Government Cracks Down On Tobacco, Drink, Drugs

[george]

YOUTH BEHAVIOUR: Government cracks down on tobacco, drink, drugs

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday on his "Thaksin Talks to the People" radio address that stricter ministerial regulations would be in force from Tuesday concerning the purchase or use of cigarettes, alcohol or illicit drugs by those under 18.

In a new measure aimed at protecting the nation's youth from unhealthy behaviour, anyone found to be helping youngsters to engage in such activity will be subject to three months in jail or a Bt30,000 fine, the PM said.

"We will cooperate to protect the under-18s so they can use their energy to develop our country in the future," he added.

- The Nation 2004-03-28

[mango head]

I believe educating youth on the dangers of abuse will go a long way towards achieving this goal. Handing down tough sanctions against those who contribute to the delinquency of a minor is only part of the solution.

[francois]

It seems to me that Thai government is more clever on "crack-down" than on build-up

when will they talk about educate the people about danger of this or that?

I mean by educate, teach something, not threatening people, make them scared about something, rule by knowledge not by fear.

the so called campaign anti-drug is just here to promote PM image ...

just take a look at public demonstration" we are all against speed-pills", it does look like china years by ... everybody with a flag and a smile for "supreme leader" ...

"we are so proud to fight for the good of our country" ...

put the blame on something or somebody, anyone can easily do it, make the people think in a different way, is another challenge, and surely getting harder to keep it up with a poor education background.

poorly educated people are easy to manipulate, it's sad

francois

was I too radical here?

[davethailand]

YOUTH BEHAVIOUR: Government cracks down on tobacco, drink, drugs

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday on his "Thaksin Talks to the People" radio address that stricter ministerial regulations would be in force from Tuesday concerning the purchase or use of cigarettes, alcohol or illicit drugs by those under 18.

In a new measure aimed at protecting the nation's youth from unhealthy behaviour, anyone found to be helping youngsters to engage in such activity will be subject to three months in jail or a Bt30,000 fine, the PM said.

"We will cooperate to protect the under-18s so they can use their energy to develop our country in the future," he added.

- The Nation 2004-03-28

about time to.

although i'll believe it when i see it.

does this mean the police will have actually do some real good insread of closing bars and pulling farangs without helmets.

[Begs]

So people over 18 are immune to the problems relating to Smoking and Drinking?

I would suggest a visit to a casualty unit in any city hospital in England on a Friday or Saturday night to judge the effects of Alcohol on Society, as far as i am concerned, ban the lot, hang the producers, let them rot in jail, close all the bars.

Ban Alcohol and Tobbaco for everyone.........what else could i suggest for the 2 drugs that are responsible for 97% of all drug related deaths?

[Guest IT Manager]

I suspect the Education Issue will come back to haunt his dearness.

My son was railing against the recent decision regarding Taksins friends son about getting away with murder. THAT alone gives me hope. The future voters are discussing the issues which have led to their confinement in a cell of un-education.

[francois]

Ban Alcohol and Tobbaco for everyone.........what else could i suggest for the 2 drugs that are responsible for 97% of all drug related deaths?

yop, the one and only solution

francois

[aaaaaa]

I believe educating youth on the dangers of abuse will go a long way towards achieving this goal. Handing down tough sanctions against those who contribute to the delinquency of a minor is only part of the solution.

good point!

forbidding something makes it more desirable. especially if it concernes not only those who desire, but especialy and mostly those who make them desire - ppl who make money on that.

common truth is: the more restrictions - the more new innovative ways around them....

like that crack down on CDs piracy in Malaysia - after 2 or 3 years since they first started to crackdown on it, it thrives even more - and in fact CDs are even much cheaper then b4 !

sometimes even it is suspicious: may be there is even some sort of unofficial agreement between law enforcement ppl and those who try to go around "law" or find loopholes in it.... sort of mutual beneficial deal to make more money?

[stumonster]

woohoo..... another war

wonder if he realises that hitler failed cause he was fighting on too many fronts

go hok, go hok, go hok

when he realises that the ministers have interests in the companies that distribute the alcohol, tobacco ...... whoops

[davethailand]

So people over 18 are immune to the problems relating to Smoking and Drinking?

I would suggest a visit to a casualty unit in any city hospital in England on a Friday or Saturday night to judge the effects of Alcohol on Society, as far as i am concerned, ban the lot, hang the producers, let them rot in jail, close all the bars.

Ban Alcohol and Tobbaco for everyone.........what else could i suggest for the 2 drugs that are responsible for 97% of all drug related deaths?

thats taking it a bit to far, why ban it for everbody.

what a boring life.

[Begs]

So people over 18 are  immune to the problems relating to Smoking and Drinking?

I would suggest a visit to a casualty unit in any city hospital in England on a Friday or Saturday night to judge the effects of Alcohol on Society, as far as i am concerned, ban the lot, hang the producers, let them rot in jail,  close all the bars.

Ban Alcohol and Tobbaco for everyone.........what else could i suggest for the 2 drugs that are responsible for 97% of all drug related deaths? 

thats taking it a bit to far, why ban it for everbody.

what a boring life.

But dont people here very quickly jump on the 'Hang him' 'let him rot' Bandwagon as soon as some guy gets nicked with illegal drugs?

Legal drugs do much more harm, so should we not ban them, or stop using them altogether?

I do not drink or smoke, i am not bored, but i do object to people that get drunk and bore me to death with same story told over and over again,and people smoking in my vicinity, so as far as i am concerned the whole lot should be banned, if people cant smoke a herb (cannabis) what is no gracious about getting pissed on Chang Beer and smoking Goverment taxed tobacco?

Alcohol and Tobacco are responsible for 97% of all drug related deaths, yet Big Ears is in Jail, and you guys gladly say let him rot, hang him, what about the misery caused by drinking?

Its hypocritical. Ban it all. In one year thousands of road death victims in USA would not be victims, times that worldwide, its staggering. ( not as in staggering around like a fool), ban it all.

[davethailand]

i drink, i own a bar, and yes i make money from selling drink but if someone wants to smoke and drink themselves stupid and get ill or whatever, up to them

i'm not a heavy drinker even though being in a bar everynight with people drinking and buying me drinks its hard not to be, sometimes i go home pissed, sometimes i don't drink for 3 or 4 days.

drugs i agree, get them off the streets and lock up the dealers, smoking, yes its nice to have non smoking places but as far as banning it altogether, it will never happen. smoking kills as it states on the box as you take out cigarette, people can read up to them.

some people enjoy going out and having a drink, let them.

if people want to drink themselves into an early grave then more fool them its no reason to punish the sensible people

[Begs]

Alcohol is a Drug dave, only this one is taxed by the government, hence it is legal.

You still say get drugs off the street and lock up the dealers, yet you sell alcohol for a profit, what the difference, you are quite happy about people drinking to a state of drunkeness, saying it "up to them", what if a drunk driver wiped your family out, would you have the same attitude, well he was only drunk, "up to him"?

If i created a drug, that had exactly the same properties and effects as Alcohol, and caused as much worldwide problems, and i attempted to smuggle this drug through customs and was caught, what would you say in this forum.

"Up to him"? Somehow i think not. I think you would have me hung drawn and quartered for being such an evil bastard, let him rot' is one popular phrase that springs to mind, i often see it in this forum.

A Drug is a Drug is a Drug, you are selling a government supplied and taxed Drug, it causes so much misery worldwide, yet you say get drugs off the street and lock up the dealers................kinda don't make sense to me

[Begs]

[davethailand]

true begs

but its one of those things that neither you or me can do anything about

unfortunatly its something we have to live with.

class a drugs i do not agree with and if found guilty of making or supplying then they should be locked up, but how can you take alcohol off of the streets.

i respect your choice of not drinking or smoking,

good for you

dave

[britmaveric]

Begs-Might as well start banning other things if you are so concerned by ciggies/alcohol. Why stop there- anything that has caffeine should ba banned, lets ban fast food- this surely isn't good for us. (heart disease/obesity)

The list can go on...

You can make the case of ciggies because this is affecting other people, but as far as alcohol goes moderation is the key. It's even been proven that a pint or two or a couple glasses of wine actually increases life expectancy.

[fatter than harry]

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday on his "Thaksin Talks to the People" radio address that stricter ministerial regulations would be in force from Tuesday

I think I've seen Peerless' problem. I must admit that I admire his spunk in tackling these issues, not that I agree with his methods, but don't these things need planning? Tuesday? Come on, surely it'll take at least until Thursday!

I'm picturing his Journal...

Monday - Cancel holidays, drop off laundry, stop drug trade, buy the Miami Dolphins

Tuesday - Jogging, implement the underage thing, return Titanic DVD to Tsutaya (I'm top of the world! – ha ha)

Wednesday - Lend money to the poor, pick up laundry - make sure they haven't put creases into my jeans again - grrrr makes me so mad! Start curfew tonight - fingers crossed!!

Thursday - Stop all graft, foot massage, eliminate dark forces, start taxi company, need a name… 8pm Bingo

Friday - Stop chicken flu, go to ATM, buy Mamma cups, see if Last Samurai is in DVD shop yet - why is it taking so long?!!

Saturday - Clear it up with Muslims, golf, monopolize air, officially change name to Chaing Mine - ha ha, karaoke with the lads

Sunday - Day off! Phew! (Oh no, there's that bloody radio thing - rubbish)

[tuky]

HeHe classic FTH.

[Begs]

class a drugs i do not agree with and if found guilty of making or supplying then they should be locked up, but how can you take alcohol off of the streets.

True Dave, we can't take Alcohol off the streets, same as we cant take other drugs off the streets.

As far as Classification of drugs goes, i will again use an example. If i made a drug that had the power to affect you the same as whiskey does, what class do you think that drug would be?

100% certainty it would be a Class A drug, (it could not be classed as anything else), and if i was selling it, i would be locked up next to big ears with a 99 year sentence....

Yet i can go to a supermarket and buy Government taxed Whiskey by the container load.

Yes we can do nothing about it, goverments control the drug trade, they tell you what drugs you can take and what ones you cant take, no freedom of choice, just laws.

Buy a lorry load of Whiskey and get pissed every day for the rest of your life, no problem, or smoke one Joint, possible 5 year jail sentence. No wonder the world is full of Pissheads, there is no real choice for them.

[Begs]

You can make the case of ciggies because this is affecting other people, but as far as alcohol goes moderation is the key. It's even been proven that a pint or two or a couple glasses of wine actually increases life expectancy.

What about all the people that are Killed due to Drunk Drivers? what about Rape victims, assault Victims, its a fact that a high proportion of violent crime is done under the influence of Alcohol, not under the influence of smoking a Joint.

Alcohol is a depressant, and if the mood is wrong it can and often does end in Violence, from the Family Gathering, Weddings, Funerals, Football matches, i think we have all witnessed Alcohol fuelled Violence in one or more of those scenarios. And how about letting the Thai women loose on the Alcohol, lol, Now i know you have all had some experience of that in the past, i know i have

I know it will never change, as long as Governments tax it, they will allow it, and rightly so, but if they allow Alcohol when it is such a damaging , dangerous, shitty drug, why cant big ears dance with an E?

Simple Answer: Ecstacy is not a Government taxed drug, therefore the Government make it against the law, you can get pissed, but not stoned.

[britmaveric]

Begs-X does far more damage in a short period of time, pretty dangerous. I guess anything could be legal if it the effects can be controlled and dosage was correctly administered. (too many variables with street drugs)

Regardless I'm not an advocate, but problem with drugs in general are abuse- like anything moderation is the key. Normally rule of thumb- too much of anything isn't good for you.

[meemiathai]

People who gets drunk drinking beer all night ----

they get a sick stomach,

they puke everywhere,

they piss everywhere,

they look everywhere for trouble,

they drive home and probably kill someone,

they get hangovers the next day.

(LEGAL!)

People who has an E for the night ----

they dance all night and go home.

(CRIMINALS)

[britmaveric]

People who do X....

Take and then die.

Drive home after taking and get into accident and die or kill other people while driving under influence of X.

Cause irrepairable brain damage.

I'd take a few pints over X any day- again one could have one pint versus 1 X tablet - one pint isn't going to kill the person, but you can't say that about 1 X tablet, now can you????

[Begs]

People who do X....

Take and then die.

Drive home after taking and get into accident and die or kill other people while driving under influence of X.

Cause irrepairable brain damage.

I'd take a few pints over X any day- again one could have one pint versus 1 X tablet - one pint isn't going to kill the person, but you can't say that about 1 X tablet, now can you????

So you are concerned with the fatality rates

97% of all drug related deaths are down to 2 drugs, Tobacco and Alcohol, over 70% of Road deaths have Alcohol in the equation, are you saying that Alcohol is a victimless drug?

I use my example again, if i made pills that had the same effect as Whiskey, i would be jailed for life for the production of such a bad substance, and you guys would be saying it was the best thing for me, "get that scum off the streets" or "Let him rot", yet you defend Alcohol without reservation

[Boon Mee]

Don't Bogart that joint my friend, pass it over to me...

[meemiathai]

I see people here saying "let him rot".

if it was my son or daughter who bought some of his drugs and suffered as a result of using those drugs then i would certainly want him to rot .

If it was my son or daughter, I will say "som nam na". No one had broken in to the house while they were reading a book and made them swallow the Es they didn't want. It is their own choice.

[dkstoney]

Drugs are bad, mmkay.

Listen, even Oreo cookies can be considered a drug, if you eat them to make you feel better. People drink liquor to feel better. We take aspirin to feel better. We smoke weed to feel better. Through our world of advertising we encourage people to participate in unnatural behaviour to adjust what we consider to be an inappropriate state of existence. I didn't have enough energy today, so I made myself a cup of coffee with the full intent of using that cup o' Joe as a drug to boost my energy levels. I should go to jail for that kind of mentality, yet it is part and parcel of human existence. Even if we are suffering from simple boredom, there is a drug or activity considered to be acceptable for the alleviation of a myriad of perceived symptoms. I would go so far as to say that even a religion is a drug to a certain extent, because, for some, it alleviates the symptoms of despair, guilt, and loneliness with regard to existence.

I'm against banning drugs (alcohol inclusive), just as I'm against banning religions. I think that everyone should be free to destroy their livers and brain cells with the same zest they destroy their relationships. People should be free to lie in the gutter vomiting the stubborn morsels of a stale, half-eaten ham sandwich rescued from a trash bin. Just don't vomit on my shoes. When you ban things you create a sub-economy, or a black market, that over-valuates the goods in demand. Whereas weed should be free, because it grows anywhere, it is now only available from those willing to take the risk of growing and distributing it.

Since people do take the risk and governments know this, there is always some money to be made from imposing fines. If people could grow it themselves, then there is absolutely no revenue to be made.

Anxiously awaiting a pummeling of rotten veggies and fruit.

[aaaaaa]

Begs's made most of good point here.

but guys, isn't it pointless to discuss it? drugs and other intoxications will continue be used and sold a,d government cracks down will do to. coz it is simply about money - both selling and crackdowns. crackdowns are just sort of clarifying or re-cutting the share of profit got from those sales. who gets how much? that's all. and local PM surely smart enough. as his remark about legalising prostitution in this country: "we can tax them then!"

so anyway it will not stop -with or without whatever crack downa anas weel as our expression of opinions here...

[fatter than harry]

crack downa anas weel

Can you buy that here?!!

[britmaveric]

Begs- I'm not defending alcohol its certainly bad if consumed excessively. The same can be said for drugs in a perfect world if they were refined and controlled safely. What you get on the street is not consistent in any way - one day perfectly safe and next day you could end up in a coffin.