Does anyone know who is in charge here?

But, the Defence Ministry owns 56 per cent of the land managed by the State Property Bureau, and the guys with the guns say that all of their land is being used, and cannot be given away. Deputy Army spokeswoman Colonel Srichan Ngathong sternly noted: "Whether we will give some [land] back depends on our commander."

Perhaps Colonel Srichan made a Freudian slip, but in a democratic society, the military obeys the civilian government. In this case, it was no less than Commander-in-Chief and Defence Minister Samak who issued the order. And, as he so frequently reminds us, he's the elected head of government. Or, perhaps the military thinks that Samak had opened his mouth without checking the facts. If the spokeswoman's comment was too sensitive, perhaps Samak should ask the lady colonel the same irrelevant question he asked a female reporter, "Whom did you sleep with last night?"

Either way, Samak should improve his credibility all around. When even the military doesn't know who's in charge, things are going from bad to worse.

Burin Kantabutra

Bangkok

Maybe some good will come out of a bad situation

Re: Sidelines: Violence is inevitable if reconciliation becomes impossible, The Nation, June 10, 2008.

I agree with Sopon Onkgara that our country has more bad politicians than good ones, people who entered politics in pursuit of boosting their own wealth, not for the good of the country.

A dead end for society's economic and political development seems inevitable. People can never coexist in this environment where greedy and selfish politicians outnumber those who have good intentions for their homeland.

Since violent confrontation seems inevitable, I hope the next coup - if ever it happens - will help our country be cleans-ed of these bad elements once and for all.

Chavalit Van

Chiang Mai

Archaeological site safer under Cambodian control

The World Court awarded the famous archaeological site, Prasat Preah Vihear, or Prasat Khao Phra Viharn, the second most sacred temple to the Khmers, to Cambodia almost half a century ago. Yet Thailand still claims a right to the temple and risks setting off a war between the two countries through repeated confrontations over it.

Given the poor security at Prasat Phnom Rung, the big Khmer temple in Buri Ram, and the recent destruction of many ancient sacred objects at the site by vandals, Thailand is obviously not prepared to take care of Preah Vihear. The Cambodians would have hanged the culprits within hours. But the Thai police have yet to arrest the vandals, or even identify suspects. That can only mean that the police know who vandalised the temple and know who was behind them, and that important provincial politicians and officials were involved.

Perhaps Thailand should give Phnom Rung to Cambodia. It would be safer.

Rudolph Ignacio

Bangkok

Benefit of using horses instead of cars is questionable

John Wayne would be happy to see provincial authorities riding their horses into the sunset, after a long day in the saddle. The Interior Minister wants them to saddle up and ride to work, but where are the hitching posts, and the watering troughs, who will clean up after the horse have fouled the streets?

Look at the additional cost of keeping and maintaining a horse, which would be about 8000 baht a month. Then there is the additional cost of travelling from your house to the stable.

Would it not be better to ride bicycles? That way the administrators would get some exercise and lose weight.

It was also interesting to see the Interior Minister get into his Bentley. I would think that probably cost more than a horse. Of course it was declared as an asset on his wealth statement?

Tom

Bangkok

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