HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Hua Hin Jazz Concert almost too good for words

Baht bus profits

You are still #1 in my book

See it for what it is

Open minds not narrow ones stop injustice

More Electric Company problems

Hua Hin Jazz Concert almost too good for words

Dear Sirs,
The city of Pattaya has always had two great events. In July it’s the Pattaya Marathon & in September it’s the Jester’s Care for Kids Fair. Since moving to Hua Hin last August I know I will miss these two events the most.
What beats Pattaya? The Hua Hin Jazz on the Beach Concert. Three days before the concert I saw several small groups of Thai workers as they started building & setting up the stages & eating stalls. I think it took them right up to the concert time, but they were ready! It’s called first time quality.
The first night Lil’ Jai & I walked down to witness our best event on this side of the bay since moving here. It’s almost too good for words, but let me try. First for all you cool people who enjoy good music, good food & a great atmosphere put it on your 2008 calendar. Come on over, it’s beautiful & fun.
We have over 100 feet of flat white sand to walk around & pick your spot. Many choices of food stalls along the way. They also have huge speakers with music that doesn’t blow your head off & you can still talk with your friends. There are many large TV screens you can view to get a close up of the stage & actual musicians, if you can’t get close enough on the sandy beach.
The shows start as early as 3 p.m. & continue on til midnight for the evening crowd. The setting is so perfect with the bright ocean & the sun sets early. You get to see some beautiful decorated fishing boats, a little mountain with a Buddhist temple, the bay & the stage all in one view. This is only magnetized by the thousands of very cool folks out to enjoy the night & listen to some very nice & relaxing music.
Sometimes they say seeing is believing & once again you’re all invited to check it out next year. Did I mention it’s ‘free’? Be forewarned you’ll probably drink too much & eat too much but you will have a good time.
Finally, the taking down process was almost completed by 8 a.m. the next morning as the Thai’s must have worked all night long. Great job guys!
Sincerely, Jesse Salazar
P.S. Lil’ Jai & I did our marathon run in April, over here it’s called the Heavy Hill Half Marathon. Lot’s of hills.

Baht bus profits

To: [email protected]
Hi, thanks for publishing my letter about the Beach Road bus in this week’s paper. I noticed an article that said the baht bus company had made a profit of 1.4 million baht last year; I’m not surprised if my experiences are anything to go by. I could get to Tesco Jomtien in 10 minutes if I was prepared to pay a baht bus 100 baht to take me, and another 100 baht to make the return journey.
Can you contact someone in the baht bus company to explain this policy of seeing ‘farangs’ as fair game to be ripped off? And the smarter you look, the more they try and charge you. I realise they have running costs, why don’t they start charging Thai people more to even things out? I’d also like to see a published pricing guide, a baht bus will charge me between 100 and 150 baht to make the same journey the Beach Road bus will only charge 20 baht for.
Yours Sincerely,
Mr Phil Fletcher

You are still #1 in my book

Dear Sir,
Over the past month you have ran several items regarding Matt Hayes and his untimely death and for that, I, and all of his friends want to commend the Pattaya Mail for the fine articles. This is why the Pattaya Mail, in my estimation will continue to be the readers choice in Pattaya and surrounding areas.
Also, the beautiful poem penned by B. Phillip Webb Jr. for the mother of the man that was murdered was very moving and touching. Would it be possible for you to contact Mr. Webb and ask him if he would be kind enough to pen one for Matt? I would be forever in your debt.
Respectfully yours,
Beulah Smallwood
Retired from Vancouver, Canada

See it for what it is

Editor;
Tony Crossley, reading your letter “prone to winging”, you “shot yourself in the foot” as the saying goes. Your claim now is that it’s all to do with your financial situation, so if a wealthy Thai arrives at a venue in his latest 10 million baht merc you’re telling me he’s going to be charged farang rates. Get off the grass Tony.
For your information Tony I’m from Australia, love the Brits, happily married with a couple of kids. I don’t really care if the Thais rip off farangs. I avoid these venues, I just don’t have my head in the sand, I see it for what it is.
Barry from Mabprachan

Open minds not narrow ones stop injustice

Editor,
How appropriate that in the same Mail Bag that my letter reminded readers of the racism that all the English-speaking nations are historically guilty of (June 8th issue), a perfect example of authoritarian, over-the-top reaction that perpetuates it was provided. In attempt to lend a semblance of credence to the view of retired militarist Lloyd Bonafide, he compares B5 price-loading to the mutilation of women and, as if having an open mind is a crime, accuses one Mail Bag contributor of ‘liberal thinking’.
Well, Mr Bonafide and don’t expect me to call you ‘sir’, it was open-minds not narrow ones that stopped women being burnt as witches in your country and also put an end to slavery. It is, in fact, liberal thinking not macho chest-beating that has advanced civilisation. Without it we would still be torturing people for minor infractions or even being a suspect, though your country’s current administration has gone back to doing this as was pointed out in a BBC report shown this very week.
Similar false reasoning is, it seems, the retired colonel’s style. Dragging in ‘short-changing’, which is an entirely different issue to that under debate, he infers that charging farang passengers B10 baht instead of the locals’ fare of B5 is ‘stealing’. This is pure sophistry used to excuse a punitive attitude. There is no choice involved in being a victim of stealing, whereas the same cannot be said when paying for a service one wants to use. Incidentally, it isn’t only ‘light’ skins that are subject to the loading. Alighting from a baht bus and about to show an Arab gent where a place was, I having happily paid my B10, he was charged B20.
So, Mr Bonafide, instead of berating a reader who has merely expressed a charitable view, if you don’t want to pay B10 to ride a distance you find too far to walk, you put your money and your morals where your mouth is and find a metered taxi. Then you will pay the same fare as a Thai. You seem with your golden rule of ‘do unto others what they would do unto you’ typical of your sort to cite old testament quotes and forget true Christianity’s ‘turn the other cheek’ to be advocating theft from your hosts, and if that is so you deserve to be put on the next flight back to where you came from. It also betrays an attitude of ‘two wrongs do make a right’. It is one that daily costs innocent lives and has set human rights back to medieval times.
Tony Crossley

More Electric Company problems

Dear Editor;
I have just read Tim Rooney’s problem with Electric Company billing. I have also fought this same battle with the Electric Company for about 8 months now: Trying to get a monthly bill that I can pay at 7-11 and not have to make a trip by baht bus from Jomtien Beach to the Electric Company office on Central by Carrefour.
I did a complete remodel on an existing house in Jomtien Beach and upgraded to 3 phase electrical service. This made it necessary to change the meter. I was told for about 3 months, “next month you get bin”, as the meter has to be entered into the computer system. Then I was told the problem was the Electric Company ran out of meters and had to borrow from another province, and had a problem adding to computer system.
I have had a Thai friend who works in a condo office go see what the problem was in getting a monthly bill. I have made 3 trips to the Banglamung Office with her to try to correct this problem. After talking to about 5-6 people in the Electric Company office, she said she stood there as a man in the office used the number off my old meter and assigned it to the new meter, and was told the next month I would get a bill that could be paid at 7-11. Three weeks later I get the same handwritten bill placed in my box by the meter reader. Another trip was necessary to pay the bill.
I understand in Thailand it does no good to get upset, but I have about reached my limits in dealing with what should be a simple matter of getting a proper bill. Does anyone at the Electric Company know how I can correct this problem? Please advise.
H John
Jomtien Beach

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