Dwindling Thai Protesters Bid To Keep Up Spirits

[yoshiwara]

Today is the coda on last weekend's red debacle.

Bangkok locals will be wary of red violence because of last Songkran.

Fortunately the reds are now going through the motions.

Thaksin has lost.

However, some locals are still in fear of the red thug elements being let off the leash.

But they are paper tigers now.

Buy an ice cream.

[Ricardo]

In my soi there are men and women with families slaving away - forty-six hours++ a week -

They have to pay service charge and VAT on top of that!? That's a disgrace! Now I understand they hate Abbhisit. I bet he uses that money to watch porn everyday. In fact, someone told me he's addicted to about everything. You better believe me; it's really, really, really true.

I also understand, from an authoritative source, that he's also good friends with A.Hitler, much as the source is with G.Bush & T.Blair.

3000 Baht! The figures that my wife heard is 500 baht for a Thai and 1000 baht for a Farang. I turned down the offer.

Quite right too, I got paid 1500 Baht a day, to be an 'extra', in a low-quality media-production ! Plus meals & transport, of course.

Edited March 20, 2010 by Ricardo

[ding]

You can only imagine how much money the provincial section leaders are making by the time the money matriculates to the villagers (yes, even the reds are exploiting their own)

For sure. Where can I get a position to be a section leader? Imagine if each Red section leader was given 60,000 baht in cash, and told to use it to pay people to attend the rallies, and follow the rules of standing/cheering, etc. Whether or not they're told how much to pay each attendee in their 'section', there's a big lure to put at least some of that mullah in one's pocket. Meanwhile, Thaksin is using every means possible to ferret cash in to Thailand to keep his self-aggrandizement machine oiled.

To Thais, it's not outlandish. To western outsiders, it's nuts. Imagine America's Pat Buchanan or Newt Gingrich paying their congregations to attend rallies - which were designed to garner more money and power for the individual paymasters.

....or imagine if Martin Luther King had been a billionaire, and was content to sit in a far away resort, continually funneling money to the people who were marching (for his personal interests) to Montgomery, Alabama. Bizarre.

It's happening. Dick Armey funds the Tea Party movement. Most of us see it's not a grass roots movement, just another Astro Turf play.

[Insight]

What are you insinuating, Sunderland?

[ThaksinKharma]

Nice consecutive posts....

Lies with deceitful references...

"I've just been offered 15,000 baht to do a 2 hour stint down at the rally site. I stood my ground and asked for 30,000 baht. We finally settled for 23,000 baht.

THE NATION

followed by flames...

Do your own housework you lazy muppet

or pay your maid a decent wage.

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi.

My boyfriend was told by one of his friends that today, Bangkokians in Phra Khanong were offered 1,000 Baht cash and one new red shirt if they would wear that shirt and join the parade.

I have no way to verify this claim as i wasn't there, however i tend to believe it because i know that friend of my boyfriend, she is a 40+ year old lady, Bangkok-born, Muslim. She would not have a reason to make up such a story as she is politically neutral (no hate or love for either side) but lives in Phra Khanong.

I myself joined the parade as a neutral observer (black shirt) today, went with them for a few kilometers and then positioned myself in Rama IV where they turned left into another road (don't know the name of that one) to shoot video from there. I was not offered cash or invited to actually join them as a participant (i'm Farang) however was offered help twice - it was hot and i was sitting down twice (was there for over an hour), and both times as soon as i sat down someone came asking if i'm alright

Paid or not, i believe for a very large majority of the parade participants this was one huge party - almost all of the cars, pickups and bikes were Bangkok-registered, at least in that hour i was there, many were playing music with people dancing in the back of the pickup, and if it wasn't for the constant "Abhisit awk bai" shouting it could just as well have been a carnival parade. Oh, and nobody at all was actually marching - it was all driving or riding, the only ones actually using their feet were the bystanders on the sidewalk. Again, at least in the time i was there.

Best regards......

Thanh

[steveromagnino]

Do your own housework you lazy muppet or pay your maid a decent wage.

Is it just your internet persona that is like this, or do you talk to people like this in normal life?

Personally, I was VERY impressed with how the red shirters protested today. Peaceful for the most part, well behaved despite the heat, the traffic and the (from Ramkamhaeng onwards) slightly difficult to follow plan for the later followers (when the traffic was close to gridlocked).

To believe that NONE of the people in the rally are paid is stupid - you can go and ask 100, and some will be given a free shirt and cap; some will be provided with petrol money, cash and a clapper; others have paid for the shirt, clapper and memorabilia themselves, while others have none of the stuff, but believe in the message and spend their own money and time to protest.

To try to present all as a paid mob or non as being paid reflects either a complete lack of knowledge of the rally participants - many who will openly tell someone why they are there and what they are getting from it or not getting from it - or just reflects living in a dream world.

I don't place too much stock in the idea that Bangkok supports the rally. I followed it for some of the way and spoke to participants and bystanders. Curiousity and support of the protesters but frustration and lack of belief in the position of the protesters was the common one - we respect that they are here, we believe they have a right to be here, but we don't believe they understand what they are actually protesting about - was one fairly common viewpoint. A common view of the protesters was - this is about democracy now, not about Thaksin - as in perhaps 50 50. I was quite amazed; despite the signs, how many were actually saying this. And I talked to quite a few.

It will be interesting to see what, if anything they follow up with on Monday - another so called D Day. Chavalit is a man whose ambition is matched only by his incompetence.

Should he decide to be Samak 2, then he has the rural following to back him up, and after all, he gave Thaksin the monopoly on either satellite or mobile (I forget which) so he has the big man's approval. However, given his lack of ability, there is every chance that he might actually take power, then not get anything done; as per the last time he was PM and led the country into the Tom Yung Goong crisis.

Right now, the red shirt leaders must surely be thinking - they can push through constitutional change; an election and ask for all the issues they want as policy....now.

All they have to do is decide not to insist on attempting to get a pardon on all future crimes plus forgive all part crimes for one increasingly old and irrelevant fugitive. Surely they must be weighing up whether they can go alone.

But you would wonder as to the sanity of deciding to appoint a politician with a proven track record of uselessness as a leader. Especially one who is a fair weather friend - earlier in the week...not around. Now when one day goes well? Suddenly taking the stage and some of the credit.

One wonders why the working classes could possibly look up to guys like this. I guess that is the point of the rally. We want real democracy! We want real change!

So....let's welcome on stage a politician who has dominated Thai politics for like 18 years and has no single point of success in that entire period [cheer now]

Yep, you'd need to pay some people to listen to that.

[Insight]

Nice write up Steve (as always). Especially a the bit about the viewpoints of the protesters and observers.

But I'm not convinced about the "going it alone" part - lets not kid ourselves as to why the decision has been made to rally now and not a few months (or years) earlier.

Just like the Dems have got the baggage of Kasit and arguably the BJT lot, I have no doubt somebody else will be wanting some form of payback.

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi.

If they would ditch Thaksin, i would support them. Because, apart from the "Thaksin" issue, all the other items are perfectly valid, "class war" included. However - as long as they wear face masks to look like Thaksin, as long as they keep shouting "Abhisit awk bai" (let the guy serve his term and see what he can do for Christ's sake) and as long as the entire show only runs as long as Thaksin's money flows in i will NOT support them.

Regards.....

Thanh

[steveromagnino]

Nice write up Steve (as always). Especially a the bit about the viewpoints of the protesters and observers.

But I'm not convinced about the "going it alone" part - lets not kid ourselves as to why the decision has been made to rally now and not a few months (or years) earlier.

Just like the Dems have got the baggage of Kasit and arguably the BJT lot, I have no doubt somebody else will be wanting some form of payback.

The leaders could cash in big time now; this next week is probably the high point; I cannot see them doing better than this; they had one shot at a big peaceful action with mass appeal and this was it - execution to perfection a crowd made to appear many times larger through covering a long distance and using vehicles (some of which were circling around); very peaceful; impossible to say that the Bangkokians liked or didn't like it but certainly only slight anger/protesting them - mostly people avoiding the whole rally, ambivalent, supportive or joining in - from a PR perspective that can be claimed to be a victory for either side

'red shirts unite the city in a peaceful meaningful protest - Bangkokians join in the march'

or

'red shirts fail to create an impact on Bangkok - few residents actually join the march'

Thaksin has already refused to negotiate and so right now is the sticking point since the red shirters have already expressed a desire to negotiate; reflective that for him this is NOT anything to do with democracy and everything to do with getting a special treatment double standards pardon of everything wrong he did that cannot be prosecuted by any court under any constutition; without that he can't return. For red shirt leaders, I am not sure as a couple of them are nutters, but for some of them I think really do think this is democracy and perhaps have used Thaksin in some way and his money to push their own agendas. So right now, the offer on the table to negotiate; I believe if this one little convicted fugitive item was taken off (and we kept getting told that the red shirts are not about Thaksin) then the red shirts should be ok to talk. Whether most of the followers will agree....hard to say. The phone ins appear to the highlights, well other than the odd spot of bad singing and watching Jatuporn and Arisaman do their versions of 'angry greasy faced man winds up a crowd dancing with the stars'

We can all guess all the reasons why they don't, but if the guy is not willing to stand trial under any circumstances.....in short, even his followers surely must realise then he has something to fear which probably means they will click that perhaps, just maybe, he is actually guilty.

Even most of the red shirt taxi drivers (some of the most fervent and certainly some are driving cabs and losing time all at their own cost today) will admit that he probably did swipe some cash, but that either they all do or that it was ok, because he helped them - when pushed further how - they usually start to become a little less coherent. The biggest issue is the red shirts lack a charasmatic leader to step in and take charge and sideline Thaksin - to sell him out sure - but that would actually be enough to have a true shot at winning an election and also for negotiating in advance the changes they wanted on a non partisan basis.

That was always the issue. In 2006 when Thaksin resigned and said he was stepping out, it suddenly became clear that not one of his deputies had any profile, other than maybe Somkid, or any personality and PR power (Somkid doesn't have these at all) to take over. That's why the about face and the rush election - a huge oversight.

Whether Chavalit is that guy in an election, or as a leader now.....I have massive questions. If I was a red shirter, I would feel VERY VERY cheated to get a man devoid of ideas, intellect or balls to be my leader. I guess that's my problem....not theirs :-)

Next time, I think Bangkok would not be nearly as forgiving; much like the coup and the PAD, the welcome is short, then things start becoming dull, same old same old and soon enough, out come the faeces. Who would have thought it might not be the red shirts doing the kee-fling after the Arisaman posturing?

Edited March 20, 2010 by steveromagnino

[mrtoad]

Nice consecutive posts....

Lies with deceitful references...

"I've just been offered 15,000 baht to do a 2 hour stint down at the rally site. I stood my ground and asked for 30,000 baht. We finally settled for 23,000 baht.

THE NATION

followed by flames...

Do your own housework you lazy muppet

or pay your maid a decent wage.

Followed by someone who needs a humour transplant.