The future belongs to a well-educated generation

Regarding financial support, 11.8 million students nationwide will benefit from provisions that cover expenses for tuition, textbooks, school supplies, uniforms and extracurricular activities. Encouraging parents and guardians of motivated learners to become more involved and play a greater role in their offspring's struggle to maximise future opportunities and success options will hopefully result in creating ethically accountable and morally responsible civic-minded leaders of tomorrow.

Plaudits to the caring and sharing parents of the 60,000-plus enrolled students who have set an inspirational, common-good shining example by giving up their entitlement to the cash grants so the money allotments could go to those in greater need.

CHANCHAI PRASERTSON

BANGKOK

Proper road laws should cut down traffic accidents

Ref: "Alcohol ban will not be effective", editorial, March 17

Although I agree with the thrust of your argument, I suggest the article is only partially correct. Most certainly education of youngsters in the dangers of drinking and driving is crucial. However, there are two equally important factors that contribute to the road casualties in Thailand, neither of which is given the same media importance as alcohol. They are: basic driver training and testing and the enforcement of existing laws.

Until training and testing become meaningful and it is impossible for someone who has no driving skills and virtually no knowledge of road rules to "buy" a licence for Bt500 there will be little improvement in the general standard of driving or a reduction in accidents. The poor driving skills of these untrained drivers are exacerbated by even small amounts of alcohol.

Though motorcyclists are the worst offenders, many car, truck and bus-drivers are not much better when it comes to skill. The police could do with some basic education in the rules, or perhaps they should be given real incentives to do their jobs and reduce accidents by giving them a fair share of properly levied fines. They appear to close their eyes to blatant infractions that occur right in front of them, especially at the traffic lights, where there is frequently a police box. The installation of cameras at critical traffic lights and the strict application of significant fines for red-light-runners would soon pay for the camera installation costs.

CHRIS KAYE

CHON BURI

Abstinence, not condoms, will reduce the risk of Aids

I commend Pope Benedict XVI for his stance against artificial contraception, which thwarts the natural generation of life. His position is meant to provide Catholics as well as non-Catholics with a moral compass for authentic freedom.

Freedom does not rest in one's ability to do as one pleases. "Ye shall be as gods." This promise is quite clearly behind modernity's radical demand for freedom. Such anarchical freedom does not redeem but makes man a miscarried creature, a pointless being.

Pope Paul VI rightly predicted back in 1968 that failure to follow the dictates of Natural Law regarding contraception would lead to a lowering of moral standards, a rise in infidelity and promiscuity, a lessening of respect for women and government-enforced limitations on population.

Those who advocate condoms to stem the spread of HIV/Aids are misguided as they only aggravate the problem. The only foolproof and moral solution to preventing Aids is abstinence and marital fidelity.

PAUL KOKOSKI

CANADA

Why waste time in Nana?

Ref: 'Nana, lower Sukhumvit a dangerous place now', Letters, March 18

I read with interest the letter from Nick. He obviously regularly frequents the area, having time to meticulously observe the ongoing anarchy in and around Nana. It must be awful - pimps, elephants, beggars, inept policemen, plus people tearing down "do not feed the elephant" signs. I have a question for Nick: What the are you doing there in the first place?

JK

BANGKOK