spidermike007

I am told that the Russian mob is becoming more and more influential in Thailand. Some have told me they are edging out the local mobs in Pattaya and Phuket. This may be a form of government protectionism. Let's protect the local rackets. The Russian mobs are far more organized, and far more efficient. Of course the leaders are more intelligent too. More cunning. More calculating. Educated. Is one any worse than the other, for the average foreigner to deal with?

Lost his hand... ********uck!!!!

So they've gone up from guns to bombs. Brilliant.

...and that is happening in a peace loving, "smiling" Buddhist country.

A statement like that, is beyond simplistic. It is childish in it's naivety. Surely Thailand has less violent crime than most countries. We are all watching with concern, as there are more and more incidents like this one. It appears that the youth culture is alot less peaceful than their parents. Of course one could argue that this is a worldwide phenomenon. Drugs may be part of the problem. What does Buddhism have to do with it? Because a country is Buddhist, the people are supposed to be the embodiment of perfection? What kind of foolishness is this? Where does a statement like that come from? Do you hate Buddhists? I have found the vast majority of them to be delightful people. Do you hold Christians to the same standard? They are peace loving people. So they have some criminals, and some hooligans. Does that implicate the entire population? Please consider your words before defiling an entire people with silly chatter.

From what I hear the Russian mob has taken over most of the Pattaya operations. They have decimated alot of the smaller operations run by tow bit Thai thugs. Hooray for them. Is this true? If so, can they be appealed to, to get rid of the Thai operators? Do they care? Any thoughts on this?

Indian and Phillapinos ? You ever noticed the heavy , over-riding accents these people have ? They are being considered to teach English , let the people pray it is understandable spoken English .

Your statements betrays great ignorance. Both Indians and Phillipinos speak excellent english. Why do you think most of the world's call centers are located there? Of course they have an accent. Just because you are unable to understand people with accents, does not mean they do not speak great english. I have been to both countries, and I can tell you from experience the amount of people with great english skills is a pure delight. Thailand could greatly benefit from this kind of language skill. Get your facts straight, please.

Piyaman Techapaiboon, president of the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) is living on another planet, if she is sincere in saying next week things will be back to normal. There are thousands of tourists stranded on Samui right now, during the wettest season on record. If this potentially well meaning, but severely ill equipped for the job woman really thinks things will be back to normal next week, she should be fired immediately. It is an insult to the people who have lost their homes, their farms, and are on the verge of losing their livelihoods, that she would make such a callous, ignorant, and uninformed statement. This is a historic event, and making light of it benefits no one involved. What a foolish, and simpleminded thing to say. How long is it going to take to clean this up? How long until people forget about the vacation they spent thousands of dollars on, only to sit around for days in their hotel rooms, without electricity, and with the streets so flooded, the only way to get around is with a jet ski, or a boat?

Does anyone know about the legal status of sea gypsies? Do they hold the land titles?

I mean the main problem of course is that Phuket, Samui, and other islands are run by the Mafia. That's the root cause of all these issues, and that's what would need to be solved. As long as gangsters are in charge, you can't expect it to get better. If the government can't even defeat the tuk tuk and taxi mafia there - what hope is there?

This is a good point. It does not even appear that the government is making a tiny effort to defeat the taxi mafia, or the other mafias such as the jet ski mafia, the property mafia, the bar mafia (every bar in samui now charges 150 baht for a lady drink!). If they would make the least bit of effort, it would be encouraging to all of us. Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, and China are making huge efforts to fight corruption, and are trying and convicting high ranking officials, and corporate CEO's on a nearly daily basis, and Thailand is sleeping on the job. They will get left behind, if nothing is done. 20 years from now Thailand could really work it's way down the rung of Asian nations.

Entertaining article and I feel for the people being forced off the land they have come to call their own but is it any surprise to any one that life is tougher outside Western First World nations. Poor working conditions, long hours and low pay ... is that the reason why so many people want to go to places like the US and UK as well as providing people from the US and UK a cheap tourist destination while being able to stay at first rate hotels at rock bottom prices.

There is nothing "rock bottom" about Thailand prices these days. Maybe sometime in the past, but things have changed. Mind you, it is still reasonable, but a statement like rock bottom is simply ridiculous. Please do your research. Yes, labor costs here are low. But prices have gone up on everything, and while it is still reasonable here, by western standards, the days of rock bottom are gone.

When I see statements like this, especially from someone who should know better, I merely shake my head and laugh. To me it really doesn't matter if his statement is just something personal, or whether it resonates throughout the Thai mentality.

I live here because I choose to. I have a better life here than I could back in the U.S., and for the most part I truly like the Thai people and get along well with them, with only 1 exception coming to mind. I have a wonderful wife whose entire family has whole-heartedly accepted me, love me, and most importantly, respect me. No one thinks of me as any type of "walking ATM", and only once has a family member asked to borrow money, and that was when she was in Ubon and needed to get back to Chiang Mai as fast as possible because her father was deathly ill. Two months later she repaid the money, even though I made it clear to her at the time that she didn't need to.

Yes, there are attitudes and beliefs in Thailand that could, and sometimes do, boggle the mind if you let them, but for the most part I simply shrug them off and go about my life, enjoying myself and what I have.

I am far from blind to the many problems of Thailand, from the attitude of superiority over others, to the corruption that has filled every nook and cranny of Thai society, to the lack of acceptance of blame for anything that goes wrong, and the soul quaking fear that they might have to actually apologize for anything, thereby losing face. I am also well aware of the fact that their educational system is a total joke and would be one of the first things I would change – IF I had the power and authority to do so.

But I also know that nothing I (or any other non-Thai) say or do is going to make one iota of difference in this country. What would it take to make the Thai wake up to the "real world" and change their attitudes? Major, foreign owned companies pulling out, for starters, followed by ALL foreigners packing up and taking their money with them. Follow that with a boycott on Thai exports, and all travel agencies putting Thailand on a "Do not visit" list. Only then, when their economy totally and completely crashes, and there are Egyptian, Tunisian and Libyan type "revolutions" will this country wake up and smell the coffee.

Unfortunately, none of the above will ever happen, which means that Thailand will continue to be Thailand. Well, the revolutions against the corrupt government could happen, but with the 'mai pen rai' attitude so deeply embedded in the general population, I don't see it as a reality.

So, I live my life each day as best as I can, doing the things I want and like to do, well aware of what my "limitations" are as a "guest" of this country, and simply laugh at the xenophobic racism, and outright stupidity that I see exhibited so much of the time by the so-called leaders of this country.

Very, very well spoken. The words of a truly wise man. Thank you for your perspective.

Suthep's comments might seem a bit harsh and inappropriate (they are!), but if you ask any Thai - who isn't an ardent red shirt - how they feel about foreign election monitors, you'll probably get a similar response!

I read it as, he said that he didn't respect westerners. Period. Suppose it could be the interpretation?

jb1

Just a ridiculous statement, spoken by a fabulously ignorant man. Do you think Abhisit would ever utter such nonsense? Who is he appealing to anyway? What a goon. I suspect the central government has alot of goons. I am certain he is not the only clown.

bless them, bangkok is becoming like manchester. everything that came up they were there 'can we have it' trying to make the dreary shithole bearable, even trying to get the olympics

What next for bangkok I wonder?? a new hub? a new centre? a new capital of something or other?

Anybody who considers Bangkok a shithole has either been in thailand too long, is very badly constipated, or has horrific perspective in general. It is one of the great cities of the world. What is not to like about Bangkok? It has some of the most pleasant people of any major capital, anywhere in the world.

Vorawat is an absolute fool. The red shirts are ultimately to blame. The reality is that the demonstration completely got away from them. They lost control. They should be made to pay. But, the government should have had police posted in front of all of the major malls during that time, with a shoot to maim order, regarding any arsonists, or looters. And ultimately the responsibility lies with the owners of Central World. Why on earth would you not have armed guards, standing in front of the mall, during these days? Why would you not want to protect your billion dollar asset? That just does not make any sense to me.

The police were usless aganist the Red Shirts why did they think they would be any better aganist the Yellows.

Wrong! The police destroyed the Red Shirts and shot them dead. However, the police did NOTHING and the government did NOTHING to the yellows when they took over the airport.

destroyed the red shirts?

i wish.

if they had done so there would not have been 30,000 of them protesting this weekend.........

Wow, no shortage of right-wing haters of the peasantry here, ey? If you were in Wisconsin you would be on the wrong side too, no doubt, calling for the imprisonment, beating, whatever of the people as they stand up to government oppression.

It really sickens me when farangs throw their lot in the with opressive, racist Thai elite and give their blessings to oppression of the poor in Thailand. Goody for you, you're an agent against change in the world.

Wow, the degree of your ignorance is extraordinary. Do you honestly think this is a people's movement? Do you really believe this is a grass roots uprising against the elite? If you do, I could offer you the Brooklyn Bridge, with 1,000 acres of surrounding land, for only a 100,000 baht deposit. The red shirts were never about seizing the power from the Elite. It was always about finding a way for Thaksin to regain power. He bought the allegiance of these poor peasants you refer to. Be has been desperately trying to regain the power he never in a million years thought he would lose. Had he been willing to pay the taxes on the Shin sale, he may still be in power today. He is depending on gullible people like you, to regain power. He is about as noble as Gaddafi, Chavez, Kim Jung IL, and the Castro brothers.

Well, here is my (ill-informed) take on all this.

It's probably true that tourist numbers have increased, but it's the wrong type of tourist. It's common knowledge that TAT has been targeting Asians to come and visit Thailand, but that does not necessarily lead to increased revenues in the tourism sector. Some Asian nationalities are well-known for haggling a hard bargain, and others, such as Chinese and Korean tourists, purchase fully-inclusive package holidays to Thailand, where even the tour guides are flown in from the home country. So it's hard for local Thai tourist businesses to increase their re venues from these visitor sectors.

Why is my hotel fully booked? Probably because I strive to avoid reliance on local Thai businesses to secure my hotel revenues. I think 98% of my guest bookings are made online by overseas booking agents, because I've learned from bitter experience not to use local Thai inbound operators, (with the exception of Sawadee, who provide an excellent service, and is owned by a French man). I found that local agents often failed to pay for bookings, canceled bookings at the last minute, or tried to obtain contract room-rates which would leave me with little profit. At least with the international booking agents, I know what % commission I need to pay.

Many Thai businesses fail miserably in the IT/online department! They fail to answer emails, their web site is either non-existent or has dead links, or is full of viruses and trojans. I do not have the time nor interest to deal with any company who displays such incompetence.

I've tried to meet the needs of the tourists who visit Phuket. So my hotel web site is available in Chinese, Korean, Russian (and 5 more languages coming online), plus instant online booking and payment via Paypal or Thaiepay. I'm currently installing facilities for Muslim customers (ie which direction is Mecca etc?)

Sometimes I think many Thai tourist businesses are still in the wrong century. Customers want to see the offer, book and pay for it - all online and within a few minutes. These businesses have a lot to learn about being proactive, marketing and customer service.

Simon

That is fascinating information. Yes, I too feel that Thailand is way behind the curve when it comes to the internet. My Thai friends have never even heard of online shopping, and do not even consider that an option. And I rarely get a response to an online inquiry or letter in Thailand. One exception was homepro. I wrote them a complaint on their website, and they not only responded, they resolved the problem quickly. Very impressive.

Is that really correct...6000 baht one way ecomy BKK-Samui!!!!!

When they invested in the new airport terminals it should have been clear to all that they had obviously been guaranteed a free hand to charge what they want for as long as they want or they would'nt have invested the money in the first place.

That said, even i am astonished that they would charge that much. Totally outrageous. Its like they are constantly testing the water to see just how high they can up the prices. Turning into a nightmare for the island.

Yes, they are attempting to become an airline only for millionaires. Nobody seems to care, and nobody seems to have the courage to do anything. Makes you wonder who really controls this airline. There are alot of rumors floating around, but it seems someone too high to touch.

I am pretty sure that when Bangkok Airways originally invested a massive amount of money to build a commercial airport on Samui a lot of people were very happy, you could even attribute a large part of Samui's growth (wanted or wanted) to Bangkok Airways. They took the chance and it eventually paid for them, now they may seem overpriced, thats called business or reaping the rewards of the initial investment.

this line of thinking has been quoted so often i wish i had a baht for everytime i heard it, the problem is that bkk airs deserving or not profits are negativly affecting the residents of the island. when a public or private company begins being a burden on the well being of the general population then it is time to change a few rules and give that company a reality check. I have long been saying that a price of 1,000 to 1,500 baht to bkk is a reasonable price. thoink about the residence with children, samu has no real parks or culture centres for the kids, if the bkk prices were jjst a tad lower quick flight to bkk would become more frequent and affordable, why does phuket have the leg up on samui? not the beaches, nor hotels but affordable air tickets make all the difference.

Yes, and law enforcement. They have only "toy police" on Samui. No law enforcement whatsoever. They are revenue collection agents, posing as law enforcement agents. The mayor is very weak, and ineffectual, the road improvement project has been stalled for two years, even though the central government has already allocated the funds, there is no real mall like Phuket has, Shall I go on? I love Samui, but it has alot of issues that NOBODY is addressing.

Well, we shall see if this "letter" means anything. It is easy for the mayor to write a letter, thinking it may appease this blogger. But, is the mayor interested in resolving this problem that has been plaguing Pattaya for so long. And since the problem also extends to Samui, and Phuket why is the government so indifferent to it? A fareng complaints site may be effective. Sometimes I think the only thing that many Thais would respond to is the potential loss of face caused by severe embarrassment.

Who cares? Bulldozers and APV's work.... So does water canon. There is simply no need for protests now. Reflect your displeasure in a 'vote'.

This is absolutely correct. The authorities need to do everything in their power to reduce, or eliminate the protests. They are totally unproductive, and are products of the delusional mind of Saikuar and his cohorts, and the deposed despot wannabe leader, and his ill gotten billions. Keep them off the street. Lock up the leaders, and keep them in prison, after a trial. Do what you have to do, but keep them off the street, for the sake of this nation, and it's future.

30,000x1500 Bht or maybe its more or less this time? They even set up stalls to make more money here and go shopping around the city. Demonstration for a principle or belief? NO, the real Thai Belief I think.is .... $$$

This demonstration must be stopped at ALL COSTS. Whether it is imprisoning the leaders, or calling out the army, whatever it takes. If these continue, kiss the tourism industry goodbye. It is just recovering now, but not back

to it's former levels. One cannot believe the TAT, at they are not a reliable source for information on tourist arrivals. Abhisit needs to show his mettle, and take care of this immediately.

If they started jailing the drivers for negligence, fining them 1,000,000 baht per incidence, and fining the companies, this situation might improve. Also, suspending their permits, or licenses for five year might help. In other words, some sort of law enforcement in this land of little law enforcement. Do anything, but do not do nothing, unless you want these kinds of incidents to continue. My heart goes out to the Thai families involved. Seems as if the government continues to feel as if the common folks lives are not of great value?

Don't go after the poor drivers, go after the owners/operators.

Well the owner, operators bear some blame, but so do the drivers. Falling asleep at the wheel, with 40-50 people on board is inexcusable, and bears some punishment. In my opinion severe punishment.

499baht...but after taxes its 7980baht ONE WAY !!!!!! I can fly to Singapore and back for that price.

I wonder if we need to check in 3 hours prior to departure for the 4min30sec flight.

The two major Thai airlines, both Thai and Bangkok Air are completely out of touch with reality on pricing. It is no wonder they fly with so many empty seats.

One more time , a bus with people inside ..... everything have been said about rules , drivers knowledge in people transport etc maybe excessive speed also ...... Now it seems that everyday accidents happen . a real shame .... and of course nothing will be done to avoid this.

Yes, as sad as the accident is, the saddest part is that Thailand will not learn from the accident about safety regulations about training bus drivers and limiting the time they can drive without a required rest period.

If they started jailing the drivers for negligence, fining them 1,000,000 baht per incidence, and fining the companies, this situation might improve. Also, suspending their permits, or licenses for five year might help. In other words, some sort of law enforcement in this land of little law enforcement. Do anything, but do not do nothing, unless you want these kinds of incidents to continue. My heart goes out to the Thai families involved. Seems as if the government continues to feel as if the common folks lives are not of great value?

A coincidence.

Interesting documentary on History channel the other day titled "Race and Intelligence".

Well one hates to make general conclusions. But, if you look at the record, how many Thais have won Nobel peace prizes? How many have made major scientific breakthroughs? How many have dramatically changed the face of biology, astronomy, rocket science, botany, or neuroscience? While many Thai people are relatively intelligent, it does not appear as if the country is heavily populated with geniuses.

Cover up or no cover up, there is no way would I ever stay at the Doomtown Downtown Inn.

The place should be officially closed down until a positive convincing report has been published regarding these suspicious deaths.

Any civilized nation would shut this place down in a nanosecond. In the US it would be crawling with FBI, and forensic teams, and the license to operate would be suspended until further notice. Here, it is as if nothing ever happened. But, the "toy police" are not really capable of investigating this properly in Thailand anyway, so not trying is a convenient way of skirting the real issue, and that is training, funding, support, and all of the other necessities of real law enforcement.

Strange, why can Saudi do what China and Libya etc can not without violating "human rights"?

What do you say?

Tiger

They don't.

There are no "human rights" issues then the country produces huge amount of oil. It is that simple. The US (I am American) sold it's soul to the Saudis a long, long time ago. All in the name of cheap oil (once upon a time). We stand up the them very, very little, even though they are on of the most despotic, corrupt, and hypocritical regimes ever seen during our lifetimes. The royal family is not exactly a beacon of progress, and everyone knows where the troublemakers get most of their funding, despite what these goons say in public. Another reason for alternative energy? I drive a motor scooter, and every time I fill up the tank, and spend my 150 baht, to drive the next 200km, I feel like I am sticking my foot all the way up Abdullah's ass. It is a very, very nice feeling.

Oh no, surely most people fly Bangkok Airways to Koh Samui, because they love the airline ? Just look at all the alternatives they might otherwise use !

On the other hand, using their planes overnight for longer (3-4 hour) sectors to India, or other regional sources of inbound-tourism (Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan ?), does make more sense than leaving their planes sat on-the-ground overnight. Nok-Air & Air-Asia might follow this example ! Thai Airways won't because making a profit remains unimportant to them !

Using their 'cash-cow', to support the slow growth of the rest of their network, does make sense for Bangkok Airways. But imagine the effect on the company, of a serious crash or a landslide/earthquake damaging the runway at Samui, could they survive without the profits made there, and is that profit being invested wisely in the rest of the business, somehow I don't think that question was posed to the management at this P.R. presentation.

The cash cow is running out of milk mate....prices are now more than double comparable services....in fact one poster recently reported a standby fare of 6000 Baht economy one way.

We've had enough now.

Smokes as long as they keep building hotels on that island there will be more than enough fools to dish out the dough on a constant basis....and you wonder why I have never been to Siem Riep - worse than Samui flight costs!

Bangkok Air has been trying to mold themselves into an airline for millionaires, and the fact that there are so few flights available, is allowing them to do exactly that. The prices continue to climb to the point where the average person cannot afford them. Though many hotels on Samui have opened up in the past few years, that cater to wealthy travelers, the fact remains that the average traveler to Samui is anything but. The average room in Samui caters to mid level travelers, who are finding it increasingly harder to justify a ticket cost that is more comparable to Bangkok-Hong Kong, than Bangkok- Samui. In the US, I can fly 2,500 kilometers, for the typical cost of a Bangkok-Samui ticket. A friend of mine just priced New Delhi- Bangkok, and Bangkok- Samui, for mid March, which is purchasing over three weeks in advance. Guess which ticket was more expensive? I will give you a hint. It was the 477 km. route, and not the 2,9712 km. route that was more expensive!

Why is the central government, and the Samui Mayor's office allowing this practice to continue? Some time ago, there was talk of a second airport on Samui. Many of us, including many hotel GM's that I have spoken with, think the time is right for this proposal to come to fruition. I fly out of Surat Thani most of the time. \It is not that I cannot afford to fly out of Samui. I prefer to deny Bangkok Air the revenue. I resent their unwillingness to even offer residents of Samui good deals. Do not even mention the Samui Resident card. That is a scam, as it offers only a 20% discount on the highest published airfare! Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done urgently. Someone in a position of power has to take an interest in this, and make it happen. I am not talking about a bandaid concession, like getting Bangkok Air to allow Thai another flight or two, at equal or higher prices. I am speaking of a real solution, that will allow Samui to continue to develop into a world class tourist destination. Perhaps allowing Bangkok Air a monopoly on the airport made sense back in the late 80's. But, not in 2011. Somebody, anybody, please do something about this unreasonable situation, and allow Samui to offer reasonable air travel. I suspect as long as Bangkok Air, which is a fine airline (albeit one with very, very high airfares), maintains control over this airport, nothing will ever change. This airline will continue to cater to increasingly richer and richer travelers, and who will eventually suffer? The hard working Thai people, who are operating, and working for the mid level restaurants, and resorts which represent the majority of establishments on this island. The visitors, residents, hotel owners (who continue to invest a fortune, hoping the Thai government will back them up, and do the right thing with regard to the tourism industry), and the hard working Thai people who run the tourist establishment on this island. We hereby issue a challenge to a Thai politician who represents Samui, and who has the courage, will, conviction, and integrity to find a solution to this problem.

Another solution would be for the government to buy out Bangkok Air ownership stake in the airport. But, if the airport capacity is really as limited as we hear, that would not be much of a solution, though it might encourage more reasonable flights than the "super boutique", and super expensive, Bangkok Airways.