CAMBODIA'S KING FATHER SIHANOUK

The last week of October saw great celebrations and joy throughout the Kingdom of Cambodia in celebration of three events - all surrounding His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk, the King Father of Cambodia.

Firstly it was a celebration of His Majesty's return to the Kingdom - together with the Queen Mother - after many months spent in China for medical consultations.  Secondly it was a celebration of the King Father's 90th year, and thirdly, it was the 20th Annversary of his return to the country in 1991 after many years in exile.

In a speech to the people of Cambodia from the balcony of the Royal Palace where over 40,000 people had gathered in front of the Palace to listen to the retired King, he told them now he would be staying here in the country and not be returning to China for long periods.  Although retired, His Majesty said he would continue to work for the good of the country and the prosperity of the people.  The cheers that erupted from the crowd when those words were spoken showed that the people were overjoyed to hear such a strong speech that lasted nearly half an hour.  The fact that the King Father himself appeared so strong and in such good health brought happiness to all.

For many Westerners - especially leaders in the big powerful nations, the King Father has always seemed to be something of a mystery.  Some have even thought him to be irrational because he was never afraid to change his mind on a subject if he thought it the right thing to do at the time.

King Sihanouk's life has been anything but plain sailing on a calm sea.  He first became king at the age of 18 in 1941 at a time when the Japanese army was expanding through Vietnam, Laos and beyond, and he became a prisoner in his own Palace.  During the Khmer Rouge reign of Pol Pot, King Sihanouk and his family -including the present king - King Sihamoni - were once again imprisoned in their Palace at Phnom Penh for three years.  Like most Cambodian people, many of King Sihanouk's family as well as many of the Queen Mother's family were killed during those years.

After World War II, Cambodia was still part of what was then called French Indo-China and King Sihanouk spear-headed the move for complete independece from France which he finally achieved in 1953 with the signing of the Treaty of Paris.   King Sihanouk abdicated in 1955, passing the throne to his father King Norodom Suramarit, in order to be free to involve himself in the political field.  He did this in order to bring democracy and stability to the Kingdom and became his father's Prime Minister.  On his father's death in 1960, he became Head of State but held the title of Prince rather than King.

King Sihanouk was never afraid to stand up to the big and powerful nations if he thought that they were doing something that was not beneficial to his people.  It can be truthfully said that he is one of the few leaders of the world in recent years that only used his position of power for the benefit of his country and people and not for himself.  He was not afraid to cut diplomatic ties with the United States in 1965 because of U.S. incursion into Cambodian territory during the Vietnam war.  Diplomatic ties with the United States were not revived until 1969.  The then Prince Sihanouk was accused by many in the West of "flip-flopping", by reversing many decisions he had already made.  However, if you look at the situations where this happened, you will find that in each case it was not some irresponsible decision made on the spur of the moment, but rather a decision made because a reversal of the previous decision was for the good of his people and country.

In 1970, the United States backed a coup that overthrew Prince Sihanouk's government while he was out of the country and the Prince remained in exile for many years, mostly in China.  Cambodia then became a Republic.   In November 1991, the then Prince Sihanouk returned to Cambodia as Head of State until September 1993, when the National Assembly voted to restore the monarchy and Prince Sihanouk once again became King.

This is not meant to be a history lesson, but rather a short summary of events in what you could call "the career" of the King Father.

I believe His Majesty is one of the most charismatic leaders of our time.  He is not afraid to speak his mind on any subject whenever he considers it necessary.  He is a man who literally changed the history of South East Asia and all for the good of his people.  I have heard so many Cambodian people say that he has always been a "king for the people and of the people", which is true............ something they say now also of his son, the present King Sihamoni.

King Sihanouk is much loved and revered by the people of the Kingdom for the simple fact that he loves to mix with them, talk with them and listen to their stories.  Whereas obviously he cannot do as much now as he did in his younger days, the King Father still reaches out to the people and sees to their need in times of hardship.

His Majesty's great love and hobby has been both music and film making.  He has made many films and composed a great deal of music.  Her Majesty the Queen Mother graciously gave me several CD's of King Sihanouk's music and several of them include songs composed by and sung by the King himself.  He has a delicious sense of humour, is a great conversationalist and he has a most infectious laugh.   Cambodia is indeed blessed to have such a father figure.

It is a pity that today many people in the west do not know much about King Sihanouk, but I hope this short piece of writing will stir their thinking and at least give a little insight into one of the great men of our time.

CAMBODIA - A RESILIENT KINGDOM

Much has been said in the world's media about the exceptionally heavy rainfall and flooding that has been taking place throughout South East Asia over the past few weeks.  The Philippines were very hard hit as they had to deal with two almost back-to-back typhoons.

Here in Cambodia we seem to be luckier in that we are far enough inland, with Vietnam giving us shelter, so we don't receive the full impact of typhoons. However we do get plenty of rain - and that, in a way, is an understatement.  This year of 2011 was been the wettest for over ten years with the result that both the Mekong and Tonle Sap Rivers are at their highest for over a decade.  Walking beside the rivers this morning I could see the waters are still on the rise.

In the countryside - even just outside the city - huge areas are under water with the result that many, many rice crops have been destroyed.  In our second biggest city - Siem Reap - which is the main tourist area because of the Angkor Wat Temple complex, where normally you will find plenty of tourists sitting in coffee shops on the pavement enjoying a break from their sight seeing, today you will find only closed shops and knee-high water running through the entire city.

Statistics show that over one hundred people have died in the floods in the Kingdom and over one thousand animals have also perished.  Schools and business in many areas of the Kingdom are closed and will remain so for quite some time.

In spite of all of the above - there is no air of "doom and gloom" in the Kingdom.  No whining and crying about the situation but rather an air of "let's deal with it".  

The Cambodian people have been through so much turmoil, unrest and disaster over the past 30+ years they have become remarkably resilient and maintain an air of "we will survive".   I admire them tremendously.  I was talking to one lady from the Province not far from Phnom Penh whose small piece of land is totally submerged and her small rice harvest will now not materialize which in turn means her small income is no more.  She said that if this is something that nature sends to them, then they just have to deal with it and make the best of it.    And deal with it they do.  The smiles are still everywhere, even as they have to wade knee high through the water.  The children play in the water and in the rain as if it was the greatest thing.  Many of the people here may be poor - but they have faith things will get better and they are resilient to the n-th degree.

Contrary to what people may read overseas in the foreign press, the Government and those in authority here are very concerned about these events and are very quick to help those who have been affected by floods and whose crops have been devastated.  Even His Majesty King Sihamoni gets personally involved.  He visits all the badly hit areas in the Kingdom bringing food, clothing, money and blankets to those who need them.  It is an inspiration to see him not just travelling in a huge motorcade, but striding through the water and the mud and sitting on the floor in the small village wooden houses on stilts talking with the people.  The lady with whom I spoke and mentioned above said he is really a "King for the people and comes right into our small homes.  That is what helps us feel good in hard times."

Disasters have been many this year - all around the world and who knows there may be more before the year ends.  In western countries we tend to moan about them and wait for people to come and help.  I am fully aware some people won't like me saying that but it is true.  In Cambodia people don't wait - they get on as best they can and deal with their situation.  If help comes, then great - but if not, then they deal with it somehow. 

I have said it before and I will say it again - the people of this Kingdom - from the King right down the poorest and most humble person, are examples to people everywhere who have to face hardships.  Don't just write them off as being "people from the Third World".

WHEN WILL IT END?

About two hours before I started writing this, Mr. Troy Davis was executed by lethal injection in the State of Georgia in the United States because he had been found guilty of shooting an off duty policeman - Mr. Mark McPhail - in 1989.  Just a few hours earlier in the State of Texas in the United States, Mr.Lawrence Russell Brewer who was a white supremacist, was also put to death by lethal injection because he was found guilty of killing a man in 1998.  Those in favour of the death penalty had a field day today.  Two people executed within a matter of hours!

I don't know too much about the case of Mr. Brewer as of this moment, but there has certainly been a great deal of attention given to the case of Mr. Davis. 

In the heading on this page I asked the question "When will it end?"  I am referring not only to the continual use of the death penalty, not just in the United States but in other countries where it is still practised  - which most people know I am totally against - but also to what can well be described as "cruel and unusual punishment" in this case, as well as continued interest in the morbid.

Mr. Davis' case garnered world-wide attention. People such as Pope Benedict, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa all spoke up on his behalf and something like 3-million signatures were collected in support of a review for clemency in his case.  But to no avail.

What may not be so well known is the fact that three times prior to this evening's execution, Mr. Davis was set to be executed and on each of those three times the execution was stopped with less that an hour to spare.  Can you imagine anyone having to go through three traumas like that? To me that is nothing less than "cruel and unusual punishment" no matter who you are or what you may or may not have done.  How can a civilized nation allow these things to happen?  Why don't the authorities understand the meaning of "cruel and unusual punishment"?  I may not be expressing this in the best possible terms, but I want to get it out while the event is still fresh in people's minds.  The western countries so often criticize the methods and habits and human rights in other countries but there are times such as this present incident shows, when they should take a look in the mirror.

Not thirty minutes after the execution of Mr. Davis took place, the normally respectable CNN television network - in a piece hosted by Mr. Anderson Cooper -  started a second-by-second account of the execution given by some journalists who were present to watch Mr. Davis die.  It was unbelievable.  We were even told how many times Mr. Davis blinked after he was given the first of three injections.  The tiniest details were given huge importance and repeated over and over again not just by Mr. Anderson but they were even repeated later on the summary of the news headlines.  Mr. Anderson is normally a reporter/commentator of the highest quality, but why was he dealing to the world all these grim details?  Is that what CNN thinks is good for the world?

It is time some people in high up places started to learn to respect the dignity of every human being. Whether that person is or is not guilty of a crime, dealing out the tiniest grim details of an execution for long periods of time is good for no one.  If we say we are a civilized people - then let us act like we are. 

CAN ONE VOICE MAKE PEOPLE THINK?

Within two days of writing my last Blog here in August, I was so surprised to find I had received more than two hundred emails from people as far away as South Africa, England, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. 

Three things in particular surprised me. First that so many people from so many places - people I didn't even know - had read what I wrote. As I am decidedly "internet unfriendly" I just don't understand how people find what I write.

Secondly, I was surprised that not one of the writers disagreed with what I said and all - without exception - encouraged me to write more.  In past years before I retired, I was continually being taken to task by politicians, local people and even bishops for things I wrote - or said on the radio.  But this time - we all agreed.

Thirdly, I was surprised because out of all those emails I received, four came from U.S. Senators, six from members of the U.S. Congress and three from decidedly senior people working in the White House as well as two from senior Members of Parliament in London.   None of them do I know personally and all of them asked me not to mention their names, which I will respect of course and I have to say how much I appreciate them taking the trouble to write.

Looking at the statistics on that particular Blog, some 2,356 different people read it.  I am truly amazed.  That is a lot of people reading a blog from an unknown person like me.

After that far-too-long preamble and without wishing to be presumptious - though it is very tempting - I wonder how much permanent effect, if any, what I wrote had on any of these people.  Particularly those in the power circle of things.  Can one small voice make a difference?  I believe it can, even if mine didn't or doesn't, but I hope I make people think.  When John the Baptist was preaching he made a huge difference at the time even though he was - to quote - "a voice crying in the wilderness".

In that Blog last month, I mentioned Mr Warren Buffett's comments on how there should be an increase in taxation for the super rich.  He said that he was paying a lower rate than some of his employees who earned far less than he did.  I suggested that was not right (as did Mr. Buffett) and wondered what would be the reaction of the mega-rich "powers-that-be" on Wall Street.  Did what I say make some people think?  I hope it did.

This morning on CNN I was interested to hear that President Obama was putting forward a proposal to increase the tax rate for the mega rich and what is more interesting, is that it is to be called the Warren Buffett Plan or words to that effect!   In addition, in the United Kingdom, taxation on the super rich is to be increased now to a rate of 50-pence on the pound.

Then after that, I saw that the whole area around Wall Street in New York was brought to a traffic standstill yesterday by over 3,000 people protesting against the way Wall Street gurus handle matters.  Placards saying "BY THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE - NOT BY THE RICH FOR THE RICH" were carried.  Somethng unheard of in days gone by.

I have no idea if what I wrote made people think, as I said, but the fact that so many people read what I wrote and so many in turn wrote to me - including people in "high up" places who are involved in big decision making, makes me think that maybe - just maybe - the small person's voice can make a  difference.  If that is the case,  then if many small voices speak up change will come about. Look what has happened in the Middle East just because the ordinary person in the street spoke out.

Voices need to be heard when things are not right in order to change the status quo.

HALFWAY THROUGH - BUT WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT

On the 23rd of February this year I wrote a blog in which I wondered about what the year 2011 would bring.  Many people found that 2010 was not particularly good for them for various personal reasons, and it was hoped that the New Year would bring better things.  Well, we are now more than half way through the year and one can only say that so far it has been a year that has made people sit up and think.  Not just the ordinary "man-in-the-street" but Governments and leaders of all kinds have been made to sit up.

In February the world was startled to find the leaders of both Tunisia and Egypt being deposed and new Governments being set up all because of what has become known as "People Power".  From those two countries the unrest moved to Yemen, Libya, Algeria, Morocco, Jordan, Syria and Bahrain, and the western media pundits in a semi smug way referred to it collectively as the "unrest in the Arab world" which was the result of their autocratic rulers. The impression was given daily that nothing of the kind could happen in the western world.  How wrong could they be!!  Certainly much of the unrest could have been due - and in some cases certainly was - to uncaring autocratic rulers wanting to grab everything and hold on to power regardless of how it affected the people - there can be no doubt about that.  However, we can't sit back and say "we are above such things - it won't happen to us".

In the past few weeks the world has been shaken by the unrest in the western countries.  London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester in the United Kingdom looked like they did during the blitz in World War II.  Whole city blocks were burned to the ground and others completely looted.  Riots and unrest have turned up in Belgium, Spain, Greece, France, Turkey and even in Israel which surprised so many and this past week in Germany.  But America didn't escape either.  Philadelphia had to be put under a curfew for several days.

It doesn't take an Albert Einstein to figure out that something is not right and that changes have to be made in the way Governments handle things.  Nor does it take an Albert Einstein to figure out that it is the wealthy who control the shots without consideration for the less fortunate.  Certainly that is true in America and in the United Kingdom at the moment.  In America, the Congress and Senate refused to agree on a plan to reduce the country's debt thereby threatening the livelihood of the elderly who rely on their Social Security payments and even the pay for the army veterans until the very last minute, because each politician was determined to get as much air time on TV as possible to show he/she is working now that the election season is near.  It seemed fairly obvious they had no care at all for the needy and the elderly and the veterans.  In the meantime, a White House Aide announced that Mr. Obama had over 1-billion dollars in his re-election campaign bank account and still goes out fund-raising ........ something here does not seem morally correct.  When poverty is rife - yes, even in America, - how can spending anything near 1-billion dollars on an election campaign be right? When the CIA spends more than 40-million dollars on each of three buses that look more like Star Wars war machines than a bus, so that the leaders of both political sides can go touring on their election campaign - something is not right.  When the leaders of both parties host fundraising dinners where people pay $10,000.00 to attend, something is not right.  It does not take an Albert Einstein to figure out that it is the wealthy who will pull the strings and be noticed.  "Mr. and Mrs. Ordinary" seem to be unimportant and completely left out of the picture.

The United Kingdom is not far behind.  The country was decidedly rattled when it was discovered that many Members of Parliament and the House of Lords were abusing their positions and claiming untold thousands of pounds in illegal expenses such as claiming for a second home that didn't exist (there was even one claim for $4,000 for a house for ducks in the middle of a pond) and doing little work for the people. At least that particular matter has been tackled somewhat but there are other instances of where the wealthy gain and the man in the street loses out.  University fees have been raised to the level where it is almost impossible for many people to attend those institutions.  Just the wealthy will be able to afford further education.  All of these things as well as tremendous unemployment are excellent fuel for general unrest. I do not know right now what caused the riots in Berlin, but something obviously upset the people and time will tell.

With all this happening around the world, the Governments have to sit up and consider the people who elected them and for whom they are supposed to be working, and not just think of themselves. Mr.Warren Buffett wrote an op-ed piece in I think it was the New York Times just a short time ago saying that so much more income would go to the Government if they taxed the very wealthy at a higher rate instead of "coddling up to them".  Mr. Buffet made his point by saying that last year he paid over 6-million dollars in taxes, but he was taxed at only seventeen and a half per cent whereas his employees - who, of course, earn far less - were being taxed at twenty per cent.  He said that was not right.  He is a man who in spite of his wealth and ability to make money, always considers the people and as most know, he has pledged to give away 99% of his wealth and says he is more than willing to pay a higher tax rate.  I wonder what the reaction of those "big wigs" on Wall Street who earn $4-million bonuses was to Mr. Buffett's words.  It would be interesting to know if they agreed with him.

I do not live in America or Britain or any of the other countries where this unrest has happened, but it is not being anti-American or anti-British or anti any other country to say that the leaders - whomever they are and wherever they are, have got to start being realistic and to start thinking of their people and their country, rather than lobbying for power and position and in Mr. Buffett's words "coddling up" to the rich. Otherwise this unprecedented unrest around the world will escalate out of all proportions and anarchy will reign.

WHAT NEXT?

Just a few months ago I wrote a reminder of things I had said some years ago about the death penalty when Timothy McVeigh was about to be executed in the United States for the Oklahoma bombing.  I have never been in favour of the death penalty under any circumstances and have so often spoken out against the practice.  I am firmly of the opinion that the often quoted "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth" means there should be justice for a crime committed - but not that another life should be taken.

Unfortunately, the United States - though considering itself the leader of the world - is still one of the (thankfully) declining number of countries that practices the use of the death penalty.  Although having said that - many States in the country have stopped the practice.  Texas seems to be one state that seems to revel in the practice because for many years it has had the highest number of executions each year.  Although the "authorities" constantly complain about the number of executions in China and Saudi Arabia - and I am by no means condoning them - one should take notice that America is high on the list of those countries with the most executions.

Last week the U.S. State of Georgia executed a man by the name of Andrew De Young for the murder of his parents and sister in 1993.  The event passed with little attention given to it by the media, but it was a unique and in my opinion, a grim event.

Mr. De Young was to be put to death by a method often used now in the United States - lethal injection while the prisoner is strapped to a gurney-like contraption.   A "cocktail" of three drugs is injected into the person's veins.  The first as a type of anaesthetic, the second to paralyse the person and the third to stop the heart.

In most cases the first drug has been one called sodium thiopental.  However the manufacturer has apparently stopped manufacturing this particular drug so there is a national shortage.  The result is that the U.S. State of Georgia had a new lethal cocktail of drugs made replacing the sodium thiopental with another called pentobarbital.   This is an anaesthetic sometimes used when putting animals to sleep.   It had been used at least once before in an execution, but several comments were made by those present at those events, that it seemed as if the person being executed was not totally sedated and was suffering unnecessary pain.

The Supreme Court of Georgia denied Mr. De Young's motion for the authorities to look again at a lower courts decision to replace sodium thiopental with this pentobarbital.  But the lower court even went further.   At the request of another inmate still on death row, the lower court approved a request by that inmate that Mr. De Young's execution be video taped so people - and in particuar the lawyer of the inmate - can witness and view the reaction of Mr. De Young to this new mix of lethal drugs.  In other words, the lower court approved of Mr. De Young being used as a guinea pig for research.

A couple of thoughts come to my mind over this.  First of all I ask what exactly is what is known as "cruel and unusual punishment"?  Does not someone being used as a guinea pig at the time of their execution not come under that category?  I would think it does.  The Government makes much of the fact that certain drugs that could heal diseases such as cancer and the like must be withheld for complete testing.  Then why does it allow a drug that is not fully tested for use in executions be used for that purpose.  Something hypocritical and wrong here.

Another thought in the same vein.  When Mr. De Youg's motion for the drug re-testing was put before the State Supreme Court, his execution had to be delayed twenty-four hours in order for the Justices to make their decision.  No problem with that.  However, the following day just minutes before the next hour of execution, the authorities again delayed the execution for a further twenty-four hours.  Why?  For the simple and ridiculous reason that they couldn't make up their minds as to the best place to put the video camera!!!!  So Mr. De Young was once more taken back to the waiting cell until the next day.  To me that could also be categorized as "cruel and unusual punishment".    But the media barely gave a mention to all of this and unless you read it a second time you might not even have noticed it.  What did get an entire paragraph though, was what Mr. De Young had for his last meal!!!   Where are people's priorities? 

And one last question.  When Mr. McVeigh was about to be executed a request was made for the execution to be video taped but a judge rightly dismissed the request saying it would in no time be posted all over the internet - and he was right.  So it never happpened.  We are now many years on since then and it is much easier for anyone to post anything on the internet.  How long will it take for that video of Mr. De Young's execution be available for all - young and old alike - to be seen on the internet.  Not very long, I fear.  Society is definitely going "down hill" fast.  The mind boggles at the thought of what will be next if this type of thing is allowed to continue.  I hope others speak out about this also - including those in authority in the Churches.

The authorities of the State of Georgia need to revise their thinking on these matters which currently seems to be back in the Middle Ages and certainly not that of a civilized nation.

"A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE........!

The shockwaves that were the result of the phone hacking scandal at the "News of the World" newspaper in England have reverberated round the entire globe.

When people first heard about this manner of infiltration into the private lives of people it did little more than raise a few eyebrows.  When - wasn't earlier this year or late last year? - it was learned that members of the Royal Family in England had their phones hacked together with other celebrities, people began to sit up and take notice.  Those hackings certainly were not good, but last month when it was revealed that the phone of a young girl who was eventually found dead had not only been hacked, but that her text messages had been deleted in order to keep the phone active so her family would think she was still alive - things looked bad and from bad they went to worse.

Phones of families whose sons and daughters had been killed while on active duty with the army in Afghanistan had also been hacked.  Now it has been revealed that it is likely the phones of families whose relatives died in the 2001 September 11th attacks in America may also have been targets.    One cannot help but ask is there no end to the lengths people will go to try to make money?  Have all moral principals been thrown out the window in the name of selling papers or whatever other media is involved?  It seems that is the case in this day and age.

However, having said all the of above, there are further questions one has to ask in light of all these revelations.

My grandmother - who was a much respected lady in all areas - often used to say "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing".  It was a favourite quote of hers and I have no idea from where it comes or even if it is quoted correctly.  Nevertheless it is very true.  Grandmother was not fond of what she would call "these new fangled inventions" She said people never looked into how dangerous they could or might be.  She refused to fly not because she was  scared, but because she said it was unnatural.  If God had intended her to fly he would have given her wings and she would be given those soon enough.  It wasn't until she was aged ninety that she agreed to get on a plane and fly from Dublin to London - and only then did she reverse her stance on the matter, because she said, at age ninety she could be dead by the time she got to London by boat and train. She drove a big heavy 1947 Rolls Royce Phantom, with a stick shift gearbox (5 forward gears) and two enormous head lights that stood up like army searchlights.    As the years went by grandmother refuted suggestions that she get rid of that big heavy car and get a modern car with automatic transmission which would be easier to drive.  She said the car did not have a brain, so how could it always know when to change gear.  She would prefer to be in charge of the matter herself.  She continued to drive that big Rolls - and she was a good driver - until she was ninety-eight and only stopped then because she died peacefully in her sleep.  Time to get her own wings!!

If grandmother was alive today I believe she would still be quoting "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing." even more than she did before.  The cell phone is an amazing invention and exactly how it works I don't bother to find out - I just use it.  It can be a serious lifeline for many people.  However, with all these happenings at The News of the World and other places grandmother's quotation comes very much to mind.  Did people who invented it ever think further than the actual production and working of the phones?  Did they ever try to deepen their knowledge and see how it could be misused by those who misuse things for their own profit and benefit?  There are so many questions.

One can go further and look at the nuclear disasters in Japan, Chernobyl, India and other places which I have mentioned in previous posts and wonder did - at the time those facilities were constructed - the powers that be really look into all the possibilities of what would happen if anything could or did go wrong. They just confined their knowledge to the point where it would make money for them without thought of future happenings. 

With news of Committees of Enquiries being set up by the British Government, the FBI and whomever else to look into the phone hacking fiasco, I thought sense was at last prevailing, and people who knew would see that things like this should not and could not happen again.  In some quarters, that doesn't seem to be the case.

The United States is a country that has its security at the forefront of most of its actions.  Yet I was more than surprised to read this week that a new system of communication between the army/service personnel "in the field" and their home base and the Pentagon is now going into use whereby each can communicate with the other in a minimum amount of time by using some touch screen technology.   With my low level of intelligence where these matters are concerned and with the things that are going on today, I am of the simple opinion that there would be very little security in that.  That people would have no problem within a short time of hacking into such a programme seems a given.  The  fact that security is then blown to the wind seems not to have concerned the powers that be who sanction and instal such a system.

Grandmother's quotation is right.  Complete knowledge about these new communication methods, about things like nuclear technology, indeed about every new item, has to be studied and followed through to the absolute end and not just stopped along the way because some person or group of people feel they can make a fast million dollars with the product.