HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Not a drop to spare

Say it with a smile

Sewage outlet needs fixing

Doesn’t like the inference

A dog’s life

Fair dues

Whining

Man’s best friend

Not a drop to spare

Dear Sirs,

It seems in the past few months you have run several stories linked to comments from the water authorities assuring all residents of ample water supplies to carry through until 2011. But... has anyone seen Mabprachan Reservoir lately? It’s virtually empty with scattered islands all over it and at least 40% of its surface completely dry. It’s only a question of weeks before it totally dries up and we are back to where we were several years ago.

Many may remember the intention to run a pipe to the reservoir to help stabilize its water level, but somewhere within the powers that be, this idea was scrapped.

With continued development around the reservoir and the opportunity of natural run offs to help refill the reservoir disappearing fast, it will not be long before the reservoir remains empty all year long. So if you call yourself Lake View or Lakeside, it’s time to rename.

A very dry resident

Say it with a smile

Dear Editor,

One of the least enjoyable aspects of living in Thailand is the quarterly/annual trips to the immigration office. I applaud the Kingdom’s views on immigration as, being an American, I feel it is the right way to keep on top of it.

However, the people in the office, wherever one goes, seem to be of the universal bureaucratic mind set but more so: A touch more helpful, a touch less arrogant, a touch more compassionate with the silly farangs wanting to live and spend money in the Kingdom.

I’m asking for professionalism and not the arrogance that seems to permeate these offices. In my experience and conversations, Pattaya is not rated very highly. Please help the silly farang.

Dr. Pat Foster, Pattaya

Sewage outlet needs fixing

Editor;

I was on the lookout for Tony’s new gym in Jomtien, and on the way, I passed over an open sewage outlet on the new 2nd Road behind the new 90 story condo, not far from Immigration.

This has been seeping out on the road for months. Cars driving through it, people walking over it, no one seems to bother.

One would have thought it would have been fixed by now.
But same old story in Thailand; no one takes the blame.

Matt Jomtien

Doesn’t like the inference

Editor;

The debate that has been taking place in your pages over the past five or so weeks has been interesting, albeit full of some rather dramatic declarations. A few of the people that took exception to my comments, including this past week’s contributor, Dorian Farmer falsely suggested that I have been trying to promote smoking.

They are either not comprehending my words, or they are just outright lying. Nowhere in any of my letters did I attempt to promote smoking. I have on many occasions openly said that smoking has to damage your lungs and that I recommend it to no one.

What I did suggest is that smoking is not necessarily an instant death sentence. This is fact and there are far too many smokers in their eighties to suggest otherwise. I would imagine that it is dependent on one’s physical condition, what foods they eat and the severity of the pollution in the skies of wherever they live. I also suggested that the claims that second hand smoke is killing people are pure B.S., whether they come from PhDs or otherwise.

But all of that is not to suggest that anyone should start smoking. They shouldn’t. I am only trying to defend those of us who do smoke from the vigilantes of the world who are demented sufficiently to believe that second hand smoke is killing people.

So what do I get for my efforts? One gentleman who gives us visions of babies choking on cigarette butts and now Dorian Farmer creating scenes of scores of smokers laying around waiting to die and coughing up sputum in the process. None of which has anything whatsoever to do with my original letter about cigarette butts and second hand smoke.

To Dorian, I can only suggest that there is no nice way to die. It is always a dark, lonely and sometimes painful experience regardless of what you die from or whether there is any sputum involved in the process. Did you imagine that it is much more pleasant to die from obesity or liver failure, or the results of any of the other bad habits that people eventually suffer and die from?

Why these people feel that it is necessary to get off of the facts of the debate and get into dismal scenes of choking babies and sputum spewing hopelessness will always remain a secret to me, although I suspect they find it necessary to describe such scenes because they are lacking the basic facts or logic with which to make a coherent case.

Lastly, I do not know which is the case but I find it strange that despite the fact that there are thousands of smokers living in Pattaya, no one saw fit to join the debate on my side. Is it because they think I am wrong? Is it because they feel that they don’t have the guns to present a compelling case? I guess we will never know.

John Arnone
Yasothon

A dog’s life

Dear Editor,

I was recently in Thailand with a party of friends. We were horrified to see the neglect and outright cruelty to dogs and cats. We found this incomprehensible in a Buddhist nation. What happened to loving kindness? Where is it when I see a dog with a huge machete or knife wound and nobody stops or cares? At the same time we saw puppies being sold in the markets. A county with many thousands of stray dogs should not be allowing the factory farming of puppies.

I respectfully suggest that the first thing you need is proper effective cruelty to animals legislation that is enforced. Then education to understand the average dog has a similar mind and emotional development as a 4 yr old child. I don’t think many people stab, poison or abandon 4 year old children.

The puppy mills should be closed. Responsible pet ownership should be taught in schools ,and the people should adopt a stray if they want a dog. The dogs should be sterilized.

I saw a few kind Thai people feeding the stray dogs but the problem is huge and needs responsible leadership backed up by good laws.

I hope this newspaper and good Buddhists in the community will step forward to begin solving kindly this blot on Thailand’s reputation.

Sincerely
D. Thurbon

Fair dues

Dear Editor,

I was getting a little disenchanted with your handling of the great smoking debate in the Mailbag as it seemed that I was being ganged up on and then squelched, (not printed), when I made some good points. But then in this week’s issue you printed a letter in defense of my position (the one on outlawing drinking in public places).

I want to thank you for doing this. It reestablished my belief that your paper is one of the only ones in Thailand that is truly objective.

It has to be tempting to be in a position where you can affect public opinion simply by printing or not printing a letter. Let’s face it, we all have our opinions and as much as we may try to be objective it is sometimes difficult. In any event you took a step in the right direction and again, I thank you.

John Arnone
Yasothon

Whining

Dear Editor,

I read the letter about the whinging farangs (I hope I’ve spelt that right). When I lived in Pattaya I couldn’t believe the Brits who moaned about and the reasons they gave for leaving Britain. I left the country I loved because my Thai wife loved the summer here but hated the winter and I had been made redundant so it was cheaper in Thailand. But the people who moaned about the UK also moaned about Thailand and belittled the Thai people thinking them only good enough to clean houses (this might not have been all of them).

So why don’t you people who have left their countries to live in the Land of Smiles just get on with it. Surely you must have known what to expect before you moved there? Please stop slagging down the UK & Thailand. If you don’t like it leave (I couldn’t stand some farangs and mosquitoes) but my wife wants to come back so I might have to sell and buy in another estate but If I can’t hack it I won’t blame the country or the Thai people - it’s my preferences and expectations. So just enjoy life.

Yours, Anon

Man’s best friend

Aloha Editor,

In reference to the problem with the homeless stray dogs, a main topic in most papers - hungry, thirsty, encroached on, kicked, hit with rocks, sticks, golf clubs, sling shots and so on - their personality might change if a little Aloha (love) replaced the above.

Look at it this way: feed and water them from time to time (like many Thais and farangs do) then you have a friend or friends, you have their trust, not their fear and anger. One seldom bites the hand that feeds them.

Alternatively you can call 1337, Pattaya City Hall, and let them know that you have a few homeless dogs in your area that trust you enough to get close to. City Hall might, if not too busy with more important issues at hand, come out to pick them up, spay or neuter them, and take them to a Wat or a shelter. In some cases if they are being fed by Thais (and or farangs) and are not a threat unless provoked, they can be left alone to have a chance to live their lives, free, like the rest of us.

The worst case scenario is that nothing is done, but you at least have made some priceless friends and I’m sure you can get back on your bike and get some good old exercise, which sounds like the problem to many.

We at The Pollution Solution Group and those at Pattaya City Hall realize that there is a dog problem, which is very hard to control. If anyone has any humane ideas on what to do, other than feeding, catching spaying or neutering, rather than starving, beating, killing as suggested in past papers, please send us your suggestions or call Pattaya City Hall on 1337 with some common sense ideas.

The Pollution Solution Group along with Pattaya City Hall, wants to thank the Thai’s and farangs that understand and help the voiceless, by giving a little food and or water and also for any ideas that one might have.

With respect to all
KOTO & the Pollution Solution Group

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