jdinasia

Udon .... 1/3rd of the respondants ........ 1/3rd make more than 1.5% of the average salary paid in the USA ...

I know a couple of people that fall in the 150k/month income bracket from working inThailand .... (had one hit me up for a loan last month!)

I know mostly retired guys ... living at aroubd 80k a month

and have met a ton of "English teachers" like the OP living on less than 40k

wheeee

My comments to the original poster ... and all others thinking about moving here ... Take a 6 month vacation ... come here ... enroll in a Thai school .... and live within your budget that you would have while living here ....

You'll see a ton of people whine about being here because they had no real clue what it would be like.

PS .... very handsome lizard ...... the #'s represented on this poll are so far skewed as to be absurd :-)

Can someone please give me ane example of how you spend your money if you only make 20-40K baht/month?

Rent in BKK ---- 6500 baht ... 1 BR apartment

Utilities/phone etc ... 6,000/mo

Food--- approx 250 baht/day

Entertainment varies ... a couple of 2000 baht a night drinking parties with friends a month .... the rest is just cheap

Saving for the future---

transportation 2000/mo Taxis .... BTS/MRTA maybe 1000 a month

clothing/other material needs ... very little ... maybe 1000/mo

roughly 26k is doable .....

Minimum wage for a qualified Yank is 60k a month

Do you ever go home? A round trip plane ticket to the west is atleast 60-80K baht. That is 2-4 months salary alone. (your numbers are WAY off for RT trips)

OK ... here are my qualifiers ... I don't work here ... have an income of above 40k but I keep my spending down :-) Granted every 3-4 months I take a major trip somewhere .... like 10 days at a nice beach resort ... or travelling aroound the region

75,000,000/600=125,000bht 4,000 USD doesn't go a long way to eradicating poverty does it?

hmmm PM's .. BKK ... and PM's BKK ...... apples and apples ...

hmmm internal investigations in Thailand .....

your suppositions have yet to be proven Brit .... but glad you think that!

Look through the History here ... BKK has gotten rid of elected PM's before ... and will in the future ....

And is the song supposed to be offensive? Of course!

Then again ... are the scandals mentioned real? Of Course!

No one forced Thaksin into using his family to avoid the laws involving control and investment in Business .... that was his choice.

Scandals yet to be proven - all matter of opinion I might add.

Song is in poor taste and thats obvious, one thing to attack Thaskin but pretty low class attacking one's family.

LOL ... wow! more than one line and a smiley!

Sorry Brit ... a scandal by definition doesn't have to be proven .... it can all be inference ... a criminal vioation of the law is different.

Poor taste? YES! .. Funny! Yes! ..... Political Satire? Yes!

hmmm I thought Ai for men and Ee for women was a common form of address in Isaan ..... not rude at all in context of support from Isaan

I am not that familiar with the Isaarn dialects.

In my wife's local northern dialect "Ai" and "Ee" are part of the rougher colloquial lingo in adressing friends and relatives, not though used in formal settings or in adressing strangers. "Man" is used in the same way, but not ever for respected people of high social rank.

Anyhow, this song is sung in central Thai, and not in Lao, or Northern Thai, and in central Thai "Ai" and "Ee" are extremely insulting forms of adress by any means.

You mentioned once that you can not only speak, but also read and write Thai, so please, you only insult my intelligence if you persist in your position that this song is not using gutter Thai and meant to hurt.

Would you use some of those expressions and forms of adress outside your circle of closest friends? I doubt that very much. If you, as a stranger, would walk into a village and use that language you would play with your life, and i think you know that very well. So, please...

LOL ... Coly ... yes I can speak and read Thai. Not my fault that you do not understand Isaan/Lao dialect ... nor if you misunderstand the usage of Ai and Ee. Please scroll back and tell me where I ever said the song wasn't meant to be insulting please. As for your supposition that I would place my life at risk by using language improperly ...... 55555555555555

The song is the most insulting listing of Thaksin's scandals that I have ever seen .... so what? Plenty of reason for you to take offence to it ... just not for Ai and Ee :-)

Love me some Lao Khao!

And is the song supposed to be offensive? Of course!

Then again ... are the scandals mentioned real? Of Course!

No one forced Thaksin into using his family to avoid the laws involving control and investment in Business .... that was his choice.

hmmm I thought Ai for men and Ee for women was a common form of address in Isaan ..... not rude at all in context of support from Isaan

Yes ... speaking that way in BKK to a BKKian might be implying someone is from Isaan/Laos ... and some people would take offense to that ... but playing to the dichotomy of Thaksin relying MOSTLY on support from Isaan makes sense to use appropriate language from that region

Is it compulsory to vote in Thai law?

Also, is it possible here to discuss what the Monarchy (I am not talking of His Majesty) might influence in this situation? For example a certain offspring has investments in military-style power here.

Tell me if this is totally off the mark....

Voting IS compulsory ... however there are very minor penalties for not voting ....(cannot run for office ... cannot petition for recall etc.

It would not be appropriate to comment on the RF except in the most general terms and only about what i in the news.

A Democracy driven by illiterate farmers and motorcycle drivers supporting a crook who does insider deals ! Baa !

Majority rules...

I guess Brit missed the Marcos Suharto etc article earlier .....

(or myriad other examples of 'majority rule' .... just a quick one-liner with a smiley to increase post counts is much better than a real thought though :-)

Information finally etting out in Isaan ....

BP ... today

POLITICS / RIVALS' TUG-OF-WAR CONTINUES

Dissent stirs in TRT bastion

Northeast middle class losing faith in Thaksin

PREEYANAT PHANAYANGGOOR

Si Sa Ket _ Thai Rak Thai is no doubt the most popular party in the Northeast, especially among rural people for its populist policies, but in recent weeks, middle-class folk in the region have begun to voice discontent with the Thaksin-led administration in their own unique ways. Chaicharn Foithong and Panya Bunmawong, electronics shop owners in Kantharalak district, have put up a large projector to broadcast the ASTV satellite channel's coverage of the rally in Bangkok led by the People's Alliance for Democracy, in front of their shop every evening for the past few weeks.

The broadcasts are aimed at getting their neighbours to catch up on news of the Bangkok rallies and learn more about the Thaksin regime, something they say is absent from state-owned media.

''We used to be TRT supporters. But after watching ASTV programmes, we have become suspicious about state policies, particularly privatisation and the adverse impact of free trade agreements,'' said Mr Chaicharn.

Scores of people turn up at his shop regularly to watch the broadcasts.

The couple occasionally organises open-air seminars, inviting lawyers and academics in the province to discuss the political situation.

They also produce and distribute free VCDs and leaflets about the Thaksin regime to customers and people in nearby villages, using their own money.

Mrs Panya said she was glad that more people have started to learn about the other side of the Thaksin government.

''I believe we have managed to change the opinions of more than 100 customers about Mr Thaksin and we hope this will be reflected on poll day, with more voters choosing the no-vote box.''

In Khon Kaen, a group of leading doctors and medical personnel from Khon Kaen University's faculty of medicine has become more active in the anti-Thaksin movement in the province. Over 500 medical staff marched along the streets to show their disapproval of the Thaksin government last Friday.

Dr Boonsong Patjanasoontorn, one of the core leaders, said around 10-20 doctors held a daily meeting during their lunch break for nearly two weeks to discuss the political situation and the strategy for the anti-Thaksin movement in Khon Kaen.

They also erected a stage in the hospital for the doctors to tell the public about problems with the government.

''We hope our involvement in the rally will help attract more people who silently disagree with Mr Thaksin, to come out and be part of the movement,'' he said.

Academics at Ubon Ratchathani University have also prepared leaflets about the government that are simple enough for villagers to understand.

Prakob Virojkood, rector of the university and a regular visitor to anti-Thaksin rallies in the province, said the leaflets would help rural people understand complicated issues such as the Shin Corp sell-off.

Somphant Techa-atik of Khon Kaen University's faculty of humanities and social sciences, said the small but widespread anti-government movement in the Northeast would be reflected in the results of the upcoming election.

''The TRT party will see its votes shrink, particularly in constituency 1 which is an urban area while those ticking the no-vote box will rise sharply,'' he said.

He expressed concern over election fraud, particularly in areas with one-horse races where TRT is required to get more than 20% of the eligible vote.

oh please .... it takes a rare type to equate 3 shopkeepers yelling at Thaksin from a distance to people throwing things and attacking ....

and if you're gonna start bringing Buddhism into it ... well ... oi ....

Great Faith in TRT and the Elections being clean ...

BP--- today

Bangkokians promise to vote

People in Bangkok and the capital region say they will vote on Sunday, but barely 20% claim they will vote for Thai Rak Thai, the only major party running.

A survey conducted by Rangsit University from March last Tuesday and Wednesday found that 45.4% of respondents intend to vote "No Vote," the absention choice on all ballots.

The next most popular choice was Thai Rak Thai. But just 20% said they would vote for the government party. Another 4.5% claimed they will vote for fringe party candidates while 10.9% told the interviewers their intentions were secret.

A solid majority of 57.5% of respondents believed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra should not return to office, while 23.1% supported him to continue.

A minuscule 6.5% feel the election will be clean and transparent this Sunday, while most expect the polls to be dirty and corrupt.

Nearly 70% of respondents said they believe political turmoil will continue, while 14.1% were optimistic that chaos would die down and a full 17.6% said they couldn't even guess what the future holds for Thai politics. -(TNA)

Bangkok Post ... today .... I won't print the whole article or highlight in Red ...

POLITICS / RIVALS' TUG-OF-WAR CONTINUES

Opposition keen to explain poll boycott

PREEYANAT PHANAYANGGOOR

Ubon Ratchathani _ There is no relaxing for members of the opposition camp even though they are not running in Sunday's election as a result of the three parties' decision to boycott the polls. Two former Democrat MPs for Ubon Ratchathani, Withoon Nambutr and Issara Somchai, say they are working hard explaining to voters why they are not running because they fear losing support to Thai Rak Thai if people do not understand.

Nah ... I like farmers !! The one's I know would all feel the same as your wife's family Hammered .... but there must be SOME reason for a farang to support this travesty of "CEO Democracy" ...

Thai people are proud and none of them want to be ignored ... but even more so they respect an honor HM ....

These populist things that Thaksin has done and continues to do PLUS his pushing for more consumerism and spending ... are directly against the sustainable growth that HM has always pushed for ....

but hey ... let's sell AOT and fund the 30 baht scheme .....

and sell EGAT and and fund ......

huh? if there is a royally appointed caretaker PM .. it will likely be a member of the Privy council ... or TRT ... but they won't announce anything except if they announce it with a timeframe for REAL elections

I love that whole 3rd world country thing ..... he doesn't come here for the shopping ..... thinks of BKK as 3rd world ... but still comes here ....

hmmmmmm

guess you missed where Someone took power in Cambodia and idealised the poor/uneducated the same way you do.

<snip>

Since your supposition above is that there is a new Gov't on the 3rd ... you are dreaming BIG dreams.

Dreaming maybe.... Maybe not....If TRT wins 201 of the seats and have more "TRT" than "No Votes" it will be hard for anyone to claim TRT lost the election, especially if they secure a majority of the popular vote, vacant seats or not.

Oh..... It will happen though, I can hear the moaning and whining now, from the losers or probably more correctly the non runners. They will have more excuses than a Farang with a upcountry hooch hangover in the morning.

If the majority of the Thai people vote against Thaksin and the TRT, I'll accept their democratic mandate and accept that he and the TRT should go. If however Thaksin and the TRT receive the majority of votes then will you be as willing to accept the result, I think not and that action will keep you Dreamland.

The only thing the the PAD and the Democrats haven't tried is "Divine Intervention" and an anonymous source told me "God doesn't do mandated interventions in Buddhist countries.".

Still absolutely clueless about pluralism and the nature of democratic institutions ... but that's cool. When the Apr 2 elections fail to seat a Parlaiment .. and things get worse ... some farang upcountry will be sitting around and whining that "those troublemakers in BKK got their own way"

Thailand isn't the West ... it's got a few years of trying this experiment in Democracy and found out that things aren't set up right yet.

No problem ... after failing to be able to convene Parlaiment ... and having no hope of doing so ... things will change. It will be clear that Thaksin will have to step down and then elections will be called far enough out for a fair election. .... Or someone will do something stupid and resort to violence ... bringing in either HM or the Army....

Luk you just have to give up on BKK ever accepting your concept of Democracy that allows the masses to tyranize the rest .... People here REMEMBER polpot .... they know that things can be wrong ... even when there's 50%+1 that vote for it.

at least Thai men look better in skirts than scotsmen

It's a bit of a BKK thing ... the more crowded this city gets the more people retreat a bit ...

Same situation in Petchaburi and the child would have wai'd and the nanny grinned

Sorry ... left out the obvious question ... how were you dressed that you were wearing shoes like that? and why were you crowding them on the escalator?