allan michaud

We are on a roll today. Demands for a proper earthquake prediction system for Thailand and now this.

Someone Beam me up, please!

Outstanding... and some people on TV wonder why so many posters laugh at the Thai's.

"or if we put Thaksin in a space capsule and shot it out of the Earth"

Now there's a thought.

No, let Thaksin back in, get him and all the other politicians past and present to meet in parliament to discuss reforms... then shoot parliament into space.

LOL h_ell I didn't know they even had drink & drug free zones, maybe they ought to make Pattaya a free zone

How about Thailand becoming a Pattaya Free Zone?

run for the hills! Grab the Chang and run for the hills!

Screw the Chang where's the Lao Khao, your going to need a stiff one.

By the way I understand from some of the recent Nat Geo programs on last years Japanese earthquake that there is 'some' evidence that that the gravitational pull of the moon does have some impact on seismic activity, although it is far from understood. It was mentioned that a number of the largest earthquakes in recent history did apparently coincide with periods like this weekend so it may not be wise to completely dismiss the chance.

I am very confused about Thai 'democracy'. Can anyone explain how is it possible for these unelected individuals to now become ministers, surely they have to be voted as MP's first?

Also on a side note the 300 baht wage hike has only been implemented in 7 provinces for a few weeks so the overall effect of this on rising prices is limited as yet.

Thailand is just a lawless society

Yep, it's run by various local mafia's controlling their own little fiefdoms without any regard for anyone else.

He also insisted that even though the red shirts are involved, they have to face justice because no one is above the law.

Try and convince the red thugs of that.

Or put all yellow shirts in jail for occupying the airport...... you seem to forget just how this all started...

How it all started. It was all so long ago it's getting fuzzy now. Wasn't it all something to do with some rich bloke from up north who was stealing everything, putting his family in various positions of power? Then some other mob, who didn't like this as they were not the ones stealing everything for once, kicked up a fuss and stared cooing. Red or Yellow, if they break the law lock em up. This typical Thai farce at the countries main international airport is so embarrassing yet none of the so called 'leaders' are doing anything. How any nation can allow any part of it's main international airport to be controlled by local mafia's is beyond me, as was the Yellow invasion. These things could simply not happen in the vast majority of countries.

after watching my house being built i wouldnt employ any workers from this coutry even though they call themselves technichines , never saw anything technical in anything they did but as a farang coulndt say a word about it to them and only got thats how thai do from my wife when complaining to her to try and get things done properly.

This is part of the reason why I said what I posted in post #4

I am sure this country does have some highly skilled labour, however I have never witnessed it among the 3 different sets of workers we have employed at times. None had the first idea what they were doing. It is very apparent that all you need in Thailand to be a builder is a hammer and a screw driver (and no idea what a spirit level is)... and as for English language skills

I hope he gets it. A powerful orator, a tireless worker and a upholder of democracy. Oh yeah, and it will really piss off the opposition/ frothers.

And it will help fuc_k up the country too. I'm sure you and the other red neck fascist wannabes will be delighted with that.

Another nail in his mother's coffin...

http://www.thailando...?DataID=1013675

Good of you to bring this up, some 300 yellow shirt followers of Prem went to a little old ladies house, in the middle of nowwhere, to pressure her about her son.

That's pretty heavy intimidation, is it not ??

A 90 year old assailed by 300 people in her house.

You seem to be approving of it, the way you post.

Well I agree wholeheartedly that the yellows were well out of order but I also noted her wonderful son hasn't even spoken to her in 5 or 6 years. Lets face it they are all self serving thugs and thieves, red /yellow, they are all the same.

The problem with 2012 in Thailand being called the 'Miracle Year' is that it implies next year won't be so good.

Do the government know something we don't?

Yes that's when the economy will collapse from all the populist BS policies... It is all planned so big T can make his money back playing the FX game (again). I am looking forward to 40+baht to the dollar once more in the not too distant future.

Doesn't sound like there will be a happy ending to this.

But, what is he doing driving with epilepsy. My sister has had 2 fits in the past 40 years and is currently banned from driving in the UK.

... an interesting added variable to this train wreck ... guess who Thailand replaced as the world's #1 rice exporter? ... Myanmar!

Very interesting, that will really screw things up for Thailand.

On a brighter note, I would also like to point out that while Cambodia is expanding it's agricultural sector dramatically they are doing this almost entirely at the expense of their forests. I work in the environmental sector here (but am married to a Thai) and it is fast becoming apparent they will almost certainly have serious water problems in the not too distant future. One govt official recently even suggested that only 10% forest cover was necessary, the rest is to be largely replaced with rubber, bio fuel crops and rice. Siem Reap is a great example, where well drilling was once only to 20-30 meters it is now over 150 meters before you find ground water. They already have had to tanker in water in the dry season for some years now. According to well drillers I have worked with this is happening across the country and is a direct result of deforestation.

Thailand is certainly in for a very rough ride though. Grate work by Thaksin... again.

My only conclusion, from all the incredibly dumb ideas being implemented by this govt, is that PTP are deliberately trying to ruin the economy so the Baht will collapse and Thaksin, with all his foreign based money, will get back what he's spent on votes and terrorism. He is the ultimate megalomaniac and has a history of making the most of favorable exchange rates in very dubious circumstances.

They might be meeting all these people, doesn't mean they will listen to anything. Mainland SE Asia is run entirely by self serving thugs who are only interested in lining their pockets so I give this zero chance of success.

He also suggested that labour-intensive industry should move to neighbouring countries or they would not be able to survive, as technology would replace manpower in the Kingdom.

Ok thats fine...... Just what do they propose to do with the population after technology takes over?

They will still need someone, to polish the robots, I guess.

I remember back in the 70's and 80's all the British politicians promising that technology would bring a future where everyone was better off and had more free time. As we can all see this didn't happen, it just meant the few at the top got richer as they didn't need to waste good money on paying peasants. I don't think being unemployed was quite what we had in mind when they talked about more free time.

This was part of the backdrop to crushing the unions.

This is just absolutely shocking reporting. This is how this article should be written.

Extortion, Graft and Corruption Plunge Poor into Debt over Unofficial Schooling Fees

The Truth

Very well put. With regard to the 400,000 tea money quote in the original article, <deleted>? what schools were these 1200 odd interviewees sending their kids to? I send my 8 year old son to a very nice little bi lingual school in Khon Kaen for about 90,000 baht a year. We have never been asked for tea money and if someone asked for 400,000 I'd tell them where to go. I don't know that many Thais that could afford 400,000 tea money, I know we couldn't and I'm a supposedly rich farang.

I read this as simply an attempt to test the waters on everyone avoiding prison. Doesn't look like Prem went for it to me.

Let me think now, how did Thaksin become mega rich in the first place? oh yes he worked in the finance ministry prior to the 97 crash and was incredibly lucky to make some very astute foreign exchange deals just as the Baht went down the pan. The luck of some people?

If you live abroad and have your fortune in currencies other than Thai Baht another crash would work out quite nicely for you too.

China to help draw up plan for Chao Phraya basin

Which will be rejected because Thai's know better !

Given China's wonderful track record of water management they would be the very last country I would be asking for help.

I love this very contradictory comment

Jiao insisted that China's dams did not have any adverse impact on the Mekong.

"When drought conditions got very serious in 2010, China released water for [use in] Thailand," he said.

Almost anything can be deemed a crime under the so called Computer Crimes Act! I suppose this man will be deemed a threat to national security.

And so he should be, did you see the size of those things on the table?

But Thailand does seem to be the 'hub' of hot women who hold senior positions. What with Yingluck and now Ms Kobsuk Iamsuri, wheeew! At least the latter is also displaying some kind of intelligence by highlighting the forthcoming financial hurricane about to engulf the farmers.

A visit to the optometrist is over due.

Ms Kobsuk is hotter than Yingluck for sure and clearly has a higher IQ.

More importantly it really helps me to believe my 8 year old sons future is not completely bleak as Thailand does actually have some intelligent members of the species, even if none have managed to reach positions of power yet. I live in hope that the cream will rise to the top (of society) rather than having scum forming on it.

PTP are doing a great job of driving the economy into the ground. Seeing as the Big T made much of his wealth in the 1997 crisis through some 'fortunate' timing with foreign exchange rates, I can't help wondering if he is up to something.