Misplaced focus
Re: 145 killed in first three 'dangerous days', (BP, Jan 2).
On average, about 50 people die each day in Thailand, year round. That being so, why is it newsworthy that 145 people have been killed in the first three "dangerous" days of the New Year holidays?
That's slightly less than the average.
Why not, instead, focus on the fact that Thailand has one of the worst daily rates for fatal road accidents in the world and suggest ways in which road deaths might be avoided each and every day, not just at Songkran and New Year (when the rates are pretty much normal for Thailand anyway)?
Wren Akasawa
Why hold back
Re: 'Pushing through,' (PostBag, Jan 2).
As much as I enjoyed Joseph Ting's eloquent, beautiful letter musing about what the year 2026 might bring us (along with some other marvellous reader musings which also were beyond well-written in various comments), speaking as a realist & non-Christian, I am happy that Christmas & New Year are over.
Now I don't have to pretend (for fear of angry looks or even the occasional enraged retort) that everything is candy canes, the usual Christmas Carols, and publicly say "everything is fine."
Every holiday season I cannot give useful (but dark) information about major upcoming problems in the new year to family, most friends, or most of the public as they ignore reality in their annual holiday insanity.
Well, at least that nonsense is finally over and we can get back to the penultimate reality of life: The only thing certain in life is death & taxes, and the holidays finally are over, so deal with it.
Jason A Jellison
Intellectual giant?
Re:"Buddhism and war", (PostBag, Dec 29).
Postbag is one of the first sections I turn to in the Bangkok Post.
For years I used to open it fearing yet another letter from Eric Bahrt going on yet again about one of his pet themes, but at least his letters were understandable, whether or not one agreed with him.
Not so with Michael Setter, who seems to want to be seen as some sort of academic expert, with a dictionary and a Thesaurus constantly to hand.
This morning was the last straw when he wrote: "Thainess' is a word (akin to 'whiteness') which epitomises braggadocious ethnic egoity collectively presumed to be true".
I'm sorry Mr Setter, but when you write things like that presumably hoping your readers will regard you as some sort of intellectual colossus, the effect is precisely the opposite.
I agree with Mark Twain, who once said: "I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead."
Jaytee Korat
Face of evil
Re: "Teen social media ban now in force", (World, Dec 11).
Australia has introduced a ban on most social media for under 16s, a ban most are working to bypass, often successfully.
The ban was designed to protect younger children from the many "evils" that they shouldn't face but it is now being mislabelled as censorship by the US Congress.
eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, who is implementing this, has been called before Congress. Is she refuses, she could face contempt charges.
Is the reality that this ban will remove traffic from these sites, so many ads will be unseen?
The main social media companies often seem intangible, located somewhere but uncontactable, able to instantly block someone they dislike but unable to stop bullying or offensive material.
Something needs to be fixed.
It is likely we will see this become far more complex with protection for specific ages groups likely to be challenged by those affected or who have lost their audience.
Freedom from censorship should be fought for, but it shouldn't involve the innocence of those children.
Rather than condemning the ban that protects children, the US Congress and leadership elsewhere should consider its implementation as soon as possible.
Dennis Fitzgerald
