Police Swamp California Wow Tonight

[Gaccha]

Around 9:30pm 11 police officers waltzed into California Wow. One Major and three Sergeants.

I thought it was a response to a robbery (in England you get 11 officers for a robbery in progress, not for a theft report) or something pretty acutely serious, but the police after around 5 minutes sat down on the swivel chairs and started chatting as if in a karaoke bar.

There was an undercover officer (he had the standard radio) and he seemed to be doing the talking. He wandered up to staff spoke for around a minute and then wandered up to customers, who just carried on on their jogging machines.

I was entranced by the whole situation.

Then while the police took pretty random photos of nothing in particular, the staff of the gym started taking very serious photos of the officers (I mean there were no smiles, no interaction, but the staff carefully took photos at all angles of the police officers sitting around doing nothing). It all looked pretty frosty on the staff side, but the police were grinning, sitting on their swivel chairs.

So here comes my conjecture: if you are the 'thiefs in brown' as the locals call the police it is never a wise move to walk through the main entrance and joke around to obtain your tea money. I see them do this at my local snooker hall all the time; most of the bets laid on the table are by mildy drunk police officers in uniform at the snooker tables. But at a publicly limited company like California Wow, surely some subtlety is required?

Where I sat to rest after my workout was where the officers decided to congregate. So I became either the best protected farang in Bangkok at that moment or the worst.

This is bizarre. Any thoughts? Any knowledge?

[chiang mai]

Sounds like a non too subtle message was sent and was loudly received.

[trajan]

its not what you are implying (I am no fan of corrupt elements in the Kingdom, believe me, but you are a off base on this one) ......California WOW has a special promotional program for exercising police.....apparently there is a push for over weight officers to exercise.....they even have cut-out cartoons of police officers at my branch explaining this....ask the staff or your Thai friends working out....

[Ijustwannateach]

Which branch was it?

[chiang mai]

its not what you are implying (I am no fan of corrupt elements in the Kingdom, believe me, but you are a off base on this one) ......California WOW has a special promotional program for exercising police.....apparently there is a push for over weight officers to exercise.....they even have cut-out cartoons of police officers at my branch explaining this....ask the staff or your Thai friends working out....

You asked for thoughts and those were mine, based on the data you supplied!

[trajan]

I was addressing the OP (original poster)....

btw, you are confused, I didnt supply any data...the OP did....

[flightcrew1]

It's the same at the Silom branch of California Wow. Loads of policemen sitting around talking with the trainers. Pictures of police also up in the gym in various stages of working out. Police stations in the area local California Wow are offered free training and free memberships. The staff are not so happy since nobody is making money off it.

[sibeymai]

Here's an interesting theory...

Company facing bankruptcy is afraid of angry mobs of customers demanding their money back when the premises are close down without notice.

Solution: offer the BIB free use of the facilities so a constant police presence on site discourages the formation of angry mobs.

[Gaccha]

If that is true, did they really need to turn up en masse, on duty, and in uniform. And then proceed to do no exercise. And indeed do nothing to indicate they were joining the gym. Something missing in the explanations.

[trajan]

Overweight traffic police to shape up (National News Bureau)

BANGKOK, 1 July 2009 (NNT) – Metropolitan police and a fitness center have arranged a ‘Wow Police’ project, a mission set to shape up and lose weight of overweight traffic police officers within eight weeks.

Metropolitan Police Chief Police Lieutenant General Worapong Chewpreecha presided over the opening ceremony of the project yesterday. He elaborated that the project was cooperated by ‘California Wow Experience’, a well-known fitness center in Thailand and aimed to urge police officers to be healthy and reduce their stress from traffic work.

In this project, 250 overweight, and pot-bellied traffic police officers will be selected into the program to exercise and control their diet within eight weeks with a mission to lose at least five kilograms of their weight. The police officer who can reduce the most weight will win special reward.

[SMEEERE]

I have to say that whilst i dont know all the ins and outs of this incident i do see why a lot of thais dont want farang in thailand jumping to conclusions and slagging the police on a daily basis, it wouldnt surprise me if thai visa dissapears one day ,.sometimes thai visa seems like a site to show what we think a little too strongly, and remember unless you have a citizenship you are a visitor in thailand,ive been guilty of being oputspoken before, so im not exempt, just my thoughts,. ,. !

Edited July 30, 2009 by SMEEERE

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

Now they can all go tell their boss they spent an hour or two in the gym, and be telling the truth.

[TheLaughingMan]

I don't know what to say, it just seems so ridiculous to me that you would see police at a health club and immediately assume they were shaking it down. Especially with the new police fitness thing in the news. They were taking pics of the cops at the gym to promote and show the cops taking part in the program. But you thought they were gathering evidence against the crooked cops? Foolish.

[babuhavas]

Around 9:30pm 11 police officers waltzed into California Wow. One Major and three Sergeants.

I thought it was a response to a robbery (in England you get 11 officers for a robbery in progress, not for a theft report) or something pretty acutely serious, but the police after around 5 minutes sat down on the swivel chairs and started chatting as if in a karaoke bar.

There was an undercover officer (he had the standard radio) and he seemed to be doing the talking. He wandered up to staff spoke for around a minute and then wandered up to customers, who just carried on on their jogging machines.

I was entranced by the whole situation.

Then while the police took pretty random photos of nothing in particular, the staff of the gym started taking very serious photos of the officers (I mean there were no smiles, no interaction, but the staff carefully took photos at all angles of the police officers sitting around doing nothing). It all looked pretty frosty on the staff side, but the police were grinning, sitting on their swivel chairs.

So here comes my conjecture: if you are the 'thiefs in brown' as the locals call the police it is never a wise move to walk through the main entrance and joke around to obtain your tea money. I see them do this at my local snooker hall all the time; most of the bets laid on the table are by mildy drunk police officers in uniform at the snooker tables. But at a publicly limited company like California Wow, surely some subtlety is required?

Where I sat to rest after my workout was where the officers decided to congregate. So I became either the best protected farang in Bangkok at that moment or the worst.

This is bizarre. Any thoughts? Any knowledge?

anyways where you play snooker,i am also interested

[mooro_uk]

I saw the first potbellied police officer (that I've seen in the gym) walking into the changing room at suhumvit soi 23 Cali Wow today! He was HUGE as in FAT not MUSCLE!!!

[Orangutan]

I saw the first potbellied police officer (that I've seen in the gym) walking into the changing room at suhumvit soi 23 Cali Wow today! He was HUGE as in FAT not MUSCLE!!!

Actually two fat cops, they started coming about 3 weeks ago. They both park their bikes on the sidewalk in front of the building.

-O

[Insight]

Complete guess, but could be that a proverbial "influential person" has had some stuff stolen from his locker and demands "justice" ... ?

[mooro_uk]

Actually two fat cops, they started coming about 3 weeks ago. They both park their bikes on the sidewalk in front of the building[code]

[/code]

I guess that's so that they don't have to "waddle" to far to the front door

[CelticBhoy]

Now they can all go tell their boss they spent an hour or two in the gym, and be telling the truth.

Nice one!

[trajan]

If that is true, did they really need to turn up en masse, on duty, and in uniform. And then proceed to do no exercise. And indeed do nothing to indicate they were joining the gym. Something missing in the explanations.

you are a member of the gym and you jump to those conclusions??

my Thai is terrible, but there are posters and wall hangings with WOW POLICE programs all over the place...in some lobby areas there are huge cartoon cut-outs of police and explanations on them

also, the work-out schedules for classes have dedicated WOW POLICE classes (during quiet times like 2PM on weekdays)...

the program is to last 8 weeks (and its not free, but a package deal)

did you even talk with any staff or work-out partners or people at the gym before jumping to that conclusion?

not every circumstance is sinister here in Thailand... lets be fair.....

[Gaccha]

If that is true, did they really need to turn up en masse, on duty, and in uniform. And then proceed to do no exercise. And indeed do nothing to indicate they were joining the gym. Something missing in the explanations.

you are a member of the gym and you jump to those conclusions??

What conclusion? I merely suggest that there might be something more than has been explained. It still doesn't seem right.

You will note my caution in jumping to conclusions. When I raised ideas I said it was conjecture. There is no indication that I felt I had worked out what had happened. Au contraire, I asked and sought on this board some answers.

It is you, sir, who should be careful in jumping to conclusions.

[fluous]

Answers

I cannot think of a time that is more suitable for the "state" to reinforce and conduct social propaganda that un-enables a citizen or others to make decisions which may or may not be favorable. Fear and intimidation is one of the best tools for order or disorder, from where you stand. We find humor in cops lounging around however most of you have managed to overlook the point. Is not the cops but rather this persons worry or conjecture towards the cops and their behavior and the administrations reaction. Okay I do not understand fully this situation beyond what you have all said. This is some of my observations which lead me to this post. This company California Wow 1. American company in Thailand. A police presents at a facility like this may not be necessary however to oppress a population you need to maintain a police presents. And what i was saying before from my experience at my gym the police are constantly make there presence known. Like the Gas chambers at Auschwitz to manipulate people you may want them to be fatigued first. And no FAT igued is no suggestions.

[TheLaughingMan]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

[bkkjames]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

Think the invasion of CW is only a temp thing, once they figure out it's full of gay guys.

[trajan]

What conclusion? I merely suggest that there might be something more than has been explained. It still doesn't seem right.

You will note my caution in jumping to conclusions. When I raised ideas I said it was conjecture. There is no indication that I felt I had worked out what had happened. Au contraire, I asked and sought on this board some answers.

It is you, sir, who should be careful in jumping to conclusions.

what nonsense....OPEN your eyes and see all the giant posters, announcements, class schedules and cartoon cutouts of "Police WOW" before you spew your sinister "conjectures"...

[robblok]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

Think the invasion of CW is only a temp thing, once they figure out it's full of gay guys.

You obviously havent been there and seen the cute girls that walk around. Nice eye candy i must say.. the more gay guys the more girls are free.

[dondraper]

lol at OPs ridiculous inference that it was a shakedown...

[dondraper]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

Think the invasion of CW is only a temp thing, once they figure out it's full of gay guys.

You obviously havent been there and seen the cute girls that walk around. Nice eye candy i must say.. the more gay guys the more girls are free.

those girls like their men young...

[robblok]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

Think the invasion of CW is only a temp thing, once they figure out it's full of gay guys.

You obviously havent been there and seen the cute girls that walk around. Nice eye candy i must say.. the more gay guys the more girls are free.

those girls like their men young...

Im still not old and besides that in good shape. But yes these arent the girls that will drop at your feet and worship you. They do take some work id imagine. Most farang rather buy some girl its easier.

[womble]

For the love of common sense! It has already been stated why the police are there, they have a nationally advertised police workout campaign running right now. GAS CHAMBERS?! I really am a laughing man at the moment.

Think the invasion of CW is only a temp thing, once they figure out it's full of gay guys.

You obviously havent been there and seen the cute girls that walk around. Nice eye candy i must say.. the more gay guys the more girls are free.

those girls like their men young...

We're not all silver surfers!