Traveler19491

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Can only hope someone kicks the crap out of him

 

I wonder whether the pistol has been disabled - firing pin removed or similar. The pistol, rounds, and a magazine are within easy grabbing distance of the thug, and as best I can tell his arms are too far adapt for him to be handcuffed.

 

Such professional police work.

Well, let's take a look at the logistics that would be involved...first, he has to make a grab for both the magazine and a few rounds of ammo.  Then he has to load the magazine.  Next, grab the gun, shove the magazine in, jack a round into the chamber, then point the gun.  All this while surrounded by a half dozen cops.  I don't think they're too worried about this dipstick making his "last stand" right here.

The problem with the death penalty is three fold: First, it is about revenge, not justice. Second, it is final, no appeal, and the risk of executing an innocent person has been adequately demonstrated in my home country of the US, where over 200 innocent people have been released from death row after being found to be not guilty, and third, it relieves the guilty of their torment. The guilty will serve the rest of their lives without hope of ever seeing the outside world again. Timothy McVey, the Oklahoma City bomber, WANTED to be executed, because he did not want to spend the rest of his life in prison. Spending one's life in a hell hole, unable to procure any form of relief, is a far, far worse punishment than death. Death ends their torment. Way too good for this kind of scum. Makes us feel good, but makes them feel relief. I'll pay the taxes, just for the knowledge that they are in misery.

First, the "offended" person had to travel to Thailand, at no small cost, and expend not insignificant amounts of money to visit, all the while knowing that they were traveling to a foreign culture, whose value system most likely did not mirror their own. Second, they visited this site, not knowing what they might find, or if what they found might possibly offend their sensitivities. Third, they entered this temple, knowing in advance that this work of art was most definitely "different" (I mean you have to cross a bridge with thousands of hands reaching up at you from the "pits of hell"), and then they get "offended", and just to make sure that they can chronicle their "outrage", they violate temple rules by taking a photograph inside the sacred area...and don't seem to think that this might offend the Buddhists. I'd be curious to know if they express the same outrage at children dying of hunger in the West, an area of the world that enjoys the highest standard of living in the world. Or if they are outraged at the slaughter of thousands of innocents in wars manufactured for profit? But they want to express their moral indignation at a work of art. Get a grip. One of the principal functions of art is to "offend", to make you think, to make you analyze your own thought processes and determine what your values really are. This person's idea of art is probably anything by Thomas Kincaid.

You have indicated that your son comes to stay with you in Norway, and that he is part Norwegian by birth. I am not at all familiar with Norwegian law, but I would assume that having a Norwegian father would make him a Norwegian citizen. If so, the solution seems quite clear to me. You take him to Norway with you, and he never sees Thailand again, until he has finished his schooling. Several downsides to this solution. One, he would not see his mother, or his mother's family for several years. However, you have also indicated that his mother has no problem with his being abused, and apparently she has no problem abusing him herself. In my opinion, this immediately disqualifies her as a fit mother. I agree with previous posters that, due to the nature of Thai culture, it is highly improbable that your objections, either to her or to the school administrators, will do anything to remedy this situation. Two, his mother would, I assume, object strenuously to her not being able to see her son. However, her only recourse, once your son is in Norway, is to appeal to the Norwegian authorities. Should she choose to do that, it would seem fairly easy to demonstrate to the Norwegian courts the conditions your son has been forced to endure, and I would believe that, being as enlightened as the Scandinavian countries are, they would be very hesitant to send your son back into the hands of his tormentors. Three, your son may eventually miss his mother and wish to see her. If that happens, you pay for her flight to Norway, and her expenses while there (certainly no more expensive than you visiting Thailand), and she can visit with him, supervised, for as long as she wishes. So, pack your son up, catch the next flight to Norway, and give him the loving, calm, rational environment that he so deserves.

His mother will not try to have him stay with her. She knows its impossible as I dont give my consent to a visa for my son to live with her where she now lives. She lives outside of Thailand and is married to a new man. My son is both Thai and Norwegian citizen but only holds a Norwegian passport and always will. I refused to let him have a Thai passport last year and it proved to be smart. Its impossible for her to travel with him to countries outside of EU. Its more of a private matter but it was actually his mother who brought him back to Norway and actally by a surprise. I had informed her that I was going to pick him up in April and bring him home with me after our holiday.

Also I have a statment from the Norwegian government (BUFETAT) that he lives with me as she didnt show up here during our divorce. In a divorce here if only one parent show up at this meeting they automatically reward that parent to live with the kid. So what goes for Norway and it is impossible to remove him from me here.

In 2012 I paid a trip for her to come here on holiday. I moved out and they had a good 2 weeks alone just mother and son. He loved that and she was kind to him like before. It was only this time in her village with her family around and drinking some every day that she was more violent than before to him he has told me.

About holidaying in Thailand and its no problem. I am there 4 times a year now and we went there before and he stayed with his mother for a couple of weeks.

Me and son loves Thailand by our hearts and will never stop to go there. Thailand at the moment feels more home and our future is there. When work and other practical things in life will let us do and we will live there. We just want to see the beating of students to end in Thailand. if I can participate with our story on the way for this to happen and I`ve done mine. One story more is one story more on the weight. One day I belive the beating will stop..

Thank you, ThaiTbone, for that additional information. I'm happy, for both you and your son, that it seems that you have found a situation that, at least for the present time, is working for you. When the time comes that you do return to Thailand, I agree with previous posters that he would probably be best off in an international school, one with much higher standards than the local Thai schools. Good luck!

Nothing compared to going to Catholic School in The States, back in early sixties, I had a pointer broken over my leg in second grade by the nuns and then went to Military Academy was beaten with paddles , one day got 32 swats, and being in push-up position for 1/2 hours or more, I graduated in 72, yeah I hated school, and then the bullies after school, another story to tell...

So your mistreatment in the past makes current abuse of students OK? "Nothing compared to..." would seem to indicate that this father should just overlook his son's abuse and not worry about it.

You have indicated that your son comes to stay with you in Norway, and that he is part Norwegian by birth. I am not at all familiar with Norwegian law, but I would assume that having a Norwegian father would make him a Norwegian citizen. If so, the solution seems quite clear to me. You take him to Norway with you, and he never sees Thailand again, until he has finished his schooling. Several downsides to this solution. One, he would not see his mother, or his mother's family for several years. However, you have also indicated that his mother has no problem with his being abused, and apparently she has no problem abusing him herself. In my opinion, this immediately disqualifies her as a fit mother. I agree with previous posters that, due to the nature of Thai culture, it is highly improbable that your objections, either to her or to the school administrators, will do anything to remedy this situation. Two, his mother would, I assume, object strenuously to her not being able to see her son. However, her only recourse, once your son is in Norway, is to appeal to the Norwegian authorities. Should she choose to do that, it would seem fairly easy to demonstrate to the Norwegian courts the conditions your son has been forced to endure, and I would believe that, being as enlightened as the Scandinavian countries are, they would be very hesitant to send your son back into the hands of his tormentors. Three, your son may eventually miss his mother and wish to see her. If that happens, you pay for her flight to Norway, and her expenses while there (certainly no more expensive than you visiting Thailand), and she can visit with him, supervised, for as long as she wishes. So, pack your son up, catch the next flight to Norway, and give him the loving, calm, rational environment that he so deserves.

This may very well be acceptable behavior by the police in this country. The problem arises with the failure of the police to recognize that behavior like this is not likely to help the tourism image, which is already suffering from a growing realization abroad that Thailand is not necessarily the most tourist friendly site on the planet, particularly in the areas of Phuket and Pattaya, locales that depend hugely on the income from tourism.

This is one of the best articles I've read on Thai Visa. Well written and very explanatory. Similar to aTomsLife, I learned why the Thai sales people seem to hover around you, which would never go over in the US, and would drive customers away. I assumed that it was cultural, but didn't know why...now I do. Pretty much any and all businesses in Thailand catering to foreigners would do would do well to study Khun Madunan's model. In fact, he should be a guest lecturer in the business courses at Thai universities.

When is someone going to kick this batshit crazy in the nuts and shove him to the curb? This whack job is a textbook megalomaniac. I simply can not understand the mentality of those who back him. Granted, Thailand is in serious need of political and bureaucratic reform, but this guy? Is this the best they can do???

My former Thai gf insisted on calling me "Papa", and wanted me to call her "Mama". She enjoyed doting on me, and insisted on treating me as a father figure. Truthfully, I enjoyed it. I don't think anything weird is going on...just another unfathomable facet of Thai culture. My advice? Relax and enjoy it.

Assuming that you are who you say you are, I would like to apologize for the junior high school mentality plainly evident on this forum. I find it interesting that most of these cretins are happy to bad mouth Thailand, and Thais in general, but when one shows up, ostensibly to try to gain a better understanding of our species, the individual is beset by, what can best be described as, mindless blather, at best, and boorish rudeness, at worst. What most of these schmucks don't get is that this is not their country. This place belongs to the Thais, and if they choose to run it in a manner that doesn't meet with your unnecessary approval, that's their choice, and if you don't like it you can feel free to return from whence you came, probably to the considerable benefit of Thailand. In fact, that is something that is an ongoing source of puzzlement to me...why, if you are so damnably unhappy here, you choose to remain. Into the old S & M thing? I know I shall incur the wrath of the minions, but no worry. To insult me would require intelligence...something not generally in strong supply here, although with some notable exceptions.

At least when he says, "I'm Innocent!" he'll be telling the truth.

If it's your wife/gf it means 'you better make the right choice'

True. It's similar to when an American wife/gf says, "Fine. Do whatever you want." You'd damn well better NOT do whatever you want. "Up to you" can frequently be female code for, "You know what I want, so if you want peace to continue, then, bucko, you'd better make me happy."

A courageous and timely contribution to a debate in which the whole world - not just Thailand -

to get actively involved.

Roosevelt would surely not believe what has become of his beloved country: millions homeless, jobless and living on food stamps, a puppet government controlled by private bankers and a military industrial complex so bloated that waging war has become an ongoing necessity rather than a last resort.

The New Deal gave US working people two decades of rising wages and living standards - followed by forty years of flat-

lining while the Rockerfellers the rest of the capitalist elite sucked an ever larger share from the economy.

The myth of the American dream was brutally exposed with collapse of the real estate bubble in 2007 - a classic example of market manipulation by the banking mafia with the connivance of their political foot soldiers in Washington.

Right now, with wage levels, working conditions and trade unions all in retreat and human rights and personal liberty under attack as never before, not just American but the entire West is moving dangerously ever closer to fulfilling the elite's dream of a new world order.

Imagine it: one over-weaning authority, answerable to no-one else, controlling all our lives and one army ready to enforce its wishes on a global scale.

In Roosevelt's time, this was little more than a pipe dream among the Rockerfellers, the Rothschilds and the rest of the banking cabal. His decision to take the US into the war created the conditions for the dream to become a reality.

Victory turned the US into the most powerful economic force in the world and created the military/industrial complex to impose whatever it saw as right with unstoppable might.

Eisenhower warned of the dangers in his retirement speech. But his words were largely ignored. Today, the US "defence" budget is larger than that for all other developed nations put together and plans for a global government are no longer a closely guarded secret - successive US Presidents, from George Bush Senior and Ronald Reagan to George Bush Junior,

have come out of the closet to do the cheer leading.

It is 2013, but it is starting to feel uncomfortably like 1984. Not only George Orwell, but Franklin D. Roosevelt must be spinning in his grave.

A well written post. The author of the opinion piece did an excellent job of pointing out an historical turning point in America, and using it to illustrate the needs of Thailand, but truly America's current economic and political condition is one that foreshadows a frightening potential end game. What the American Robber Barons could only fantasize about is on the threshold of becoming reality. One thing that both Roosevelts had in their favor was a Supreme Court that actually based their decisions neutrality, unlike the ideologues who currently occupy the bench. Without an impartial Supreme Court, the plutocrats will get their way every time. And on those rare occasions when the Court has the temerity to go against them, they just come back with another try until they get what they want. No, today's America wood be a pathetic example for Thailand to emulate. Until Thailand can find some individuals to enter the political arena who have the idealism, determination, and public support to challenge the rampant corruption, the status quo will remain.

I agree that, if this is indeed your child, you should do the honorable thing, and provide for him/her. However, keep in mind that the average Thai worker makes between 6,000 and 8,000 baht per month...IF they have a good job. It is your responsibility to provide for your child, and naturally you want your child to live in reasonably comfortable surroundings. But it is NOT your responsibility to keep his mother, or her family, in comfort. I would offer her 5,000 a month, and simply inform her that if she wants to persue the matter, hoping for a windfall, that you will be happy to lower the amount. The Thai authorities will not get involved, and your embassy could not care less, providing you are not in violation of any of your home country's laws.

Similar to asking "What do Australian men prefer.....?"

... beer

We like a beer ... or two ... alt=rolleyes.gif width=20 height=20>

No you don't. You guys only drink that rather poor, yellow substitute referred to by many as lager. The real ale is drunk by Brits and often in preference to women.

An Irishman will crawl across the bodies of a dozen writhing, naked women to get to a bottle of beer (said me, the Irishman).

As a broad generalization, single, previously unmarried Thai women will prefer Thai men of their same age range. However, once a Thai woman has been divorced, especially if she has children, she is considered by Thai men to be undesireable. Hence, as a matter of economic security, they will begin looking at farang men, and older men, as has been mentioned, tend to be more stable and less likely to play around. They also tend to be better off financially, at least by Thai standards. A significant percentage of the very young girls that one sees being accompanied by older farang males are professionals, and for them it's just a job.

After having been one of the "strong arm" advocates, I have to say that I agree with bocceball1's advice. The simplest, and least confrontational, approach is probably going to be the best in the long run. Strong arming just has too many chances of backfiring. Send your daughter abroad to study, or even to visit family for an extended period. If she's out of the picture, &lt;deleted&gt; will find another target, or hopefully pick on the wrong target and thus eliminate himself.

My friend, all I can tell you is what I would do, were it my daughter...I would follow the little twerp, I would get his routine down, and then I would pick the time and place where there is the least likely possibility of there being any witnesses, and I would corner his ass, baseball bat in hand, preferably with a couple of large friends in tow, and I would simply inform him that the next time he comes within a mile of my daughter, he will simply disappear, and that I would have a dozen witnesses to swear that I was with them for any time in question. People like this do not respond to reason. They firmly believe that they are above the law, and that their actions will have no consequences. You are on your own. The authorities will do little, if anything. So convincing him that it is not in his best interest to continue to harrass your daughter is up to you.

Dude, seriously? It's OK for her to rip you off, use your house as a Motel 6 for her family and friends ("Oh, and while you're here, feel free to help yourself to whatever you want."), let her son move in and become a squatter, but you're afraid to lose her as an employee??? &lt;deleted&gt;!!! If this is how she treats your home and possessions, just precisely how long do you think it'll be before she decides that your business assets are her assets, being as you obviously don't have the backbone to demonstrate that actions have consequences? Trust me on this one...if you don't give her the boot, the condition of your home will soon be the least of your worries.

I love it...she had to sell drugs to pay the loan shark she borrowed the money from so she could get out on bail from charges of selling drugs. Now that's what I call rehabilitation. Who says the criminal justice system doesn't work?

As in most situations, there are two sides to this story. I doubt seriously that anyone with more than eight functioning brain cells would disagree that this gentleman's logo does, indeed, bear a striking resemblance to Starbucks internationally recognizable trademark. And Starbucks does have a legal right to protect their property. However, the serious risk that Starbucks runs is in alienating their customer base by being perceived as "beating up" on some very low level street vendor, who poses precisely zero threat to their market share. It is not very likely that anyone stopping at the "Starbung" cart for a cup of coffee mistakes his coffee for that of his better known competitor. Were the legal and marketing teams at Starbucks possessed of any sense of proportion, or for that matter, any sense of marketing savvy, they would either ignore the mosquito in the room, or they would use his presence as an opportunity to poke fun at themselves by coming up with a humorous advertisement pointing directly at the situation, thereby turning this to their advantage. But such is the short sightedness of multinational corporations. And it's also highly unlikely that I'll ever again part with any of my personal baht to the profit of Starbucks.

Like the man said, it's easy to be a critic. Kudos to the cop, and best wishes for a speedy recovery.