mfd101

So, as usual, particular and private interests trump the interests of the nation as a whole.

That may well be the key point, but it would be nice to see a properly-structured assessment of the various possibilities nationwide, including the airlines' inputs.

True, but it does require the Thai Air Force to surrender its (improbable) privileges. Which means that there are small airports in various places, left over from the Vietnam War, but the government can't be bothered upgrading them for locals to be able to use and for the Thai Air Force golf course to be removed.

Extremism always invites a blowback sooner or later. Almost invariably in all democracies the majority of people end up in a reasonable middle seeking liveable compromise for all parties. But it takes time.

The mere fact that the (likely) choice is between a senile ol' man who can't remember where he is and a nasty and dangerous elderly criminal with dictatorial tendencies says nothing good about the Usofan electorate. Short of both of them being eliminated (one way or another) before the election, nothing's going to improve.

Yes, a (usable) airport for Surin province would be great. I and the elephants would be very pleased. Would eliminate a 1.5-hour drive to Buriram airport every time we want to go anywhere ...

Mmmm, next few days will be interesting. All options possible.

I'm looking forward to the Nobel prizes to follow.

Which is surprisingly high ... but, when you see how journal rankings are manipulated, I guess anything is possible.

Yes, and when the unions understand how the business and management work and the concept of productivity. Together they can be a formidable force for the good of both the company and the workers. Fighting against each other never produces anything good.

Fun to be in the audience all the same. And who could be nicer to tip s...t over? Never a dull moment in Thailand.

The problem is that the questions asked don't quite fit the reality of an individual's situation. Residing in a country and being a 'resident' of that country are not quite the same thing, and being a 'tax resident' of that country is something else again. In my case the Australian Tax Office has declared me several years ago to be 'non-resident for tax purposes' because I live in Thailand. So they now confiscate 32.5% of my income which comes from and only from my Australian superannuation earned as a long-term Australian federal public servant. But now my bank (NAB) asks the question: Are you a Thai resident and what is your TIN? To which I reply (truthfully) that I reside in Thailand but am not a Thai tax resident as I pay no income tax in Thailand, my income coming solely from Australia & nowhere else. And that seems to me to remain true at least until 2025 when I expect I will have to get a TIN and fill out a Thai tax form and then show how much tax I pay in Oz ...

Fidel would have known what to do.

The obsession with the Army/military as the source of all evil strikes me as an exaggeration and dangerously off-track. The Army & the generals, along with a feudal system built on tradition, hierarchy & submission, are merely the ultimate instruments used by the plutocrats who regularly bleed the national economy to continue their corrupt rule of the whole nation. If you don't understand who your enemies are, you'll never defeat them.

Not merely failure to gain a seat but clear & explicit and detailed condemnation by the UNHRC would represent major loss of face for Thailand. The government would surely wish this ...

Wait and see, is my approach. I don't quite believe the thought bubble emitted by one Thai official. And the one thing I'm determined to avoid is double taxation between here & Oz. I already pay 1/3 of my superannuation (my sole income) to the Oz Tax Office so will be active in avoiding any more, including as necessary paying ONLY Thai tax. And, in any case, 9/10 of my income is spent on my Thai Khmer b/f and his impoverished peasant family. Any reduction in my income will mean reduced support to them ... Wunnerful Thailand!

Of course readers of AN know best.

My home is where my b/f is. Which is here in south Surin. If he predeceases me, it is arranged that one of his older sisters will move in as my caretaker in my old age. I am an Australian (by adoption). Lived there 41 years and still love the place and read 'The Australian' newspaper every day, but feel no need to visit there. My friends come here to visit and see the natives.

It may surprise you but I agree. However, ALL politicians tell lies or misrepresent issues or mislead The People when it suits them. In general, politicians who tell the truth and the whole truth all the time would NEVER get elected. By anyone. The world is complex and grey. The People can stand only so much truth.

Half the population lives in the Third World, the other half in the Second. Only a completely changed education system will achieve change, and that's a 20-year project at least, starting with kindergarten & working its way up to tertiary levels. Then there's corruption to be tackled, preferably by the non-corrupt (if you can find them). Think Batista's Cuba 1950. Think Fidel 1958. Hint hint ...

I'm sorry but I still don't understand why you imply that I am in favour of fascisto-military government, in Thailand or anywhere else. For your information, if I had been Thai I would have voted for MFP at the election last year.

I agree with your first part. Why you feel the need to add an insulting second part is beyond my understanding.

PVV - the extreme right party - received 23% of the vote on 22Nov23. It gained 37 seats out of 150 in the Dutch House of Representatives which was the most seats of any party. It then took until 16May24 for a new coalition government to be formed.

No, just as in Western parliamentary democracies (UK, Oz, NZ, Canada, Germany ... ), The People do not elect the PM. They elect members of the Lower House and the members of the Lower House then form a government (usually by forming a coalition, as I have explained above) and the members of the main party in the governmental coalition then elect their Leader who becomes the PM.

No. The party with the most votes gets FIRST GO at forming a government. If - after some time - it fails to do so (because no other party wants to join them) then the 2nd-most-voted party gets to have a go at forming a coalition ... which is what happened here last year. Those who still don't understand might want to look at the Netherlands where the extreme-right party 'won' the election months and months ago ... ie it won the most votes of any party but not enough seats in the Parliament to form a government. And since then it has been unable to form a coalition because of the same issues you find in Thailand - policy & personal differences and jobs-for-the-boys (oh, and even a few girls). Meantime the country is without effective government ...