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Not dumb enough to listen?
Editor;
Re: Presidential snooping (PM Mailbag Friday, 28 June 2013) - Not dumb
enough to listen? The National Security Agency has bugged the EU offices in
Washington & its mission in the UN in New York & has hacked into the EU
computer network. Also revealing a huge eavesdropping operation in Brussels
from a building at NATO headquarters where 20 nations have offices. With as
many as 500 million communications being monitored each month, the NSA
claims, “We can attack the signals of most foreign & third rated countries
And We DO.” Spokesperson for the EU is quoted as saying, “George Orwell is
nothing by comparison”. Assange, Snowden & Manning are small fish by
comparison to the US and will be hunted down and made to pay for telling
what could be the truth. One is in jail, one is holed up in an embassy while
Snowden has had his passport cancelled and is in Russia. Ecuador was in the
process of assisting him until the US threatened them with political & trade
sanctions if they did. The US justifies everything as being part of the
fight against terrorism but the EU are not terrorists. Just goes to show
“Might is Right”.
Aussie Bill
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Need to review
the Affordable Care Act
Editor;
Re: Assisted living and affordable health insurance (PM Friday, 24 February
2012) - I think you need to review the Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) more
closely. This health insurance is only available in the U.S. It cannot be
used outside of the country. If a person is living overseas, they are still
required to enroll. If they choose not to, they will be subject to a fine of
$750.00 minimum annually. With that extra cost, I don’t see how even low
cost health care obtained overseas, becomes a bargain. Thank Socialist Obama
for that one. They thought of everything.
R. Kane
Ed’s note: Unfortunately, upon closer inspection, this letter is misleading
at best. A quick and easy internet search will turn up variations of the
following paragraph: In June 2012 the Supreme Court gave its approval to the
Affordable Healthcare Act and many Americans living outside the USA are
wondering if the law applies to them. The Supreme Court decision did not
change anything in the law and Americans who are bona-fide residents
overseas are presumed to have minimum essential coverage and as such do not
have to pay a tax for not being insured in the US. Further, I cannot find
any confirmation for R. Kane’s $750 figure. The same search turned up the
following: Individuals who can afford to purchase health insurance coverage
and do not do so will face a penalty (tax) of the greater of
* $95 or one percent of income in 2014;
* $325 or two percent of income in 2015; and
* $695 or 2.5 percent of income in 2016;
* Families will pay half the amount for children up to a cap of $2,250 for
the entire family
* After 2016, dollar amounts will increase by the annual cost of living
adjustment.
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Good tall tale
Editor;
Re: We should all take out insurance! (PM Hillary Friday, 28 June 2013) -
Hi, this is a good story and quite entertaining if it wasn’t so real for
many foreigners. I myself was entertaining the idea to burn down or bulldoze
my house (her house). But I never got the timing right and anyway I have no
insurance, so I let her be. But what amazes me about my former fiancée
Darling, that after all her cheating she comes happily back to me,
announcing that I am her real King and wants to get married right away. But
with the marriage she wants a bigger house, 10 rai, a pick up truck, gold
and a healthy bank balance. Of course I agreed with her reasonable requests
and told her we will be getting married on the moon. Have nice day and good
luck with Thai women.
Vern
What is the purpose?
Dear Diner,
What is the purpose of a review if the review is constantly one that is
glowing? A review is (in my opinion) one that is honest and straight
forward. It tells the truth as to what the restaurant’s standards were on
the night of the dining. If a movie or a play is reviewed do you tell the
producers “we will be back to review when the production is better?” To me
that makes absolutely no sense. It is not the reviewer’s responsibility to
keep the place going. It is the reviewer’s responsibility to print the
truth. How can I judge a restaurant if only positive reviews are printed? I
never take Ms Terry Diner’s column too seriously because it is only printing
half-truths.
Brendan
Miss Terry replies: There is the situation where as the reviewer, you feel
that the restaurant’s performance was just not up scratch, and you cannot in
all fairness to the readers (and to the restaurant) write a positive review.
So you simply do not write the restaurant up. I have previously explained
why I do not publish damning negative reviews. These do nothing other than
give the reviewer an inflated idea of his or her own importance. They do not
make people go to the restaurant to see if it really was ‘that’ bad. Rather
than help the restaurant improve, a negative review kills the restaurant. I
do not believe that a journalist has the right to break anyone’s rice bowl.
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Name spelt wrong
Editor;
Re: Special report: Strategic Partnership with Vietnam (PM Sunday, 30 June
2013) - Excuse me! General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam is
Mr. Nguyen Phu Trong and not “Nguyen Phutong” as the author indicated in the
article. Please consider checking the name of a country’s Leader before you
publish anything! Thank you. :)
Jackie Nguyen
Beach Road should be closed
Editor;
Re: Controversial Beach Road widening begins (PM Friday, 12 April 2013) -
Beach Road should be closed to motor traffic altogether and turned into a
corniche for pedestrians and cyclists. A tramway could be constructed for
people transportation. Motor traffic should be moved to 2nd and 3rd roads.
Jane
It’s not so bad here
Editor;
Re: Southern Islamic school’s assets seized (PM Thursday, 06 September 2012)
- Hi, I am a foreigner and think that the Muslims in Southern Thailand are
far better off than in the Muslim countries. It is for sure that they are
better off than any non Muslim country because they can call Azan on loud
speakers openly with full freedom. There is no restriction of any sort, they
can practice their religion. In US Muslims are not allowed to call Azan on
loud speaker at all. I think the Thai government deserves the credit of
giving full freedom of practicing religion and treating them equally to
Buddhist majority. I see no difference at all, no discrimination or
disrespect at all. If I have to choose a country to live, I would love to
live in Thailand even though I am from the only super power of the world.
M. N. Baig
Good clean
drinking water
Editor;
Re: Lions Nongprue donate water filter to Map Yai Lia residents (PM Friday,
21 June 2013) - It is always good to hear that another part of the
population is finally getting clean and potable water from a reliable water
filter system. There are too many people in this world drinking less that
low quality water, and is our leading cause of death. By helping one
community at a time, we can eliminate this.
Lewis
Maybe it wasn’t the military
Editor;
Re: Firearms, ammunition seized in raids at seven Bangkok locations (PM
Sunday, 30 June 2013) - I find it interesting that the courts decided that
the killing of the Italian journalist was done by the military as he was
killed using a military round. They assumed that only the soldiers had these
types of weapons but obviously they were wrong. The proliferation of high
powered assault rifles and other military grade weaponry is rampant
throughout the Kingdom and the military seems powerless to stop it.
Fred Prager
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