rfhendrix

Suthep wants "the people" to rule Thailand. Suthep is The People.

Certainly Nongki is a much safer city than many in the United States as well. And I agree that the gangs do not roam every night but as you said usually only during special occasions. But there is definitely a problem that needs to be addressed and I hope this incident shines a light on the problem. My wife has always advised me not to go into town alone at night but I generally ignore her advice and have never had a problem.

The man, Kevin Wall, is doing a little better. He has opened his eyes and can move some of his limbs. If anyone understands Thai culture you will understand that I have been asked by the family not to post more information about this situation and how exactly it occurred. I have a photo of the man in the hospital that I received from the same source that sent me the photo of the teenage suspects. In the United States they are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law so I will leave it at that. I am sorry that this thread turned into what I should have expected, in light of the nature of anonymous postings on the internet. Nevertheless I will update this thread later as his condition improves. And we are certainly praying that he does improve. The family is very grateful for all the prayers and suggestions for improving his care. The wife is in contact with the American embassy.

Well isn't that convenient, can not to reveal the source.

I guess this is a new precedence for TV?

I can not reveal the source.

Innocent until proven guilty, and still we hang out the picture of the youngsters.

I can't help wondering how you can show no sympathy for the victim of this crime but you continue to defend the perpetrators of this violence. There is no newspaper in Nongki. But the local police have the information you claim to be seeking. Why don't you visit the police station there and fill us all in with the facts. And then tell us why we should believe you? By your standards Thai visa should not even exist, as generally speaking nothing posted here is confirmed. In this case there is one other poster on this thread who has independently confirmed that the victim is in fact Kevin Wall and the time and place where the incident occurred. Maybe you can offer your services as a defender of misunderstood teenage gangs who roam the streets in Nongki? Just a thought...

The man, Kevin Wall, is doing a little better. He has opened his eyes and can move some of his limbs. If anyone understands Thai culture you will understand that I have been asked by the family not to post more information about this situation and how exactly it occurred. I have a photo of the man in the hospital that I received from the same source that sent me the photo of the teenage suspects. In the United States they are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law so I will leave it at that. I am sorry that this thread turned into what I should have expected, in light of the nature of anonymous postings on the internet. Nevertheless I will update this thread later as his condition improves. And we are certainly praying that he does improve. The family is very grateful for all the prayers and suggestions for improving his care. The wife is in contact with the American embassy.

Is this Nong Ki, not far from Chackarat or outside of Rachisima

Sounds like "Nong Kai" to me ?,if so' this very pleasant,small town on the Mekong,has deteriated somewhat? I hope I have the wrong location?

It is Nongki (pronounced nong-kee) not the place you are thinking of.

Is this a story told to person after person in bars, or is this actually taken from media?

Anyone?

My information is from his wife who we know personally.

I've read your comments and I'm seriously concerned about the statement that he's got water in his lungs. As I'd already mentioned, this would make him to an ICU patient, where many other patients with various other infectious diseases are.

Buri Ram hospital is similar to Sisaket hospital. Incompetent doctors, nurses etc..Many of these hospitals only have a just graduated "doctor", who was sent to a province. Those doctors don't know much about what they're doing.

They've got way too many patients and relatives have to stay there to wash them ,etc....

Is there any possibility to get him into a better hospital, maybe with the American embassy's help? I know that there's an organization called DHV, but that's for German citizens. There must be something else to get him out of there......

I went through all that with a good friend of mine who then passed away in the hospital of Ubon Ratchathani. He had several viruses from other patients next to him.

Radar's story is also one that made many really sad. He had an operation, after they'd injected some medicine, he fell into a coma and died about a year later.

Radar's Harley Davidson is owned by a Thai guy now, who used this situation and payed his gf almost nothing.Mr. Green, the owner of Ex "sugar pub" in Sisaket.

Wish that he fully recovers, as I know how difficult it is to deal with such circumstances.-

His wife is trying to arrange his transfer to a private hospital but he is not now in any condition to transport. She may press his transfer anyway but that is up to her.

Yes ,The incident did happen in Nong Ki............The story I've heard is no where near the same as in the OP,happening in or around the Annual Boxing Event.If its the guy I think it is his name is Kevin appx age early thirties......as far as I know he is in Buriram Hospital,condition currently unknown.

Yes, this is the same man. Please fill us in if you have different information than I have received through my wife. Also it appears they have caught the boys who did it. I was sent a photo of 10 teenagers who appear to be as young as 13 in the police station that supposedly confessed. I just talked with his wife a few minutes ago and he is doing a little better but still in a coma with his lungs filling with water and some other complications. I don't know if photos are allowed here.

Is this Nong Ki, not far from Chackarat or outside of Rachisima

Yes..

An American husband of a Thai wife was assaulted by a gang of teenage motorcyclests as he was riding his motorcycle home from work. He was struck several times on the head and elsewhere on his body with bear bottles. When he fell to the ground he was surrounded by the thugs and kicked. He is the father of two young boys. It is not known at this time if he will live or if he will suffer permanant brain damage. Earlier in the day he apparantly confronted a teenager who stole his wallet and he took the wallet back from him. The police think that incident is related and I believe that teenager is in custody. This family is our neighbor in Nongkee and our friends in the United States. Please pray for this man and his beautiful family.

i am on my way out of Thailand after planning on retiring in Nongki with my Thai wife and two small children. We were building our home next to my wife's family farm near the west border of Buriram a few kilometers west of the town of Nongki. We were living there the past four months and we finally discovered the reason for the poor health of our family and our neighbors. There is a chicken processing facility near our location and the waste from the chickens is poisening the air. I have personally lost 20 pounds and almost all of my desire for food in the past four months. Our neighbor moved back to America with her newborn baby because of breathing problems with the infant. Our kids and other family members of our extended family have been to the medical clinic for various problems evidently all associated with the poisenous air. I am posting this here in the hope that we can get some help and put pressure on the officials in that area. We are extremely worried for our family and neighbors who have to breathe that air 24 hours a day. Please forgive my spelling and other errors in this post. I do not have time to answer here until we get back to the United States.

I had good experience with the attitude of the officers in Kap Choeng.

We met a couple that had been four times, maybe that was you.

I was applying for a marriage extension for the first time based on income.. However after phoning twice and carefully noting down which documents I had to show, we were confronted with a demand to see my freedom to marry document. We didn't find it initially and went to the Amphur where they only had a copy. We eventually found it, went back to immigration early and were out in 15 minutes. We didn't meet up with a lady officer.

So that's your idea of a "good experience"? How good were the others? You get an extention based on marriage, not income. Income is a necessity requirement for the extention. For them to demand to "see my freedom to marry document" then that is ridiculous as you wouldn't have married in the first place without it, it's part of the proceedure before you can marry. That's the first time I've heard of someone having to show it at immigration. Never been asked for it myself. Your not one of these farangs that Wai them are you ? It gives them an ego trip. http://www.stickmanb.../reader173.html

They wanted to see the so called "freedom to marry" document from my wife also. We were married in the United States so she had no such document. We may hear more about this when we return to the office later this month. I will keep you all informed.

I understand that Kap Cheong does not accept 90 day reports by mail but I was told in the Korat office that I could report to them for the 90 day reports but must use the Kap Cheong office for the one year extensions. Is this correct?

My experience with this office isnot good. We will have had four visits to this office traveling from Nongki before I finally receive my one year extension on my marriage visa. It seems like they like to nit pick. They said that my money was not in the bank long enough but the money was in the bank for over two months, except that we opened up a CD a month and a half ago. The transfer of money was at the same bank and clearly obvious in the two bank books I presented. Also, when I explained that my retirement income was supposed to offset the bank deposit they were not even interested in seeing evidence of my monthly income. The woman obviously wanted to make it clear that she had power over us and she, herself would decide whatever she wanted regardless of the law. My wife was in tears when we left the office because all of our paperwork was in order. We were very polite.

After that kind of experience (heartfelt sympathies - your wife must have felt really let down by her own people and felt somehow responsible, i'm not surprised by her response) I think I would consider the slightly more expensive option of getting a multi non-O on the grounds of marriage from Savannakhet. If its the same procedure as a non-O from the UK consulates there are no bank balance requirements and the documentation then and thereafter is non-invasive. After the trip (long weekend holiday) to Laos you just need to cross the Cambodian - or any other - border and back ($US 20) every 3 months. A multi non-O can be made to work for 15 months if you get your timing right with the last crossing. Plausible alternative for anyone living close to a Cambodian border crossing or for regular travellers.

I don't understand this post. I has already been pointed out that the Immigration department were not at fault; it was the poster's documents that were

My documents were in perfect order. We did exactly as we were instructed to do in our first visit which we made to check on all of the requirements. When we did what they said they changed their mind and required something different. Also I have the option of either 400,000 in the bank or 40,000 income. They did not want to see my income at all. There is no excuse for their (or one employee's) actions even though you continue to excuse them.

Money must be in the same account for the period of seasoning.

Could you show me that in writing? I too had the same problem as Rfhendrix. It just says money must be in a Thai bank in the applicants sole name. While I'm on. Why have they changed the format for doing the map of where ones house is?

Can someone please tell me what the new format is so I do not make another wasted trip? Also can someone answer my previous question, i.e., Do I have to drive to Kap Choeng every 90 days or is their another option for 90 day reporting available, such as mail or reporting to another office nearer our home.

When we opened the CD it was at the same bank. We did not change banks, we only transfered our money from a Bangkok Bank savings account to a Bangkok Bank Certificate of Deposit. Of course everything was recorded in the two bank books and the bank was happy to verify everything but nothing was good enough. Also she did not want to see any evidence of my retirement income. We noticed before we were called to her desk that the two previous customers each paid 1,900 baht for a two month visa extension as we were required to do. It is possible that the employees or office manager or whoever receives a kikback on the amount of money they bring in to the office. I cannot understand any other reason why we have to drive to that office four times from the western border of Buriram province. Also I am lead to believe that I will have to drive to that office every 90 days as they do not accept mail reporting. Can anyone confirm this?

My experience with this office isnot good. We will have had four visits to this office traveling from Nongki before I finally receive my one year extension on my marriage visa. It seems like they like to nit pick. They said that my money was not in the bank long enough but the money was in the bank for over two months, except that we opened up a CD a month and a half ago. The transfer of money was at the same bank and clearly obvious in the two bank books I presented. Also, when I explained that my retirement income was supposed to offset the bank deposit they were not even interested in seeing evidence of my monthly income. The woman obviously wanted to make it clear that she had power over us and she, herself would decide whatever she wanted regardless of the law. My wife was in tears when we left the office because all of our paperwork was in order. We were very polite.

I built my own electric Ford Ranger pickup truck in the United States. Too much trouble to import it though. All the major parts were made in the US but I wonder what it would cost to import them. Really all you would need to get started is the motor (about $2000.00) and the controller (another $2000.00). Using an existing used vehicle already in Thailand all you would really need is a welder and someone to help machine the motor/transmission adapter. I built my truck in my garage in a few months in my spare time. The gas mileage cannot be beat.

What a great (and true) article. Proof of the pudding is that so many barking dogs on this forum have obviously been bitten!

...I'll take the current government over the proceeding ones. At least they try and practice balanced corruption....

"balanced corruption"? It never ceases to amaze me how people justify a cowardly coup and its resulting "balanced corruption".

Let's remember that Abhisit's primary enemy, of which he is petrified, isn't Thaksin but the Thai electorate. The military can protect him only so long.

I had to laugh out loud when I read this. Not because what you say isn't true but because most people on this forum cannot see the truth in what you said. Hey people, Thaksin was ejected by a coup e'tat. Everything this government does is illegal. I would like to see Thaksin arrested and brought back to Thailand to face the judgment of the people. If he was he would be reelected and restored to his rightful place at the head of government. And again he would be forced from office by the elite scum who have no respect for the will of the people. Is Thaksin corrupt? Of course. Are the people currently in power corrupt? Of course. The question is can the people choose which corrupt politician they want in power or not? Most people on this forum, I assume, come from countries who elect their representatives democratically yet they self righteously defend the coup which overthrew Thailand's democratically elected leader -- something they would abhor if that happened in their own country.

Good leaders are loved and feared, and it's a little to late for the first one. Crack some skulls Abhisit or this will just be a continuous cycle of political madness and economic instability. By any means necessary especially during times of a world recession there's gotta be a leader that grabs the reins of the country and blatantly states "Don't <deleted> with me."

I wonder how many protesters would hang around if Thaksin stopped paying them? They want immediate change but it takes some time to see the changes from a newly implimented gov't they gave Abhisit what? Three measley months if that. They're now hijacking LPG tankers and opening the valves to release the contents and in effect evacuating entire neighborhoods, do they realize how volitile LPG is? Probably not. These are the same idiots that will drape you over their shoulder and jump up and down in an attempt to save you if your drowning.Go home red's and get an education.

This is just the point! They would love a chance of a good education just like those wealthy in Bangkok. We had to take our daughter out of school in the village, educate her overseas so she is now fluent in English. She now studies in Bangkok.

Why could she not have had this where she lives? Because the wealthy Bangkokians do not want this. My wife has had to put up with being poor lower class all her life and Essan people only want the things that you wish for in your country of origin. Is this so wrong?

This is not just about Thaksin, sure he is using the poor for his own aims. But the poor know how to use people too!

Some of your comments are dangerous and the reason normally good natured people are so angry.

People in the North of Thailand are people too!

Thanks for your post. The poor "despised" people are the backbone of Thailand and they have far more "education" from the land and hard work than the so called educated ones who think they have the proper education to oppress these people. It is true that these poor people are mostly not involved in the protests, they are too busy supporting their families and working like dogs in the fields. Meanwhile many of the posters here who claim to be enlightened liberals fighting truth and justice from their laptop computer (while keeping one window open to the exchange rates and their stock portfolio) add more to their grief by siding with their oppressors! The majority like Thaksin because he actually helped them. That is certainly more than the ruling elites supported here will do.

On another note, my wife's aunt works failry high up as a government beauracrat. She did not particularly like Thaksin because she said that Thaksin actually made her to work and provide accountability to the taxpayers for her time. She admits that she lked the lazy life she led before Thaksin was elected. She also admits now that he did the right thing in forcing the beauracrats to work for their pay. Kind of makes you wonder what was really behind the ousting of Thaksin doesn't it?

It is simply amazing what can be done when you out spend your political opponent by almost three times. Long live democracy and the American dollar!

Anyway, congrats to the president elect. I just wish we had a system that did not depend on how much money you have to spend. Yes folks, the Hollywood influence in the United States even influences our elections. People spend their money based upon flashy ads and hype and we elect our officials with the same influence. On a more positive note, I am quite happy that the black people in this country finally have their day. It is a shame in deed that it is even an issue in this day and age. On the other hand, Thailand can learn a few things from the history of America and stop treating people that do not look the same as themselves like dogs.