Testing times Only in the land of awe

I refer to three letters in Post-Bag, July 9, regarding Gen Prayut backing the navy purchase of submarines.

The main concerns seem to be value for money and do we really need them?

What was not said in these letters was said in the column “PM expresses backing for navy sub plan”, July 8, where Wassana Nanuam quotes the PM as saying: “The submarines will not be used to wage war, but they can make other countries stand in awe of us”.

Am I reading this right? Is the main reason Thailand needs submarines is to make other countries stand in awe of us?

The way I see it, after the GT200 “bomb detector”, the aircraft carrier that has no aircraft, and the airship that doesn’t fly, we already have other countries in awe of us and our past misadventures. We don’t need to add submarines to the list.

FARANG OBSERVER The Buddhist teacher at my daughter’s high school, which is considered to be among the top three in Thailand, tells her students that for every question they get wrong in the midterm test they will be hit one time.

Ten wrong answers equals being hit 10 times and so on. I wonder, would Buddha have sanctioned such abuse?

This teacher of Buddhism should surely be able to enlighten me as to when bullying became a part of Buddhism.

However, if she fails to answer my question do I have the right to hit her? Would this aid her ability to learn/remember? Would it make her a kinder and more benevolent person?

When is Thailand going to wake up and realise that sanctioning violence against children is not the way to encourage learning and surely flies in the face of Buddhism? Two quotes spring to mind. “I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent” — Mahatma Gandhi.

And that well-known atheist Isaac Asimov: “Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent”.

AJARN DEE