hardy1943

This USA embassy temporary closure is a neutrality move designed to show that the USA is deliberately taking a neutral position and not becoming publicly involved because they, like all of Thailand's best allies have a strong interest in a stable, democratic Thai society. It would be wise for both sides to ask for and use (perhaps privately so Thailand can save face as an independent nation) the assistance of USA mediation -- after all, a country like the USA which has 250+ years of experience in democracy may have some good experience and ideas; whereas Thailand has less than 80 years, and all of it fraught with coups, tension, and conflict. Thailand should realize it is in the infancy of democracy and needs to understand how to deal with it.

If Thailand is ever to be respected by the international community, it must show STABILITY, CONSISTENCY, PEACE and the ability to quickly and peacefully resolve internal conflicts. There must never be any more violence between Thais vs. Thais ever, or else poor Thailand will be forever ridiculed and distrusted by worldwide investors, tourists, and even its own citizens who could otherwise build Thailand into first world country. If Thai people could ever look at the big picture and consider that, perhaps privately, they could take advantage of the wise consul of elder statesmen from democracies oldest bastions they could much more effectively resolve these current issues.

Could not agree with you more but the ELITE will not let go of the strangle hold of the poor. Send the arrogant Oxford boy home where he belongs.

He is not even willing , like you said before on this forum to get of his high horse to meet with neutral negotiators.

I hope this will not end into a civil war

It sure looks that way

If you are British it may be time to register here, just in case there is a free flight home soon

British nationals are encouraged to register with our LOCATE service.

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living...ng-safe/Locate/

A free flight home to the UK?

fuc_k, you would have to pay me to go back to that dismal and desperate place. Thailand under an Extreme State of Emergency is far better than the UK under Normal Conditions.

And. Monkfish, if you are an employee of UK HMG, then maybe you can explain why the UK Embassy in Bangkok charges extortionate amounts of cash for an arrogant piss poor service?

Thank you for your input

Better late than never I guess. The should have happened at the beginning. Really sad to see the country in this condition. Hope things can calm down and Thailand can recover it's lost face.

They lost face a long time ago by letting the Yellow Shirt shut down the Airport. Try that in any other country and see what happens?

Red Shirt Yellow Shirt who cares this whole thing is like a CARTOON.

And as they say....'Thais love Thais!

He sounds like a brave man beating up a girl with a metal and then trying to drown her! He must be very traceable driving a van along that stretch of road brings the list of supects down to only a few. I used to go in the same vans on the same routes and often had the same drivers. I just hope the BIB are interested enough to follow it up. He should be easy to catch. Hope she gets better quickly and that this menace to society is removed.

Thai men are the biggest shit houses in existence.Recently my GF and her sister had a confrontation with a so called "male" neighbour.Even though the coward was

arguing with a couple of petite females he still pulled out a knife.I only hope they catch and castrate the scumbag.

They won't do nothing to that scumbag.They all belong to the same boys club here.Watch the violence against women on TV,it is fine to hit her in the mouth and knock her teeth out but do not show any one smoking.

Rally will end this week. DPM doesn't surrender to police otherwise. With clean up etc, should be back to business in Ratchaprasong by the weekend.

Care to make a wager?

No way things are back to normal by weekend.

I am with you on that one.

Just keep this in mind next time you want to complain about how long the Thai court system takes. They aren't the only ones.

A death sentence in the US can be drawn out to 10-15 years and millions

of Dollars to the tax payers.The Russians have a much better system THE WORK THEM TO DEATH.

"More than 10 Democrats were also invited to attend the breakfast meeting, but none of them went. Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya and government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn also declined the invitation," a political source said.

What was their excuse? Horse too high? Too dangerous to climb down from the horse?

Maybe if the USA cuts their foreign aid they be running to attent.

Less money for them to stick in their own pocket.

They significantly reduced DVD and CD sales in Silom only for a few months as window dressing expecting the USA to be fooled....what a joke !

Just like their politics and government.

You got that right

This sounds very nice and finally unlock the situation. Also it makes really govt look like the good guys willing to compromise while the other side... Reds would be crazy to refuse after the bad days they had. However, with terrorists charges threatening and no mention of amnesty in his 5 points program, they might ask to have amnesty added as a number 6 prior to give in.

Makes him look like an Idiot, this all could have been avoided months ago by calling an election.

I asked again. What is he so afraid of?

I suggest you move your assets out of Thailand, and the next time she says she will get 40 million, just let her know 50% of zero is zero.

She is flexing her muscles in public trying to make u feel small & above all, in front of your children. You have the power, and I hope it is all in the bank, so just move it to Singapore etc, and put her on an allowance. (that is if u want to stay with her in the first place)

I would close the bank account, grab the kids,buy us a plane ticket and let her figure it out what hit her.

Nothing exactly new. Why do you think if you're born into an Issan family, you're also basically your parents pension plan?

Does not need to be in Issan. Why do you think so many pretty young ladies marry us? We are so handsome

We are ticket to a better life and the pension plan for the parents.

That's just Economics 101 - Decreased Demand = Increased Price OR was it the other way around - oops

Thai logig = increase price sky high while demand drops,

but then it is government operated.

Anyone suprised? THE BOYS IN BKK run the country same way

Both BBC and CNN have said that the soldier that died was shot from behind in the head by police forces.

A BBC reporter is stating that it "appears" a soldier died from friendly fire. That assumption is not supported by any facts. Until something is proven it still could be from either side.

Exactly. Utterly ridiculous to start pointing fingers right now or claiming 1-ups.

I will beleive the BBC and CNN any day over the NATION

I second that motion!

Both BBC and CNN have said that the soldier that died was shot from behind in the head by police forces.

Eat some humble pie and next time remember your listening to the Nation which is a (well lets not go there)

This forum uses The Nation as there main news source , enough said

I feel really ashamed: I've been reading The Nation and Bangkok Post for all this time. No more. Sorry. I understand we live in a country without freedom of speech, but this is too much for me.

Amazed. Ashamed...

Take care.

Surprised? All always used them to wrap fish with. Isn't that what you supposed to do?

Tourism authority wants Bt1.6 BILLION. They can spend all they want but they can't pull the wool over people's eyes any longer. These demonstrations will echo for years to come for the tourism industry. TAT may be able to sweep all the tourist scams and increasing criminal targeting of foreigners, but when you have zealots taking part of a city hostage, bloodshed and now frisking by red shirts of passers by, the only people who come will be bypassing the Big Mango and heading straight to the beaches or to the Rose of the North.

First of all they have to train the immigration to smile teach them how to say "Welcome to the Kingdom of Thailand"

Instead of their attitude do not bother me? Has any one here on this forum ever been welcome that way?

I was welcome that way to my latest trip to China and Vietnam! Communist countries can welcome me that way.

What happen to the Land of Smiles?

Tourism authority wants Bt1.6 BILLION. They can spend all they want but they can't pull the wool over people's eyes any longer. These demonstrations will echo for years to come for the tourism industry. TAT may be able to sweep all the tourist scams and increasing criminal targeting of foreigners, but when you have zealots taking part of a city hostage, bloodshed and now frisking by red shirts of passers by, the only people who come will be bypassing the Big Mango and heading straight to the beaches or to the Rose of the North.

Abhisit just has to swallow his pride and make way for elections.

Simple as that.

Been saying that for months.All of this could have been avoided. What is he afraid of?

Aung Sang Suu Kyi states in the article:

'A new government coming to power under a constitution drawn up by the military will never be stable,' he cited her as saying. 'We do not need to see very far. We just see Thailand,' she said. 'Thaksin was an elected person. The military seized the power from an elected person. The constitution was drawn up by the military,' she said.

'After that, what happened with the first (government)? It was not stable,' she said of the short-lived administration that followed the coup. 'This was a result of the constitution being written by the military.'

"The Lady" is right. Whats the argument. Thaksin was elected and like or not got to popular with the masses and had to go.

Corruption? Who cares as long as I have a better life also they have to deal with the biggest crooks in the world.

Look at Obama he is finding out how corrupt Washington DC is.

Don't be so negative, you married in Europe and devorce cost you half of your investments, so don't complain if stay with a girl half the age off your daughter and loosing your 200k baht house in the middle of the jungle.

I love it here, why

Electricity, cheaper

Water, cheaper

Tax on property, cheaper

Propert, cheaper

Traveling, cheaper

Oil, gas, fuel, Cheaper

Food, cheaper

Health care, cheaper and better and quicker service

Dental care, cheaper and better and quicker service

Woman, lovely

Golf, cheaper

Many of my mates don't do f#$ck all, so when i am in Thailand they always have time for me

This is enough for me to stay here.

Wish you all the best and there is a good change that you will be back here within 2 years .

Good luck to you.

I got divorced in the states was married less then 1 year. In King County Washington State maybe they have 1 judge that is a man left there out 20 , well cost my $485,000 and the lady judge asked her IS THE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT HONEY, she was a gambler I filed for divorce she came over put several bullets in my house , all was ignored. Divorce took over 3 years,she did not want one.

Came here found the most wonderful wife been married now for 7 happy years she is also my best friend.

Have a beautiful house could not afford to pay the taxes on it in the states. Love the tropic climate live up North away from BKK

life is slow here. My wife treats me like a king. This is heaven. Here I am on top of the world in the States I be another ordinary Joe. I have a $4,000 monthly retirement income barely to survive in the Seattle area on that.

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

I live in the North and you are so right their feeling we have nothing to loose..........

Nothing like throwing gasoline on a fire to help put it out.

Why was there no Martial Law while they had controlled the Airport?

Double standard again.How dare the reds make themselves heard!

You are not people get back in your place and how dare you to challenge the YELLOW ELITE!

Can I get some of what you have been taking?

Go and hold your Oxford boy hand where ever he is hiding

Abhisit has lost what little credibility he had.

He wasn't elected and his actions have cost too many lives already.

He only has one choice and that is to dissolve parliament now.

Holding elections in 3 months seems a reasonable way out for everyone.

If he declares martial law then it will result in the loss of many more lives.

Either way he has lost the right to remain PM.

Let the majority decide Thailand's future in proper elections.

Absolutely not... They have shown their terrorist element both on April 10 and last Thursday. The government should not even compromise to 9 months as they originally offered t- to do so would be to cave to the blood-stained demands of a terrorist group.

The UDD are the puppets of Thaksin, and that is their sole purpose to return a corrupt, blood stained dictator to power... The Abhisit government is legitimate and should never cave to the mob.

Sent that Oxford boy back to Britain where he belongs. That aristocrat has no idea how the average Thai working class lives.

wrong. they know it very well. just they like it and want it doesn't change

You are right , your words are better then mine

Abhisit has lost what little credibility he had.

He wasn't elected and his actions have cost too many lives already.

He only has one choice and that is to dissolve parliament now.

Holding elections in 3 months seems a reasonable way out for everyone.

If he declares martial law then it will result in the loss of many more lives.

Either way he has lost the right to remain PM.

Let the majority decide Thailand's future in proper elections.

Absolutely not... They have shown their terrorist element both on April 10 and last Thursday. The government should not even compromise to 9 months as they originally offered t- to do so would be to cave to the blood-stained demands of a terrorist group.

The UDD are the puppets of Thaksin, and that is their sole purpose to return a corrupt, blood stained dictator to power... The Abhisit government is legitimate and should never cave to the mob.

Sent that Oxford boy back to Britain where he belongs. That aristocrat has no idea how the average Thai working class lives.