Baht bets rising
Re: "BoT measures to halt rapid baht uptick", (Business, Dec 5).
Let's the game begin. No, I am not talking about the ongoing 33rd SEA Games. I am talking about the usual monthly/yearly manipulation of the baht. Here we are at the middle of the month and it appears that the players are already placing their bets on where they want the baht to be. Given that we are nearing the end of the year, it takes on more significance since maximisation of gains is paramount. Forget that we just had a lifetime flood resulting in billions of baht in damage, that Parliament has just been dissolved, that we are in a cross‑border war, that an election date is still up in the air and that party defections are going fast and furious so that voters have no idea who is running for which party. Of course all of that bad news makes the baht stronger. What? You say all of that should make it weaker? Obviously, you are not a market manipulator. The only thing that can make the baht weaker is having Thailand win 250 medals because that would be good news. In the meantime, the BoT continues to keep an eye (a blind eye I might add) on the baht and will step in when it hits 25.
Currency Player
Science is not fact
Re: "Proven facts only" & "Internet experts", (PostBag, Dec 13).
Tarquin Chufflebottom suggests that the rise in autism among children is due to "increased testing in older age groups". More adults found to be autistic would in fact reduce the overall percentage of children with the condition. He also states, '"facts are proven, peer‑reviewed science", which reveals a profound misconception of the very nature of the scientific method. Hypotheses are "proven" usually until they are disproved by better hypotheses and data sets. The practice of science is designed to better our understanding, not to generate facts.
Krungthep Krit wrote, "sharp drop in vaccination rates from above 90% to an estimated 31% the previous year," hardly the communication of someone who should be the arbiter of what is published in PostBag. Measles vaccination is indeed useful in locations where poor nutrition and poverty are endemic. But the Disneyland outbreak in the US showed how the disease affected adults as much as children even though a significant number of the adults were vaccinated.
It is the huge number of vaccinations and the short time in which they are routinely administered to children which needs urgent study. There are simply no existing studies confirming the safety of this policy.
Michael Setter
Tat's reviews pain
Re: "Oh. What. Fun. ain't no fun", (Life, Dec 12).
Please, please, please do not run any more movie reviews by Tat Bunnag. They depress me. Perhaps, because, as an aspiring film critic myself, as I read his reviews, I realise I could never match the high quality of his writing. It is truly on a par with -- if not better than -- other, more well‑known movie reviewers that are syndicated worldwide. Although I get depressed, I do enjoy reading Khun Tatat's reviews, whether they be to grill or praise a movie. So I guess you may continue to run his reviews and I will lay on a supply of antidepressants.
The Klongurchin
