luangtom

Two things one must ask....first, just exactly where does the figure for Lao "tourists" come from? Second,

if Thai Airways says it feels a loss, just who flew these tourists around Thailand?

The government turns down physical aid from the US Navy days ago that would have brought in equipment, personnel and needed medical supplies and given access to a hospital-ship and now they are determined to get psychiatric help out to the citizens. What is this reader missing here?

One would think that saving-face would take a back-seat to the welfare and well-being of the citizens. This is simply amazing......TIT.

I suspect that the floods will bring about another world-wide request for aid, just like after the tsunami in 2004. I wonder how much of the actual funds donated will get to relief-areas?

I do believe that the only credible avenue to get flood-aid to victims is to have the HRH's daughter run the relief-effort herself. It was she that investigated the diversion of funds from the tsunami. I certainly hope she steps-up before international aid comes pouring in and the various political factions get their hands on it. How much is still missing from the 2004 tsunami that never got to its intended purpose?

Sad when politics plays such a role in the distribution of funds for relief and aid products themselves get side-tracked for delivery to specific areas where political support came from. TIT.

There are already 750,000-plus people suffering from water-borne disease and the "saving of face" takes precedence. It is unfathomable. I sure hope that Big Brother gains alot of support for his bid to return to Thailand after seeing how well he manages this from afar. Little Sis is not showing the world she is capable of managing crisis.

To turn-down humanitarian aid is a marker of just how inept things are being managed in this situation. One should garner help from all pockets of help and assistance. I wish the population the best of luck. Chok dee, Thailand, you will need it...............

Hardly a year goes by without a cry for pandemic of one form or another of influenza. A five-year period and less than 500 deaths due to this strain of influenza and yet the UN declares an emergency. How come they are not declaring such an emergency annually in the USA where there are 3,000 - plus deaths each year due to what is deemed "normal influenza"? 3,000 annually in the USA alone and it is not a pandemic in the eyes of the UN, yet less than 500 deaths over five years is in Asia. Something here is awry. This just does not compute.

Just how much of this is prompted by the pharmaceutical industry that sells the world the vaccine?

This is about like the USA and having its Republicans and Democrats saying they would adopt a bipartisan agenda to get things accomplished.......just as soon as the President and Rush Limbaugh hug and reconcile. Never gonna happen.

It is a reflection of society, in general, no matter the country. When in the US, I walk the dog while armed due to street thugs and gang-bangers and I live 40-miles North of the Metro-Atlanta perimeter.

On The Road Again.....that's just Willie and he's 77 and does not care.

hel_l, the Thai media would have ya believe that foreign visitors are the reason each and every town, large and small, has a "Soi Fai Daeng". They told us that during R&R days of the Vietnam-era, they told us that in the 80's and they tell us this now.

Thailand has had ladies of ill-repute for ages. The brothels and industry existed during the reign of past leaders and under that of current leaders. It is not a new phenom. In talking to old elders of villages, it existed during their youth and was spoken of only in sparse terms and with a certain mysticism. It is not new.

I doubt that the ladies involved are so naive as to not know that the gent filming is not going to show the video or stills to others. I also doubt that they are unwillingly filmed or forced into it. They made money from doing it and now there are some that realize it was a mistake and wish to be seen as victims. Period.

Just how far this "crackdown" goes is up to the BIB and how much they wish to garner from those involved. It is never going to go away. It is good PR to show they care.

Thank Luangtom. I have short stays planned next month and in November at Amaravati and Aruna Ratanagiri.

Chok dee. Do let us know of your experiences there.

There are options outside of Thailand for experiencing the Forest Tradition. Great Britain has a Forest Tradition monastery with disciples of Ajahn Chah and the USA also has Forest Tradition monasteries started and run by adherents of the teachings of Ajahn Chah, most of which are in California. Their particulars are easily found online.

These are just alternatives if one cannot make the trip to Thailand and stay for an extended period of time.

Theoretically, Wat Suan Mohk is not a Forest Tradition wat. It is set in a forest, but Buddhadasa Bhikkhu was not a monk in the Forest Tradition of Ajahn Mun Bhuridatto or of Ajahn Chah. The wats in the N.E. are Forest Tradition. Wat Suan Mohk is a wat of international influence and non-contemporary practice, not of wandering tradition.

Wat Suan Mohk is a wonderful place to learn of Buddhadasa Bhikkhu's works and philosophies. It does not teach Kammathana as practiced by Forest Tradition wats.

Your intentions are honorable. However, I think you would find it difficult to head-quarter yourself in Bangkok and try to investigate Forest Tradition temples from there. They are rural and have few ties to Bangkok. To get to know the lay-supporters of these wats one needs to mingle with the local residents of the villages surrounding them, not with lay-supporters in Bangkok. It is a place of contrasts and the Buddhism of Bangkok in no way mirrors that of Forest Tradition in rural Thailand.

Two different lineages of Forest Tradition in two different locations cater to farang or foreign adherents. One is in Udon Thani province. It is Wat Pa Baan That, home of revered Ajahn Maha Boowa. Another is in Ubon province. It is Wat Pah Nanachat. Followers of the now deceased Ajahn Chah reside here. There are others, but these two are the predominant of them.

With the funding that you write of, you could easily reside nearby either of these two and make your observations and decisions concerning your future in pursuing the Path. Both have monks that are native-speakers of English and both have monks that would be able to teach you Thai, as you grow in your endeavor.

Chok dee.

very sad for the family. remove the guns and other deadly weapons.

Yes, it is sad for the family. But, to make a blanket statement of removing all of the guns and weapons is a cop-out. Instill a sense of self-worth, respect for others and discipline and the guns and the weapons will be a moot point. Parents all over the world rely upon TV, the media, the schools and others to raise their children. If children are raised in an environment that values life and respects others, it will be instilled with the children and they will carry it to adult-hood. Gangs, drugs, rivalries all existed in the towns where our children were raised and they did not fall prey to their influences. They had a strong home-life and that is what gets one through the tough times, not removing perceived threats that are inanimate objects. hel_l, one can kill with a pointed stick, a rope or anything else that one can think of. Instill respect and compassion and it will make these types of incidents more rare.

This old-timer is hoping that the in-laws enjoy the house. Too bad the mother-in-law and father-in-law are not around to live there. I certainly will not be living there anytime soon. It was built with cheap living in mind and that is certainly not the case any longer. I can live just as cheaply in the house I own in GA in the USA and not have the barking dogs, blaring loud-speakers at 0500 and noisy roosters that cannot tell time. If I want Isaan food, I go up the road to the Lao-Isaan community and eat, drink and speak all things Isaan. I can even get Singha beer at a good price. So, at 30-baht to the dollar, I will stay where I am and live out my days without the need to fight immigration and jump through their <deleted>' hoops. I will do my visit every year or so and be happy with that. Chok dee, Thailand.........Oh, here I am not worried about wearing the wrong color shirt either.

I've been stashing money in a USD account. Kicking myself now. Maybe it will come back.

I would not bet on it...some pundits have predicted back to the 25-baht/dollar scale

of the earlier years. Scary.

The "holier than thou" route is not going to alleviate this world-wide problem. Every country in the world has some form of human-traffic problem. Every one. To say it is all the fault of sex-tourists in Thailand is a bit incorrect. Each and every area of Thailand has "soi fai daeng" in which prostitutes ply their trade. Most of these venues never see a foreign sex-tourist. Prostitution and trafficking has been a problem world-wide since man knew he could control the uneducated and vulnerable. It is not unique to Thailand. It is just blatantly obvious in Thailand. In the USA, I reside near Atlanta, GA. It is the capital of the teen sex-trade in SE USA. It is an ongoing battle to rid the streets of those that prey on the young and vulnerable. It is ignored and a hush-hush subject to most people. It is something here that is just not discussed. It exists and always will when people take that sort of attitude concerning it whether it be in Atlanta or Bangkok. It will also continue to exist due to those on the take and those in power not working to alleviate except to keep the press off their backs. Sad to say, we will never see its demise in our lifetimes.

Is this particular problem not what the resident longtime members of this forum have talked about when using two passports? I was told that my wife should enter Thailand on her Thai passport and depart using her foreign (US) passport. So, why would this gent need to do anything extra at the airport? Arrive on Thai passport and depart on

foreign passport.

Maybe Khun Thaksin can lead the world out of this dilemma. Bring him home now!

I see another means of increasing revenue and still not taking care of an ongoing problem. Imagine that.....

A better question to ask is if the world markets will fail in the next twelve months ??? Tell me of one country that is not experiencing the effects of the global depression. It will be a domino-effect...one goes, another goes, another goes.......

The Red Shirt protesters should consider that the numbers killed were low for such an outrageous act of civil disobedience. Most other countries of the world would not have tolerated such actions for as long as the current administration did. The sitting administration could easily have opened fire on the masses and piled the bodies in the streets. They did not. They withheld counter-measures until they deemed it getting out of control. They should applaud the administration of Khun Abhisit for holding themselves in check for so long. Next time, there may not be such a high level of tolerance. Why not wait until scheduled elections to change governments? Most democratic countries or republics do just that. They do not burn down buildings and assault residents to get their grievances in the media. They vote in a new administration. It was offered, but some of the Red Shirt upper-echelon feared such an action. Why?

Prices go UP not down in Thailand in times like this.

That is quite true. When we inquired as to why prices were higher at the Grand China Princess we were told that it was due to the lack of occupants. Therefore, they were charging more to make up the difference. I shook my head in amazement and the gent at the desk said "TIT"....

It is a fact that once Khun Thaksin's funds run out that he will be a man without a country. Even Montenegro will not want him. I suspect that if he does not invest there his welcome will be withdrawn and he will flee to another even smaller enclave. Should all of the funds seized by the government with the latest court rulings be funneled away so that he cannot attain them through whatever means, his presence will be a liability to whoever is harboring him. Just keep the pressure on him financially and he will soon have nowhere to roost. Starve him out via his loss of money.

I would also suggest that those monies seized be used to rebuild and refurbish all that Khun Thaksin has helped destroy. Rebuild the government buildings burnt out in the NE and Chiang Mai. Supply funding to those businesses in Bangkok that the supporters of the exiled PM destroyed. Pay back the country he helped set afire with the funds he and his family acquired through ill means. Karma...........

Does anyone else on this forum see a striking resemblance of events in the past in the Middle East? A tourist haven there by the name of Beirut, Lebanon, reaped the benefits of the money and power of the tourist trade and being a central hub of economic and financial dealings, when lo and behold, internal strife took her down off her perch as a central figure of the region. Looks like it may have found its way to the Land of Smiles.