Re: "Inclusive business is Asean's future", (Opinion, Sept 18).
It is not clear why, if, up until now, economic growth has led to unprecedented elimination of poverty and hunger and improvements in human well being in Asean, we should not pursue the policies that have led to this unprecedented prosperity to further reduce poverty and hunger. The reason seems to be that economic growth has led to a slightly higher income inequality. Why this is bad and why we should care about this is mysterious.
Now, the policy prescription of Oxfam is based on the fact that "both growth and inequality seem to be a result of businesses". Yes, and the Earth seems to be flat. It is somehow petitioned that growth is not the result of the development of institutions that support market economies, trade, public investment in infrastructure, education, health and that in a fast growing economy, it is not obvious that inequality should rise as some groups become more prosperous first. It is also estimated that states could not have the most important role in wealth redistribution as they do in all advanced economies or in public investments that support inclusive growth. Why? Oh, sorry, I forgot: because the Earth seems to be flat.
Baffled Reader
Keep meth illegal
Just two of many such recent stories in the Bangkok Post caught my eye. The first was the arrest of a 22-year-old man in connection with the slaying of a 67-year-old woman and her 12-year-old grand-daughter and the attack on a nine-year-old girl. The alleged killer said he was a methamphetamine addict and needed money to buy more drugs.
The second story was drugs being blamed in a fatal rave in Vietnam in which seven people died of suspected drug overdoses. The article added that methamphetamines are among the most common drugs used in Vietnam, with meth use rising in recent years.
Yet, there is no shortage of contributors to PostBag clamouring for this mind-altering drug to be made legal. One can only wonder at their rationale -- or lack thereof.
Martin R
Let priests be human
It is quite ironic that a so-called "holy" organisation preaching the 10 Commandments, and loads of other behavioural "brainwashing liturgy" is now the focus of criminal activity by its main troops in the field, the priests.
I am of course referring to the sexual abuse of children by priests, something that is nothing new, and has most likely existed for many centuries. Numerous solutions have, and are, being proposed, but of course there is only one solution.
Sexual intercourse between the male and female homo sapiens is a normal activity bred in the species (and the antecedents) via evolution over many millennia in history. For the Catholic Church to require abstinence by its priests is the root of the problem. Sexual abstinence by the priests accomplishes nothing. It is a useless merit badge that contributes nothing to the accomplishment of the mission of the church.
Humanity in the current world faces many critical challenges that the church could address without having its own staff undermine the confidence and credibility in the organisation, and using money that could be better spent on humanitarian problems. Allow priests to marry, have a family, and enjoy life as a normal human!
Will they make a change? I doubt it. That would be an admission to the weakness of this "godly" organisation and "heaven", as godliness has no weaknesses.
Harry McCaffrey
Nuclear dangers
In a blow to climate change activists whose cause supports (openly or covertly) nuclear energy, hurricane Florence has caused an alarming emergency at the Brunswick nuclear power plant in North Carolina.
Taking a direct hit by the eye of the storm and experiencing severe flooding, plant operators have been forced to perform a hot shutdown which can take weeks to complete. Unfortunately all plant personnel have been prohibited access to the site and the shutdown procedure is being done without the requisite human supervision.
This situation illuminates once again the high risk associated with nuclear energy, as if the Fukushima and Chernobyl events were not convincing enough.
The world needs to learn from these historical examples and put an end to conventional nuclear power.
Michael Setter
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