Chiang Mai's crisis
Re: "Hotel occupancy rate in Chiang Mai down 30%", (BP, Oct 8).
For several years, Chiang Mai has suffered awful smoke pollution that now lasts for two months at the end of the dry season. They have now experienced successive floods, the second being the worst ever.
Now, it's not for me to tell the government its priorities, but perhaps they should start thinking beyond the fall in tourist numbers and room occupancy rates and start looking at the dramatic decline in environmental conditions and what's caused that. Replacing mountain forests with corn plantations for animal feed and enriching an already huge and wealthy corporation may be a good place to start.
Thailand steps up
Re: "Thailand floats new plan for Myanmar crisis", (Online, Oct 9).
Finally, as a member of Asean, Thailand has taken a "soft approach" to address the Myanmar crisis. It has actually floated the idea of building a coalition of the willing among the Asean member states to attempt to assuage the Myanmar impasse.
This is indeed commendable as Thailand is perhaps the most influential Asean member state to take the initiative to begin solving the Myanmar catastrophe. Hopefully, in the long run, Thailand may also contribute to restoring some order in Myanmar by enabling negotiations and peace initiatives within Myanmar's body politic.
This may be possible by advocating solidarity among all Asean member states, creating confidence in Myanmar's ability to reach amity and peace, creating a shared vision for peace and stability, and ultimately helping to encourage political dialogue towards elections as soon as possible.
Let us remain optimistic that the 2024 Laos-hosted Asean Summit will herald a new stable order for Myanmar and solidarity and unity for Asean.
Fluoride facts
Re: "Alternate realities?" (PostBag, Oct 5).
Contributor Vichai laments that reading "Felix Qui's word maze" makes him feel more confused than when he started. Felix Qui has an excellent command of the English language and a well-placed ethical rudder, which steers his ship of comments. If readers cannot understand his letters, it is their great misfortune.
Labelling me a "conspiracy theorist," Vichai is "pretty sure" that I think "fluoride in toothpaste is an Illuminati plot."
To offer clarity, a federal judge in California last month ordered the US Environmental Protection Agency to further regulate fluoride in drinking water because high levels could pose a risk to the intellectual development of children. The primary sources of toxic fluoride are community water supplies and toothpaste.
CO2 confusion
Re: "CO2 isn't the enemy", (PostBag, Oct 9).
I see Michael Setter is still unable to grasp that it's not the presence of CO2 in Earth's atmosphere that is causing global warming, it is the excess of it.
The world's climate scientists generally agree that limiting the increase in atmospheric CO2 will most likely limit the rise in temperature, which is almost certainly contributing to increasing weather extremes.
No one is advocating removing CO2 from the atmosphere, and Mr Setter should stop trying to peddle this nonsensical narrative.