressive and arrogant drivers on the road. Many drivers lack the skill or information necessary to drive safely. Since vision accounts for 90 per cent of the input information, I still consider it one of the most important ingredients in determining the cause of accidents. The Alien needs only to look at buses in Thailand to see the significant amount of clutter on the windshields and the poor physical condition of the drivers.

Just for the record, I have spent twice as long as The Alien driving cars, trucks and motorcycles all over Thailand - with much of that time in Bangkok. My company has re-trained over 5,000 drivers using driving safety research from all over the world. My advice to The Alien would be to lighten up; if he knows how badly others drive, then he should take that into consideration in his own driving and exercise more caution around those aggressive drivers.

Richard Stampfle

Bangkok

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Stars should put money where their mouths are

Most of us would sympathise with the higher motives of Live Earth but with the many, many super-rich 80s pop stars jumping on the bandwagon, there can't be a little suspicion of self-promotion and a hint of hypocrisy. After all, they may get up on stage and preach to us poor slobs that we have to change our ways to save the planet, then after they have done their bit they get into a stretch limo and head to the airport to board their private jet to go to the next venue.

I have neither owned nor driven a car since 1990 and have taken only public transportation ever since or walked. What would really be impressive is a headline that read "Madonna shuns limo and takes city bus". How likely is that to happen? I think you know the answer.

Brian Elkey

Bangkok

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Environment must be priority for next govt

The profound difficulties in dealing with the over-use of the motor car - as remote a sacrifice as I can think of - and with energy saving, solar heating and deforestation largely ignored as impractical options, I wonder to what extent the next government will be prepared to create green initiatives in line with the Kyoto protocol.

Better late than never, but during the recent G-8 summit even George Bush said he would "consider seriously" the geopolitical hurdles surrounding controlling global emissions. But more worrying is that in Asia it comes as no surprise that next year China is set to become the world's top emitter of greenhouse gases.

Pessimism about reining in global warming is leading the world's eminent scientists to explore "geo-engineering" possibilities to "force" the earth to cool.

But while they debate potential biological horrors, the heavy flooding and drought that has wrought havoc on the country of late is a severe warning of the stresses on natural ecosystems, and it leaves one wondering how far the next government will go in involving itself with its future management.

It is but a small step of imagination to consider the "controlling" factors of "geo-engineering" which one day may turn Earth into a zoo but, with it, steer the world away from an abyss that the US in particular has studiously neglected to address.

There are moves afoot in the country regarding sustainability but the environment must become a central element in the next government's policy initiatives. To ignore the next generation for the sake of the convenience of riding in a gas-guzzling sedan is to bury one's head in the proverbial sand on which the people of this country just might soon be living on.

James Groveway

Bangkok

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Bangkok's tap water claimed safe to drink

Since the ongoing controversy over the potability of Bangkok's tap water can be concluded only with evidence, I purchased a Watersafe All In One Test Kit over the Internet and tested the water at my residence in Yannawa. Tests for lead, pesticides, nitrates, nitrites, chlorine, pH and hardness require, in all, 10 minutes. The E Coli test requires two days to culture. Our tap water tested perfect.

I am confident the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority provides safe water. However anyone having a home reservoir tank may wish to test his own water right from the tap, as one's tank may become polluted.

Jeffrey Race

Bangkok

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Democrats desperate to get into power

Support for the draft constitution was announced by Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva after a party meeting held to discuss the party's stand on the draft. I am not a Thai, but if I were, I would now regard the Democrats and Abhisit as co-conspirators against democracy in Thailand. I wonder how many actual Thais will now feel that way?

John Francis Lee

Chiang Rai