HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Missing telephone lines

Searching for a mother in-law

Noise pollution, again

Another scam

Siam road is a disgrace

No more wind in The Sails?

Rayong Administrative Court ordered Jomtien survey

Show me your brake lights

Enough complaining

Missing telephone lines

Editor;
I currently live in the Mabprachan reservoir area. For the past six Mondays both of my phone lines have been stolen. Six weeks! I could almost set my watch to the time early morning Mondays when they’ll get cut. I expect these kamoys will be back again this coming Monday as it appears nothing will be done other than replace the lines after a day or two. I suggest the phone company just leaves them a reel of wire to haul off to save themselves from re-running the lines. Maybe the police should give more priority to fighting the real crime in this area and concentrate less on extorting funds from motorcycle drivers and breaking up 20 baht card games.
Scott Benson
Pattaya

Searching for a mother in-law

Editor;
I am looking for my mother in-law Amara Sriwisut - as spelled on my wife’s birth certificate and noted that Amara was born in Chonburi Province and would now be 54 years old. My wife was born Aed Sroykam September 29, 1984. And she lived with her father after she was 3 years old so she could go to school.
My wife’s father, a doctor, met and had two children with Amara when attending medical school in Bangkok and then moved to Lopburi where he still lives. “Bea” Aed Sroykam has not seen her mother since her father took custody when she was three.
We have two children and I would like for them to know their grandmother.
If you have any idea where Amara is or how I could find her please let me know.
Thank you,
Peter Mackin, CPA
Grace & Associates, P.C.
Certified Public Accountants
29-B Lenox Pointe, N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30324-3172
404-364-9000
678-904-7712 (direct fax)
e-mail [email protected]

Noise pollution, again

Dear Sir,
I wrote last week with sincere thanks for any assistance you may have been able to give in doing anything about the excessive noise pollution we are tormented with every night, and have been for months, sometimes all night. Our thanks are genuine, even though we only managed to get one week’s rest, we were/are grateful.
Just to bring you up to date, the noise emitted from the major offender, the stereo system from a pick up directly in front of the estate, is back to where it was, worse in some respects, because it is turned down, and then at varying intervals throughout the night, every 30/40 minutes or so, it is full blast and wakes us all. There is little doubt it is being done on purpose.
It angers me and many others to think that we are being driven from our homes by the excesses of one individual who has no regard for others, particularly as we have been so happy here for many many years.
Thank you for letting me “bend your ear” with our problem, but any assistance, advice, would be greatly appreciated.
Yours Sincerely,
Kevin H. Kitch
Soi Buakhao

Another scam

Editor;
About 3pm Thursday 23rd August I was on my motorbike going to visit a friend staying at apartments at the south end of Walking Street. As I entered the narrow entrance I was confronted by a police officer telling me I was travelling the wrong way and I would have to pay 500 baht fine and then another 100 baht to his 2 motorbike taxi mates to go and pay my fine at Soi 9 for me. I refused to comply and wrote down the rego number of the taxi guy and the reference number of my infringement number. This caused some consternation between the officer and his motorbike taxi mate.
I was probably 1 of 10 tourists stopped, although his kind heart allowed some Thais to turn their bikes around without any fine; obviously they would be aware of this scam.
Today I paid my 400 baht fine as written up on the wall at Soi 9.
The south end of Walking Street up to Rolling Stones 2 bar has always been 2-way and if not, if the police officer had not had a house or car payment due maybe he could have done his civic duty by stopping vehicles from entering instead of hiding around the corner 30 metres past the narrow entrance.
Are the tourist authorities aware of the damage these corrupt police cause and how this turns people away from coming back to there country?
Infringement number, motorbike taxi number can be supplied if anyone is interested.
B.J. concerned tourist

Siam road is a disgrace

Editor;
The 4 S’s: Sorry State Soi Siam. After countless attempts to do something about this main feeder road to the east the government has failed miserably at every try. Not being a road builder, I implore anyone with the slightest knowledge to please help, even with the feeble advice on how to put some crushed rock into the thousand or so potholes.
Mabprachan resident with a stuffed front end

No more wind in The Sails?

Editor;
What’s the full story on The Sails at Najomtien? This project was hailed as a success with a majority of the units sold off the plan and a 5 star hotel set to run the show. Now all that stands is silent cement since the Syntec workers took down the cranes, loaded up their trucks and moved on down the road. What happened? What happens to those investors? Are there any future plans for this site? What does this tell others buying off the plan in Thailand?
An avid reader

Rayong Administrative Court ordered Jomtien survey

To the Editor:
On Aug.8, 2007 the Rayong Administrative Court ordered that a survey be taken of the Jomtien seashore area and map made for its inspection. This was primarily to determine the Mean Sea Level, etc. and so settle the ongoing dispute over the legal height of sea view developments. The action was instigated by the court suit of 10 Jomtien Complex plaintiffs vs View Talay 7. However, the final decision of the Administrative Court will have a dramatic impact on sea-side property and projects throughout Thailand. Projects in Jomtien have come to a halt as they await the result. View Talay 7 has been (temporarily?) restricted to 14 meters height rather than the 27 storey building they envision. This would seem to be a very important and newsworthy matter. Yet daily scanning of the newspapers and the net yield no information post - August 8 about either the survey or the final decision - or even a future date for an Administrative Court hearing. I find the total silence on this matter most curious.
Beachcomber

Show me your brake lights

Aloha;
Road rules (seem to be): Thank you Buddha, Thank you God, “He missed me”. I can understand how that that poor guy ran into the cement truck while he was driving a truck full of building supplies. And they needed the jaws of life to get him out. He was very lucky. The next time you’re out there driving, wishing that you were already there, check the tail lights, brake lights and turn signals on a cement truck. Nine times out of ten they haven’t been cleaned in a year or two. A lot of the cement has splashed all over them making it almost impossible to see if there breaking or turning.
You would think that many of the police on their motorcycle wearing a helmet with straps flying in the breeze would pull trucks like this over and make them clean, fix, or replace any type of warning signal that doesn’t let us know what their intentions are. There aren’t too many things worse then running into the back-end of a Sherman tank in your Toyota.
Gerry Rasmus

Enough complaining

Sir,
I refer to the almost weekly letters that you publish from KOTO regarding litter. They are becoming ever more tiresome and counter-productive; the more he complains the less people are likely to take any notice of him. Instead they will regard him as some form of self-obsessed crank or nutter with a one item agenda. As for the litter he constantly complains about, what about the leaflets which he has been displaying around the city? That is also litter which is an eye-sore to visitors and residents alike. There is already more than enough unwanted and unsightly advertising material being displayed all over the city by legitimate businesses without KOTO contributing to it.
KOTO would do far better to go away and have a long hard think about practising what he tries to preach others to do - i.e. don’t litter!
PAAC (Protester against annoying complainers)

Letters published in the Mailbag of Pattaya Mail
are also published here.