Now I don't know if it's my lousy (BBB) internet or my three-year-old computer, but lately clicking on an article header for the full article in the Post has been a trip into Neverland! Originally, I would sometimes get the dreaded "404 page not found" message.
After a while, the "This Page Isn't Working-BangkokPost.com is currently unable to handle this request" message came into use. And recently the fun has escalated to "This page is WAF (Web Application Firewall) protected. You are not authorised to view this page".
While the articles that generated these responses are inconsequential, the WAF response came when I clicked to view an article regarding the status of US long-range missiles, and the "not working" message popped up when I asked to read an article about the Thailand Gold Card.
What's even more curious is that if I Google the article headline followed by "Bangkok Post", I can find the entire article and read it at my leisure. Is this a case of faulty digital issues or is Big Brother really watching me?
Fred Prager
Thai elite blindness
Re: "Political perspective", (PostBag, Aug 6).
Unlike Turveydrop, when I see PM Anutin I see yet another in the line of mega-rich business politicians who have no idea of how ordinary Thai citizens constantly have to decide which of life's pleasures they will have to forego today.
He almost certainly doesn't know the price of regular items in the shops and markets because he doesn't do his own shopping, never pays rent, never takes a bus, and eats what he wants, not what he can afford.
Much of the world now has this same problem with corporations having taken over politics, elections decided by financial contributions and ordinary citizens trying to survive on wages that haven't risen while prices have skyrocketed. Thailand's ruling elite is so adrift from its ordinary citizens that they may as well be in a different country.
Steve Merchant
Survival strategy
Re: "Builders say migrants needed", (BP, Aug 5).
Thailand has an admirable history of welcoming immigrants, who have helped us prosper and become part of our society.
And we now badly need their skills again. Our society is aged and lacks workers for basic industries. Also, due to our very weak education system, 64.7% of Thais aged 15-65 struggle to understand and execute basic instructions like "Take 1 tablet after dinner until the medicine is gone" (Source: World Bank, 2025). Only one in five farmers has completed high school-level Mathayom 6, and the average Thai farmer is already 59 years old.
Immigrants offer one of the very few ways to improve our productivity quickly. For instance, TDRI warns that AI could become one of the biggest improvements to Thai education in decades but only if it's used to strengthen learning rather than to replace thinking.
Even so, we'll need many more able, mentally capable young workers than our ageing population can supply in the natural course of time.
We should offer immigrants opportunities to work legally at market rates after completing an acculturation programme and a path to citizenship after three years, dependent upon expertise, earning potential, no criminal record, etc.
Burin Kantabutra
