Thais have very short memories: look at the rogues set to take power

He was the only person brought to court and got a three-year jail sentence.

Instead of arresting Thaksin and his family to bring them to court, they were allowed to flee abroad. And what happened with all the others accused of being involved in corruption cases and illegal acts? To mention a few: the entire Thaksin Cabinet (lottery fraud), Samak, Plodprasop, Sudarat, Chalerm, Yongyuth (vote-buying) and so on. Many are again in power. They even talk about giving Plodprasop the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. He was accused of exporting tigers to zoos in China and putting the meat of endangered species on the menu at the Night Safari in Chiang Mai. Remember?

About 2,500 people were massacred in extrajudicial killings during the Thaksin regime and no culprit has been found. How many more will be massacred in the years to come? We know Samak's human rights record and he has no regrets about it.

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Nick

Bangkok

Nothing at all to be optimistic about

Re: "25 things to cheer up Democrats", Opinion, January 23

You try your best in your inimitable fashion to make it seem that all is not lost now that the country looks likely to have Samak Sundaravej as its international face and a government that will whitewash the deposed premier, his wife, cronies and anyone else who needs to get off the hook whiter than white. It will then move on to stack the criminal justice system, Army, civil service and probably the shopping malls for good measure with puppets before getting down to the serious business of raping the country again. I wish I could share your optimism, but sadly I simply can't.

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G Simpson

Bangkok

Scarce wood makes modern pyres smaller

Re: "Work on royal crematorium set to start early next month", News, January 22.

I think it might be more appropriate to use the term "funerary pyre" instead of "crematorium", one being a sacred temporary wooden structure, the other a permanent and utilitarian building in masonry.

During the Ayudhya period, royal funerary pyres, all in wood and bamboo, reached a height of 102.75 metres or the equivalent of a 30-storey building. At the start of the Bangkok period they were 80 metres tall, getting progressively smaller in the succeeding reigns due to modernisation. (The subject is treated in my book "Naga", which deals with the origin of civilisation in the Asia Pacific region.)

Building in wood on an elaborate and large scale, whether in architecture or in boat building, reflects the Thai instinct and genius, mostly lost today with modern materials replacing the now hard-to-find timber.

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Sumet Jumsai

Bangkok

Plaudits for Princess tribute and athletes

One of the most moving tributes to Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana is the performance video of "Doak Gaew Galaya" featuring a most talented ensemble of Thai orchestra musicians, choreographed dancers and an extremely gifted singer. Plaudits to TPBS for running the beautifully edited piece and to 94EFM for frequently broadcasting the melodic rendition as a reminder to us all that myopic attitudes are the real disability.

On a related note, let's all recognise the noble efforts and superlative positive accomplishments of Thai athletes competing valiantly at the Asean Para Games in Nakhon Ratchasima through to Saturday.

As these proud athletes continue their training prior to representing the Kingdom at the 2008 Para Olympics in China, we must unstintingly provide our full moral support and funding.

Chanchai Prasertson

Bangkok

Elephant 'training' is tantamount to torture

My husband and I were in your beautiful country for a three-week vacation over Christmas and New Year. We joined in a lot of tourist activities. For one of our day trips, we participated in a combined white-water rafting and elephant trekking with a rafting company. I was surprised to see all the scars on the elephant's head.

 The young man who rode on the elephant had a long stick with a metal hook on the end, with which he often poked and prodded the magnificent beast. After the ride, we were allowed (through the purchase of a basket of fruit) to feed the elephant. It was then that I noticed the blood dripping down the side of the elephant's face. I pointed to it but the young man just shrugged.

This was the only blemish on our wonderful vacation in Thailand, and it bothered me enough to do some research when I got home to the United States. I have since learned from a National Geographic report that the elephants are taught in a manner called the "crushing ritual". This is a brutal and barbaric way of training.

I breed and show dogs and I only use only positive reinforcement. To do otherwise would only produce a cowardly dog that could not think on its own.

One would think that the elephant, an animal of much higher intelligence than most other creatures and a cultural and national icon in Thailand, should not have to endure such mean-spirited torture. Elephants are trained all over the world to perform in circus shows, zoos and animal parks without "crushing their spirits".

We would love to recommend your beautiful country to other travellers but cannot in good conscience as long as people are profiting from this horrific type of animal abuse.

Mr and Mrs Richard P Kean

San Diego, California

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