PAD "terrorists" didn't throw grenades during airport sieges

Khun Songdej Praditsmanont compares the People's Alliance for Democracy with Lord Haw-Haw. The difference is that Haw-Haw was backing a dictator whilst the PAD tried (thankfully, with success) to remove one. And if the Suvarnabhumi Airport management and staff hadn't welcomed the influx of PAD demonstrators into the concourse - for an excuse to make off as quickly as they could for an extra (paid) holiday - maybe a total and prolonged closure could have been avoided.

The threat of violence to civilians? Really? Weren't they all civilians, the protesters, the travellers and the staff? And where was that threat? Nothing and nobody got touched, and if the story is correct, the airport was cleaned up by the PAD to a higher standard than usual. There was of course some violence during the airport closures and that was the throwing of a grenade into the Don Muang terminal building by Thaksin's supporters, killing one person and injuring several others.

WOMBLE

Bangkok

Corruption? Take a look at the US financial sector

In 1802, Thomas Jefferson said: "When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe. I believe that the banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered."

 Is the United States more corrupt than some countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America? How did US$12 trillion (Bt409 trillion)disappear in the USA? Citing a few cases of greed and corruption:

 Lehman Brothers: $691 billion. Washington Mutual: $327 billion. AIG: $150 billion. World Com: $103 billion. Enron: $65 billion. General Motors: $91 billion. Conseco: $61 billion. Chrysler: $40 billion. Thorburg: $36 billion. Pacific Gas: $37 billion. Texaco: $35 billion.

This is not to mention Countryside Financial, Bank of America, Wachovia, Credit Suisse Group, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Tyco, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs Group, several individuals like Bernard Madoff and R Allen Stanford, many members of Congress and the House of Representatives, and Christian churches and the clergy.

Sawak Sarju

Canada

Tobacco companies will not reveal toxic ingredients

Re: "Force won't stub out the common problem", "Streetwise", Business, July 8.

I agree that there are many ways to encourage smokers to quit. In the US, non-smokers pay less for health insurance and car insurance than smokers. Since second-hand smoke endangers non-smokers' health, all public places including nightclubs, pubs and bars are smoke-free areas. It's not easy to quit smoking because nicotine is a potent, addictive substance.

Since the tobacco industry never stops trying to get new smokers, different strategies should be used in discouraging people from smoking. A total advertising ban of tobacco products, including prohibition of tobacco industry sponsorship of sports, concerts and other events is a necessary policy. Moreover, disclosure of the ingredients of tobacco products should convince smokers to quit. But the international tobacco industry has been interfering with the ingredients-disclosure policy at both national and international level. Encouraging the tobacco industry to be socially responsible is not that easy.

Assistant Professor Nithat Sirichotiratana

Faculty of Public Health

Mahidol University

Education exchanges to produce talented graduates

Dr Somkiat Chobphol's vision to establish Thailand as a vibrant international education hub represents a win-win situation for all involved. In our interconnected world, study abroad options provide ideal cooperative learning opportunities to foster goodwill, dispel stereotypes, broaden horizons; expand perspectives and rediscover shared common ground. Participants will gain first-hand experiential knowledge of other languages and cultures while also taking pride in helping preserve their own heritage.

The stated goal of 100,000 students developing new friendships, insights and outlooks by 2014 can be achieved successfully if an internationally certifiable IT-based curriculum cultivates self-access learning habits. Being there, sensing, listening, seeing and experiencing real life problem-solving situations will ensure that self-confident, independent-minded graduates are given a competitive edge to take control of their own futures and forge innovative career paths.

Chanchai Prasertson

Bangkok