jdinasia

Are you testing God's ability to overturn all your predictions?

God does not overturn predictions in Thailand, as it's a Buddhist country.

You're in Canada ...so ....

Thank you for calling me Einstein. Sadly I cannot return the favour.

If you ever, and you have had several chances, tried to read any posts but your own [or your own versions of others] you would already know that many of us are in no way defending the Other parties politics.

What you, again, fail to comprehend is that just becouse some-one is anti-communist doesn't make them nazi. Or vice versa.

Ps. Since I'm not PM of this country your comment on 'talk is easy' isn't very bright. Ds.

LOL! What i fail to comprehend...

Alright, you don't defend the other party's poltitics, but you are supporting the PAD? Are you kidding me?

It is rather simplistic to join a cause, in this case the one of the PAD, without ever thinking about the consequences, and then supporting your lazyness by stating that you are not the PM, and therefore implying that you can't do anything anyhow.

There is a lot of things you can do, only they are not as glamorous as joining some idiotic cause without activating the grey matter between your ears. Well, for a starter, actually using that grey matter would be a good beginning.

Then you might actually be able to comprehend that i am not supporting Thaksin, never have, but analyse, not led by infantile emotional conditions, the present political turmoil, and resulting possible consequences. I am not partisan to any cause, what cannot be said about many posters here, including, and especially you.

yet more flaming by our fave VIP

uh oh ... those evil PAD guys are back! Run ! Hide! Rip hair from your heads!

Can we get 3 more pages crying about how things are?

Still an amazing amount of whining going on ... even a guy claiming to have been hit with "a 10kg block of ice and 5 gallons of water" on the 24th? oi ...

5555

What happens in the USA is of little interest to many of the Ex-pats from the USA here in Thailand .....

However those of us that live HERE are rather interested in the political process here.

Guess the anti-PAD people that screamed so loud ... and then cheared for Thaksin's 'win' ... then stayed silent briefly when Thaksin resigned ... are back :-)

Bryan .... this is Thailand not the USA ... there were a few defections from one of the TRT factions right about the time the snap elections were called. There will be more .. but not until it is clear that new elections are being called with time for a change in parties.

Gonna be exciting in Thai politics for at least a year to come!

since my predictions .... unlike Britmav's or Luk's have actually happened ....

Here's what I see.

Power struggle in TRT ... more and more defections that began recently.

The next elections will be announced more than 90 days out allowing MP's to change parties. This will further weaken TRT.

If Thaksin actually stays on as a TRT MP this will make it even worse as the people that have brought his scandals into the light of day will not let this slip away.

The factions inside of TRT will not be as easy to manipulate.

Sooo... with some work on the Constitution and the further implosion of TRT ... we will see the next round of elections in 4-6 months after parlaiment is opened again.

People having real options will split the country very close to 50% with some group of TRT holding pretty tightly to their political machine in Isaan. A different group (maybe closely allied) in the North ... The Demos holding 75% of BKK all of the South and 50% of Central/SE.

maybe 1 group will get a clean 50% ... maybe not ... but no-one will get a group that is so strong that the PM/Govt cannot be censured again for a long time <if ever> ..... a huge gain for Democracy in Thailand

Isn't this about when Brit should be saying ... "The PM aint going anywhere"

you are a hero! you should know it is impossible for you to get license. If we can get it , i would be the first one to get it. In fact, they will give you some thing which is not license. If you get an accident in thailand, whatever you do ,you must answer for it by yourself. By the way , did you get your first car?heihei.

ummmm sorry Sam but many people (foriegners) have Thai Drivers Licenses ... and first class insurance is good

Suan Siam waterpark ... google for the website <<CHEAP!>>

Suan Luang Rama 9 (Rama 9 park) << Cheaper!!>> google for website.

Still my favorite Holiday of the Thai calendar (second is Loy Khrathong)

Do bring your sense of humor ....

Don't carry anything that may get damaged by water...

Do go to a temple early in the day before water starts getting tossed ...

Don't lose your sense of humor when you get the ice-cold water down the shorts ....

Do carry some sand (temples near the beach) or dirt with you when you go to temple on Songkran day (the 13th). Traditional to carry back the dirt that left the temple on your shoes during the year.

Don't wear skimpy skimpy clothes unless you are in a tourist beach resort or KSR.

Do bring/wear waterproof sunblock!

Don't forget to smile!

Do pay attention to these Do'd and Dont's .....

Don't pay attention to the whingers that just can't cope with one of the most fun holidays in the Kingdom!

Do listen to Daleyboy <stay off motorcycles>

Don't do what Daleyboy did ... <almost get knocked off a motorcycle by a bucket of water ... not once but TWICE!>

egads .... digging pretty deep to find things to whinge about aren't we?

The photo has been removed. Thanks, daveb1, for alerting us, but none of the mods caught it until now. It would have been even better to hit the check box in the upper right hand corner of the offending post, which would alert all the moderators.

Agreed, it could be a hoax. The advice in the original post, however, is very helpful.

Our straight friends know that the same thing could happen to them.

When meeting a stranger for the first time (if you think you'll have sex), it is always best to meet in a public place and then proceed to YOUR private room, where your valuables go into a safe. And never add another stranger to the group.

FYI .... NOT A HOAX

no ... there are no dorm style gay guesthouses in the LOS that I know of

many small places close .. but that is it

I have lived in HH ... it is set for a HUGE boom in a couple of years ... I might invest there with an eye to selling ... but not long term plans for living there

Yes. I would agree. Hua Hin is quickly becoming "discovered" by farangs.

But I think as long as the King makes his home there, I'm hoping we won't be seeing the crime, bars, prostitutes and pollution that have overtaken some other popular farang cities in Thailand. It may grow in population but I'm hoping it will maintain it's charm.

farang aren't the issue there ...

If the baht bags .... i'll be buying a chunk! Then reconvert or just hold until it goes back up.

Believe it or not they actually have radio and TV up in Issarn now. Very few people in the country do not have access to information anymore. The main reason the majority of Thais prefer TRT is because of what TRT is actually doing for them rather than any failure of access to information.

LOL ... again you have missed current events .... the TV and Radio stations were towing the Government line all over the country. There were no broadcasts of the PAD rallies etc. There was almost 0 mention of the allegations against Thaksin. The broadcast media ((and until very recently the print media)) have been censored both from outside and from self-censorship due to the lawsuits brought against them by the Gov.

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Very strange, as we watch Thai TV live on the internet here in Australia and my Thai wife discussed Thai current events with her family up in Issarn during this alleged political black out period. The family up in Issarn seemed to be up with the news from what I could tell from the wifes feedback. Perhaps we are not subjected to the same political black outs as your Thai family is.

Ahhh Guess you missed the radio stations that were critical of the government that were closed ..... Guess you missed shows that were cancelled .... Guess you missed just about everything in Thailand. But nah ... the partner's family is in Nakhon Nayok (province borders Nakhon Ratchasime ... not isaan) They aren't subject to news blackouts ... they after all speak English ... they have online abilities and get the foriegn language newspapers. That could be why after voting TRT twice in the past they voted "No Vote" this time. Scroll back through the postings about newspapers sued ... shows cancelled etc.... sorry ... no more time to educate someone that just started finding out about this ... go back through the forums ... particularly the last year and 2 months.

hel_l ... hop on a plane ... spend a night out in Singapore ... :-)

its hard to deny that thaksin did move the country ahead economically although at what cost ?

Is that a statement or a question?

Also i want to add that Thai people who are ignorant or otherwise (vote buying..) in the north-east

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If you have knowledge of vote buying you should notify the Electoral Commission immediatly.

Or perhaps it was just something you heard down the pub?

Again ... no knowledge of current events ... or did you just miss the reports out of Ubon?

...geeze...he didn't call them stupid...

No one said he did say they were "stupid" Dont misrepresent me please.

I did say the article inferred they were stupid.

I think you mean "insinuated" ... and no .... YOU inferred they meant stupid.

The readers of The Nation are by far and away foreigners or those with interest in getting more information that read English.[/b]

What is said is said weather its in Thai or English. The intended audience does not make the statement any less offensive. Offensive to you because you inferred they insinuated something that was not in fact said.

No "Rule of Law" was overturned here ... instead pressure was brought to bear ... all within a legal framework of any democracy ....

Tens of thousands of protesters obstructing public thoroughfares for weeks is in fact unlawfull. The fact that the government allowed it to continue while it remained peacefull was more an act of crowd control to avoid bloodshed than a condonance of it as a lawfull gathering. Had this been in New York, Tokyo or London I think the troops would have been brought in and the crowd disbursed fairly promptly. Obviously you have not followed current events in the world ... but there are deomonstrations in the USA now ... less controlled and all ... If laws were broken you'd be seeing charges against the leaders. Sorry ... just because YOU think it was illegal does not make it so!

Some people are just too touchy about their upcountry ties

Not "touchey", I simply believe that in a democracy a rural persons vote is as good as a city folks vote. Yes touchy ... You made the point about your family upcountry.

.... my partner is from "upcountry" even though it is not Isaan ... strangely they (the family) voted TRT twice and no-vote once ... why? because they have full access to information.

Believe it or not they actually have radio and TV up in Issarn now. Very few people in the country do not have access to information anymore. The main reason the majority of Thais prefer TRT is because of what TRT is actually doing for them rather than any failure of access to information. LOL ... again you have missed current events .... the TV and Radio stations were towing the Government line all over the country. There were no broadcasts of the PAD rallies etc. There was almost 0 mention of the allegations against Thaksin. The broadcast media ((and until very recently the print media)) have been censored both from outside and from self-censorship due to the lawsuits brought against them by the Gov.

... but the deliberate deprivation of the rural areas from getting real information would do far more to help than anything.

I dont understand the above quote. Could you expand?

thought I'd slap my 1000th on here too .... ###### Thai Politics ... I'd still be at about 300 if the snap elections and protests hadn't happened

Not wanting to reply and fill the page ..... "Informed" means "informed" ... pretty simple!

Did I ever say more valuable in the democratic process? But yes an informed electorate IS important to the process. A man or woman making a choice based upon what they know or believe they know is far more valuable to the process than a man or woman that listens to a village headman or a couple of 100 baht.

This is a great leap forward in Thai Democracy! I am Sooooo! glad this happened and so far happened in a very non-violent way!

hmmmm western Uni's in Thailand ... what ... ABAC? Webster?