HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Smoking ban will make life better

4 day closing of bars

Long suffering condo owners

Smoke screen set up to counter the smoking ban

Smoking legislation protects ordinary people

Water shortage warnings

Again water shortages in Pattaya

Smoking ban will make life better

Dear Editor,
The smoking ban will make life better for everyone in Pattaya. But it will only be effective if bars and restaurants are scared of being fined and if the fines are real and actually imposed. Only when the grace period is over, and the fines are actually imposed, and the ashtrays are removed from tables, can the people who don’t want to be assaulted by other peoples’ poisons go out and enjoy themselves, both inside and outside.
Remember, there is a hotline number to call to report violations of this law: 02 590 3342. I will have that phone number on speedial, and whenever I see a violation, I will not hesitate for even one second to see that the fines are imposed. So restaurants and bars, you’ve been warned.
And if you’re a smoker, and you like your bar or restaurant owner, remember that your smoking may cause them to have to pay a 20,000 baht fine.
Smokers can still smoke inside their private homes. And I would suggest they simply wear “smoker’s patches” out in public, to get their nicotine fix.
Signed,
Jerry Odessa
Pattaya

4 day closing of bars

Editor;
I find the recent closing of bars over a weekend period of four days extremely baffling. If Pattaya is really serious about promoting itself as a major tourist city, then a decision like this must be misguided.
Of course, we know that Pattaya has more to offer than bars but the fact remains that for many tourists, going out for a drink is an integral part of their stay. When they go back to their countries, what report will they take of Pattaya? We couldn’t even get a drink for four days!
The closure also begs the question as to why the authorities pick only on bars. If it is a matter of abstinence during a special Buddhist period, then surely there are other places in Pattaya which can hardly be viewed as places of virtue. Since abstinence isn’t merely about abstaining from alcohol, shouldn’t they be closed also?
Personally, much as one respects Buddhism, I feel that to impose it on all the people e.g., by closing bars down, takes away personal choice. For example, in my country UK, the Christian Church is entering a period known as Lent. This in simple terms is a period of abstinence and reflection leading up to Easter. However, nowhere, as far as I know, is the observing of Lent imposed upon the people. It is purely a matter of one’s own personal faith and belief.
Of course, people will say, “When in Rome do as the Romans do”. However, it seems to me that both Thai and ex-pats lose out during these enforced bar closures. The girls in the bars lose their earnings and of course it’s a bad period for the bar owners, too. Motorcycle taxis, songthaews also suffer during these periods.
I would be interested to know what others feel about this.
Brian,
Pattaya

Long suffering condo owners

Editor;
Owners of condos in Pattaya Tai Condotel have long suffered from increasing amounts of noise coming from Wat Chaimongkol. The crematorium and elementary school have increased in size and noise from these structures has not been kept under cover. People in the neighborhood are entertained every morning by loud outdoor convocations at the school and whenever there is a cremation some funeral music is produced through out the entire day
Now to add insult to injury the Wat is in the process of building a large parking garage between his Wat and Center Condo. Some condo owners are furious us they should be. They paid for a beautiful view that is being destroyed.
Surely there must be laws on the books that protect people from excessive noise and all this intrusive building. Phone calls to the Wat have never helped.
R. Standiford

Smoke screen set up to counter the smoking ban

Editor;
In the Feb 22 issue, letter to mailbag by Don Aleman ref. Thailand off course with smoking ban. What Don Aleman says about smoking and carbon monoxide is a smoke screen set up to counter the smoking ban in Thailand. Smoking is bad for your health and those around you from secondary smoke. I was a smoker for many a year and had first hand knowledge as over the years in the USA, smoking bans grew and spread all across the USA, from places that served food, bars, work places, etc.
The smoking ban worked because it was enforced. People began to give up smoking for two reasons. One, the cost of cigarettes became very expensive through taxes, and two, all the restrictions on where you could and could not smoke. People stopped smoking. Businesses which claimed gloom and doom, well it never happened, the customers kept coming even though they could not smoke. It worked in the USA, it has worked elsewhere, and it will, much to the disgust of the smokers, work here in Thailand.
Next, enforce the smoking restrictions. People are still smoking in bars and eating places. Ash trays which are not needed where smoking is not prohibited are still all over the place. There is a noticeable lack of no smoking signs being posted. The one thing smoking bans and increased taxes on tobacco products does not do and that is increase the amount people smoke. It is so nice to sit in an eating place not having to inhale someone else’s smoke. But here in Pattaya, almost every person, farangs, in a bar or restaurant, have a pack of cigarettes in front of them. Time to stop smoking.
Bob
Pattaya

Smoking legislation protects ordinary people

Dear Sir,
Legislation to restrict smoking has been introduced to protect ordinary people from common assault by smokers, a fundamental point which Mr Aleman (letter 22nd) has failed to grasp.
Health considerations have encouraged the passing of such legislation in the face of massive propaganda from the industry. Here, too, Mr Aleman’s letter is both erroneous and illogical. He and his friend are totally wrong about carbon monoxide whilst his comparison of smoking with prostitution and alcoholic drinks, neither of which harms anyone else per se, is ridiculous. In any case prostitution is almost invariably confined to a small, discreet section of a few large cities whilst countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Brunei have been pretty successful in preventing the consumption of alcohol.
I prescind from dealing with the tawdry old argument concerning vehicular exhaust since this was ably demolished at the First World Conference on Smoking and Health held in London some forty years’ ago.
The bottom line is that smoking, like farting and fornicating, should be done elsewhere!
Dr. M

Water shortage warnings

Editor;
As a long time resident I’m deeply saddened to see that despite annual water shortages, going back virtually 25 years or more, Pattaya City Hall still does nothing to solve this problem. Well in fact that’s not strictly true; residents may remember a pipe line was run from the Ban Chang/Sattahip area into southern Pattaya to assist some of the prime/influential hotels. Additionally, a pipe line was run from the Bang Pakong River to nearby Pattaya to serve the industrial areas around the Laem Chabang area, which was originally intended to feed the Mabprachan reservoir. However, despite endless promises, absolutely nothing has been done to alleviate the growing problem for Pattaya City residents.
Mabprachan reservoir remained at high levels through to late December, this despite the devastation caused by the reckless removal of soil to sell as land fill. The levels were apparently kept high for the benefit of the SEA games. However, today Mabprachan is draining fast. Levels have dropped well over 2 meters and it seems we are heading towards a repeat of 2/3 years ago when the reservoir actually ran dry.
It seems only a few months ago a headline in the Pattaya Mail stated that the water authority was confident that water levels were ample to take us through to the next raining season. Now, here we are again being warned to have extra storage facilities as water shortages are inevitable! The big question is, how does city hall honestly believe this problem will ever be resolved if they do not do anything?
I would love to hear a response from them.
Regards,
Concerned Resident

Again water shortages in Pattaya

Editor;
Again water shortages in Pattaya, yet they continue to build more houses & condos. Do the authorities not realise that concrete requires water?
Matt Jomtien

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