way2muchcoffee

Rather hard to do Antony. These are the people who have been the work force of Thailand, and the goverment has never done a thing for them until Thaksin came along. Yes he was corrupt as has been every goverment since 32, which any of these banana seller lowlies will tell you. Why are they so concerned about corruption now they ask ... they never have been before?! (hmmmm Did the Statute of Limatations pass on the Blue Diamond affair, thats when a quarter of a million lowlies got kicked out of SA because of Pu Yais insatiable avariciousness)

That is the real problem not one of the red shirt actually believes that Abh, the Dems and PAD would do a thing for them, or continue any of Thaks populist policies unless they fear them, IE they have to. When you have divisions this deep in society, nothing is going to bridge it overnight. And of course it would be beneath a DEM Pu Yai to actually explain this to a lowly banana seller so thats moot point, eh.

It is unfortunate that their beliefs are wrong and misguided then. In the last year the Democrats, under the leadership of Abhisit, have promulgated many measures designed to improve the lot of the poor. And they have done it in a fiscally sound and sustainable fashion. That box is opened. All future governments will need to pay attention to the needs of rural Thailand. I believe that Abhisit does care about the plight of people in rural areas.

Democrat politicians would love to be able to explain their positions to the people in rural areas of Thailand. Unfortunately the Thaksin machine has so demonized them with propaganda and outright lies that any Democrat going to many parts of the north/north east faces violence.

They obviously feel the need to help their savior financially.

If Thaksin is any kind of man he would reject their offers and ask that any collected monies be returned to the givers or pooled into a fund to help the villagers.

givenall posted

It is and was obvious, that Mt. T. really did not care about using and abusing his power while being in the office. I really think he thought that he was an absolute power and the law of the land while he was in the office. It must be his police training that gave him this impression

ahh so you have little experience of how previous PM's behave eh He's just one on a long line.

And he's certainly not the first to go down for corruption.

My brother in law is a lowly grunt in the army. I've visited him at bases near Kanchanaburi and Prachuab Kiri Khan. Never a problem getting in. There is an air force base in Prachuab that allows anyone in to visit the beaches there. So there does not seem to be any hard rule about foreigners and military bases. It is probably left up to the individual base commanders. Fpr whatever reason the naval commanders at Sattahip have determined that foreign beachgoers present a significant security risk, but anyone who is Thai does not present the same risk. It is this decision that is difficult to fathom.

I'm trying to work out what kind of 'security concern' would legitimately accept all Thai nationals coming to a beach and restrict all foreigners. It makes no sense.

I'm getting all teary. So much love and acceptance in these last last few posts.

Wow. That's great news! Triumph of the human spirit, or just one lucky Scot. Doesn't matter, always nice to hear it when a story like this one turns out well in the end.

Some truly pathetic responses here.

Glue the locks, destroy the engine, smash the windows, puncture or let air out of tires, mango in the exhaust? Really? Are we children? Grade school bullies? Ridiculous.

And so my question whether Shin over or under performed remains unanswered.The more sophisticated will understand its relevance.For the rest I would say that if Thaksin's main corporate vehicle didn't see a better than average performance the abuse of power charge, which I don't deny, must be justified in some other way.

You appear to be suggesting that if AIS only had an average increase in value during Thaksin's time as PM then this somehow exonerates him for abuse of power and acts of corruption.

The rulings on abuse of power and concealment of assets were clearly laid out yesterday. What are you on about?

Take off your red shirts. Disown your Chinese billionaire megalomaniac. Choose noncriminal leadership that believes in democracy.

That was a helpful contribution!One could equally say that about the yellowshirts!

On the abuse of power issue I was wondering how this could be demonstrated by comparing the performance of another benchmark stock,say Siam Cement, during the time Thaksin held office as PM.If the Shin performance notably exceeded that of Siam Cement that would be a very practical demonstration the charge was justified.If it didn't it would tend to support those who believe the charge was politically motivated.I have no idea and wonder if anyone knows.

Was the owner and CEO of Siam Cement a PM of Thailand who abused his authority to promote his company and for personal enrichment? If not I really don't see the relevance.

The up-country family pet dog. Eating dog in itself isn't so bad, but the three year old dog you've raised from a puppy?

While I don't agree with him issuing "threats" (btw, when did he do that?), I can fully understand the bitterness; hardly a surprise coming from someone who just had 46 billion in assets seized. Anyone put in this position would feel/react the same way. So I wouldn't be too critical of him venting his frustrations.

Accepting the verdict doesn't necessarily mean one has to agree with it.

No it doesn't. But acceptance of the verdict does preclude making public statements criticizing the judiciary and making veiled threats to the government.

Interesting take on things. Smacks a bit of the white knight syndrome, but worthy of some thought anyway.

I forgot about the money having to come from her...but she lived in the US for 5 years. I am sure we could prove that she earned it while overseas working???? The money originally used to purchase this company came from her bank account here in Thailand...which was funded via a transfer from a joint account in the US...

You don't so much have to prove anything (unless it is ever disputed), just sign a declaration to the effect that the money being used was hers before marriage (Sinsod).

Doing so gives you no claim whatsoever to the property though.

In view of this, you should ensure that she makes a will for you to inherit the property in the event of her death, such that the relatives have no claim. You are allowed to inherit land as a foreigner, but must dispose of it (sell/transfer) within 12 months.

You can secure rights to the property via a lease agreement, and/or usufruct, or superficies, but unfortunately you can not "loan" the money to your wife to purchase the property, which is one way to help secure renewal rights (non-lease rights which are not transferable should the land owner sell the land or another inherit it).

Personally, I think that this law, part of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code, ought to be reviewed by the land department in view of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand law, which in my opinion makes such discriminatory law "unconstitutional". It was not so many years ago that the law was changed to allow women with foreign husbands to own land, but if Thailand is to take its Constitution seriously, instead of it paying mere lip service to the international community, then it's about time that Thai women with foreign husbands are not discriminated against in contradiction to the essence of such Constitutional law.

Do I hear a "Here Here!!" from the audience?

Perhaps this would also help discourage foreigners using Thai companies with nominee shareholders as a vehicle for land purchase, which is what they want to achieve, right?!?

Here here. Hear Hear?

In any case it is difficult to say that in a marriage 1/2 of the accumulated assets belong to the wife regardless of how they were obtained, but at the same time saying that she cannot use her share of the assets to purchase land unless she can prove that those assets derived only from her efforts.

It's not always the "HiSo" drivers that do this sort of thing. Happened to me last week coming out of the 7-11. Dirty, grungy old pickup truck had double parked right behind me and i had to wait till he shopped for his piece of piping from the hardware store and then take his time to mosey back out to his vehicle again without giving me so much as a nod of an apology.

It's not even mostly the 'hiso' drivers actually. But I think we all know why people have an issue when it's someone who appears to be better off than them pissing on them. It's just another straw on the camel's back, from the visa hoops, to the 8 year old cutting in front of you at Burger King, to the people your significant others have to pay 3% interest and no principal to each month, and ah yes, to the 'double parked and in gear' brigade... all leading to your inevitable state of emasculated resentment.

Funny post. Probably not too far from the truth though.

Brit. You're a funny guy. I don't think you actually believe half of the things you post. That's ok. You're never blatantly rude and your comments sometimes spark an interesting discussion. Keep it up.

That's a drag. Very unfortunate for your girl. We all know this kind of thing can happen. Some people are just irresponsible.

It makes sense that many people are like this. It is what they are taught. Simply look at the actions of the role models of society: police, military, politicians, and businessmen. Even schools require tea money for admission. It really is no wonder that the common person acts in a similar fashion.

Certainly there are a great many Thai people who are kind, honest, and generous, despite the negative influences surrounding them. These 'good ones' come from all walks of life and they should be applauded for their honesty and integrity. Unfortunately they tend to get slapped down in life and are relentlessly victimized by the not so good ones. Much like everywhere else in the world.

Sophistry and wrong. I made no accusation, but only asked for proof of another accusation.

Well, not quite true. I did label the comment as libelous.

^As you must offer proof that what the lad says isnt true???

Sorry. It's impossible to prove a negative in most cases, this being one of them. Moreover, I didn't make any libelous claims. The burden of proof lies with the accuser.

need safety from their wives maybe... got to take the mia noi somewhere.... 555

I don't understand what the work that these judges are meant to have is after all they have allready been told what to decide haven't they?

Why don't you offer some proof for your libelous claims?

Here's where you made your mistake. Should have given her the money, and then when she didn't pay it back all future tendering of funds are voided.

Yes that's a great strategy. I wouldn't do it with 100k though. There is a list of 'relatives' in the 'no loan' category. I will loan small amounts to folks (1000 or 2000) as a first time borrower. If they don't pay then they are cut off until they do. After 8 years with my wife nobody asks anymore except the very few who have been diligent in returning what they borrowed.

Regarding the sin sod. I think there are not iron clad rules. There are variations. Some women who have previously been married still command a small sin sod. In my wife's village the sin sod for Thai on Thai marriages is typically is about 20k. For some shotgun weddings it is as low as a 2k. Nobody really has much money for this kind of thing. When a woman remarries a sin sod is still given, but it is usually about 5-10k, more if the groom wants to big up his face.

I paid 30k, got it back, and then gave about 20k to the grandmother who raised my wife. Sure I put some diamond family heirlooms on the plate, a land deed, keys to they truck, and a few gold necklaces/bracelets I'd previously given to my wife. Face was maintained all around as the value on the plate was close to 1.5 million. The wedding ceremony and 3-day party was a huge hit in the village. I think I spent about 150-180k all in for the purchased clothes, DJ, monks, makeup, food (2 pigs), beer, whiskey, dancers, musicians, sin sod, etc.

I've had nothing but positive experiences with True. I've always had higher bandwidth than I pay for, even in the early days when many folks were having major problems. When I call customer service they answer the phone and answer the question or address the problem. When they aren't able to rectify a situation a tech comes out within a day or two. Overall I'm quite happy with my internet package and my true vision package. The cost is a bit high given the bandwidth for internet and the channel selection but that's to be expected in a near monopoly.

You can't tell PAD screwed up badly??....They ousted Thaksin twice from the government.

Peaceful does not work if the government rent thugs who beat you and shoot M79 grenades on you. For civil peaceful protest you also need a peaceful government.

It doesn't matter what good PAD may have done when you consider their airport takeover. With that single act they lost any moral high ground the once held. The same argument applies to Thaksin. While he may have done some good things for rural Thailand he must be held accountable for his other actions. Illegal acts are just that and must be dealt with in a court of law. It is the only way forward for Thailand.

When the state's power is challenged, confidence in the country will be severely affected.

this is an interesting comment he makes, I wonder if by saying this he is condemning his own group for their actions in the trespass at Government house, the blockade of parliament, the seizure of the airports etc, or maybe he is just assuming the yellows are ok to do this but if the reds do it then it is bad. It is clear the PAD had no concerns that they were damaging confidence in the country with their actions.

what is good for the goose etc............

No. What's good for the goose is not good for the gander. It is impossible to criticize one group without criticizing the other.

The PAD screwed up badly. They should never have extended their protest to occupying government house and they definitely should not have closed down the airport. These actions were not good for Thailand. The PAD would should have limited their protests to the camps at Sanam Luang and neighboring areas.

The red shirts have engaged in equally egregious activities including ASEAN disruption, sonkhran riots, and the violence in Udon Thani and Chiang Mai.

It is okay to 'challenge' government via peaceful protests, but no group has actually done this. I do not wish to compare levels of bad behavior as that is purely a matter of opinion. What is not a matter of opinion is that actions of both groups have damaged the country.

All groups are deserving of condemnation for various reasons including: Democrats, PTP, Thaksin, Military, UDD, DAAD, RCM51, Udon Lovers, and the PAD.

Frankly, all I can say is BOOO---F*king hoo. If in fact you were in Thailand before the years of Thaksin, you would know that drugs were as easy to by as candy at a 7/11. At least there was a period of crackdown to enlighten Thailand of the deepening "hole" of yabaa use. 2500 to help 70 million realise there was a serious problem. Give me a F*king break. This argument is so NGO it make me sick.

I seriously doubt you would feel the same if your mom, dad, wife, child, and best friend were among those summarily executed.