ableguy

The end of corruption in Thailand must start at the top.. A lofty notion, but impractible as I anticipate 90%+ of positions would be vacated and the country would then grind to a halt.

It was a long time ago but I often wonder - how did Singapore do it? Surely that place was just as corrupt as any other SEA country at one point? Now they are usually in the top 5 of countries with the least corruption...

So I can't imagine how one would ever get rid of corruption so ingrained into everything and every day life - but it's been done before, right?

Check out the size .

Any large reduction in corruption will require a mind set change in society and aggressive enforcement of laws. It would be a decade(s) long change. Right now society at large seems to consider corruption as a bad thing, but at the same time, have the feeling they can do nothing about it.

The government cracking down on corruption by rooting out corrupt government officials in a very open public campaign might be a good start....and this is not to imply there is not plenty of corruption in the private sector also. But the government needs to start cleaning its own house before it tries to focus on cleaning up the private sector house. When the private sector sees the government cleaning its own house, the private sector will start doing some cleaning on its own.

Ain't no easy or quick answers to greatly reducing corruption...but answers do exists...and the answers will probably take a generation or more to implement.

If the private people tried to do some cleaning on its own, their would be an upsurge in death by gunshot in the private sector, fact money talks guns rule.

So the war is still on then? Guess we aren't surprised.

the war is still on my friend, thank God we have over a thousand generals in the Thai army, one of them must have a brain.

Pedophiles are predators, and children are the only thing that satisfy their appetites. Anyone associated with producing, supplying, using this garbadge should be punished swifly and severely. I think most Thai people abhor this and would agree that something needs to be done immediately by the authorities.

many nay thousands of things need to be done by the authorities to clean this place up, but how can they make money doing that ?.

There is another, more sinister, side to this. These vendors are trying to make a living selling what people want to buy. If people weren't buying the vendors wouldn't be selling. The people making these movies would still be making them even if people weren't selling and buying them.

It is the nastier side of the human condition.

I have just noticed that there are 172 people viewing this topic and wonder why.

Perhaps we are reading it for the same reason you were, come to think of it why were you reading it ?

I fail to see how this is a problem.

Many bars do not let them in either, because we don't want to drink with them.

I said to a bargirl once, 'Why do you keep the blacks out?' and she said 'Because if Farang see African man, he not come in'.

I said 'Yep, you're right'.

All they do is try and sell me cocaine, and try to 'look after me' on Sukhumvit. It gets quite tiring.

Even if you accept that in Thailand and some other parts of Asia, blatant racism is a way of life, what about the fact that this hotel also refused to refund the money which was paid up front? I suppose that is just fine too?

Some of the expats on this site are as deluded as their "hosts".

they refused to refund the money beacause they knew he did not stand a cat in hells chance of ever getting it back legally. Evertried getting a Thai to part with money?.

She sniffed the scent of money and got her just reward

farangs 1, country bumpkin with a body nil, love it

Very clever and cunning!

good luck to both of them. greed is a great way to go after people.

and the kid has chipped teath, probably head first over handle bars of a push bike or similar as most kids do at one time or another, and the mother not being able to afford treatment or maybe she is just a bitch, who knows!

anyway, at least the young lad is in good hands now.

How do you know the young boy is in good hands?

Get real man.

Monkey see, monkey do.

Very simple – Very to the point

Just finished driving for a month on Royal Road 7 LCB – BKK – LCB to take care of business in BKK. Talk about no morals, no courtesy, no following road laws – tailgating, cutting sharply after passing, exceeding speed limit 120 KPH (doing 150-160 KPH), blinking headlights to make vehicles driving at 120 KPH Max Speed Limit to move out of the offender's lane, trucks and busses 3-lanes across trying to pass each other – the list is endless. All this by Thai and farang vehicle "operators". All of them adults, most of them having children and often with them in the vehicle getting their education how their parent is behaving in society.

Talk about government controlling this under present system amounts to nothing more than talk.

This Royal Road 7 and also 9 (2-roads I have been using for the past month) can be brought under control very simply. First change the Highway Police to Highway Patrol. Take 2 of the fat asses out of the car and place them on motor cycles, and as the name implies, PATROL, instead of standing/sitting in the shade under an overpass. In countries were I have worked with Hiway Patrols they have 1-car and 3-motorcycles consisting of a Patrol Unit. The car is for when having to transport an offender to the Hiway Patrol Station or direct to jail, in addition the car is necessary when having to block a part of the Hiway when there is vehicles accident. When they are PATROLLING they are moving all the time at Highway speed 120 KPH. From their own speed they can gauge the speed of the traffic on the road and pick out the speeders, pull them over, issue them a speeding ticket, and in case of intoxication, call the Patrol car to transport the intoxicated person to Jail.

In addition, speeding can be stopped dead-in-its-tracks by issuing at the Tollbooths Time Stamped tickets or in the case of the Chonburi Elevated Expressway add the time of entry to the electronic card issued. In both cases, at the EXIT Tollbooth the exit time is applied. Being an electronic system the system know point of entry and point of exit how many kilometer distance and with the Speed limit calculates how long it takes to cover the distance at Speed limit speed. When the time is inside the time required the vehicle "operator" will be instructed to move the vehicle to the Tollbooth Parking area and processed with the speeding fine. All this is in operation now for many years in Europe.

Royal Road 7 and 9 have signs showing a camera and the Speed Limit sign below it showing 120. Going by the excess speed vehicles fly by these signs these signs must the JOKE of the year 2010.

The only camera I have been able to locate is on Royal Road 7 under the last overpass before Royal Road 7 ends at Sukhumvit Road Pattaya. The came and its operator seems to be there occasionally, not all the time. Why this camera does have to have an operator in this electronic age? In Europe these cameras operate automatically by them self. There are signs informing motorists that the road is under camera control, but there are no signs showing were the camera is located. My nephew learned that the hard way when he received a stack of photos shows the back of his car with license plate number and a Speedo meter in the right-hand top corner showing his speed, way in excess of the road's speed limit.

Dream on this is Thailand

Why don't they just save all the pratting about and have a standard press handout "Tourist arrivals are expected to be up from between -25% and +100%".

Trot it out four times a yer.

It will be just as meaningful and probably a darn sight more accurate.

Good one.

How typical of Thais to fight out their differences in public without the regard for others, authorities doing absolutely nothing, while the foreigners and travelers potentially becoming collateral damage.

Congratulations for yet another gold star for Thailand branding.

its all about money man, it is the only thing that counts in this country, it can by you justice, freedom, early demise for the opposition you name it it can be bought, quickly and cheaply. Things would certainly improve in my opinion if they had a police force but they dont, so people make thier own laws, simple really but not nice.

the day 5,000 family members come in here flooding with 'freakouts' about their loved ones detention is the day I'll believe it. Speeding is illegal here too, but how often do ppl get popped for that and furthermore how often does 200bht not take care of it? TiT

If you are happy to "bribe" the Police and allow them of the option to accept that bribe, then you are at fault.

I don't know what country you "used" to live in but I'm sure you would not of considered being proud to feed corruption there as it may have ended up sending you to jail for attempting to bribe an officer of the law ! Don't try to be clever.

the day 5,000 family members come in here flooding with 'freakouts' about their loved ones detention is the day I'll believe it. Speeding is illegal here too, but how often do ppl get popped for that and furthermore how often does 200bht not take care of it? TiT

If you are happy to "bribe" the Police and allow them of the option to accept that bribe, then you are at fault.

I don't know what country you "used" to live in but I'm sure you would not of considered being proud to feed corruption there as it may have ended up sending you to jail for attempting to bribe an officer of the law ! Don't try to be clever.

Do you live in Thailand ? nobody likes paying the police but it is a way of life here try not paying them off and see what you get, another half a dozzen violations thrown at you which you did not commit and chances are you never commited one in the first place, get real there is no police force here, just people out to enrich themselves and it is accepted Thai society.

Is that a joke ??????????????? Bus drivers are totally nuts ,they often race with other buses ,they dont give a dam_n about public safety or car drivers. They very often let the people go down or up in the middle of the road.

If you really want to have professional bus drivers, SEND THEM TO LEARN HOW TO DRIVE AND HOW TO BEHAVE AND RESPECT OTHERS..

Everyday on my way to the office I can see those crazy bus drivers behaved like maniacs. Very often I had to put my car on the side to avoid collision with buses. Those guys are DAGNEROUS and I still dont know why the government is doing nothing specially after those accidents reports.

Its the yaba they consume, lack of brains but mainly because they are Thai

The new concessionaire that was to take over the car park were awarded the concession by the AoT Revenue Committee who did so without informing the Board of Directors. Suvarnabhumi airport director Niran Theeranartsin approved the award. However, the AoT Board Chairman, Piyapan Champasut pointed out that the proposed contract with Pangram would have a lifespan of 15 years, when all concessions issued by the AoT that exceed five years needed to have board approval.

OK, On monday, the board ordered Suvarnabhumi airport director Niran Theeranartsin and Don Mueang airport chief Aniroot Thanomkulaboot to swap jobs. The changes were made to pave the way for an investigation into alleged irregularities involving a plan to allow Pangrum Retail Co to turn Suvarnabhumi's long-term parking lot into a commercial development named Suvarnabhumi Square.

And then, Transport Minister Sohpon Zarum got involved, and complained about Airports of Thailand Plc keeping him in the dark about major management changes and its operational plans. A Transport Ministry source said the minister was unhappy with the board's decision to move Mr Nirand from Suvarnabhumi.

So it would appear the interested party most concerned with going ahead with the concession would be the Bhumjaithai Party,

Hardly Reds under the beds stuff, is it.

Just a bunch of theiving clowns, but hey this is Thailand

Is it not illegal to carry firearms in Thailand?

Since when did legality mean anything in Thailand, I think it is because they do not posses a police force other than in name.

Another tragic accident.

Some one on the forum said "never trust a green light"

Another way of putting it is "A green light is only an invitation to proceed".

Internationally applicable.

Do you not realize that any Thai on the road has to save every second he can at whatever cost or some thing worse than death will happen to him, at least I think so, it must be so otherwise why do they do it ?

Another tragic accident.

Some one on the forum said "never trust a green light"

Another way of putting it is "A green light is only an invitation to proceed".

Internationally applicable.

Do you not realize that any Thai on the road has to save every second he can at whatever cost or some thing worse than death will happen to him, at least I think so, it must be so otherwise why do they do it ?

Sounds a horrific accident, condolences to all the families involved. Maybe a chance for Tesco to step in and take the high ground here. If this is a notorious accident junction improve the road layout to save lifes - it looks like its outside their store.

solid thinking but it wont happen, we all know that but sad.

The best in my opinion, and I have tried them all, is the Saigon Indian Street on 73 Mac Thi Buoi Street (between Dong Khoi and Nguyen Hue in District 1). It is on the first floor and a little difficult to find. If you come from Dong Khoi, it is ca. 20 meters down the road on your left.

I use the money changer opposite that (the one with the nice rolex's and Panerais) Better rates than banks and gold shops (imo)

I always seen the Indian shop and wondered what its like.

I'll have to drop in and have a feed next time.

Ok here are the results,I found the Saigon very easy for me as it was very close to my hotel. The food was great and the service proffesional, ate there several times so good advice. Ref the money changer opposite here I owe you a big thank you the exchange rate at airport was 560 dong to one baht ( reccomended by lonely planet guide ) the rate at the shop opposite Saigon was 617 I changed 20,000 baht and so the differance was huge. I should add anyone visiting this establishment be aware there are two money changers opposite Saigon Indian, use the one that sells jewellery the second one is just a money changer and they are only a couple of doors apart,

I would also reccomend

GANESH Indian, on LE THAN TON STREET just a short walk from the Saigon, also on this street on the corner we found the Irish bar a great place with loads of draft beers, good music and really great food and I mean great food

highly reccomend this place it helped a lot to make our trip memorable. Once again to all who responded many thanks,

Assuming it would ever even get completed....

They can't build roads correctly, build an airport without cutting corners and stealing money, or even earth electric in a house. Who led them to believe they could build a Nuclear power plant?

Lord, save us all.

Agree a disaster waiting to happen, but think of all the money to be made.

The enthusiasm to join the international community would be commendable if the Thai house was in good order. There is a full scale war being waged inside this country which is being won by the bad guys -the insurgents. The casualty figures are horrific. Yesterdays brutal slaying of four elderly people was heart wrenching, to read about these poor people pleading for their lives and their neighbours listening and doing nothing. The only reason for their slaying, they belong to a different club,

The book "The War of the Running Dogs " by Noel Barber tells of the simple strategy used to defeat the Malay communists . Note that when I say defeat , it was almost perfect, the communist remnants escaped to Southern Thailand where their hatred festered for 50 years and has now been rebranded recently under a different banner but with the same aims. The successful strategy used by the British and Malay forces was simple, deny the enemy territory and space. Live in their back yard and don't let them rest , protect the local and isolate the bad guys and pick them off. The US used this in Iraq with the surge and were successfully

It seems all too logical that good police work would soon identify the unemployed youths with a bad attitude and yet always with enough money to buy food and services , repair vehicles , rent TV's ,. movies or whatever they do in between killing. It seems it would not be hard to find the patterns and it seems it would not be hard to completely project all the villages in one province if there is not enough troops to protect them all. It would seem to not be difficult to own the night ,meaning the bad guys cannot move without fear of being caught. It would seem that taking over the province would be safer than the keystone cops tactic of the poor soldier rushing to an attack site only to be blown up again and again

Maybe instead of another 100 APC's or Pirate Patrols , more boots on the ground in southern Thailand would be the answer.

BTW , Takkie was going to fix this in 30 days as they were only common bandits , remember !!!

Yes remmember Takkie was going to solve the drug problem in 30 days too, and also recover the 2000 rifles that went AWOL in 30 days. dont worry about the APCs doubtful if they will ever get here as the first original order has yet to be delivered. The differance between the South and Malaya is this, in the Malay conflict the commies were operating and living in the jungle, here they live in regular homes and look the same as everyone else, I dont believe there has ever been a victory anywhere anytime against this type of terrorist, but I wish there was an answer. Enjoyed reading your post .

Since foreigners cannot own land, the strong baht should have little effect on property other than townhomes or condos specifically marketed at farangs. The Thai economy is performing better that the US and most

of Europe so the expectation would be that the property market would begin to head up. Anecdotally, I have heard the the property market in Hua Hin and Cha am was heating up, but with only Thai buyers.

There is a glut of property in Hua Hin especially new builds and they are still building like crazy and still asking crazy money, am very glad I am not involved as I am sure many developers are going to get burned. also a lot of vacant rentals and prices are coming down , many local landlords are desperate. Fact not fiction.

If its a matter of life or death...Rimping had some a few weeks ago in CM.

Alternativly order some from UK,...Britstore.com. but will cost about 3 times with the postage costs.I order quite a bit from them...last time I got Bisto Best Beef granules...very rich and just what is needed with Thai Beef!

steel teeth too for Thai beef.

I'd stay away from Ali Baba on Le Thanh Ton...the place was worthless in 2006...go up the street to the Lotteria and get a burger and chips instead...

nice rendang at the malaysian restaurant on Mac Dinh Chi in district 1 across the street from the City View apartments...

many thanks I will take your advice