Showing 1 - 10 of 12
Friend, unfriend, tolerate, obliterate
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 17/07/2017
» Social-network users have many reasons to hide, block and unfriend their friends and followers. Since its establishment in 2004, Facebook has rapidly increased users from a few friends of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to 2 billion monthly active users in June 2017.
Flagging up respect for the nation
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 15/02/2016
» Sometimes, our daily routine turns out to be an extraordinary thing for other people. So is the Thai people's daily practice to stand still and respect the national flag twice a day. Thai students must stand in front of the raised flag and sing the national anthem at 8am sharp every day. Whenever we hear the national anthem in public places, especially outdoors, we stop walking or doing other things and stand still to show our respect.
Roads are a dammed hindrance
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 25/09/2015
» Earlier this month, I visited the Thai-Danish Dairy Farm and Training Centre in Saraburi province and heard some terrible news. A guide told me that the farm's Burmese Rosewood (Pterocarpus macrocarpus) forest, home to over 10,000 naturally grown trees would soon be gone as it has been marked for land expropriation under a motorway project.
Slaying the beast of human-elephant conflict
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 23/07/2015
» A Thai proverb says, "You can't hide a dead elephant with a lotus leaf". This means a guilty conscience needs no accuser. It is absolutely true. The consequences of last week's brutal killing of a family of three wild elephants at a meditation centre in Hua Hin district, Prachuap Khiri Khan, prove the rule of karma does exist. The tragic deaths made headlines and raised public concerns. Officials later found the three pachyderms were electrocuted. An employee of the meditation centre was finally arrested for erecting the electrified fence that killed the elephants. He was charged with hunting protected animals and faces up to four years imprisonment and a 40,000 baht fine under the Wildlife Conservation Act if found guilty.
Animal rights should be human instinct
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 18/11/2014
» Day after day, I hear sad stories about tortured or abandoned animals and shed tears. With a weary heart, I have long hoped Thailand would pass a law to combat animal torture and ensure proper care for animals. Fortunately, the long fight for animal rights is almost over, as the draft law on animal protection passed all three readings by the National Legislative Assembly last week.
Is being single a problem?
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 14/10/2014
» Last week, I read two news reports which reflect opposite viewpoints — an English woman who married herself and a Thai columnist's discriminatory comment about National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission member Supinya Klangnarong being single.
Animal instincts
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 04/07/2014
» Shock was the very first feeling I had upon seeing a photo on Facebook informing me of the existence of the Thai Wildlife Hunting Society a few days ago. It was very quickly followed by anger. The Facebook page of this group is full of pictures of wild animal carcasses (monkeys, leopards, wild birds and many more) and the hunters’ weapons.
When love and Buddhism go hand-in-hand
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 14/02/2014
» It is rare for the important days of two faiths to fall on the same date. Yet, it happens today when Thais celebrate St Valentine’s Day and Makha Bucha Day. For many young people, especially those in love, Valentine’s Day surely brings more fun to them, while devout Buddhists who believe in true happiness from faith certainly opt for observing Makha Bucha.
Opening our eyes to the plight of the blind
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 15/03/2013
» Never before had I experienced and understood the difficulties faced by the blind until last week. My left eye became badly infected and had to be covered with a dressing for four days. Technically, I was temporarily half blind except when I sometimes felt so uncomfortable I tried to peek at things through the gap between the gauze and my cheek. To relieve some of the embarrassment about wearing a big gauze pad over my eye, I donned big sunglasses, even at night, during those four days.
Double pricing headaches
Life, Pichaya Svasti, Published on 05/02/2013
» Perhaps it is boring and repetitive to discuss double pricing. Yet new experiences have prompted me to revisit this thorny issue once again. Sad but true, double pricing occurs frequently in Thailand, and other parts of the world, and is either accepted or grudgingly tolerated by many people. To me, it probably depends on different cultures and regulations in each country or area.