Yann55

18 hours ago, Chivas said:

Good....start by jailing those end users under the full force of the law rather then just the dealers

Hahaha... Chivas, you seem to have been on this Forum for quite a while, so you should know better than using irony here... Your post immediately got 3 'confused' reactions and one angry 'reply' that lashes out at you about your alleged alcohol consumption, from someone who obviously doesn't even know the word irony, let alone the concept.

I know it's mind boggling, since irony would appear to be a well shared feature in 'Western humour' (whatever that means), but on Thai Visa, for some odd reason, it seems to be on indefinite leave.

2 minutes ago, scorecard said:

 

Always the smug face.

 

This guy is as scaly as they come, I read earlier he's a very wealthy man, he can easily arrange for a private jet just across the cambodian border and he's an ex cop, he knows which cops will help him to get to and cross the border him for a nice fee. 

 

About the 'smug face', you're totally right and it's a recurring feature in cases like this one.

To us Westerners it's exasperating, but I'm pretty sure that most Asians (if not all) see it differently. It is actually part of the 'face saving' mechanism, and Asians would read it as a clear indication that the guy is indeed losing face. Big time.

6 hours ago, webfact said:

The unnamed Chinese owner

Words fail me ....

I wonder when Thai people will begin to realize how the Chinese (and not only from the mainland) really see them and their country. How they consider it to be their backyard, vassal state, garbage dump, cheap labor reservation, and cheap fun playground.

If Thais weren't so busy focusing on blaming farangs for anything that goes wrong here, they would perhaps start to see who's really, deeply and inexorably making fools of them.

I also wonder when the non-Chinese Thai people will realize how much the sino-Thais despise them, their skin color, their lack of wealth and their beliefs, even though these sino-Thais were born here and are Thai nationals.

This situation bears a very nasty resemblance with what Europe was like before the French revolution : a bunch of arrogant aristocrats held all the power and the wealth just because they were born in the right families, thought themselves generous when they threw a few crumbs at the poor, and believed in all honesty that they were superior beings.

In that context and for centuries, the poor bowed their heads, despised themselves, sought solace in religion (which was controlled by the rich and powerful), died young, and did their best not to 'think too much'.

And one day... the pressure-cooker went "BOOM"!.

What 'environmental protection' ?

Today, the panther poacher's trial was postponed again, because the lawyers of two of his co-poachers (who happen to be his employees) are allegedly 'busy elsewhere'.... what kind of sick excuse is that ?

Every day, one way or another, billionaires in this country give a whole new dimension to the expression 'contempt of court'.

I wonder if he will, with his legendary candour (wink wink nudge nudge) and signature smirk, tell them how deeply he loathes and despises 'farangs'...

Not that he's any different, on that chapter, than his nemesis Mr T., who never missed an occasion to blame foreigners for anything that went wrong here. Oldest trick in a populist politician's book.

I'm pretty certain that most Europeans are deeply and sincerely convinced that Thais look up to Western people, admire them and love them, especially as tourists (which most white people wrongly assume to be Thailand's number one income). How utterly delusional.

Reminds me of this typical Winston Churchill remark : "Americans think that the French hate them, but they're wrong, whereas the French think that Americans love them, and they're wrong too !"

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Many politicians who put their personal interests ahead of democracy would support Prayut retaining power, Titipol predicted.

... that would cover about 90% of the politicians in this country (as opposed to 89.9% in the rest of the world, lol), so I guess Prayut has plenty more years of power ahead of him... If he also manages (as the article states) to put the big company owners in his pocket by issuing laws that secure their grip, their wealth, and even make them richer, then it's bingo++

If change eventually does come to this country ...

1/ it won't be thanks to a totally manufactured election (the equation election=democracy being nothing but communication bs, which is why the present government is actually willing to 'organize' one),

2/ it will most definitely not come from any politician or any party, since they ALL put their personal interests above democracy,

3/ it will not come from the self-appointed 'elite' who don't seem to know that the term 'elite' normally refers to personal (intellectual, cultural, artistic, scientific) achievments, NOT the bottom line of a bank account.

If it comes, it is unlikely to arrive draped in pink organdy and crowned with jasmine flowers... but wrapped in wrath, resentment, despair, fire and fury. If and when that happens, we farangs had better run fast.

For the time being, however, people ('elite' aside of course) may be increasingly angry, fed up and frustrated, but they're still too busy checking their Facebook page and exchanging messages on Line to develop what's known as a 'political awareness'. The self appointed 'elite', people in power and politicians ought perhaps to consider building shrines to Samsung, Sony, Apple etc. so they could perform thank-you ceremonies there on a daily basis.

The famous Ancient Rome formula 'give them bread and circuses' by Juvenal would here and now translate as : give them rice, a smartphone, and a Facebook account. Mark Zuckerberg is the Pied Piper of our age.

52 minutes ago, Happy enough said:

56 minutes ago, geriatrickid said:

Highly unlikely it was accidental. You are either willfully ignoring the sordid history of Thai fishing fleets or are genuinely ignorant.  Thai fishing fleets have had a lengthy history of violating  international rules and  of  engaging in environmentally irresponsible acts. It goes beyond the dumping of raw waste and bilge water.

(...)

you had a point to make but bored the hell out of me til you got to it. somalia and shit, <deleted>. its about thailand. whatever. every comment i made, i stand by

 

Happy enough, i think perhaps you might consider changing the adjective happy for 'bitter' or 'aggressive' or 'haughty', because that's how you come out through your numerous comments.

For a start, you sort of hijack this thread (out of 35 posts so far, 12 are yours, that's a solid 30%), and then you lash out at people who disagree with you or express opinions you don't like.

Could you maybe adopt a more civilized manner of talking with others or do you sincerely believe that everyone who doesn't think like you or disagrees with you can only be a hopeless idiot ? This is a discussion Forum, Sir, not a boxing ring, and your aggressiveness is tiresome.

3 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

Thaksin is never coming back; that is the lesson from the events of 2013 (before Suthep's rent-a-mob took over).

 

Is that a fair outcome? THAT is the fascinating question (although moot). Is Thaksin much/any different from a hundred/eight hundred/three thousand other Hi-Sos or Military Officers? Is there any 'legitimacy' to his 'conviction'? If there is 'legitimacy' to his 'conviction', would it not be proper or just for hundreds/thousands of other Hi-Sos or Military Officers to be tried and sentenced as well?

 

Future historians, if they are permitted to write as they choose, are going to have a field day with this question.

That's a balanced and interesting point of view (as your posts often are), thank you, and it's refreshing when compared to most of the 'political' comments on this Forum which tend to take an absurdly binary stance (if you criticize T., you must be an ardent P. groupie, and vice versa).

Two observations come to mind  :

1/ T. is most certainly not much/any different from the 100/800/3000 so called 'elite' who think it their godly right to rule and use this country as if it was their private playground, with no respect whatsoever for the 'populace'. But, and that's a big fat but, he was PM, and in the past 20/30 years, even though the number of PMs in this country is rather mind-boggling, there were not 100/800/3000 of them. In that respect he definitely is different.

2/ As to the legitimacy of his conviction... I don't think many people now would deny the fact that he did abuse his position, made heaps of money with/through it, and used is wealth to manipulate the voters. So the argument (which you establish clearly) is really : why condemn him, while so many other wrongdoers who did (and do) similar things get away with it scot-free ?

Indeed a fascinating question.

Mr T. can (and does) scream urbi et orbi that the case against him is politically motivated, and he's right (albeit not in the least original, because that's the argument all politicians caught red-handed use, everywhere and all the time). Yes it's politically motivated but not fabricated, and definitely not unjustified...

His opponents claim that the case against him is based on solid facts, they say his abuse of power was unacceptable, and they're right too. But they're after T., and justice is not their primary concern (to put it mildy). So it's a typical case of doing the right thing for the wrong reasons.

Do you remember the movie Rashōmon by Akira Kurosawa (1950)? A murder is being investigated, and all the witnesses are heard. Of course their stories don't match. Then the dead man is interrogated and his account is yet different from the others. One of the judges says 'well, at least now we know the truth', and another immediately replies : 'what makes you think it's the truth ? Dead people can lie too!' One of the deepest (and funniest) movie lines I ever heard !

11 hours ago, smedly said:

and the Marine Protection Dept want to fine a smoker 100,000baht and put them in Jail for a year for smoking on an open air beach

.... perhaps the reason for the ban on smoking on beaches is to avoid explosions ? This black stuff on Bangsaray beach does look highly flammable ...

50 million baht in 2 days ... quite a performance... No doubt this money will go to elderly people, poor children and disabled persons...

Yes they catch mostly motorbikes, not just within this particular campaign, but all year round and the reason for that is one that belongs to the dark side of Thailand : cars may be occupied by rich people, influential people, VIPs, army and police big shots etc. whereas small motorbikes present no risk to the officer who does the arrest.

As one very funny comedian once put it very clearly : it's a lot more profitable to steal from the poor than from the rich. Why ? because there's so many more of them ! In Thailand he could have added : and they can't fight back !

9 hours ago, webfact said:

THE EMBATTLED president of Italian-Thai Development company and his three companions

They are NOT his 'companions' they are his EMPLOYEES for f...'s sake, and that changes everything !

Even if you are on friendly terms with your boss, the hierarchical relationship automatically controls the relationship :

1/ Subconsciously - or not - you try to ingratiate yourself with him/her.

2/ Even if - on the surface - you have your say, the boss always has the final word.

Trying to present this story as 'four mates doing bad things together' is a blatant distortion of the truth, with the VERY OBVIOUS goal of laying all the responsibility, eventually, on the 'companions'. Wait and see.

Will the 'companions' let that happen ? One of course wishes they won't. But let's keep in mind that in this country, drivers, housemaids, gardeners etc. regularly cover their boss's arse and go to jail for him/her. Oh, sure, they get a financial compensation and their families are taken care of, that's how feudal this society is, and how untouchable the richest ones are.