Thai Protesters Brace For Crackdown As Compromise Rejected

[Silurian]

did you guys see the main protest site today?

look at it!! numbers surely seem to be dwindling:

tweet photo of red shirt main stage

I think the vendor in this photo is probably not happy with the change to the "colorless shirt".

http://tweetphoto.com/19990699

What are all these vendors going to do with all the left over "red shirt" clothing?

Edited April 26, 2010 by Silurian

[lannarebirth]

did you guys see the main protest site today?

look at it!! numbers surely seem to be dwindling:

tweet photo of red shirt main stage

I think the vendor in this photo is probably not happy with the change to the "colorless shirt".

http://tweetphoto.com/19990699

What are all these vendors going to due with all the left over "red shirt" clothing?

Clever vendors are at this very minute no doubt, stocking multi-colored shirts with the caption "this shirt is red" stenciled on it.

[bapak]

BPP policemen break through red-shirt blockade in Phitsanulok...

At last some people show guts..

[orangezeke]

Yesterday's article in the Straits Times quoting Aung San Suu Kyi's opinion on the Thai crisis is probably a lot more illuminating than any of this nonsense.

Aung San Suu Kyi has earned her right to say what she does however I would suggest using a source other than the Straits Times which was recently caught by bloggers having posted an edited version of the last video of the Japanese journo to fit a certain line the video didnt really show.

...so you have no issue with the comments then ?

[jackspratt]

I have driven from near Udon Thani to Cha Am today, via Highway 2.

If a few buses of police were held up in Udon, it is not going to make much difference. We passed probably 50-70 full police mini-buses, together with about 6 large black police trucks in a several different convoys between Korat and Saraburi.

In addition, we went through probably 4 large police road blocks where all pickups with more than a couple of adults in the back (red shirts or not) were being searched, plus vehicle and drivers licence details being taken, and being input to some form of electronic device about the size of 2 iPhones. The road blocks were a mixture of police and army. In addition to the road blocks, in 3 or 4 places between Udon and Korat the road had been narrowed to a single lane, and army guys were noting and taking details of all "likely" vehicles which went past (without any search).

There was also a large red shirt road block just south of where the Kumpuwapi road comes out on Highway 2, but nothing after that.

Did not see any easily identifiable red shirts in vehicles heading south, but did pass two vehicles returning home with red shirts between Kumpuwapi and Nong Han.

With a farang driving the car, we were waved through on each occasion - easily the most hassle free drive south I have had in 3 years.

An update.

This morning I drove from Cha Am back to Bangkok, to get a visa (for a 3rd country).

Along the way we passed a convoy of 50+ white Toyota mini buses, all full of (I assume) police. Also in the convoy were about 6 large black police trucks, and a few of the normal brown and white pickups.

After enduring the horrors of Bangkok traffic (thank god for GPS), we drove south again to Cha Am. At about 1pm, 20 - 30km out of Bangkok (south west) there was a red shirt road block - set up, at all places, alongside one of those Highway Police offices built in the middle of the highway.

Unfortunately (for the red shirts) the stable door was left open in the morning, and the brown horse had well and truly bolted.

[on-on]

did you guys see the main protest site today?

look at it!! numbers surely seem to be dwindling:

tweet photo of red shirt main stage

Yeah, it's no coincidence that this happened at the same time as the leaders disappeared, the shirt colors changed and you started seeing massive activity throughout the countryside. Seeing the inevitable coming, they've dispersed and started carrying out acts of insurrection throughout the provinces. I'm not one of these chicken little types and I really don't favor either side of this power struggle, but this recent development actually has me a bit worried. It's one thing for massive protests to seize a capital city, this isn't unheard of and most of our countries had events of a similar nature at one time or another (Hoovervilles, Bonus Army, in America, for example), but when individual cells start coordinating nationwide to challenge the authority of the state by controlling the flow of people and goods and carrying out violent acts then you're looking at a much harder to address problem. What's been done so far is penny ante, but if the trend continues things could get considerably worse and you could have an actual national insurrection. It's not like this is the first time in Southeast Asia that charismatic leaders using populist, Maoist-Third Worldism style rhetoric have rallied a bunch of rural people to action against the urban elites. It doesn't always turn out so well

Edited April 26, 2010 by on-on

[bob6023]

Is the military really prepared to crack down? If not, the reds win. If so, that will shake out the hard core terrorist reds from the 500 baht weekenders ... There may not be as many hard core reds willing to kill and die for Thaksin as some people think.

It doesn't look like the Military or the police have the "Heart" to take on the reds. Its going to take a street fight to clear this mess up. At this point the only thing the reds are going to understand is a thumping.

[Jerrytheyoung]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

[bkkjames]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

[quiksilva]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

What about some debt relief for farmers?

[bkkjames]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

What about some debt relief for farmers?

Oh yea, I forgot about that one. Besides Democracy, what other things do the Reds want? Perhaps if we start there we can work our way up to Democracy - you know find a middle ground.

Election in 9 months? : no today

Free schooling and debt relief?: no house dissolution today

Democracy? : no, house dissolution today!

[hammered]

Yesterday's article in the Straits Times quoting Aung San Suu Kyi's opinion on the Thai crisis is probably a lot more illuminating than any of this nonsense.

Aung San Suu Kyi has earned her right to say what she does however I would suggest using a source other than the Straits Times which was recently caught by bloggers having posted an edited version of the last video of the Japanese journo to fit a certain line the video didnt really show.

...so you have no issue with the comments then ?

I have no issue with comments any sane non-partisan says. But it doesnt matter what I think. I havent as of yet seen the full comment mentioned but would certainly want it from a source not as discredited as this one which I coukld trust had shown the whole comment and not just a selected part.

[hammered]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Which Thai region has 42% of the population?

[lazurus]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

In the past decade most of the governments were red friendly. Yet you want to blame the lack of development in the north east on the ones that have been in power for less than 2 years? I don't think switching governing parties is going to magically fix all their problems.

[animatic]

Thaksin denies he is dead

Rumours have swept the Internet in recent days that the fugitive ex-premier has succumbed to cancer in Dubai, but he claims that he is still very much alive.

"Rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated."

Mark Twain

[lazurus]

due to a mob, that's anarchy. while we've more than 420,000 people on facebook _opposing_ house dissolution?

420,000 people are members of the Facebook group. It doesn't mean that each member opposes house dissolution. You have to understand how Facebook works before you try and use it as a scientific poll of public opinion. Let's assume however that every single of those 420,000 people oppose the house dissolution ...that's only 1.52% of the Thai population.

Suddenly doesn't seem like that many people anymore, does it? 1.52% of Thais oppose house dissolution, while 98.48% don't. Hmmm...

The Khon Kaen University poll showed 49% of people in the Isaan didnt want a disolution and that was before the Silom killing. It also includes stated reasons on why or why not.

Your facebook argument by logical extension means we should also ignore the Rachaprasong demonstrators who certainly dont number anywhere near 420K. Logically following you argument it would go "well only 0.1% of the Thai population are demonstrating for an immediate disolution (actually they are split on 15 days, 30 days, 3 months, 5 months if you care to analyses what they actually say) so the other 99.9%..."

Still the reality is nobody at all in this intra-elite power struggle gives a toss what most people think.

You cannot dissolve the government at the moment. What you have right now is a breakdown of law and order. The police do not have control over even their own movements. With gangs of formerly red protesters appointing themselves the guardians of Thailand you cannot hold a successful election. If they continue to set up roadblocks and harass ordinary citizens you cannot hold free elections. How can you expect any votes for the democrats if voters have to pass through red checkpoints before getting to the polling stations? In such a situation the whole election would be worthless. Law and order must be restored so that if the PTP wins the election it will be legitimate, and not due to massive intimidation of the population. Unless Thais have the freedom to move about their own country without interference you cannot hold elections.

[animatic]

did you guys see the main protest site today?

look at it!! numbers surely seem to be dwindling:

tweet photo of red shirt main stage

I think the vendor in this photo is probably not happy with the change to the "colorless shirt".

http://tweetphoto.com/19990699

What are all these vendors going to due with all the left over "red shirt" clothing?

Clever vendors are at this very minute no doubt, stocking multi-colored shirts with the caption "this shirt is red" stenciled on it.

Or much more profitably,

screening on all the extra red shirts :

This Shirt Is Not Red.

It got left in the wash with my red socks.

[animatic]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

What about some debt relief for farmers?

Let's also add removing the rigged Rice Pledging Scheme,

which benefited all but the farmers.

[Jerrytheyoung]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

[Lopburi99]

You cannot dissolve the government at the moment. What you have right now is a breakdown of law and order. The police do not have control over even their own movements. With gangs of formerly red protesters appointing themselves the guardians of Thailand you cannot hold a successful election. If they continue to set up roadblocks and harass ordinary citizens you cannot hold free elections. How can you expect any votes for the democrats if voters have to pass through red checkpoints before getting to the polling stations? In such a situation the whole election would be worthless. Law and order must be restored so that if the PTP wins the election it will be legitimate, and not due to massive intimidation of the population. Unless Thais have the freedom to move about their own country without interference you cannot hold elections.

The Army can't be called in every time there is a problem with a protester group. At some point the police must be more than traffic directors. Policemen who cannot or will not perform their duties must be reassigned to desk jobs or cleaning up road kill. An effective police force to uphold the rule of law is crucial, and now Thailand's police force is a joke.

[lannarebirth]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

In the past decade most of the governments were red friendly. Yet you want to blame the lack of development in the north east on the ones that have been in power for less than 2 years? I don't think switching governing parties is going to magically fix all their problems.

Chavalit had a big hand in NE projects, both as an Army general and as PM. Now they want him back it seems. Apparently he created nothing sustainable. At least not for the locals.

[jcbangkok]

Thaksin denies he is dead

Rumours have swept the Internet in recent days that the fugitive ex-premier has succumbed to cancer in Dubai, but he claims that he is still very much alive.

"Rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated."

Mark Twain

The other day he said he didn't have cancer and just has the common cold. So, maybe he is lying about being dead too.

[hardy1943]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

I live in the North and you are so right their feeling we have nothing to loose..........

[rabo]

Yesterday's article in the Straits Times quoting Aung San Suu Kyi's opinion on the Thai crisis is probably a lot more illuminating than any of this nonsense.

Aung San Suu Kyi has earned her right to say what she does however I would suggest using a source other than the Straits Times which was recently caught by bloggers having posted an edited version of the last video of the Japanese journo to fit a certain line the video didnt really show.

The Singapore Straits Times is 100% controlled by the government. It is the government.

As far as quoting Aung San Suu Ky, lets look at Singapore's stance on Burma. In the late 1990s, Singapore's Temask Holdings (more government) developed an entire small arms manufacturing facility and shipped it to Burma. What would the Burmese do will small arms? Control their population.

I suspect the Straits Times quoting of Aung San Suu Ky is simply support for Mr. Thaksin.

Kind of a waste now that he is dead, again.

Edited April 26, 2010 by rabo

[hammered]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

My wife is from the northern region. We spend loads of time up there in rural villages with family and friends and while times are hard we dont know anybody who wants civil war or even thinks it will happen. And everybody wants improved education. And many people still remember Thaksin fondly. Actually right now most of the middle aged people are working in the provincial towns to make some cash and waiting for planting time and most of the younger are working in factories etc. I could tell you all about the incentives to go do a red which have mostly, maybe totally, been refused in the areas we know but I dont want to digress.

Nobody has even mentioned the local oppressors who really control the rural poors lives more than the Bagkok based ones, but these are all tied into PTP and the red movement and it is a lot easier to go along with them against the great hated Bangkok while even deep down knowing you will still be stuck with the local oppressors but hope they may bung a few more scraps and anyway as the local oppressors control the local mills, money lending and to be honest whether you live or not it is quite difficult to stand up to such people, so take the nager otu on Bangkok which is only part of the problem is easy. However, until these local lords loose their power, and that wont happen with any PTP government by the way, the actual existance of those at the bottom will not change much and the funny thing is if you talk to poor people and they know you well enough to trust you, which means you must be direct family, close friend or have known them and proven good over a long period, you will be surprised how many people actually know this too. By the way, if you arent in the trusted category you will just be told what they think you want to hear whether true or not. Thailand has a long long way to go. Centrsal government even with the best will in the world cannot do the things you suggest without the lords being removed or they will as they have always done suck most of anything from center as it heads their way and make sure they control who gets to control center so they can make sure the right policies for them are passed. Now why do the red movement never mention this group?

It is politicians on various sides (yes their are more than two groups in this complex power play despite how some propagandists try to simplify it for their own ends) who are trying to set up the meme of civil war for their own ends. They may even pull it off but dont go thinking just becaue people are poor they want it.

Yes people want help with debt relief and better prices for commodities but to think every farmer in the north is on the verge of picking up weapons and heading for whereever is completly wrong.

[hammered]

It sounds liek the police/army have been breaking up some of the little blockades.

[jcbangkok]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

I live in the North and you are so right their feeling we have nothing to loose..........

If they want these things they are certainly going about it wrong.

By the way .. they currently have free schooling, free health care, virtually no taxes on anything related to farming, subsidies to make up for any fall in rice prices as well as receiving government hand outs of cash.

Yes, money can be directed to infrastructure to make transportation easier to the cities and am sure there can be help to make these folks who are willing to work to better help them have opportunity to support themselves.

Other than that these folks have a choice to give up farming and move closer to the city. Farming all over the industrialized world is becoming a dying business for farmers. Like anywhere else, people have to find opportunities that support themselves and their family and why MOST people in places like the US are now city dwellers or living in city suburbs where they can commute to work.

People all over the world have it hard but especially in Thailand where folks require a University degree to work as a store clerk in BKK making 200 baht a day if lucky. Any idea of the cost of living difference between BKK and the North or the need to keep up with the Jones here? While many farmers in the NE sit around during the non growing/harvesting season, you have people in BKK like security guards working 12 hour days, 7 days a week to make less than 7k baht a month.

No doubt life in Issan is hard for many but by the looks of the bellies and cars at the red shirt seizure site ... they don't look so bad off to me.

Edited April 26, 2010 by jcbangkok

[keepsamuiclean]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

Sorry, but I was under the impression that Thaksin was so loved by the NE people as he DID something for them. Seems that he neither developed a SUPER PLAN which seems to be needed nor realized such kind of a plan within his 6 years in office.

Now to expect everything quickly from the Abhisit government which is 16 months in office of which almost half of the time got disrupted by the reds seems not fair to me.

[jcbangkok]

You cannot dissolve the government at the moment. What you have right now is a breakdown of law and order. The police do not have control over even their own movements. With gangs of formerly red protesters appointing themselves the guardians of Thailand you cannot hold a successful election. If they continue to set up roadblocks and harass ordinary citizens you cannot hold free elections. How can you expect any votes for the democrats if voters have to pass through red checkpoints before getting to the polling stations? In such a situation the whole election would be worthless. Law and order must be restored so that if the PTP wins the election it will be legitimate, and not due to massive intimidation of the population. Unless Thais have the freedom to move about their own country without interference you cannot hold elections.

The Army can't be called in every time there is a problem with a protester group. At some point the police must be more than traffic directors. Policemen who cannot or will not perform their duties must be reassigned to desk jobs or cleaning up road kill. An effective police force to uphold the rule of law is crucial, and now Thailand's police force is a joke.

Last I heard a police office in BKK started at $7k baht a month. I believe they are given free housing in police complexes though.

[jcbangkok]

So,

Just coming back from my favourite issan village and some people presented to me the latest present from the Government for helping farming: a Kubota tractor 153 (15 horse power) with 3 disks, transmission by belt. cost 250,000TBT (for around 1000 houses/families)...a joke.

Really there is no policy for helping seriously ISSAN. It is the root of the problem, I have already written a lot about that... Instead to prepare the Civil war, the Government should defuse the situation by announcing a real policy for developing the Northern Country: 42% of the population with 13% of National income.....

Ok:

How about mandatory free schooling to 18 years old?

Not as good as 100k in everyone's bank today, but let's look to the future.

We use to say that a Government has 100 days to start implementing a policy and 6 months later must be passed through parliament...Abhisit has gotten 16 months....

1 Schooling is just talking, talking talking... good intention but hel_l is paved with good intentions (french proverb). In any case, too late and it is not the Primary issue.

2 The main issue is INCOME. price of rice, rubber, subsidising the Farming until it is modernised. Modernisation of Farming, with IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS. In the same time decentralisation of Industries to fix the population locally and condition for doing this successfully is INVESTMENTS in INFRASTRUCTURE IN NORTHERN REGION (NOT ONLY IN BANGKOK) RAILWAYS, HIGHWAYS, IRRIGATION.....

Which means drastic revision of the BUDGET, Reorientation of the INVESTMENTS.

This is the minimum to be credible....But probably this is not satisfactory for the Bankokians who want ALL for them.

In Summary, Abhisit except schooling intentions, peanuts for Northern Regions, nothing serious... Too late and very insuficient for defusing the situation.

Northern Regions need a SUPER PLAN to get them out of the ghetto bankokians are sending them...

Failure to understand this is driving to major turbulences, risk of a Civil war, because Northern people have nothing to loose.....

Sorry, but I was under the impression that Thaksin was so loved by the NE people as he DID something for them. Seems that he neither developed a SUPER PLAN which seems to be needed nor realized such kind of a plan within his 6 years in office.

Now to expect everything quickly from the Abhisit government which is 16 months in office of which almost half of the time got disrupted by the reds seems not fair to me.

EXACTLY!!

And how long did he have to do this? He simply gave handouts (to buy votes) and loans that he knew could not be repaid while helping to keep the village leaders rich to continue to feed the people there his propaganda.