WinnieTheKhwai

I think the guy's legs look all weird.

We had an eye witness report from a poster about the fake monks hiding weapons here on TV. In any case, it is surely a FACT that some red shirts are carrying lethal weapons. Also, spears, Molotov cocktails, and slingshots can kill as well. Red shirt apologists, please desist from any further silliness of painting the reds as innocents in Bangkok. Sure, they are USING some innocents to shield themselves for cowardly protection and propaganda purposes. AL QUEDA does the same!

There are reports from journalists visiting the "red fort" abour guards in black with lethal weapons

I don't doubt there are people with more serious weapons, either Red or another side wanting to cause chaos; these people need to be brought to justice, as part of a negotiated way forward. Realistically though they'll walk free as they're likely army elements anyway and the army doesn't want its dirty laundry out in public.

I would have engaged Phua Thai (possibly but not necessarily including the Red leadership) and come to an agreement on elections. Abhisit has already suggested 9 months, the Reds want 1 month. Enough of this BS already and negotiate something that saves some face all around and gets to elections in half a year or so. Note that not just a timeline needs to be on the table, but also the conditions of the election, or even constitution amendments prior to the election. At the same time, any violent elements in the Red protests need to be brought to justice.

(Sadly even this statement above some people will see as Red.. that's just sad. There is a clear path forward but Abhisit is unwilling (though more likely: unable) to take it. )

Incorrect. The red shirts have said that 3 months for new elections would be acceptable to them and they would disperse immediately if Abhisit agreed. He declined.

I stand corrected. Makes my point even stronger.. The leadership's inability to resolve a '9 baht' versus '3 baht' negotiation is leading to death, distruction and continues a path of civil war. Honestly, settle on '5 baht' and get on with things already. It saves face for all and is generally the Thai way. That this hasn't happened already can only point at an immense power vacuum OR conflicts of interests among the countries leaders (incl. military, etc, of course)

3 months is no good for the PM. His party needs to wait till after the next army reshuffle or they risk having the reds or PTP stack the army with Seh Daeng clones. There is no way the election will be called before then. And that is why the reds are so desperate to get it.

I don't buy into this being so important, other than personally for the individual generals involved. It wasn't the army commander who instigated the last military coup. Even if a Phua Thai government was able to get a general installed who was slightly more sympathetic to their side, it really wouldn't matter in the overall power structure in the army and the people they report to. Note that I'm NOT saying that it's not a topic of discussion in any negotiation, but Phua Thai can safely negotiate this point away and let the powers-that-be select the person they feel is right. ( Because they have little hope of controlling the army anyhow, even Thaksin couldn't do that in 6 years, Phua Thai who are MUCH weaker most certainly can't hope to do that in 6 months ). Seh Daeng is a loud mouth dangerous fool, and really not in a position to take on any serious responsibility in any official capacity. Phua Thai and even UDD recognize this.

Soldiers ahve armed themselve up to the teeth for offensive drive. Reds have home made stuff and bamboo poles for defense. Don't let the soldiers become cowards hitting unarmed people. Why no talk offered?

Nice try. Nobody believes the reds don't have lethal weapons on them. Reportedly some of their fake monks are hiding them under their robes.

That would make for a great picture. If it was true. . You're posting rumours.

7pm would be 8am US time. Half an hour from now.

See if Abhisit can actually come up with something constructive. Probably not, but we'll see in 35 minutes.

I just want to applaud the soldiers and police for doing their jobs. They were tasked to stop that convoy and they did. Well done, lets see more of that.

For the last few weeks I've been doubting they could get anything right.

Cheers.

Me too. Especially the guy that shot one of his own. They must be really proud.

You know they shot their own.... how?

Sigh.. he knows because he takes in news sources other than The Nation/ThaiVisa. youknow, those big international ones with reporters actually there and reporting 24/7. Multiple ones.

Has anyone noticed that the soldiers were wearing pink ribbons around their neck today?

All the army on Silom have been wearing pink scarfs since they arrived last Monday.

Nice touch I reckon

Yes, definitely!

What's perhaps less nice is the reason why it's necessary for members of the same armed forces to be distinguishing themselves. Possibly the concern is that not all factions are on exactly the same side.

The pink ribbons are pledges their support for the King.

That's why I agreed it's a nice touch.

However we've also seen other colors being used, and it's been widely recognized that this is to distinguish particular regiments from each other.

I would have engaged Phua Thai (possibly but not necessarily including the Red leadership) and come to an agreement on elections. Abhisit has already suggested 9 months, the Reds want 1 month. Enough of this BS already and negotiate something that saves some face all around and gets to elections in half a year or so. Note that not just a timeline needs to be on the table, but also the conditions of the election, or even constitution amendments prior to the election. At the same time, any violent elements in the Red protests need to be brought to justice.

(Sadly even this statement above some people will see as Red.. that's just sad. There is a clear path forward but Abhisit is unwilling (though more likely: unable) to take it. )

Incorrect. The red shirts have said that 3 months for new elections would be acceptable to them and they would disperse immediately if Abhisit agreed. He declined.

I stand corrected. Makes my point even stronger.. The leadership's inability to resolve a '9 baht' versus '3 baht' negotiation is leading to death, distruction and continues a path of civil war. Honestly, settle on '5 baht' and get on with things already. It saves face for all and is generally the Thai way. That this hasn't happened already can only point at an immense power vacuum OR conflicts of interests among the countries leaders (incl. military, etc, of course)

Has anyone noticed that the soldiers were wearing pink ribbons around their neck today?

All the army on Silom have been wearing pink scarfs since they arrived last Monday.

Nice touch I reckon

Yes, definitely!

What's perhaps less nice is the reason why it's necessary for members of the same armed forces to be distinguishing themselves. Possibly the concern is that not all factions are on exactly the same side.

More blood on the Red's hands.

Your sumit else mate

the military guy shot in the head was by friendly fire let me spell that out for you

that means he was shot by his own men not red shirts

Please let me know where BBC and CNN got the info from. I mean, did they fly in their own CSI crackteam and solved it within minutes of it happening or did they just restate whatever their 'friend' told them to write, like in a few other cases recently?

BBC has a woman reporter onsite been reporting all day from the middle of the action just watch BBC and you will know

No silly, only The Nation is the unbiased and unblemished source of truth!

I understand that the moderators need to be cautious during this time of unrest and sympathize with the difficulties they face doing a thankless job. Since we're no longer permitted to post and discuss news clippings in the General Forum, I thought I'd bring a story to your attention here. Abhisit told the BBC on Tuesday why he won't call for a new election.

Thailand crisis: Red-shirt protesters and troops clash

On Tuesday Mr Abhisit told the BBC that while he wanted a political solution to the crisis, immediate elections were not the answer.

"There is a clear threat that if we hold elections too soon, with the mood running as high in terms of divisions and in terms of tension, elections would turn violent and they would solve nothing and we could be back into this vicious cycle of demonstrations."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8648109.stm

He's probably right about that. So what's taking him so long to (re)start this political solution?? Never mind which side (or no side) you support, Abhisit is failing miserably as a leader. (or even as the establishment's spokesperson).

Tell us Winnie -------- how could YOU do better? Abhisit has been patient and tolerant and maintained some semblance of normalcy. The reds escalate in the hopes of creating enough blood on the streets to force a change of governent. The reds have failed so far and Abhisit has maintained his cool .... I hope that they continue to play it as cool as they have.

I would have engaged Phua Thai (possibly but not necessarily including the Red leadership) and come to an agreement on elections. Abhisit has already suggested 9 months, the Reds want 1 month. Enough of this BS already and negotiate something that saves some face all around and gets to elections in half a year or so. Note that not just a timeline needs to be on the table, but also the conditions of the election, or even constitution amendments prior to the election. At the same time, any violent elements in the Red protests need to be brought to justice.

(Sadly even this statement above some people will see as Red.. that's just sad. There is a clear path forward but Abhisit is unwilling (though more likely: unable) to take it. )

It's just sad that people refuse to inform themselves properly, then make statements that are hateful.

the soldier died because the red mob tried to brake throw military baricades. He died because of red violence.

That'd be funny if it wasn't so sad. People are protesting; government is failing miserably to either begin a solution OR deal with it competently.

What you really are saying is that you support the violence from the red shirts?

And the Award for Putting Words in Peoples Mouths goes to.....................

Congrats!

More importantly, Gordon Brown didn't 'entice' some members of the conservative party to defect and join his government in order to get a majority. If you had voted conservative and the person you voted for then joined the other side for reasons best known only to to him, then you'd feel he stole your vote.

That's pretty much what the reds are feeling, so they want Abhisit to get his own mandate.

Note you don't have to agree with this line, I'm just stating that this is the Red's position.

Inside a chicken.

Next best option: any fresh/wet market.

Ko Samet?! You gotta be kidding. That place gets like an oven in the hot season.

Best/closest place to go? Hong Kong.

Why HK? I asked for the coolest place in Thailand.

Because the question doesn't have an answer. There is no cool place in Thailand in April, except possibly for Songkran when you're wet all day and consequently not hot.

Doi Inthanon is neither cool, nor can you stay there. (National park with very limited accommodation). Plus that place gets so dry it just just seems to die in March/April.

But if you insist on Thailand: Tesco Lotus. Or any other big store or shopping mall.

And this passes for a newspaper! No comment required!

It's just sad that people refuse to inform themselves properly, then make statements that are hateful.

the soldier died because the red mob tried to brake throw military baricades. He died because of red violence.

That'd be funny if it wasn't so sad. People are protesting; government is failing miserably to either begin a solution OR deal with it competently.

I understand that the moderators need to be cautious during this time of unrest and sympathize with the difficulties they face doing a thankless job. Since we're no longer permitted to post and discuss news clippings in the General Forum, I thought I'd bring a story to your attention here. Abhisit told the BBC on Tuesday why he won't call for a new election.

Thailand crisis: Red-shirt protesters and troops clash

On Tuesday Mr Abhisit told the BBC that while he wanted a political solution to the crisis, immediate elections were not the answer.

"There is a clear threat that if we hold elections too soon, with the mood running as high in terms of divisions and in terms of tension, elections would turn violent and they would solve nothing and we could be back into this vicious cycle of demonstrations."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8648109.stm

He's probably right about that. So what's taking him so long to (re)start this political solution?? Never mind which side (or no side) you support, Abhisit is failing miserably as a leader. (or even as the establishment's spokesperson).

More blood on the Red's hands.

Your sumit else mate

the guy shot in the head was by friendly fire let me spell that out for you

that means he was shot by his own men not red shirts

And of course, you have a source and evidence for that statement....

BBC is reporting it friendly fire CNN is reporting it friendly fire only the Nation is not being clear on it

Right.. This yet again shows how dangerous it is to rely on biased media. Accurate information is crucial, intentional misinformation can be deadly.

It's just sad that people refuse to inform themselves properly, then make statements that are hateful.

- All the city parks suck. (Trash, stray dogs & riff raff)

+ Ang Kaew @ CMU is good, perhaps also the area around the Sala Daeng. (Ang Kaew is nicer and cooler though)

+ Horizon Resort on the Doi Saket Road is great (though not free)

+ The waterfall up Doi Suthep mountain (the one you pay for, the free ones are full of riff raff again)

+ Ob Khan is indeed nice but quite a drive away.

+ Some areas near the Night Safari, where there's deer etc. (Not including the Royal Flora, unless you like scorching hot cement 'gardens'.)

+ Some other resorts on the Samoeng Road, both Mae Rim side and Hang Dong side.

It's open again.

Yeah, I'm off to Patters. Join?

I am *SO* looking forward to being the only tourist misbehaving in Pattaya next week, without the usual British crowd!

And my trip is essential, needless to say.

That,s a very significant move as anyone now traveling to any part of LOS will no longer be covered by the vast majority of travel insurance policies for any loss or mishap

Is this actually true? I hear it touted around a lot, but if an insurance company sells you insurance for a particular place then surely they should cover you? Any first-hand experiences out there, or someone working in the insurance industry?

You are in a lucky situation Winnie and Bob offers a simple solution, if your stream is above your house, then you could simply run it with gravity.......but condensation problems??

Approximately what elevation [altitude] is the land?? If 800+mtrs, then you shouldn't need to worry about cooling your house.

The stream is indeed slightly higher, but this poses a problem as well of course (potential for flooding) so at least the main living area of the house should be well above the water line.. So then even if you pipe water in, it also has to go out again; can't just have it turn all the land into a rice paddy. (Or, maybe I can, I dunno..)

The land is close-ish to mountains but not actually high elevation. We looked at higher elevations as well, but I'd be a little worried about things like mud slides. Plus ownership tends to be trickier; (Thai) villages tend to be in flat valley type areas, and that's where the land with proper papers (Chanote or NS3) tends to be. And then there's issues like electricity.. All in all it sounds great to live in the mountains, but there are some risks and practicalities to consider. So we chose to get land near mountains, not actually on them. Don't let that stop you of course, and to be honest part of me is also is still dreaming about that living room that completely opens on one side towards a magnificent view of the valley below it..