Great new ideas for relieving urban stress

Yesterday, in the Ramkhamhaeng area, a taxi driver robbed a female passenger with a knife. He seized Bt2,000 in cash and two mobile phones before dumping her on the motorway.

A crime like this is not unusual in a big city like Bangkok, but it seems we are hearing more and more such reports at a time when people are frantically scratching their heads to make ends meet. One way to kill stress is to prey on others with the same headaches.

I like the news that a female motorist handed Bt15,000 to a toll¬way officer before speeding off in her Honda Jazz. It was reported that she was smiling. After extensive publici¬ty, no one has showed up to collect the cash, which is enough to pay Bt40 tolls for 375 trips.

What could be the reason for the woman to throw away all that money? I guess she must have snatched the money from someone she really hates, and dumping it was a way to satisfy herself. Such a weird way of releasing stress!

Cabinet members are also under major stress, following the news of a big reshuffle to be announced today. There have been reports that many will be kicked out to pave way for new ones. Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej insisted that the new Cabinet would be more "handsome" than the current lineup.

Certainly, this will upset the minis¬ters likely to be tossed out. Though all of them are millionaires, they are under stress, not knowing when they can return to the hotshot political scene.

Interior Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung has his own way to ease stress. Yesterday, he faxed a let¬ter to the Cabinet's secretariat, informing them that he was tied up in other businesses and couldn't attend the meeting yesterday. As a minister, what business is more important than the weekly meeting where crucial issues must be dis¬cussed?

Reporters are now scrambling for news about which ministers in their areas of responsibility will be replaced. Our sources said that while many are on their way out, Poonpirom Liptapanlop is likely to remain as energy minister. "Why not?" said one reporter. "Paying for one minister, we have two ministers in office."

Exactly. I still remember the day that Poonpirom and her husband Suwat were in Nakhon Ratchasima to promote energysaving stoves and a trip to Brazil where the couple enjoyed a ride in an E85compatible sedan.

Good to know that someone in this Kingdom doesn't suffer from stress.