Comparing Thai Political Parties To American Two-party Sytem?

[sawatdhi]

I would soon be making a paper on comparing Thai's two largest political parties Democrat and current TRT-successors to American two-party politics and spent some time and conclude that the Democrat Party in Thailand in my comparison has more similarities to the Republicans while the current TRT-successor and opposition is more like the Democratic Party. Of course there are big differences but in general terms am I correct in assumption that the Democrat Party of Thailand is socially conservative, economically conservative/less taxes while TRT-successors are generally on the other side being socially liberal, econ left-wing/more tax than Democrat Party of Thailand? Once again I apologize for making a thread but am somewhat desperate to know and move ahead in the topic, thanks!

[TEFLMike]

With respect, why compare? Live and let live.

[sawatdhi]

With respect, why compare? Live and let live.

I'm very interested in the political situation in Thailand and would like some more insights. For example I'm sure back in the UK most adults would be somewhat interested in educating themselves about what Labour and Conservative parties stand for.

Edited May 5, 2009 by sawatdhi

[DP25]

American political ideologies can not be applied to Thai parties. If anything, your observations are completely backwards, and the Thai Democrats are more like the American ones, and the TRT clones are more like the Republicans. The Thaksinist party is generally for free trade, anti union, and other 'rightist' economic causes, while at the same time supporting extreme socially conservative views, include the mass murder of thousands of the 'wrong' sort of people. But above all they are a patronage based party, based on payouts from Thaksin and elder clans. The Democrats are the closest you get in Thailand to the American Democrats.

[sawatdhi]

American political ideologies can not be applied to Thai parties. If anything, your observations are completely backwards, and the Thai Democrats are more like the American ones, and the TRT clones are more like the Republicans. The Thaksinist party is generally for free trade, anti union, and other 'rightist' economic causes, while at the same time supporting extreme socially conservative views, include the mass murder of thousands of the 'wrong' sort of people. But above all they are a patronage based party, based on payouts from Thaksin and elder clans. The Democrats are the closest you get in Thailand to the American Democrats.

Woah, if this being true colour me surprised

edit: I assumed it was the other way around since the Thaksinist parties were branded as populist state-run economic/not buddhist conservative and gaining support from north, northeast, and central Thailand while Thai Democrats were known as generally more conservative less government economic intervention/pro buddhist and Thai military supporting conservative laws.

Edited May 5, 2009 by sawatdhi

[DP25]

Actually, The Thai Democrats are closer to both the Republicans and Democrats in the US spectrum, the Thaksinist are somewhere out there out there on the far right that advocates killing people if it gets them in power.

[DP25]

Woah, if this being true colour me surprised

I'm sure you'll get plenty of replies saying I'm wrong.

Either way, good luck with your paper.

[jumnien]

I think it would would be more accurate to describe the Democrats as the Bloods and the TRT as the Crips. The Thai power groups are both much more alike the gangs/mafias that prosper in the US regardless of which talking head pretends to be in power. Do people really think they can participate in democratically choosing the leaders of various brutal gangs/mafias? Would they want to?

The drug war killings were cheered by all gangs in power and were hardly opposed by the Dems who put many of the same military and police henchmen in power.

In the US, working folks are allowed a choice: they can support the continued killing of innocents in Iraq by voting republican or make a decision to move the country in a bold new direction by voting Obama and fuel the lust for killing innocents in Afganistan.

Thus it becomes clear that the only truly evil people are those who are passionately for either side.

[Jingthing]

In the US, more educated people tend to vote democratic, while in Thailand more educated people would also tend to vote Thai democrat.

In the US, more of the uneducated rural peasants, tend to vote republican, while in Thailand, the more uneducated rural peasants tend to vote for the Thaksin proxy party.

Bottom line, your paper should conclude a 1 to 1 comparison of the Thai parties to the US parties DOES NOT EXIST.

Edited May 5, 2009 by Jingthing

[womble]

I think it's almost impossible to compare and contrast as the parties don't seem to have any solid ideology that stays the same. They chop and change like the wind. Parties are just places where mafia/police/army/vested business interests can join together easily in order to systimatically pillage the country. They lie to the people about the good they will do (just like everywhere else in the world), to secure the vote that will get them into power.

Members of parties regulary cross the floor and jump from the sinking ship to which ever ship has more favourable winds and a good forecast at the time. The Demorcrat party has been around for a long time, most other parties often last no more than a year or two and are created by clans that group together and create factions where the nations most corrupt squabble together continually fighting over how to carve up the pie. Each faction never being happy with the size of their slice...........

[Texpat]

Thaksin got sh!t done. So yes, more like a Republican.

Thai democrats are much like US democrats, wanky, apologist, do-nothing, hand-wringing suits.

Edited May 6, 2009 by Texpat

[johna]

Does it really matter, there is no accountability in either system.

We are now being treated to the prospect of a referendum on change's to article 237 of the constitution, a constitution imposed by a Military Junta.

This is farce, pretending a constitution imposed by force is actually worth the paper its printed on.

As for comparisons between the US, UK, and Thai political process, Taksin murders 2500 Thais, Blair and Bush murders thousands of Iraqis, and none of them face a criminal investigation.

[thaihome]

Does it really matter, there is no accountability in either system.

We are now being treated to the prospect of a referendum on change's to article 237 of the constitution, a constitution imposed by a Military Junta.

This is farce, pretending a constitution imposed by force is actually worth the paper its printed on.

As for comparisons between the US, UK, and Thai political process, Taksin murders 2500 Thais, Blair and Bush murders thousands of Iraqis, and none of them face a criminal investigation.

1. The current Thailand constitution was approved by a large majority of eligible Thai voters (59.3%) in national vote. 2007 Constitution

2. The vast majority of the civilian deaths in Iraqi are due to " Anti-occupation forces" and not the actions of the either the US or British military. Iraqi Bodycount

I know that you desperately wish both statements were true, but the fact remains, they are not.

TH