Attacks from key members of the government and Thai Rak Thai on Anand Panyarachun's warning ("Failed-state danger is real", News, August 31) deserve a response.

First, caretaker Deputy Agriculture Minister Adisorn Piengket's taunting of Anand's not ever having stood for election, but instead having been purely a royally appointed prime minister, was somewhat irrelevant and a diversion from Anand's wake-up call. Our country's current conflict, with hatred on both sides, is unprecedented and "un-Thai". Anand's warning was made as an individual citizen concerning our country's well-being. The deputy minister's attack on him personally instead of on his observations was below the belt and typical of some politicians who like to divert attention when faced with irrefutable comments.

Second, Government Spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee referred to a Time magazine article about the demonstrations a few months ago that referred to them as Thailand's "silk revolution" without violence. Since the appearance of that article, the situation in the country has grown worse, and polarisation has now crept into every facet of life, including in the Army. Never before in public have I heard of conflict within the forces. Under the national good-governance body chaired by the PM, one example of good governance by a leader should be fostering harmony within a society and not provoking ill feelings.

The spokesman thought there would be a way out if all parties followed a peaceful path. That is wishful thinking at a time when taunting between the two sides occurs daily, including against the current call from Anand. Anand's wake-up call came at the right moment, but the government side does not even recognise its benefits. This was independent advice coming from a man with no self-interest. It is truly sad to read of an immediate retort from those in power who can no longer differentiate between friend and foe.

Third, caretaker Agriculture Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan played dumb and wanted Anand to be more explicit about his concerns. The wake-up call shook the whole nation and headlined in nearly all English and Thai newspapers. Why? The answer is the warning was so simple and easily understood by all except this caretaker deputy minister. A divisive country is quick to violence, as exemplified in some East European countries, previously in Cambodia and currently in Sri Lanka.

Finally, all three of these government officials gave the impression that Anand's warning was meant to pave the way for his receiving a royally appointed premiership under Article 7. How low can one get? Since His Majesty the King's historic warning to the nation, with his observation about the inapplicability of a royally appointed premier under Article 7, no person in his right mind would dare linger on this thought during our current crisis. Certainly, Anand is not that dumb. He still has too much of an active and enjoyable life to go for such a thankless job. I venture to guess that Anand felt compelled to say something out of feelings of patriotism and saw himself as influential enough and in a good position to be able to make himself heard. Someone like him would consider it a crime to fail to speak out publicly like he did.

Songdej Praditsmanont

Bangkok

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Real leaders do not have to hide behind their cronies

Re: "Ex-PM Anand 'no democrat'," News, September 1.

It must have dawned on Thaksin Shinawatra by now that achieving great success in business doesn't guarantee you an iota of success in politics; a CEO is just a CEO, as simple as that.

This time, by letting loose his close aides to come out and rebuff former Prime Minister Anand Panyarachun for deploring the political and democratic situation in Thailand ("Failed-state danger is real", News, August 31), Thaksin has dug himself deeper and deeper into a political hole.

Instead of coming out to clear up doubts about his leadership and his government's transparency during his tenure, Thaksin has hidden behind his cronies and feigned ignorance.

Compared with his predecessors - General Prem Tinsulanonda and Anand - Thaksin lags far behind in terms of integrity, leadership and accountability.

By letting his cronies senselessly attack these certified high achievers, he is simply getting himself deeper and deeper into trouble.

Only by coming out and openly defending himself, his policies and his politics like a true leader can he gain people's respect and confidence.

Stop using your aides to speak for you; that's thoughtless and self-destructive.

Chavalit Van

Chiang Mai

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Don't put too much stock in 'top' designation for schools

Re: "Mahidol, Chula take top 2 spots", News, September 1.

I agree with the decision of the Thammasat University president not to participate in the ranking of the "top 50" Thai universities by the Higher Education Commission. Such ranking procedures tend to produce predictable results.

Take a criterion like attendance by staff at scientific conferences, part of so-called "internationality". That is a direct function of funding, and far more money is available (from various sources) at a small number of elite campuses. Most Thai university teachers can't afford to go once a year to a conference in their field even in Thailand, let alone abroad.

More important is to look at teaching content. Universities here should be moulding minds as well as imparting "marketable" skills for some technical profession. Few universities are teaching students to read and think critically, what is called "critical literacy", which Thailand badly needs. Most of the 138 Thai universities are colleges for the masses, the sons and daughters of the Thai working class.

More thought should be given to how they could better teach and motivate those students from working-class backgrounds, with programmes geared more to their interests, abilities and realistic vocational horizons. That might also mean creating a Centre for Working-Class Studies at a Rajamangala University or Rajabhat campus, to look in depth at Thai working-class life and new departures in mass tertiary education.

One idea is a few experimental campuses where students could work far more independently, designing their own study programmes, like at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington state, in the US. Most students at Evergreen think it's the best college in the American West, but it's nowhere near the "top 100" by standard criteria of ranking for "excellence".

The overwhelming majority of universities in Thailand will remain for non-elite students, and they should be proud to serve such democratic aims. They should do so inventively, brainstorming new alternatives despite limited means - and not labour under the destructive illusion that they are at the bottom of some artificial academic "pyramid".

Bill Templer

Rajamangala University of Technology Lanna

Phitsanulok

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Causes of colo-rectal cancer vague, but factors identified

Re: "Poor hygienic standards more likely to contribute to cancer increase than Western food", Letters, September 1.

The exact reason why colon cancer develops in some persons and not in others is not clear. The incidence of colon cancer is quite varied among different countries and within different ethnic groups inside the same country.

Industrialised countries like the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan and the UK and elsewhere in Western Europe have a much higher incidence of colo-rectal cancer compared with the less-industrialised parts of the world, such as Asia, Africa and South America. Colo-rectal cancer represents more than 9 per cent of all cancers in men and about 10 per cent of all cancers in women worldwide. In industrialised countries, the incidence of colo-rectal cancer can be as high as 12-14 per cent of all cancers, and in non-industrialised countries much lower rates of about 7-8 per cent of all cancers diagnosed may be colo-rectal cancer.

Even though we do not know the exact cause of development of colo-rectal cancer, scientists have recognised several factors that can increase the risk of its development. A risk factor for a disease is any condition that makes a person more likely to develop that disease. Some of the risk factors, such as diet, are modifiable, while some others, such as age, are not modifiable. These risk factors may act in combination, and this combination may be associated with a cumulative increase in the risk of the disease's development. The simple presence of one or more risk factors does not necessarily mean someone will develop colo-rectal cancer. On the other hand, an absence of all risk factors does not mean that an individual will not develop colo-rectal cancer, but generally the more risk factors you have, the higher your chance of developing the disease.

Environmental factors may also play a role. People who migrate from low-risk areas in the world to ones with a higher risk of developing colo-rectal cancer tend to acquire the risk of the country to which they are migrating, which suggests the presence of environmental factors. Changes in dietary factors due to such migration may also contribute to an increased risk.

A further indication that lifestyle plays a major part in cancer risk is the fact that Japanese women have a low incidence of breast cancer in Japan. When they migrate to the US or the UK, the incidence increases to that country's norm.

Bernard Walker

Bangkok

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Karr and Thaksin - are they like two peas in a pod?

Both John Mark Karr and Thaksin Shinawatra appear to be guilty of perpetuating irreparable damage to Amazing Thailand by tarnishing its progressive image and openly tolerant reputation. Basically insecure megalomaniacs in desperate search of a media circus' spotlighted recognition and global attention, their respective contrived confession and fabricated assassination plot smack more of misconceived, vainglorious delusions, which will ultimately lead only to a downfall.

Dr Charles Frederickson

Bangkok