thai_narak

if this incident happened in the Philippines many people will die and get injured, security guards there are loaded with guns and shotguns...

but then again, they are trained and will never do such a thing.

this is from a post on the phuket crash thread on ...

very chilling....

although we cannot rule out yet what really happened during the landing (attemp) but it is clear that the crews of 1-2 Go are overworked. this may have contributed to the pilot's decision to land instead of diverting to another airport as he and his FO are already exhausted and wanted to rest.

budget airlines, how they make ends meet?

"The last word the pilot said was 'landing'," he said.

only the word landing doesn't mean the pilot decided to land... he might have said that he is "aborting the landing", or "not possible for landing" and sort...

condolences.

Ancient Pali texts has it the 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac were chosen by Buddha. When Buddha was near death he invited all the animals to visit him. Only 12 came: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. For visiting him, Buddha honored each by using them to represent the 12 phases of the Zodiac.

Our bodies are over 70% water. If the moon can effect the tides do we believe that it has no effect on us.

It is well documented that ER admissions and violent crimes increase dramatically with the comming of the full moon...

must have been scary when the dragon came...

one thing i know, the moon affects the tide. diving is good when it's high tide...

To the OP.

I don't know what you need the plaque for, but everywhere outside of Thailand, and that includes daily horoscopes and other popular magazine nonsense, he will be Libra.

Actually there's another important difference between tropical and sidereal astrology. In the West a person is Libra because the Sun was in Libra at his birth. In the East Sun's position is not as important as the sign rising above the horison.

Thus there's no tendency to label a person a Libra or Leo just by the date of his birth, one must look into all the major influences and see if one particular sign or planet really dominates, if you want to put a label at all.

sorry, didn't made it clear. a birth plaque (don't know if they really call as such) is usually one option from the hospital in thailand where they will engrave the baby's name and lastname, time and date of birth, weight, footprints, attending physician and the zodiac sign of the baby. it's just something that you can give to your son or daughter as a remebrance when they were delivered.

Personally I'd do whatever keeps your missus happy. As others have said it's all a load of bolleaux so what difference does it make?

where will the kid be brught up ,here or in the west ? in the west use then use ours ,in the east use theres,simple....

will be growing up in thai soil of course. i know it's not important and it's just loads of crap but imagine when they grow up and see their birth plaque hanging on the wall which has wrong zodiac engraved...

now i know why i'm drinking much more... less alcohol contents, buy more to get drunk, boonrawd gets richer... should switch to REDHORSE...

i know it's hocus focus, mumbo jumbo and bunch of crap but i also want that my son have the correct engraved zodiac on his plaque not that he is virgo in thailand and then libra somewhere else...

Western Thai

Aries March 21 - April 20 April 13 - May 14

Taurus April 21 - May 21 May 15 - June 14

Gemini May 22 - June 21 June 15 - July 15

Cancer June 22 - July 22 July 16 - August 16

Leo July 23 -August 21 August 17 - September 16

Virgo August 22 - September 23 September 17 - October 16

Libra September 24 - October 23 October 17 - November 15

Scorpio October 24 - November 22 November 16 - December 15

Sagittarius November 23 - December 22 December 16 - January 14

Capricorn December 23 - January 20 January 15 - February 12

Aquarius January 21 - February 19 February 13 - March 14

Pisces February 20- March 20 March 15 - April 12

I just found out the Thai astrology (horoscope) has different dates with the western one (as quoted above). Now that wife is expecting next month, we have to decide a zodiac sign for our child to be engraved on a plaque with the his/her footprints and name, etc. but which zodiac to follow? I would prefer the western version (international) as the reference is the Sun and western astronomers are more likely correct when they have decided to use this cycle.

I really doubt this was written by a Thai, whatever the picture on the blog.

The writing style lacks any of the usual Thai English "idioms" (it's always interesting to me that you can often see the underlying structure of a speaker's first language by noting the kind of mistakes she makes when speaking yours), yet it's nowhere near flawless enough to to suggest a very well educated Thai with perfect English.

There's a bit too much harping on about the fate of retirees. Why this insistence? Like Guesthouse, I think the poster is mostly likely a retiree or soon-to-be-retiree to Thailand, pretending to be Thai to attach some credibility to his missive -- pretty lame.

coudn't be that the blogger a real thai woman and the husband a farang retiree?

sad...

BUT TRUE...

forget about race here, the fact that he had lied and run away is enough reason to grill him. justice is balance, lawyer or not.

On moving forward

The draft charter contains 309 articles. Do I like all of them? There are over 30 articles that I don't like. But I will vote ‘yes' in the Aug 19 referendum, because there's no constitution of which people like all articles. We have to see the big picture, and see how Thailand will move forward.

Jirmsak Pinthong, charter drafter

Problems that are not being discussed now will erupt after the promulgation of the draft constitution. So the draft 2007 charter will not solve the problems that happened before 1997, but it will make Thai politics prone to such problems.

Vorachet Phakeerat, Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

We accept that this draft charter is not the best, not perfect. But we hold it as a pre-requisite for the smooth restoration of people's power.

Charan Pakdeethanakul, charter drafter

We need to start with trying to look for political legitimacy which is acceptable to all sides. I don't believe that politics will be calmed down, if the draft gets approved, because there will be millions of people coming out to vote in the referendum and not coming out, who think the draft is not legitimate. You can't have a smooth politics as long as millions of people think that the government is not legitimate, the parliament is not legitimate, the constitution court is not legitimate, this and that are all illegitimate. Impossible.

Nidhi Eawsriwong, Midnight University

The acceptance of the draft 2007 constitution is instrumental in making a move forward. If it is rejected, power will still be in the hands of the current government and the Council for National Security. The fight between the old and new power cliques will be prolonged. That's enough for the economic and social damage that has been done. I want the country to move on. That's why the Democrat Party accepts the draft charter.

Abhisit Vejjajiva, Democrat Party Leader

Some people say that rejection will lead to bloodshed. Bloodshed will happen only when bullets are fired. As long as the powers-that-be don't pull the trigger, there will be no bloodshed. To reject is to disagree with its origin and content. So it is the CNS that will take a task of bringing up a better constitution for promulgation.

Vorachet Phakeerat, Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

The [former] opposition parties agree to accept the draft not out of a forced decision. At least, it exposes what the draft looks like. It is acceptance with the condition of improvement of certain articles. The drafters should be lauded for their intention to look back at the past 10 years, searching for leakages so that they can fix them. I think they have done a good job, better that what would have been done by political parties, as politicians might say that it wasn't worth dealing with some leakages. But this is done by people with no direct political affiliation. The drafters had so many issues to debate, like exposing the problems for the public to see. Whether the problems can be solved or not is a different matter, and the fixing may prove ineffective over time. But it shows how these problems are inter-connected.

Veerasak Kowsurat, Chart Thai Party

In order to get rid of the Thaksin Regime, we bolted the door shut, making it so difficult for these people to access state power. I don't think this will lead to peace, to reconciliation. I think this will lead to a tense situation like what we experienced during Oct 14, 1976 to 1992. So this is bigger than the issue of the Thaksin regime; this is an issue of two groups of people struggling to share the state's power. (capitalists with connection to the globalization and the poor, marginalized people who are Thai Rak Thai's political base) The question is what is a political system that allows these people to share the state's power, without destroying or abusing others? This, I think, finds no answer in the draft 2007 charter.

Kasian Techaphira, Faculty of Political Science, Thammasat University

We are likely to face a long period of doldrums in the semi-Democracy, with a new military regime. This is what we have to deal with after the referendum.

Prapas Pintoptang, Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University

I believe that even after the general election when we have a new government, politics will still be unstable, and we will still face economic problems for a long time. How can politics be stable when the coalition parties will fight one another all the time? The prime minister will be weak, having no power to bargain or control his own party members, and will always be under constant threat from the appointed senators and the Internal Security Operations Command. The government will be destabilized, with different Cabinet line-ups and prime ministers. When things reach a dead end, the parliament will be dissolved for a new general election. The next parliament will never make it to the full term for sure. The country will be run with no direction. The new government will not stay long, a year or two.

Pichit Likitkijsomboon, Faculty of Economics, Thammasat University

On rights and freedoms

The draft boasts of the rights and freedoms of the people in Section 3. This section indeed is rhetorical, consisting of provisions on rights but also exceptions. That is, the draft guarantees the rights, but allows legislation to violate those rights; for example, the freedom of communication in Article 36 can be suppressed for the sake of security, which can be interpreted in any way, and public morals.

Supalak Ganjanakhundee, Nation newspaper

People will be entitled to rights from when they are in the womb until the end of their lives. People will have access to health services. Mothers will not be malnourished. Local child development centres will be greatly improved. People can keep checks on local bodies. Hospitals, children's playgrounds and libraries will be improved. People will have free education until they reach working age. This is the first time that workers have guaranteed safety at work, guaranteed pay, and no discrimination. These are all tangible.

Chuchai Suphawong, charter drafter

The drafters did not work from past experience. For example, public gatherings have been abused by the authorities numerous times, but the 2007 draft does not say anything different from the 1997 constitution which had many flaws. There have been many violations of people's rights but these are not addressed. The [provision on rights in this] draft is almost identical to the previous charter, down to the spacing.

Somchai Preechasilapakul, Faculty of Law, Chiang Mai University

The fundamental policy guideline is written in a way that tries to please all sides. For example, one line reads that the sufficiency economy must be promoted, while another line supports a liberal [market] economy; that is completely contradictory. I think this is written in the style of politicians. The drafters use the same tactics; it sounds good, but it is impractical. I insist that this is not an ‘edible' constitution, not beneficial for the underprivileged.

Jon Ungpakorn, Chair of NGO Coordinating Committee

The problems will still remain, as was the case with the 1997 constitution, regarding enforcement of the provisions. Politics after the referendum will be no different from now, I think; that is, a re-establishment of semi-democracy under a military regime. The referendum is part of the procedure to establish it formally. We're under martial law, and we have the junta's Announcement No. 6 that forbids farmers and workers to have political gatherings. So they can make arrests outside the 35 provinces that are under martial law. The internal security bill will perpetuate the military regime in the long run. This is what's going to happen.

Prapas Pintoptang, Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University

On direct democracy and public participation

The selection of the Senate is a innovative. We are not returning to an appointment system. Senators cannot be civil servants, and will come from various occupations. So the selection process is an indirect election. This is our own idea to have neutral senators. I think this hybrid Senate will be balanced and progressive.

Nakarin Mektrairat, Faculty of Political Science, Thammasat University

The draft 2007 charter is obviously an attempt to weaken the parliament by severing the link to the people. It is like trying to be free from the people, and establish the state's power in various forms to interfere in politics. The political space where the people can have their say in running the country has shrunk. The number of MPs is reduced, and the election system is changed back to the multiple MP constituencies like before, which is hectic.

Kanin Boonsuwan, 1997 charter drafter

The selection panels for the independent bodies will have seats for MPs and senators in place of political parties. The three courts will also have seats due to their dignity and trustworthiness. Therefore, the link to the people will be there, unlike what critics have said.

Paiboon Varahapaitoon, charter drafter

The parliamentary system designed in the draft 2007 constitution is moving backward, and based on the assumption that a few people have a better judgment than the whole country. Senators still have to hold bachelor degrees. And judges will choose half of the Senate. The independent bodies will come from these people.

Jon Ungpakorn, Chair of NGO Coordinating Committee

Parliament will not be a sacred place exclusively for the privileged. People are also privileged, and can speak in parliament. The draft charter stipulates that parliamentary committees which propose bills must have at least one third of its members from the people who propose the law. It means the people can have seats in parliament like ministers addressing the parliament.

Jirmsak Pinthong, charter drafter

As for the selection of 74 senators, we wish to open the space for ordinary people to help vet the laws, otherwise the parliament will be full of politicians-cum-businessmen who spend a lot of money in the elections, while people with disabilities have no chance, and community leaders have no chance.

Chuchai Suphawong, charter drafter

The number [of people proposing a law] is not important. What important is how the people can publicize their views, to what extent the people can make their points through the media. If the people can talk about land reform through the media, collecting 50,000 signatures of farmers across the country will be no problem. But the drafters lack a comprehensive understanding of Thai society, do not understand the problems of the people.

Somchai Preechasilapakul, Faculty of Law, Chiang Mai University

The draft constitution provides for free medical care for the people, with no need to pay 30 baht. The FTA negotiations so far have been painful to us, because the government made deals and trade-offs with this and that country. Some get benefits, as in free trade some will gain and some will lose. Farmers who produce onions, garlic, fruit, and milk go bankrupt, because of imports. So before the government negotiates with any country, it needs to ask for approval from the parliament. All information must be revealed to the public, and public hearings are required.

Jirmsak Pinthong, charter drafter

On transparency, checks and balances

I agree that the selection of senators is less democratic than an election, but we will have senators who are more independent and neutral than those from election. I'm not saying this is absolutely better, but this is an alternative for society to get people with diverse backgrounds.

Somkid Lertpaitoon, charter drafter

The draft charter gives unprecedented power to the judiciary. The preliminary draft for hearings was even worse. The draft allows the judiciary to propose bills, so for the first time since 1932 the judiciary encroaches into legislative power. The judiciary also has a hand in selecting senators, appointing the independent bodies, and impeaching political office holders. The judiciary has so much increased power, but there's no mechanism set up to scrutinize the judiciary. There is the possibility that the judiciary will make mistakes. Even if the mistakes are not the result of corruption, people will lose faith in the judiciary.

Rangsan Thanapornpan, Faculty of Economics, Thammasat University

If political office holders come from the bureaucracy or judiciary, we cannot expect a sincere and just scrutiny from these independent bodies. Despite the attempt to make these bodies independent, after all, the drafters seem to look down on the people. While writing provisions on how these bodies come about, they have also written a translational clause not to use those provisions in the initial stage. The current office holders will continue to stay in office, and continue to wield power.

Kanin Boonsuwan, 1997 charter drafter

This time MPs and senators must declare their assets to the public. Parents, children, and spouses of political office holders cannot become senators to prevent a ‘spouse' parliament. And those who wish to become senators must be free from politics, must old no political position, must not be members of political parties, must not have been MPs for 5 years, and must not be under the influence of political parties. The draft constitution attempts to elevate the Senate to a higher level of virtue.

Jirmsak Pinthong, charter drafter

It's a misunderstanding that to solve the problem of checks and balances it is necessary to have people who are free from politics. The question is whether being free from politics is also being free from the people. If so, those people have no legitimacy to do the job. The principle of democracy is that the government must come from and be accountable to the people.

Chaturon Chaisaeng, Thai Rak Thai

The drafters are quite confident that the independent bodies from the new selection systems will be really independent and neutral. Politicians, both the government and opposition, cannot interfere.

Jaran Pakdithanakul, charter drafter

The draft charter is not meant to weaken the government, but is meant to solve the problems of the 1997 Constitution that strengthened the executive branch to implement its policies, but failed in the checks and balances, because the independent bodies were not independent. The draft charter solves this very problem of a strong administration without checks and balances. If these independent bodies fail, we still can bring cases to courts. So the people have choices. Besides, the selection system that involves presidents of the courts is also an alternative in selecting individuals who are free from politics to fill the independent bodies.

Meechai Ruchupan, President of National Legislative Assembly

On prolonging power of the junta

Article 309 alone is enough to reject the draft 2007 charter. Article 309 not only grants amnesty for past wrongdoing. Reading carefully, you will realize that any illegal act committed under the interim 2006 Constitution will also get amnesty. If the CNS abuses its power or commits any violation of the interim 2006 Constitution, e.g. abuse of budget allocation or corruption, it will then get impunity by this Article.

Vorachet Phakeerat, Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

There is no provision in this draft charter that allows the CNS to share power. According to the draft, the Prime Minister must come from within (the members of Parliament). The Prime Minister or the CNS will not have any authority to nominate members of the Senate. The CNS will have to go after the draft is promulgated. There must be a general election at the soonest within this year. How do these provisions contradict democratic principles? Not at all.

Somkid Lertpaitoon, charter drafter

The CNS appointed the Constitution Drafting Committee. The Drafting Committee then draws the Directive Principles of Fundamental State Policies and provides for many organizations and schemes.

The CNS has been prepared to join politics. The appointed senators will have the authority to demote important figures including the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the elected Members of Parliament. The Courts and the independent bodies will have a major say in the appointment of senators. This is where the power lies.

Chaturon Chaisaeng, Thai Rak Thai

If we talk about a balance of power, the executive used to have lots of power and then destroyed the legislature and judiciary. Now we balance their power, putting them on the same plane, not demolishing anything. We do not want to weaken the government. No one would want so. Of course, when we reduce the power a bit, we would feel that the balance of power has been changed. The drafters of the 2007 charter do not mean to tear down Thailand or bring back dictatorship. The drafters are just trying to find solutions for the country. We are trying to bring the country towards democracy, enhance the rights and freedoms of the people and increase people's political power. This is to create balance in politics.

Somkid Lertpaitoon, charter drafter

Many people claim that this draft charter does not lay down mechanisms to prolong the power of the powers-that-be, because there is no provision that sustains the power of the CNS, they said. The CNS will be over along with the Cabinet. But some provisions imply the contrary. The proposed Law Reform Committee, with authority to define and draft the law to set up the Law Reform Organisation, will be appointed by the Cabinet in power on the day this Constitution is enacted.

Vorachet Phakeerat, Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

On Democracy, Referendum Process and Constitution Drafting Process

This is not the first time (for a referendum on the whole constitution). In 1974, there was a referendum in Burma on Ne Win's Constitution. That referendum was done in a shorter time. The draft was not even completed yet.

Kiatichai Pongpanich, charter drafter

Any referendum on any law, especially a key instrument like a constitution, must be done only under democratic rule. There must be political parties and political freedoms. Every group must be able to do political campaign freely. The referendum must not be done under a dictatorship that suppresses all political freedoms and control all the mass media as going on now.

Somsak Jeamtheerasakun, Faculty of Arts, Thammasat University

Voting "No" to this draft charter would be to enhance the fight for democracy in terms of ideology and values. This is a crucial foundation for Thailand in its path towards international acceptance.

Vorachet Phakeerat, Faculty of Law, Thammasat University

The coup d'etat was done initially to prevent potential bloodshed, not to amend the Constitution. If the coup makers were more cold-blooded, if there was bloodshed, it would have been more legitimate. Any constitution or any form of government we believe in, including democracy, is meaningless if we have to die for it. We have experienced too much loss. Humanity must survive before we can have a good government. This means we need to save others' lives as well. If 19 September was a bloodbath, I would have not endorsed it.

Chaiyan Chaiyaporn, Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University

The anti-coup groups have very few channels to launch their campaigns against the draft charter. The mainstream media, including television, radio and newspapers, is all controlled by the junta. No anti-coup and "Vote No" campaigns are shown to the public. Most people are not aware of the anti-charter campaign. The anti-coup groups are thus under siege politically. They have to resort to alternative media, like pamphlets, CDs and the internet, which have very limited access. In addition, they cannot launch their campaign in the provinces under martial law.

Pichit Likitkijsomboon, Faculty of Economics, Thammasat University

That the people reject the draft 2007 charter does not mean that they don't want a constitution. They do, but they do not want the draft 2007 charter resulting from a coup d'etat. Besides, the charter has many flaws. This referendum will determine the future of the country. It is an opportunity to tell the world that we want democracy not coups d'etat.

Chaturon Chaisaeng, Thai Rak Thai

The 2007 charter focuses on too narrow a subject, narrow in terms of the questions, and narrow in terms of drawing experience from too few people, namely the urban middle-class, in responding to those questions. It does not recognize the political experience of the lower-class, as it is quick to presume that the lower-class only sell their votes.

Nidhi Eawsriwong, Midnight University

-Translated by Ponglert Pongwanan

How could any self respecting person have voted "YES" to the referendum?

They have  ( for whatever their reasons) given the go ahead for the end of democracy, the end of free speech, and the end of Thailand as a world player...a sad day....to vote yes has given the military a vote of confidence.. in other words...the next time a majority vote for a political paty...if the military and the beaurocrats decide it is not to their liking..then out they go... on the end of a gun barrel.

Glad to see the Northeast voted with theit concience, anhd as for that ridiculous post earlier, as to why the north voted against.....what planet do you live on?

To describe them as uneducated???? Any Thahi that voted yes should be ashamed of what they have done...but...I respect their choice, and ...well at the end of the day, they are entiteld to their vote after all it is democratic..no?.

It was interesting to see the third category..where people returned their vote papers to the registrars....seemed to spook them a bit.

The strange thing was of my friends here who voted (70%NO - 30% YES) neither side could put forth a reason why they voted the way they did, only a minority used the vote as a stand againsat the military.

Never mind, we will soon be arm in arm with Burma

i posted that ridiculous post...

why they voted "yes"? because voting "no" for them will be of TRT advantage. voting "no" is like voting for TRT for many of them.

is voting "yes" is like supporting dictatorship as TRT claimed? i don't think so... voting "yes" is giving more power to the people.

uneducated? education is not only going to school. you may have master degree and be uneducated in other things as many of the posters here acting uneducated. lack of variation in the votes in NE seems to me that they were just told to vote "no". these are the same people who get paid and sit in the rally in sanam luang. there is also an on-going investigation about vote buying in NE.

IMHO, as other poster have said, the plebecite is not really about the constitution but just to go-on to the next general election so that the country can move forward. forget thaksin, forget the TRT, forget the CNS, forget the democrats, do you think voting "no" would have been better off?

well, here are just some of the good points in the new constitution and why the "yes" vote.

- The public can directly file petitions to the Constitutional Court.

- Local communities can reach a referendum that binds the government to honour their referendums.

- All international agreements like free trade agreements must win public supports.

this is power to the public. i'm not a lawyer so i will end my rant here.

One of my favorite Thai sayings is; กําขี้ดีกว่ากําตด and it is also my signature on TV. It means, 'something is better than nothing' or more literally 'shitting is better than farting'.

or...

ทำขี้ไม่ดีกินขี้ดีกว่า

I've been wondering why most local dishes are made using prawns (shrimp) with the shells and heads still on. Is it because it adds to the flavour? I find it lessens my enjoyment of the dish trying not to eat the shell, the head and the tail and trying to deshell them on the plate before eating it. I did go through a phase of just eating the entire prawn (and still do if it's they're small) to see if I was missing anything! but really, I'm just not a fan of the clop cloppy feeling of the shell and all those legs in my mouth Now, leaving the tails on I understand it's all about presentation, but when I cook I completely deshell them...practical cooker rather than beautiful presentation cooker Do you eat the whole thing or have some subtle way of de-shelling?!

exactly, adds to the falvour. if cooked crispy i'll eat the whole thing except the head but for big ones the mrs. would do the job for me.

i think i'm one of the lucky ones here aye? my mother in law is super! she cooks all of my favorite food, work around the house/shop the whole day, goes to the market, and we (me and mrs) are the ones who keeps asking her not to do this and that and let the maid do it. she never listen...

your dog eat steak???

there is one requirement that is blocking many of us; work permit (and paid taxes from work).

younger dudes have been staying in thailand with only spouse visa since they have jobs or businesses outside thailand. having to work inside thailand would not be sufficient enough to support a family. besides, the salary might not even enough for the salary requirement when applying for a resident cert if working locally.

retirees are not allowed to work and therefore they cannot have work permits unless they invest 10 million baht or more or else residency route is not an option for them.

for singles, you have to be super rich to be qualified for resident cert investing 10 million baht or more.

conclusion, IMHO, the requirements for resident cert are contradictory and bloody difficult to attain. for example, the category to "support a family" or "humanitarian reason" also needs work permit requirements. won't a farang able to support his thai family if not working in thailand? having a thai wife, thai children, house, car, etc., speaking the thai language, and staying for more than 10 years in thailand won't just qualify you for a residency if you do not have work permit.

IMHO, they should relax the residency requirements for foreigners who support their thai families. besides, it is only like a long term visa which can also be revoke...

Sorry but most in the NE are very uneducated abot these things.

In the wifes village they believe for example that Thaksin paid off the IMF debt from 1997 out of his own pocket, and a lot of other nonsense - I have no idea how this disinformation gets spread, but I bet it's not particularly hard to do in a region where most people can't read.

indeed, there were many pro thaksin propaganda in there. they also believe that voting "no" is voting for thaksin/TRT.

WOW! stunning replies here!

Thanks for sharing your opinions. Sudddenly the NE became the center of Thailand but I couldn't agree to most of you that Thaksin (TRT) was/were NE's robinhood. The poor, be educated or not, are the most exploited people in politics. If I'm a politcian I would myself embrace the poor as they are the 70% of the population and my vote would be secure. Give money here and there, buffalo here and there, and some free stuffs. Agree or not, this is just a political plot used in developing countries like Thailand were the poor are the majority. Example, Ex-presisent Estrada of the Philippines has done the same...

Another thing is, voting "yes" will lead to election the end of this year while voting "no" might lead to another chaos. I think the people in Bangkok, and other areas the voted "yes" had thought the same. "If you can't beat them, join them".

Was vote buying really rampant in these areas or the people are just uneducated?

these are the only options ......????

these are the only things i can think of. maybe you can share some more?

I wonder if they have even read the new charter.

Interestingly but not surprising the "NO" vote came out in the Northeast. This is the same place where TRT have always won in the past. Was vote buying really rampant in these areas or the people are just uneducated? What's the real deal?

Farangs in the NE, what is your opinion?

my thai friend went to germany and while visiting a park he took photos of some kids playing around as they are so cute he said. the parents approached him and threatened him to report to the police he does not delete the photos he took. he was shocked...

in the west, if you are fond of kids you are a phedo... it's crap i know.