TheGhostWithin

Giving a view is not propaganda, if it is your view. One can claim it is misinformed, or inaccurate, but if you have no vested interest, it is not part of a strategy. Is he promoting a biased view in the article?

There are plenty of anti ptp pundits giving their opinions, that doesn't make their view propaganda.

By your definition all political comment its propaganda.

All comment which is not stated to be the view of the author, which is backed with unbias facts and figures is unscholarly. Therefore it is open to criticism by its' opponents.

What is taking place in Thai politics at the moment (the attempted use of political power and influence to absolve the criminal actions of another without proof of innosence) is illegal in most countries - fact.

The use of the court system to bog down the opponent is an American style of politics which is foreign to many, including myself and seems counter productive to the development of the country. This is something that for me personally is clouding my motivation to invest any small capital I have in the Kingdom.

Open discrimination against al foreigners, to varying degrees is another thing which unsettles me personally and makes me feel very unwelcome by the Thai establishment.

I do believe the bit about being most interested in the hospital bill being paid though!!

Why are the police interested in the hospital bill?

Good day sir, I am guessing you did not read Thailands promise to increase average tourism days stayed and average daily spent. It's just the "death isles'" way of helping out.

I hope that the Thai government will be fair to the Yawi people of the south, allocating as much of a percentage of annual funding to this channel as the Yawi speaking population of the south make up of total population vs. non-Yawi speakers throughout Thailand.

Anything less or more would be openly discriminatory and seen as favouritism.

We should not allow minorities to cloud our decisions because of threats and acts of protest and violence which they may undertake to get more than their fair share. This would be unfair to the majority.

I often get sick every time I come to Thailand. I caught swine flu a few trips back and spent 2 weeks in bed.

NZ law allows me to change my time off work from annual leave to sick leave if I can prove (with a medical certificate after confirmation of the illness by the doctor) that I was genuinely sick. I had not been able to find this facility in the past and believe it may be useful in the future.

Do the doctors provide the medical certificate in English, or in Thai only?

The next government to come to power will find the coffers empty, massive national debt and millions of tonnes of expired rice.

This is one of several strategies being played by Socialist governments to combat right wing governments. If right wing governments inherit a weak economy and have to pretty much start from zero, people begin to think "I wish we had those left wing red shirt folks, they would do more to help the poor". Next thing, they are back again. Sacrifice one term to remind the public that the right wingers are terrible people. In Thailand, this means losing the Top Rice exporter title, and threatening to force any motions through the system which may be against popular demand (Yingluck has just done this with the reconciliation bill).

The second part of this strategy is to sow the legal system up as much as possible so that when the right wingers get back in, they have their hands tied to make changes which would be positive for their way of governance. In the case of Thailand, it is about the rice pledging scheme, and about getting a certain fugitive back in the country to control the party on an official level.

Did the Nation ask any questions / do any investigative journalism to try to discover who pushed the TV channel / producers to make changes?

If the Nation had done so, and mentioned specifically what they discovered etc., the story would have some real clout. Typical Nation poor joutnalism .

The Nation is muted by the PTP/TRT. I would at a guess insist that the fact further questions were not published and probably not asked were intentional. Someone wants this show to die a quick death. It is the Thai equivalent of Wikileaks.

Maybe the programme was s**t and they just pulled it to save their ratings and advertising revenue.

I have a lot of Thai friends here in NZ, I can confirm that it is very popular with them. I would assume that they are a fair sample of other Thais in Thailand as well. They like the way that creativity has been used to tell a near-truth view of what the Political situation in Thailand is at the moment. They all believe that the early termination of the show is due to Political pressure by the Poo Yais. Poo Poo to them. Poo Yais normally always act with self sustaining interests at hand.

My girlfriend sat with me over lunch today, introducing me to each fictional character, and matching them up with their factual doppelganger. It is the fact that this is too close to the truth, that has caused such a stir by the Poo Yais. As we know, Thais do not take offense without response. And Thailand is known as a major censor to press freedom and programming censorship.

The PM may not be directly responsible, probably because she met the minister of "TV watching" in a hotel room somewhere on the back streets of Krung Thep, and after close consultation, she persuaded him under duress that he should be the one to make the call. The statement that the PM had nothing to do with it is simpl ensuring that someone else bites the bullet if a culprit is implicated in the bullying.

Oh dear.. Mr. T. dun got himself a Vril Hanebu! Flys to Sakhon Nakhon to remind them that the sky god is returning from Dubai soon!

...threatens to take to streets again...

A clear indication that Thailand is getting more and more in demand for a proper and efficient riot police force.

Obviously, this is the price to pay when a developing country is striving for first world country status.

Agreed. You cannot have first world status with a 4th world Police force. The Police (though some hard working) are a serious danger to the stability of Thailand. Their refusal to act in certain protests is outrageous - and stems from the fact that they act with relative independence from the government.

For those that are against PAD, don't bother to complain now, you did not complain when the red shirts flooded the main business areas of Bangkok for months, terrorised the streets of Bangkok and disrupted nearly anyone coming from the outlying districts for any reason - including friends in Chit Lom who hid in their apartment whilst gun shots were constantly going off.

There needs to be fair elections held with UN oversight (and vote counting, and control of voting stations) and both parties (and conjoined protest movements), including the criminal who throws his money around to cause disorder when he does not get his way, need to accept the decision of the people. Perhaps it is time that every major law change must be approved by public referendum so that the corrupt crooked political system actually works in favor of the people it is designed to protect? Perhaps such gas assets as allegedly exist, should be nationalised if they become a Thai asset, and that all workers become state workers, all profits are given to a good cause outside of Bangkok, such as building better communities in the South?

Harsh sentences need to be applied, after strong Policing identifies the true culprits who should face a trail which clearly identifies them as the offender. Offenders should be published on national tv and newspapers displaying their harsh sentences, using the media effectively (this is not often dine in Thailand or many other countries).

The respective embassies have the right to and should be listing serious crimes against their countrymen, what the crime was, when it happened, who the offender was and what the criminal case outcome was. This would show those from their respective countries if a place was dangerous or not (e.g. I suspect a lot of violent crimes would be perpitrated against countrymen with a strong drinking culture such as the U.K and Russia, and more so slight of hand and deception crimes against those who get out and enjoy the countryside more such as Americans and the Swiss.

The embassies cannot force people to not visit a destination without a travel blockade, but they can help their countrymen/women make smarter, more informed decisions about where they will go and who they will take. Despite what the current Thai adminiatration is trying to imply, Pattaya, Phuket and other such places are not places to take Children, wives on a honeymoon or families on Christmas holidays. Only the embassies have the ability to prove a clear and concise view of reality in Thailand, and only if they do their jobs with honesty and integrity.

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I just say my experience, I took the over night bus up to the Malay side of the border and one student guy on the bus said hello and he want to help me waiting together, have some breakfast and get on the next bus 4 hours later; he delayed his own trip because he say someone might try to kidnap or kill me, no jokes deadly serious. Nice guy to put himself out like that. I was young and didn't really think about it would be dangerous but some of the people loitering about the bus station and streets were looking at me like I'm some white devil! Not like a surprise to see a falang look but a real burning Hatedred in the eyes.

To say this kind of attitude is cultural is nonsense; it is from the preaching of hate. Not too long ago hippies were traveling through Afghanistan and pakistan blazing hash and visiting ancient Buddhist sights , mosques and enjoying the tribal hospitality. Back in the day the Middle East was a culturally vibrant civilised place with music, theatre, dance etc. Since the power of the imams has come back to the fore it's all turned to shit basically. Look at what they are doing to the Sufi holy sights, they are a discrase, like a Nazi or worse, like the devils conspiricy to send the evil spirits up to make a hell on earth, this is what so many place has literally turned in to. Sick. Sad.

I speak Yawi at an intermediate level as well, and enjoy talking with the locals. Some of them are very nice. I do not speak to anyone in the Pakistan style dress, after I was attacked a few hours north of Kuala Lumpur a few years back when a Muslim tried to cut my throat in the middle of a Kuala Kubu Bahru market and stated he didn't want Christian Americans here, and that maybe I should not be there.

The problem I have picked up on these past years is that not everyone is a shooter, but the number of people willing to assist these people by offering them beds to sleep in, and to hide their weapons and other such issues is fairly high. When the person in Malaysia tried to cut my throat, the locals only watched from a distance, and only my Muslim and Kadazan friends came to my assistance. I am not culturally ignorant, and had a love for Malaysia at the time with full understanding that it was an Islamic state.

I can imagine how hard it could be as a Muslim (who tend to have close families) to refuse a family member shelter from the authorities, or refuse to hide weapons in the house until the time comes. Until Muslims start resisting the violence, nothing anyone else can do will matter and will have little effect.

I think they will be banned

in Thailand the same as

sex-toys. Notice that most

porn-sites are blocked by

the Ministry...?

Any and all competition

seems intolerable.

Maybe the Poo Yais feel that if tney can lower the birth rate they will be the same as Japan and therefore extremely wealthy, and everyone will have a handful of 1000's to dish out daily.

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In other parts of Thailand it seems that Muslims and Buddhists live side by side harmoniously. I read an article, I think in the Bangkok post, recently that interviewed teachers down there. One of them commented that this used to be the case in the south, and that this isn't really about religion at all; it's a war being instigated by drug smugglers who want to make it into a religious war to get the Thai authority out, but in reality it's just to make drug smuggling easier and most Muslims and Buddhists in the south really just want things to go back to harmonious life together. Plus, Muslim teachers have been killed as well - which seems to support what this teacher was saying.

Thoughts?

Muslim teachers are open game in public schools. The terrorists wish for sharia law (something like the Taliban had in Afghanistan, and what is now in place with Al Shabaab in Somalia. They wish for children to use the Koran as their main tool for learning, and that other education such as maths and science cime second, and must be approved by the Muslim powers that be. It is about power, control, and removing the option if choice from the entire population if the south.

And once they have the south, they will sadly start moving the violence north.

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I admire Putin in some ways, Russia is a very ethnically diverse culture, and I would imagine a hell if a balancing act to steer in any direction with any degree of accuracy. And we have not even gone into the difficulty of being neighbors to some of the worlds most aggressive and secretive countries. One could state that Russia has helped shape its neigbours though.

I enjoyed the fire and brimstone country photos, it showed strength and character. Now if only we could get he and John McCain down to deal with the jet ski scammers after their photo ops, everyone would be smiling, Ruskies and Americans, side by side.

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[snip]

Their Malay language and culture are being quashed. Muslim-terrorism fear mongers have covered and lied about the causes of the conflict every single day for the last eight years. Is it a war? 5,400 victims in 8 years, many of them perished in massacres by the security forces. Thats 675 on average per year in the 3 provinces, 225 in one province.

[/snip]

Were these deaths by the Oso (government sponsored security forces) Muslim or Buddhist deaths? I was not aware of such figures. Where have you discovered this?

I have to say that many Oso have also lost their lives as a result of insurgent attacks.

Many Buddhist villages are armed by the government, and undergo firearms training if they opt for it. Some villages have sand bagged guard houses with 24 hour armed guards. Last year they found the body of one man in the south, the last man in the village (80 years old or so), beheaded and the last member of his village which was not murdered.. he refused to leave after Muslims had attempted to force him from his land. Just an example of the near one-sided savagery of the insurgency. I can show you photos of what radical Islam and Yaba traffickers bringing their goods from Malaysia into Thailand through the jungles does to normal people..

I am somewhat mystified at your tolerance for the faith of everyone but Muslims - to the extent that you can have friends only with people who aren't Muslim - as I find the Christian position only marginally (though significantly) more acceptable: my wife and children, as well as hundreds of millions of people around the world - no matter how good and decent or what they do for the betterment of their community or the world - are all condemned to an eternity of agony and suffering.

However, in day to day reality, that makes no more difference in my interaction with Christians than the teachings of the Koran do with my very amicable daily interaction with Muslims.

My standpoint exists, because no other religion openly records within its pages that one must choose to convert or pass into the afterlife. No other religion converts by force. We can look at the Crusades, which were a response to years of Muslim aggression on Christian holy lands. But neither of these are relevant. The three states are not holy lands and Thais for the most part are not Christian. This is Islam fighting a war against a war against Buddhism here in Thailand, a war against Hinduism in India, a war against Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism in China, a war against Christians in Iraq, which has now led to a war of Muslims against each other.

Please state a single religion of which the teachings specifically encourage such open aggression against every other religion and I will stand silent.

Thailand has the capability to use enough force to secure the South, but intentionally does not.

The reason is because Malaysia (the Muslims) would call on the UN and other human rights groups for help, and it would eventually be found and shed light on what Thailand already knows...the land in question that is being fought over indeed belongs to Malaysia.

Outside pressures would force Thailand to surrender that land, which they do not want to. Therefore, by allowing the problem to continue, Thailand keeps the land.

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Can you supply the proof you have which confirms the three southern states (I assume that you know what you are talking about and that these are the states you are talking about - Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala) are infact sovereign territories of Malaysia and are being illegally occupied by Thailand?

It was my understanding that although Thailand did not take this area by force, and that Malaysia did not surrender these areas under duress, that these provinces are legally Thai territory - and that at the time of the handover, locals were infact reasonably happy for this to take place as Thailand was wealthy in comparison to Malaysia and provided more support to the area than the rulers all the way in Kuala Lumpur were prepared to.

Children would stare at me as their mothers and fathers stared and pointed me out to their children, and in the main street of Yala cars were actually stopping to get a look at me. In Pattani, the monks were slowly following me from a distance, baffled at why and how a Farang would come to Wat Chang Hai - it was an important place for my gfs family so I felt I should go there. It is the only place in the south I am aware of which has a Chinese temple inside (they have partial Chinese heritage).

It is the only place in the south I am aware of which has a Chinese temple inside

-----------------------------------

Your post doesn't add up. It's completely wrong. Any Pattani Malay of Chinese descent would know about the temple complex in Soi Anoru in central Pattani.

Chao Mae Lim Ko Niao Chinese Shrine or Leng Chu Kiang Shrine

Google it.

Thank you for proving me wrong, another place to add when I am next in the South. My partner is Thai Buddhist (Mueng Thai), so not of Malay descent, of which most make up the 90% of the Muslim population in the south. But thanks so much for correcting me. Hopefully the essence of my post, which was to pay attention to the things which are important to the family will not go unnoticed by the OP. Happy New Year Andrew.

My dear chap at least you could get the small stuff correct. Look at the photo above. Is she smiling?

No, she isn't. She is showing her "grilla".. her Gorilla impersonation look, a rare look at her slightly darkened teeth, which are still slightly whiter than mine. I do not bleach enough with Vodka I guess, hard to meet a Russian with dark teeth.

She is actually pulling the Bloods gang sign, it is universal - and Thailand is controlled by gangsters!

Just for kicks...

Okay, some quite intense Googling and I managed to find the answer to my own questions with the help of a Chinese friend. It has a shelf life of 3 years.

Okay guys/gals,

I have some Chinese wine (it smells and tastes rather like Vodka). It was given to me 6 years ago but still smells like when I first opened it. It is from "the confucious family group, Shandong".

Does anyone know how long this stuff lasts for before it can be tipped out? It outlasted my Alize, but tonight is new years and I have discovered I am down to my last 3 labels of Johnny walker and last bottle of Jose Cuervo - sad times indeed! If I cannot drink my "confucious family" firehouse my gf and I shall certainly die a slow and dry death.

Can anyone help me?

When I lived in the village, the neighbours used to come to visit the MIL and would gossip about me while I was there.

On my first visit to Yala (out in the village mostly, not even in the city center) there had not been a Farang visitor into the village in living memory. It is a Buddhist village, but not Buddhist as you would imagine it in the north or central Thailand, very conservative and Thainess is important.

Children would stare at me as their mothers and fathers stared and pointed me out to their children, and in the main street of Yala cars were actually stopping to get a look at me. In Pattani, the monks were slowly following me from a distance, baffled at why and how a Farang would come to Wat Chang Hai - it was an important place for my gfs family so I felt I should go there. It is the only place in the south I am aware of which has a Chinese temple inside (they have partial Chinese heritage).

After the Ching Bplet festival, the entire extended family (about 30 people or so) came to my gfs house to stare at me and openly gossip about me in front of me. It is normal and OK, Thais do everything together. If they call you fat (I was a bit chubby back then), don't get upset, it does not have the bad connotations it has in the west.

Understanding them can be fun, eventually when they stop being afraid of what you are, they will hopefully find fun in learning about your culture too. I am known as Whisker (after Dr. Albert Whisker of Resident Evil) because if my look. The sister asked me to find her a white BF, and considering I am the only white guy she has ever known that I am aware of, I guess it is a thumbs up vote for me considering the request.