grandpops

I believe it was Taksin that started the crackdown on bar trading hours. That if nothing else would explain his unpopularity on TV. As for the corruption etc anyone who has been here a while knows that was SOP for any government and had nothing to do with his ousting.

His drug crackdown is also cited as why he should have gone. Both my ex wife and girlfriend claim that the drug problem was better under control in those days and the streets safer. Personally don't have answers for that.

Right about the bar hours and also he made the first move to tighten up Visa on Arrival and work permits. They needed tightening up and it was a scandal how bars were allowed open round the clock and girls made to man them and pole dance etc. Cleaned that up and it needed it.

Lot of shady falangs hate him for reasons that make him acceptable to most ordinary folk here.

I'm a first time poster here, but I am not a troll. No, seriously. Really. Honest.

I've been in Thailand for only a couple of weeks, so I don't yet know anything about what the heck is going on here.

None of the news reports are documenting the differences between the PPP and PAD party platforms and that just seems weird.

I am leaning towards the PPP for two reasons:

1. The PAD proposal to select legislators based upon their current occupations seems to be a couple thousand years behind the times. In today's dynamic free market economies, people change careers (not just jobs) four to six times during their lives. This proposal makes the PAD appear to be quite "unsophisticated" politically.
   
2. Street violence is another less than endearing quality for a political party. Does anyone really want to give power to a bugs of street thugs?
   

On the flip side though, Thaksin really was convicted and his trial appears to have been at least reasonably fair. But, technically, he's not in power now.

As an outsider, it seems as if this conflict has no ideological basis. How do the PPP and PAD differ ideologically? How would they govern the country differently? Is there any real difference between the two?

Is this conflict just a personal squabble between Thaksin and Limthongkul? If not, what is this conflict about?

OK, I'll be the one to say it.

THE PAD IS NOT A POLITICAL PARTY!.

Please digest.

WOW at last somebody tells it like it is.

So what the hel_l are they doing in politics if they are not interested in Politics.

Spoiling, sniping and annoying thats what they are.

Besieged?! It's being PROTECTED from the same type of mob rule that's rife in Bangkok.

Well said, Winnie. My thoughts exactly....they are there to keep the airport open, not to close it. Only a PAD zombie couldn't tell the difference.

Protection is in the eye of the beholder.

The head Sheep and Leading Pinhead Against Democracy goon is spitting furiously. The AOT director has upset him and now Somchai is going to Chaing Mai and the goon squad cannot get there before him! Can somebody on the PAD stage not give him some tranquilisers, he is going to have a fit.

I wonder is ASTV will be showing the arrival of the ELECTED PM at Chaing Mai (Democratic Seat of Power in Thailand since Bangkok was over run) airport.

Still waiting for the PAD answer.

Did anybody see if this was put to the General. I was out and missed most of it.

Did he have a view on whether PAD should stand?

grandpops, PPP know nothing about fair elections either, I think its safe to say one is the pot, and one is the kettle, and yes you got it, they are both black......

You are right there. What I am saying though is that PPP partake in the elections and PAD don't. They just snipe and try to overturn them. The only hand PAD would have in an election is to try and get PPP thrown out of it! I reiterate, if PPP could have stood as TRT in the last election they would have won it hands down.

Democracy entails having to accept some things and some people you don't like. I hated Thaksin as PM and most of his policies, but he was elected. I was quite hopeful when he was ousted that a Democrat Government could be elected and things take a more concilliatory turn. Didn't happen though.

Can't please all the people all the time and we cannot expect to be delighted with every move or indeed every Government.

Still waiting for JD and co for the Should they Stand. Think Cougar 52 is waiting as well.

Come on, dont be shy Should PAD stand and what policies should they stand on!

This means forming opinion rather than sniping and knocking and splurging propaganda:D

My wife was watching and moved to Chanel 31 (PAD) and the spokesman on the stage said PAD disagrees with the Generals suggestion, and will not stop.

So, PLEASE all you PAD supporters in the know, please let us all know what they really want????

I personnaly hope they told the truth, because, I think this General has a little more power than they do.

You'll be lucky. I am waiting to see if they are going to answer my questions about PAD standing as a party.

The guy is a megalomaniac and wants different things at different times of the day.

I'll wait with you for some positive views from PAD but its not going to happen. I bet you they all start along the lines "The PAD don't want power" "The PAD want something better for the country etc.

Lets hold breath now.

Lucky Thailand still has a strong leader in Thaksin waiting in the wings. A leader whose popularity just increased 10 fold with this blancmanges appearance on Thai TV.

Are you saying that you would prefer Thaksin to come back and lead? Is it then correct to label you pro-Thaksin?

Well he should come back not pass go, and go straight to jail.

He has been duly convicted in a court of law for abuse of power and sentenced to 2 years!

Give it a rest.

Don't forget who appointed that court of law and why they appointed that court of law and how ineffective that court of law is in the face of an armed mob at an airport. Sorry to spell it out, but you appear to have missed it so often in your 1000000000000000000 posts supporting PAD

Ok Then JD, are the PAD going to stand?

Should they?

You and they will find that its easier to sit on the sidelines and snipe constantly than get involved positively and try and achieve anything, anything at all good or bad!

Lets here it for the PAD party, anybody second that? Who is going to be assistant PM to Sondhi, treasury etc. What policies? More clapping, more bleating, more wild goose chases?

Lets see what the public really think of PAD V Thaksin with all his criminal convictions, all his flaws, his high handedness he would wipe the floor with them.

Thats why PAD want the Goveernment to resign first. Then they will riot until the Courts Ban anybody from office for life that may beat them or their chosen ones in an election.

Believe me, PAD have no intention of a fair election taking place. None whatsoever.

I've just come back from Chiang Mai airport and it is a sea of red shirts and BIB at the entrance to the airport. Cars and other vehicles entering the airport are being closely scrutinised by the pro-government supporters. I saw more than a handful of protesters armed with sticks, clubs, poles and pieces of wood.

Anyone heading to the airport be aware that they will have to pass through two lines of pro-government supporters. The traffic is fairly heavy as well.

Can this thread be moved to the main news clippings section. Or are the shirts the wrong colour

This is going to be a critical area and perhaps the seat of Government or Government meetings.

Terrorists wins then...

If this is confirmed, I will never invest one more baht in this country...

They just confirmed officially their status of 3rd world, banana republic country.

Sad day indeed.

Did you hear the fat lady sing... Neither did I and this has miles and miles to run.

There will be frantic work behind the scenes to remove this General and now there will be massive public support for his removal.

Remember they were the ones who put in place an electoral system of courts and checks and balances

to ensure that TRT/PPP never got a whiff of power again. How well they did with that!

PAD lovers. Did the good general not mention that PAD can stand in these elections? I think if you check the charter they can.

Its also a masterstroke on his part to screw the season even more. Three months of campaining and shootings, then two or three weekends of bar closures in high season. Masterstroke, by this rate we will all be on the bones of our asses by xmas.

Very quiet from the reds still.... too quiet mark my words.

The amicable solution is to elect a new government? As if there any question as to which side the army is on. This country is helpless.

A mob of a few thousand brings the Thai army to its knees.

If the Army want to call the shots, let them stage a coup. Do it properly or butt out of electoral issues. Stick to shooting and torturing Lao and Burmese immigrants.

Lucky Thailand still has a strong leader in Thaksin waiting in the wings. A leader whose popularity just increased 10 fold with this blancmanges appearance on Thai TV.

Can't act, won't act.

I think it is rather the time to really care .... if not this country will get down to its knees and the famous 'dark influence' take over and definitely ruin what was (or still is ?) a wonderful country ...

I agree.

Time the Thais realised that this is not a reality show out there and their lives are going to be a lot harder if democracy is done to death again.

Most Thais live in the istant and this is the problem. The massive loss of Tourist revenue is not going to be felt today and is therefore not a problem for them. By the time it hits them in the pockets it could be too late to respond.

Come on Thailand, show us you are better and smarter than many on TV would have us believe.

I'll always care and I think most of us feel the same.

Group Capt. Chokchai Saranon, a control tower official, said 50 masked protesters armed with metal rods demanded to enter the control tower Wednesday, seeking the prime minister's flight schedule. Three were allowed in, but with flights canceled, there were no controllers to provide the information and the protesters eventually left. In any case, Somchai was to land later Wednesday at a separate, military airport. AP Yahoo news.

The CNN video footage they are showing looks like what it is.

A brutal and sustained beating of one man by around 25 people.

25 people beating a single man? What event are you talking about? Do you even know how many 25 people is? In language so you understand it; it's the number your fingers on both hand, toes on both feet and the fingers on the hand touching you for money amass to.

Did they stand in line waiting for their turn? Or shoulder to shoulder in a big ring? Throwing rocks since he would be far away one would presume...

If you watch it you will see there are probably more than 100 people trying to attack this man. I now it hurts to see your beloved PAD behaving like this but if you could just do us a tiny favour and watch one minutes TV that is not from ASTV You may actually learn something.

oops wrong one Its a bit slow but it does show them for what they are... A bunch of out of control mad people!

Please watch it before you bother us with another ill informed ramble.

We will always care about and love this country. For many of us we have families here and our children are the future or Thailand and don't have the option to "go home" as this is their/our home.

The Nation appears to be moving away from being Sondhi's mouthpiece to a more neutral position. One which a respectable paper would have taken from the start.

Lets hope its catching.

The CNN video footage they are showing looks like what it is.

A brutal and sustained beating of one man by around 25 people. With all manner or yellow shirted idiots and masked men helping in this heroic struggle against one unarmed man!

Some muppet blowing a whistle throughout it.

At least when the dust settles, there is plenty of evidence to convict them. Lets see if these "New Courts" really do have the balls to judge!

Heard a lot about the legal system clamping down on Tax evasion. Lets see where it stands on guns in the street, raids on airports and the masive financial losses we are facing.

Hope these big business backers have overseas interests, then when we know who they are we can start chasing some compensation for ruined holidays, ruined business etc.

Sustained beating, get off it will you!

Sure what the PAD is are doing is wrong but stop sensationalising the situation to suit yourself.

We have a legal system that is obsessed with a bit of outstanding Tax while all else falls around their ears. And lets be clear about this. Any outstanding tax from the Thaksins is a drop in the ocean to what the country has lost this past 24 hours due to these muppets.

They were put in place to deal with Thaksin and everything else is a complete mystery to them and they are not independent. They are idle because they only act when they are told to.

Another nail in the coffin for the appointment system is this.

The picture of two PAD supporters trying to slash the throat of a man is getting quite an airing as well round the world. They really did try to kill him and one on the right seems to have stopped him being killed by pointing out the camera. Lovely people the PAD, lovely people.

I know you don't want to see it but its here if you decide to turn away from ASTV once in a while. With the ones of them driving cars into police lines etc from last month.

The CNN video footage they are showing looks like what it is.

A brutal and sustained beating of one man by around 25 people. With all manner or yellow shirted idiots and masked men helping in this heroic struggle against one unarmed man!

Some muppet blowing a whistle throughout it.

At least when the dust settles, there is plenty of evidence to convict them. Lets see if these "New Courts" really do have the balls to judge!

Heard a lot about the legal system clamping down on Tax evasion. Lets see where it stands on guns in the street, raids on airports, treason, sedition, rioting, mob beatings. You know, crimes committed by people other that Thaksin. What about the masive financial losses we are facing while these appointed Senior Judges stand by bleating about Tax Law.

Hope these big business backers have overseas interests, then when we know who they are we can start chasing some compensation for ruined holidays, ruined business etc.

House meeting to be held 1:30 pm: Chai

House Speaker Chai Chidchob said the House of Representatives will hold its weekly meeting at 1:30 pm Wednesday.

At 9:40 am Wednesday, no protesters rally outside Parliament.

The House is scheduled to deliberate several bills, mostly related to local administrations.

Source: The Nation - 26 November 2008

Big test for the Army protecting Elected Governemts from rioting grannies. Sure the Cambodians will be watching this.

There was talk of the a Cambodian Boy Scouts bridage clearing the Thai army out of the disputed border area near Prah Vihar Temple and pushing them back possibly as far as the Burmese Boarder!.... By teatime!

Ging gang goolie!

Latest update AP on Yahoo.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081126/ap_on_...4CWSkovIZZvaA8F

Demonstrators — some masked and armed with metal rods — had swarmed the international airport overnight, breaking through police lines and spilling into the passenger terminal.

"Our main concern is to get the first flight home and never come back," said newlywed Robert Grieve, 32,

Support for the alliance has been waning in recent weeks, and the group appeared to be edging toward bigger confrontations — involving fewer though more aggressive followers — in hopes of creating chaos.

"Now, they are openly creating instability and provoking a military coup," said Thitinan Pongsidhirak, a political scientist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University.

The anti-government protesters are mostly better educated, more affluent, urban Thais demanding that the country move away from a Western-style electoral system, which they say Thaksin exploited to buy votes. They instead favor a system in which some representatives are chosen by certain professions and social groups. They are vastly outnumbered by Thaksin's supporters in the rural majority

I don't see how you can call the PAD liberal and lefties--there direction seems to be down--not left.

Maybe they are the Thai version of the Raving Looney Party?

Well raving as well.

Just to clarify the point though.

I am saying the PAD is an Ultra Nationalist Right Wing, elitist, non-elected, un-accountable cult.

It is however, gaining support from many on the left who have missed or ignored the core beliefs of this group. These, (the misguided leftist followers of PAD) see it as some sort of peoples revolution which it certainly is not.

Anyway, the PAD cannot even govern their little mob of 20 odd thousand. How would they cope with 70 million people to govern.

More and more attacks/bombs:

Breakingnews - The Nation -

3 injured in bomb, gun attacks against taxi community radio station

Published on November 26, 2008;November 26, 2008 : Last updated 07:21 am

Two men were injured by bomb shrapnel and one was shot when a group of men hurled two bombs and fired at the 92.75 community radio station for taxi drivers.

Police said the attack happened at 4:30 am.

The station was located inside Vibhavadi Rangsit Soi 3 where dozens of guards of the People's Alliance for Democracy attacked taxi drivers Tuesday evening.

A taxi driver, who identified himself as Watcharin, said he and friends were standing at the mouth of the soi and suddenly heard two explosions and the assailants also opened fire at them.

The injured were rushed to the Rajvithi Hospital.

- The Nation

LaoPo

How dare they not support the PAD. Much much more of this to come if these headcases are not rounded and dealt with.

Right wing coup gonna not look nice in the light of the day to all the liberals and lefties who think its a peoples revolution.

It's the poor that is going to loose here.

Probably been said before but a note to all the hard line PAD haters etc out there as well as the hard line red shirts - faction fighting happens at many demonstrations. What happened today between yellow and red at Vipawadi was either a set up or faction male thugs (from both sides) venting anger for the sake of it, male thugs with low educational levels at that

Plenty of girls and ladies there as well Mssssssssssssssssss I'm afraid.

Its a right wing coup in place and is it ever going to cost Thailand dear.

Remember we had a real coup and it achieved absolutely nothing whatsoever positive and didn't even get rid of Thaksin and TRT which was its main goal.

This coup will fail more spectatucarly then maybe the Army and the big bangkok backers will realise that democracy sometimes being on the side of the losing party.

I really hope it hurts them so much they never think of doing it again in their lifetimes. The good thing about this chaos is it is that the rich will bear the brunt of it. The poor are already poor!

The police and Government have worldwide justification now to sort this rabble out. Any resulting coup is going to lead to world wide sanctions against and PAD led/supported Junta.

I know you have not really followed this grandpops but there were no significant sanctions after the last coup other than the US not selling weapons.

The current government could stop a coup right now by dissolving parliament and calling new elections. That won't be overlooked. The fact that PPP put Thaksin's Brother-in-Law into office certainly has not been overlooked nor has Thaksin's conviction in a court of law in Thailand that he said before he respected and trusted nor has his running from justice.

I bet there are celebrations in the streets in Phuket tonight!

There will also be the usual sanctions against free speech if they get in. Did you remember the post coup regime on here... Thought not.

We always celebrate in Phuket.... always

government in "full control"...

PAD closes Suvarnabhumi

The Suvarnabhumi Airport has been ordered closed after PAD protesters seized key entrance and other areas.

The Airports of Thailand has decided to close the Suvarnabhumi airport after PAD protesters entered passenger terminals.

Now, there will not be out-bound flights. In-bound planes are being allowed to land for now, but can be diverted to key provincial airports if situations deteriorated.

The order was issued by AOT chief Serirat Prasutanont. He made the decision after PAD protesters penetrated some passenger areas.

- The Nation

Lets hope this will finally be the "click" for police and government to crush this mob once and for all. This comedy as lasted long enough.

Just give the PAD a bit more rope, just let em seriously piss off a few more people then that will be it.

The police and Government have worldwide justification now to sort this rabble out. Any resulting coup is going to lead to world wide sanctions against and PAD led/supported Junta.

Yes guys its Thaksin or Junta so thank Sondhi for that!

Look forward to hearing from some falangs about how they have supported PAD in ruining our high season. Not too loud out there boys, not too loud.

© ITN 2008

Thai anti-government protesters have opened fire on a group of government supporters.

TV footage showed at least two security guards from the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) firing at least half a dozen rounds from handguns at the government supporters.

It was the latest twist in an increasingly desperate six-month campaign by the PAD to unseat the elected administration.

The protesters surrounded Bangkok's old Don Muang airport, north of the city, where ministers have been running the country since the PAD invaded Government House in August.

In a speech to 10,000 yellow-shirted supporters, PAD leader Somsak Kosaisuk said: "It is time to make a clear-cut choice between good and evil, between those who are loyal and traitors."

Domestic flights were operating as usual from Don Muang, and there was no disruption to road or rail services despite a strike called by state sector unions in support of the PAD.

Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat has rejected PAD demands that he should resign.

PAD billed this week's action as the "final battle", but these latest protests are unlikely to deliver a knock-out blow to the People Power Party (PPP) government.

Opinion polls show waning public support for the unelected coalition of royalist businessmen, academics and activists who accuse Mr Somchai of being a puppet of his brother-in-law, Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted as prime minister by the military in 2006.

Some analysts say the PAD's powerful backers in the Bangkok establishment are getting cold feet about the damage the political strife is inflicting on the economy.

"The people who've been backing PAD in the background have got frightened that it's getting out of control. It's a threat to public order and even the structure of the state itself," historian and political analyst Chris Baker said.

PAD enjoys the backing of Bangkok's urban middle classes and elite.

Mr Thaksin and the government claim their support from the rural voters who returned the PPP to power in a December election.

Sorry to shock you there, but most of the rest of the world see this as an attempted coup against an elected Government. An unelected body ousted him 2 years ago and rigged the election and the courts and disolved his party and banned his supporters from gathering or protesting in Bangkok.

Actually the rest of the world see Thaksin as Yet Another Tin Pot Asian Despot.

Yes, but a harmless one and Tin Pot implies that. He was also, and I'll put it in big words for you an elected one. Elected even though in proxy, despite all the hurdles and laws put in place to prevent him from being.