Showing 81 - 90 of 171
Pursuing a lost war
News, Editorial, Published on 26/06/2017
» Monday's annual event in Ayutthaya marks a great setback in a campaign to bring sanity to the 46-year-old "global war on drugs" instigated by ex-US president Richard Nixon. Officials will stage their usual torching of tonnes of drugs seized in raids, highway searches, street-corner arrests and home invasions. But for the first time in years they will be working under orders to step up the suppression. The prime minister "expects to see better results", meaning more arrests in the so-called war that that was lost years ago.
Alibaba may well have met its match in America
News, Christopher Balding, Published on 20/06/2017
» Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, already the largest Chinese firm by market capitalisation, is nothing if not ambitious. Its chief financial officer, Maggie Wu, recently told investors she expects revenue to rise by up to 49% next year, a staggering prospect. But perhaps more staggering is how Alibaba hopes to get there: In part, by tapping the US market.
Prawit's rose-tinted view of police corruption
News, Veera Prateepchaikul, Published on 19/06/2017
» Gen Prawit Wongsuwon, deputy prime minister in charge of security affairs, took sick leave for about two weeks in mid-May. But it seems he has been away in the twilight zone for much longer, as he is totally in the dark about how some "lucrative" posts in the police force are traded.
Where's my durian?
Life, Pongpet Mekloy, Published on 19/06/2017
» The durian season is now in full swing, but some discernible lovers of the spiky fruit, myself included, are utterly upset. In Bangkok, from roadside stalls and fresh markets to shopping malls and even social media, the King of Fruits is virtually everywhere you look. But still I don't see the once-common variety that I have been waiting for, the one I'm dying to savour.
Sickening glorification of a brutal murder
News, Erich Parpart, Published on 10/06/2017
» The recent murder of a karaoke bar worker in Khon Kaen has exposed a lot of concerning issues that underline the moral decline of our society.
All it took was a raised eyebrow or two
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 04/06/2017
» I was saddened to hear the news concerning the recent passing of British actor Roger Moore at 89. He was a classic English gentleman with an appealing self-deprecating sense of humour.
Don't count on innovation to overcome stagnation
News, Satyajit Das, Published on 30/05/2017
» Innovation, everybody hopes, will rescue the world from economic stagnation. I'm not so sure.
Fingerprint plan dodgy
News, Editorial, Published on 29/05/2017
» The secretary-general of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has escalated his threats to gather a private collection of citizens' fingerprints. Takorn Tantasith began by touting a "touch your smartphone" project for mobile banking, based on fingerprints. That sold poorly, and the NBTC chief then pronounced an effort whereby all mobile phone owners could give their fingerprints voluntarily for vague promises of benefits. Now he says every phone owner must give him their fingerprints, no exceptions.
Internet and e-commerce are hacking protectionism
News, Published on 04/05/2017
» The image of globalisation, imprinted on many minds, is of American factories fleeing to Mexico or China. But here's what globalisation really is: The voluntary, mutually consenting exchange of goods and services between a buyer in one country and a seller in another country.
An adventure of convenience with a big tab
News, Sirinya Wattanasukchai, Published on 27/04/2017
» As the fate of countless Bangkok street food eateries still hangs in the balance, regular customers like many of us can only wait and see whether our daily lifestyle will change.