jeb

It's whether the the laws were broken or not and for that a court will determine if they were or not.

If the country wishes to change those laws, there are legal avenues to pursue that desire.

In other words, I'm not saying the law is right or wrong, but simply that that is the law of this country as it stands now and that if people choose to break that law in the interim, then there are repercussions for doing so, the same as any other law-breaking action.

Seldom mentioned in this thread and particularly not in your comments, is the use of law to gain advantage over political opponents which has seen marked increase since the coup.

How about this as a scenario?

I'm sure that Thailand is like other countries in having so many laws that no one can get through a day without breaking one or more. Let's substitute financial for political gain as a means of focusing attention. One or more individuals in the police department with jurisdiction over your neighborhood are contacted and are offered 1,000 baht for each time you are convicted of any breach of law.

After all, "that is the law of this country as it stands now and that if people choose to break that law in the interim, then there are repercussions for doing so, the same as any other law-breaking action," right?

If Thailand improves its record in the treatment of ethnic minorities, stateless people, and illegal immigrants, as a result of this appointment, we can all be grateful.

tag line:

Deny, lie, deny, lie, cast blame elsewhere, falsely accuse others, deny and lie some more. That has always been Thaksin's modus operandi...Expect more of the same, ad nauseum. - Brahmburgers

I notice no concern for improvement in the treatment of those who deludedly think democracy has something to do with majority rule rather than dual-track justice, coups, censorship and other tactics mentioned in the 2009 AHRC report. Here's the link: http://material.ahrc...RReport2009.pdf

You might want to refresh your memory, assuming you looked at it in the first place.

Based on the context of the thread, perhaps you should clarify your tag. Are you saying that with Thaksin gone, the Thai government, regarding governance and the populace, needs only to concern itself with improvement in "the treatment of ethnic minorities, stateless people, and illegal immigrants?" Or are you saying that you "[e]xpect more of the same[Deny, lie, deny, lie, cast blame elsewhere, falsely accuse others, deny and lie some more.], ad nauseam[,]" from governments following Thaksin?

If not the latter perhaps you should make a disclaimer to that effect to avoid any appearance of ill-intent. Thaivisa.com is owned by The Nation and this thread is based on an editorial in The Nation that ends:

"This country has nothing to hide on its human rights record. But in this age of globalisation, we have to be ready for any onslaught by ill-intentioned elements when allegations of human rights abuses are raised at the international level."

There are those tasked to respond to local evidence of ill-intent as well. I assume you would want to avoid misunderstandings even though you seem to have no problems with current government approaches. That is, other than its treatment of ethnic minorities, stateless people, and illegal immigrants.

Red shirts to move through Bangkok Monday AM

snip.....

The declaration of a state of emergency will enable the military to take total charge of security in the capital, whereas the ISA only permits the military to assist the police if required.

Earlier today Royal Thai Army spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said an additional 20 companies of troops had been sent to protect the 11th Infantry Regiment in Bangkhen district against any invasion by red-shirts.

The 11th infantry regiment is located close to 2006 coup maker and former national army chief Sonthi Boonyaratgalin's residence.

snip...

I'm not familiar with BKK's layout, so I have some questions:

1. How long has the 11th been at that location?

2. What are the tactical/strategic reasons for the location of the 11th?

3. Are there any connections between the 11th and Sonthi beyond those of any other unit with the former national army chief?

Inquiring minds want to know.

jeb

Heh, I have a friend who works in BKK Hospital. His line said some weeks ago was 'I feel bad when I know we are scamming the patients...they are so overcharged' and then he mentioned some medicine and procedures. And told me how much the new helicopter pad costs...(iirc that one was built on BKK Hospital and not one of the sister hospital the same people own, not that it matter. They will never be able to recoup the cost for it through normal fee's.)

And the attitude that goes with it.

Some time back I fell and injured my back which had serious effects. A local orthopedist recommended I see a doctor named Prakit in Bangkok who worked at Bangkok Hospital. After seeing me and going over the intake documents, X-rays, etc., he told me I needed spinal fusion. After L3-4-5 fusion he was surprised at my having problems during in-hospital rehab. Instead of being up and around within 3-4 days, I was still having difficulties after 2 weeks when I came home and was bedridden for months after.

After I was mobile again and went back for post-op visit I was casually told that the intake X-rays showed an L1 fracture. Oddly enough the neurological symptoms of vertebral fracture are pretty much the same as what I experienced both before and after the surgery.

The treatment for a fractured vertebrae is back support and immobility while the bone fuses. On the other hand I paid 560,000+ baht for what they did to me. Adding insult to injury, an extra-cost pain specialist spent hours treating the same symptoms after the operation that I had had before.

Part of the Hippocratic Oath is, First do no harm. However, as far as my experience with Prakit and Bangkok Hospital is concerned that seems to run a poor second to revenue generation. They both seem to aim toward soaking farangs as much as the traffic will bear.

The wasted money is bad enough; the infuriating aspect is the markedly reduced physical capabilities resulting from the operation.

jeb

Hi Gungadin

I'd find some galvanised pipe that fits inside the bamboo.

A nice tight fit would be good.

Hammer pieces of pipe into the ground and stick the bamboo over the pipes

and tap down with a big hammer.

Leave enough clearance between ground and bamboo to prevent it getting wet.

Depending on the quality of the bamboo you might need to drill and screw through

the bamboo into the steel to keep it stable.

You may need to concrete each pipe into the ground if the structure is very heavy or

if the ground is soft.

I wonder if thick-wall PVC pipe might not be better as it would not be subect to rusting out. Concreting should eliminate ultraviolet degradation.

#1 drug = Tobacco

#2 drug = Alcohol

#3 drug = Cannabis

This kind of sentence makes no sense at all, when governments allow the sale of cigarettes and alcohol which takes far many more lives than soft drugs like dope. Heroin is another matter; but the death sentence?? A good long jail term is punishment enough... and hanging!? I couldn't think of a more barbarous and inhumane way of ending someones life.

I guess everbody has it's own opinion yes tobacco is a drug so is alcohol so is coffee and tea but I have never seen anybody who had this drugs and then switched to heroin or ice or what ever.

But many users of dope just do that !!

This is incorrect and not supported by statistics.

The only correlation one can see in a limited number of countries, and this is not related to the drug itself, is that a person not afraid to use illegal substance is less afraid to use heavier illegal substances. But there is no truth to the gateway theory with lesser drugs as a joint as a stepping stone towards heroin...

Statistics can be made to say what people want them to say..

It's obvious that starting with a harmless cannabis joint leads onto more substantial and harder drugs....how can i say this.. from my own personal experience and of many friends from my younger days. We all started smoking weed and moved onto harder drugs..

I've never yet met a heroin user who did not start out smoking weed, moving quickly onto speed/coke/pills then the heavy stuff.

You're saying, then, that none of you used tobacco or alcohol at any time, right?

BTW, I have to agree with you about statistics; I don't remember who said, there are liars, damned liars and statisticians.

However, here's a link to a post about decriminalization of all drugs in Portugal in 2001:

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/200...ugal/index.html

Perhaps you could give us a rundown on how the charts could be gamed.

As far as decriminalization/legalization is concerned, one problem is the various groups who make money from criminalization. Since the US is the main protagonist and applies the most political pressure, here are some active there:

Criminals who profit from artificially high prices

Gov't agencies who fund their black ops via drug-running

Gov't agencies at all levels whose budgets include anti-drug funds

Gov't agencies at all levels who utilize asset seizure/forfeiture to supplement their budgets

Alcohol and tobacco companies who don't want the competition and who fund "anti-drug" groups

Banks which launder drug money

This is a partial list of those who have financial interest. It does not include those who utilize criminalization for other goals

jeb

A friend mentioned he had seen a list of English auto mechanic's terms and their Thai equivalents here in the thaivisa motor forum. I did a couple of searches that listed multiple pages, none of which had a thread related to the topic.

Does anyone know of a link to such a table? I know a good mechanic but I can't tell him the problem. It's intermittent and not obvious.

Hi All,

I hear rumors of straight gas being phased out in favor of gasohol and I wonder if anyone has solid information about it.

Also, having a '94 Toyota sedan and thinking about a motorcycle, what options/limitations are there to retrofitting older vehicles for gasohol?

As I understand it post-2000 cars are designed to accommodate gasohol. Is that the case for bikes?

just off the bottom of the learning curve,

jeb

90% of the PAD protesters are also bought. And PAD does not advocate Democracy for all only for the self righteous...get a clue!

This is a big lie, simply

At one point did PAD not advocate 30% elected representatives and 70% appointed?

I'm thinking of adopting my wife's son by a prior marriage. Our marriage is not officially registered. My visa is a retirement O-A.

I read Dirk_brijs' Visa Based On Having A Kid and browsed Thai visas, residency and work permits.

It seems that there is a one-year extension involved but I didn't find anything specificly relating to my situation.

It would really help to get pointers/references on:

1. Requirements and ball-park timeline for adoption

2. Requirements for visa based on the adoption

Hi all

This post is because I got a response to my last one on this topic that was different from the usual form, and in my ineptitude I didn't save the email address. The poster mentioned both gold and tea, the latter having been the subject some time back.

I'd certainly like further info on both.

embarrassedly

jeb

I was wondering about sources here in Thailand for small amounts in coin or plain metal.

Or any source with reasonable values and shipping.

Are there regulations for possession? I remember reading something about regs when traveling into Thailand.

I'm looking for a source of Sodium Chlorite - NaClO2 - used as a disinfectant in meatpacking and hospitals.

Locally I've been shown Sodium Chloride: NaCl and Sodium Hypochlorite: NaClO; unfortunately easily mistaken.

The only sites I've found deal in industrial quantities; 2-3 kilos are sufficient for my purposes(freezing meat).

I'm hoping someone knows of a chemical, meatpacking or hospital supply business that would have it.

jeb - that is the one i was talking about.

Thank you; that question's answer seemed positive. Of course the devil's in the details...

jeb

This might be helpful link.

http://oca.thaiembdc.org/faq.htm

Thank you; through that I found this:

http://www.thaiembdc.org/consular/con_info...htm#nationality

Couldn't find the FAQ, though.

jeb

Or should I say, didn't find anything labelled FAQ

jeb

This might be helpful link.

http://oca.thaiembdc.org/faq.htm

Thank you; through that I found this:

http://www.thaiembdc.org/consular/con_info...htm#nationality

Couldn't find the FAQ, though.

jeb

If you are confused, the Thai Embassy in Washington DC has an excellent website. In the consular section page there is a FAQ section which will put your mind at rest.

May I ask for the link? Nothing I found had a FAQ.

jeb

I am embarassed to admit my misunderstanding of my(cryptic? 8~) friend's interest. He recently married a Thai national with children and wants dual citizenship for himself.

Failing that, he says what about Thai citizenship for a US national?

Sorry, nothing in stone here, but I don't think it's possible. If you find out anything different, please let me know.

Thanks to each for your response; if I do, I shall.

A friend asked me about dual citizenship and I was wondering if anyone has information about the topic.

Are there specific US Embassy or Thai Immigration offices that deal with this?

As must be obvious I'm starting from zero.

jeb

My adaption used Thai rum, small green limes and for some reason I chose brown sugar and added some peeled and sliced fresh ginger. This turned the final product so dark as to be almost black and I sampled a couple of glasses last night.

The liqueur was light, strong and tangy, the zest of the limes was very prominent and it possibly could have done with a little less.

Thanks to all for the leads and links. As a newby the only KL I can think of is Kuala Lumpur(sp?); is that correct?

jeb

I'm looking for reasonably-priced varieties of loose Pu Erh and Oolong by the kilo. I'd prefer to buy/pick up in the Northeast, but realistically anywhere if they'll ship.

jeb

The best source for quality Chinese tea definately is KL. Better than even China as there is a lot of cheating in the tea buisness going on there. Many KL shops have over the decades developed excellent relationships with the smaller private plantations in the top growing areas.

In Bangkok there is Ong's tea, main shop in Siam Discovery, also a shop the owners of Ong's have shares in Siam Paragon. Their original shop is in Ratanakosin. Unfortunately the quality both semi fermented teas lags far behind what is available in Malaysia, and you will mostly get fully fermented Pu Erh here, and not the high quality Green Pu Erh's that age so well.

The teas available in Chiang Mai are mostly Taiwanese style Oolongs. If that is your taste, than you can get a few passable locally grown teas. The in my opinion far superior Wu Yi teas though you will not get there. To get the really good ones you have to go to KL, the best ones are only available through private contacts there.

I'm looking for reasonably-priced varieties of loose Pu Erh and Oolong by the kilo. I'd prefer to buy/pick up in the Northeast, but realistically anywhere if they'll ship.

jeb