spidermike007

Very amusing. A monkey court, representing a tiny elite, pathologically afraid of change, reform and progress, penalizing the duly elected PM and his party, asking for respect. I have always felt respect has to be earned, and never freely given. With judicial decisions like this, they are not respected, admired, or even considered credible.

It is an idealistic system that would only work if the population had no greed. Even idealists like Castro and Che Guevara became totally corrupt and heinous serial killers, once they got their hands on the power. Power corrupts the soul. Capitalism has its issues, but nothing is worse than communism.

Have you ever read the history of the Bolsheviks? Do you even know the meaning of the word communist? It has become a juvenile meme for intellectually lazy conservatives in the US, to describe the democrats. Although Marx called for democracy, Stalin did not tolerate even the suspicion of dissent. Between 1936 and 1938, Stalin executed around one million people. This figure includes over one-third of the Communist Party and nearly 80 percent of his highest-ranking military leaders. Stalin died in 1953, but his legacy shaped the Soviet Union for decades. His policies traumatized and killed millions. Stalin also propelled the Soviet Union into conflict with the United States. Communism typically equates with failed agrarian policies, such as we have seen in Cuba and North Korea. It typically means failed economic policy, with the exception being China, which has adapted a hybrid capitalist model, but maintained absolute control of imports and the currency. It is a horrific, but idealistic system which has failed in all but a handful of nations, only one of which has something that even closely resembles economic success.

No. Thailand is NOT a democracy. It is what I would refer to as a gentle junta. After all, the army negotiated with Thaksin, and he sold his soul and his party to them.

Worldwide condemnation and international shame and humiliation is the most we can ask for at this point.

Well, this has been settled. In an astonishing development the court has decided to completely abolish the Move Forward party, the most popular party in the country. Thailand's Constitutional Court has ruled to dissolve the opposition Move Forward Party (MFP) and ban its executives, including the duly elected PM Pita, from political office for 10 years. The progressive political party won the most seats at the last election in 2023, but was blocked from forming a government last year by conservative forces in the military-appointed Senate. A rather astonishing bit of continued regression. Woe are the people of Thailand.

Well, this has been settled. In an astonishing development the court has decided to completely abolish the Move Forward party, the most popular party in the country. Thailand's Constitutional Court has ruled to dissolve the opposition Move Forward Party (MFP) and ban its executives, including the duly elected PM Pita, from political office for 10 years. The progressive political party won the most seats at the last election in 2023, but was blocked from forming a government last year by conservative forces in the military-appointed Senate. A rather astonishing bit of continued regression. And we certainly know who is behind it. Woe are the people of Thailand.

This is absolutely correct since women form the majority of the voting populace in the US, and this is something that neither Trump nor Vance seem to understand. It does not appear to me that either of them particularly like or respect women, and lack of respect for women resonates in so many of their speeches, and in so much of what they have to say. And I am not even referring to the bizarre "just grab them by the p***y" type comments. That was caught on tape. So was his statement to Epstein that "I like them really young, too".

If you add that that he's in the beginning stages of extreme cognitive decline, and at best semi-senile, America is in for a long ride if he gets elected. Cognitive decline is irreversible and his decline from the last year of his presidency until now is absolutely shocking and very scary.

Correct. She is nuts. But many Trump supporters are fine people, they just don't like dem policy. I get that. But, I do think Harris/Walz with walk over the Hillbilly Felony pair. By a large margin.

Nope, he started this latest wave of inflation with his insane trade wars with China. Here is what Trump has done for America!: Only 13 Presidents failed to get re-elected. Only 5 Presidents failed to win the popular vote. Only 4 Presidents have been impeached or resigned. Only 1 President has ever been criminally indicted. And only ONE President has done ALL FOUR. - DJT didn't lower taxes (He deferred them) - He didn't get Americans that healthcare coverage - He did not unite the USA, he divided it - He didn't lower prescription drug prices - He didn't get roads or bridges built He didn't decrease the deficit - He didn't end the opioid crisis - He made over 250 visits to his golf clubs costing us taxpayers $150 million - He didn't revive the coal industry - He didn't make covid-19 'disappear' He didn't make Mexico pay for the wall He is ranked the worst President in history He added $2 Billion a month in tariff costs to the American consumer He has a net-negative jobs creations for his administration He decreased corporate taxes, passing the tax burden to the workers He added $ 7.8 Trillion to the deficit - a full 25% of the total deficit He incited an insurrection against our government He is the only president to never achieve 50% approval. He didn't put "America first" and he sure didn't "Drain the Swamp... He left office with the worst job numbers of any President since the Great Depression with a net job loss over his term He is the first former president to be a CONVICTED FELON (34 times). The presidency is very much about character. Trump is a lowlife convicted felon.

Well as a Democrat I completely agree with you about his support for gender ideology being a mistake, however there are a lot of positives which for me deeply outweigh the plethora of negatives when it comes to Trump. So we can agree to disagree on the other stuff.

I like this idea it makes complete sense if you talking about the security of a Nation you need to be able to keep track of troublemakers and while they're at it they should definitely ban the the niqab and burqa. Both are offensive, and both show a deliberate unwillingness to assimilate. It might work back in your home nation, and it might have worked 700 years ago, but it doesn't work today not in the West. I believe immigration policy should be reformed to the point where it should be staged, and all Muslim families should show a willingness to assimilate. I also believe that families with Muslim daughters who are teenagers can start by proving that they have participated in a bikini contest, and for teenage boys they must show a burden of proof that they're not affiliated with any of the local madrasas. Are we serious about keeping our nation's safe from extremists, or not?

Well there's one thing that I don't understand, you're a Trump supporter and you support a man who has perfected the art of the insult, he insults anyone and everyone and you're okay with that. Yet I am despicable because I mildly insult his wife. Who deserves it. Could you break that one down for me, with your powerful intellect?

Yes, he is a kind and loving man. Especially towards minorities, people of color and women. Just a few of his smart quotes. I have black guys counting my money. … I hate it,” Trump told John R. O’Donnell, the former president of Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino, according O’Donnell’s account in his 1991 book “Trumped!” “The only guys I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes all day.” Trump, according to O’Donnell, went on to say, “‘Laziness is a trait in blacks. It really is, I believe that.” “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people,” Trump said at his campaign announcement. “But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we’re getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They’re sending us not the right people. It’s coming from more than Mexico. It’s coming from all over South and Latin America, and it’s coming probably— probably— from the Middle East. But we don’t know. Because we have no protection and we have no competence, we don’t know what’s happening. And it’s got to stop and it’s got to stop fast.” Speaking to Time magazine for a profile published in January 1989, Trump was asked to give an estimate of his total wealth. “Who the f knows? I mean, really, who knows how much the Japs will pay for Manhattan property these days?” he asked in response, using a racial slur for the Japanese. In a New York magazine profile published in November 1992, a year after Trump divorced his first wife, Ivana, Trump was quoted dispensing his wisdom about how to handle the fairer sex. “You have to treat ’em like <deleted>,” Trump said in the article to friend Philip Johnson, who responded, “You’d make a good mafioso.” Trump’s response: “One of the greatest.” Megyn Kelly drew fire from Trump in the first debate for asking him about his psst remarks about women, specifically of Rosie O’Donnell, of whom he remarked in 2006 to “Entertainment Tonight”: “Rosie O’Donnell’s disgusting. I mean, both inside and out. You take a look at her, she’s a slob.” “Rosie’s a person that’s very lucky to have her girlfriend. And she better be careful or I’ll send one of my friends over to pick up her girlfriend,” Trump continued. “Why would she stay with Rosie if she had another choice?” https://www.politico.eu/article/15-most-offensive-things-trump-campaign-feminism-migration-racism/

Well we all know that was an incredibly ignorant thing to say, and likely one of the things that sabotaged her campaign. She was a savvy politician, but a absolutely horrific campaigner. It's just not smart to condemn half the nation as a being a certain type of people, it's a mistake that Trump makes daily and hopefully Harris will not fall into this trap of hate and negativity

I wouldn't put anything past this guy, he's very regressive and trying a bit too hard to be conservative. Though if there's anything about him that's impressive, it's his wife, compared to Melania she's a superstar. But that is not much of a comparison she was a true empty suit as the first lady. Kind of like her husband.

He's not only grossly unprepared he's also panicked and he just does not have a strategy to counter her, and his constant ranting is not helping matters at all, it's just getting boring. He is far too predictable, and terribly uncreative. Harris IQ likely around 140. Trump IQ likely around 85-95. Trump is increasingly unhinged and incoherent. Harris is scaring this man, and he is losing the plot. But, Harris needs to accept a hostile venue for the debate, to show she can beat him in any environment. Not doing so is foolish and makes her look weak, and scared. From the NY Post, a Murdoch owner paper, and a conservative one. It would appear they are losing faith in Don and James. A warning to Donald Trump and JD Vance: Tread carefully when it comes to women, including Vice President Kamala Harris. All signs point to a tight race in November, and the GOP ticket is already behind with women: In five battleground states, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Harris leads by 9 points or more with the ladies. Closing that gap may be an uphill battle. Even if Trump were ahead, it would be foolish to ignore the power of women voters: About 7.4 million more women than men were registered to vote in 2022, according to the Center for American Women in Politics, and more women than men have voted in every presidential election since 1964. Besides, the chance to vote for a woman who feels like a relative newcomer will almost certainly attract female voters who sat out other elections (or even some of those who pulled the lever for Trump in 2016 because they couldn’t stomach the alternative). Sure, there are plenty of women who want what Trump and Vance are selling: school choice, parental rights, a better economy, safer neighborhoods and a more secure border. But this is a different political landscape than 2016, and both Trump and Vance need to keep on the straight and narrow to avoid alienating female voters who might otherwise agree with them on policy. Maybe Trump should start by quitting hurling derogatory nicknames and ad hominem insults at his foes. He can ding Kamala on policy without making crass comments or veering into petty pot shots about her looks or gender that might make women balk. He and his running mate must certainly avoid missteps like the one Vance made in 2021, when he blasted “childless cat ladies” who run the country but are “miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made.” He also foolishly suggested penalizing women without kids with higher taxes. For real? Vance’s comments resurfaced recently and spread like wildfire on social media, drawing backlash from even conservative women. Trump and Vance need to reassure women that they take them seriously as a voting bloc, and they have no interest in pushing national policy that controls women’s decisions on family matters. The GOP ticket knows women will play a major role in deciding this election — perhaps they should start acting like it.

It looks like he is a good guy, he's got a pretty good CV and they likely determined that there were no scandals that would be uncovered. I preferred Beshear, but I think Walz is a safe pic and if anything it adds it the ticket rather than the choice of Just Dull, which dramatically detracts from the other ticket. From 2006 until 2016, Walz’s constituents in Minnesota’s first district re-elected him, often by a considerable majority every two years. When he ran for governor in 2018, he came away with 53.9 percent of Minnesota’s vote – the largest margin a Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party candidate won by in more than 30 years. In 2022, he was re-elected with 52 percent of the vote. His re-elections are often tied to a respectable approval rating. A January 2024 approval rating poll, conducted by local Minnesota news outlet KAAL-TV, found that 55 percent of respondents thought Walz was doing a good job. But voters across the nation seem less passionate about Vance as a vice president candidate. Polling from NPR, PBS and Marist College found that Vance has a 33 percent disapproval rating – a drop from 28 percent when he was first made Trump’s running mate. FiveThirtyEight, which compiles polling from across the nation and creates an average, puts Vance at a 40.6 percent unfavorable rating. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/tim-walz-jd-vance-vp-polling-b2592117.html

As we all know from past history, these caves are subject to flash flooding and they are the last place in the world you want to venture during rainy season, especially in a province is wet as Surat Thani. Sorry to hear about the guide, but the tourists should consider themselves very fortunate that they escaped with their lives.

Something about this story just doesn't sound right, either he was on the Finnair flight where he wasn't. How difficult would it be to make an inquiry with the airlines, and have them check the passenger manifest. I'm sure the police could do that in 15 minutes. It is more likely that he stayed behind after he met a Pattaya gal who blew his mind, and he decided he just didn't want to come home and he simply does not know what to say at this point or how to excuse his behavior to his girlfriend or his parents. The ping could be answered very simply, he was ready to come home when he got another text message urgently asking him to return, as she really missed her sweetheart, and he fell back into the honeytrap.

A warning to Donald Trump and JD Vance: Tread carefully when it comes to women, including Vice President Kamala Harris. All signs point to a tight race in November, and the GOP ticket is already behind with women: In five battleground states, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Harris leads by 9 points or more with the ladies. Closing that gap may be an uphill battle. Even if Trump were ahead, it would be foolish to ignore the power of women voters: About 7.4 million more women than men were registered to vote in 2022, according to the Center for American Women in Politics, and more women than men have voted in every presidential election since 1964.

Yes. And just FYI, it was a form of satire, however I think it is quite applicable in many situations.

A warning to Donald Trump and JD Vance: Tread carefully when it comes to women, including Vice President Kamala Harris. All signs point to a tight race in November, and the GOP ticket is already behind with women: In five battleground states, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Harris leads by 9 points or more with the ladies. Closing that gap may be an uphill battle. Even if Trump were ahead, it would be foolish to ignore the power of women voters: About 7.4 million more women than men were registered to vote in 2022, according to the Center for American Women in Politics, and more women than men have voted in every presidential election since 1964.

The government here is highly intolerant of asylum seekers. Especially if they come from countries like Burma, where they are under a real threat, and where Thailand is an ally and friend to their heinous army. Plus, they offer no benefits.