The Election Is Over But The Hatred Remains; Thai Opinion

[EnhancePlus]

Ckog dee

[whybother]

The big problem is that there are more "Have Nots" than "Haves" in Thailand. As long as that perceived gap exists, the poor majority will support anyone who delivers anything that resembles a better situation than they are now experiencing. If the rich want to stay in power, they will have to give up something or risk losing it all. Unfortunately, the rich and powerful want to not only hold on to it all, but want more.

Looking at recent history, the revolutions in Russia, China, Cuba, etc. resulted when the majority of the populace was poor and believed they had nothing to lose by joining the revolution. Their target was easy to identify and attack. America has prevented this problem by keeping its poorest citizens fat and lazy with food handouts and access to over a hundred cable channels. They might not be that happy, but they now have something that they don't want to lose. They have also convinced the majority that there is a chance for them to enter the higher echelon of society, not realizing that it is nothing but a glass ceiling.

The point is, that as long as there is hope that one can become part of the ruling class, there will be a strong resistance to destroy the regime. Without that hope, expect chaos...lots of chaos.

Does that mean that there are no "Have Nots" in the south?

[LevelHead]

The Democrats and BJT and their backers played a very clever ploy with the investigation into the Red Shirt Demo's.

Ever wonder why nothing came out of the panels all set up to investigate ?

if the truth comes out when the Democrats/BJT were in power and its the real truth then it would hurt.

Now, if the truth comes out under PTP government then they will ALL HIDE behind "government intervention" - its retribution - not fair due to PTP government etc.............

Thats why its all been held back.

The best thing PTP can do is hand all the investigation over to the UN/ICC, wash their hands of the investigation and allow international organizations in to get on with it.

[Who, me ?]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

The Nation is an English language newspapers. How can it effect the opinion of most of the Thai people?

The Nation is a poorly written paper that is not worthy of having the title "news" added to it.

Thanks for your valuable input, but that was NOT my purpose

[relidiousenut]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

See you can not leave it alone because you are full of prejudice, Hatred begets hatred, They are trying to move forward, but some would rather see the world annihilated if it was not to their own preference, They should stop trying to be God and become a PART of the Human race

I have read what you have said though many seem to have chosen to ignore it, You are absolutely right, If it does not go their way they want to take their ball and go home so nobody can play, or as you put it would rather see the world annihilated.

Sad human beings, self self self Everyone else is stupid but not them

[Fookhaht]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

The Nation is an English language newspapers. How can it effect the opinion of most of the Thai people?

Because the main readership of the Nation (and Bangkok Post, for that matter) are well-educated English-reading Thais. Next?

[OZEMADE]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

The Nation is an English language newspapers. How can it effect the opinion of most of the Thai people?

Because the main readership of the Nation (and Bangkok Post, for that matter) are well-educated English-reading Thais. Next?

Prior to the elections, there were a lot of people on thisforum were beating and puffing their chests out in a positive way, quoting fromthe Nation. Now they have lost. The chest beating is over and the chests havegone down and the negativity is flowing out.

The Nation is a newspaper that mainly spreads proper ganderthat suits its own purpose, which is to try and get people to purchase thepaper. Hence that is why a lot of bad losers on the TVF have used quotes fromit. It only prints negative media that keeps the circulation going. It stillis.

The election is over, the Thai people have voted and unlikea lot of members here, the Thai's have accepted the outcome.

The only persons that keep bringing up the ousted PrimeMinister Thaksin, the riots in Bangkok, the military crackdown, the corruptionand a multitude of other things not of interest anymore, are the Nation and itsTVF followers.

In time it will hit you, the Democrats lost and you have abad taste in your mouths. After a short passing the bad taste will go. Give ita rest.

[hansnl]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

Quite true, the big lie that this is a rural poor versus Bangkok elite issue has been told repeatedly by the absentee multi-billionaire. His chinese ancestry seems to have been completely forgotten by the poor ethnic Thais of Isaan and the premeditated conspiracy to cause many deaths amongst their number has also been forgotten. The phrase 'Useful idiots' springs to mind here and now Thailand will pay in the long run for it's short term myopia.

Example, one of the promises.

Just wonder what will happen if the minimum wage is raised to 300 baht, now standing at 190-200 baht?

Without raising productivity?

Think prices will rise around 10%-15%?

Export will get more difficult or plunge?

What will happen then?

The Chinese upper top of the Thai population will agree to this?

Guess not.

[Nisa]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

See you can not leave it alone because you are full of prejudice, Hatred begets hatred, They are trying to move forward, but some would rather see the world annihilated if it was not to their own preference, They should stop trying to be God and become a PART of the Human race

I have read what you have said though many seem to have chosen to ignore it, You are absolutely right, If it does not go their way they want to take their ball and go home so nobody can play, or as you put it would rather see the world annihilated.

Sad human beings, self self self Everyone else is stupid but not them

I think many may have chose to ignore the words because they make no sense whatsoever in response to my comments that don't show an ounce of anger, prejudice, hatred or wanting of God like powers and simply stated my concerns based on logic and fact. One can only guess that some posters choose to believe that their own internal issues apply to others because both of your comments have absolutely nothing to do with my comments ... which by the way, I have no problem with somebody having a different view to my comments and actually enjoy when somebody shows me another side I haven't considered. However, how can one respond to the above two replies except to say they make no sense what-so-ever when it comes to my post.

Edited July 4, 2011 by Nisa

[LevelHead]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

The Nation is an English language newspapers. How can it effect the opinion of most of the Thai people?

Because the main readership of the Nation (and Bangkok Post, for that matter) are well-educated English-reading Thais. Next?

Prior to the elections, there were a lot of people on thisforum were beating and puffing their chests out in a positive way, quoting fromthe Nation. Now they have lost. The chest beating is over and the chests havegone down and the negativity is flowing out.

The Nation is a newspaper that mainly spreads proper ganderthat suits its own purpose, which is to try and get people to purchase thepaper. Hence that is why a lot of bad losers on the TVF have used quotes fromit. It only prints negative media that keeps the circulation going. It stillis.

The election is over, the Thai people have voted and unlikea lot of members here, the Thai's have accepted the outcome.

The only persons that keep bringing up the ousted PrimeMinister Thaksin, the riots in Bangkok, the military crackdown, the corruptionand a multitude of other things not of interest anymore, are the Nation and itsTVF followers.

In time it will hit you, the Democrats lost and you have abad taste in your mouths. After a short passing the bad taste will go. Give ita rest.

The Nation is, imo, a disgrace of a newspaper. It has been, thanks to its ownership, very anti-Thaksin and anti TRT. They have been supportive of the PAD and Yellows and the Multicolours and all undemocratic means of keeping power with the invisible hands.

PTP should now use precedent set by the Democrats/BJT and shut down the Nation, ASTV and all the other outlets of these people. However, that is not good for reconciliation, hopefully PTP will rise above the pathetic behavior of the Democrats/NJT and Military and allow freedoms that have been taken away from the people since the coup of 2006 to return.

[Nisa]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

Quite true, the big lie that this is a rural poor versus Bangkok elite issue has been told repeatedly by the absentee multi-billionaire. His chinese ancestry seems to have been completely forgotten by the poor ethnic Thais of Isaan and the premeditated conspiracy to cause many deaths amongst their number has also been forgotten. The phrase 'Useful idiots' springs to mind here and now Thailand will pay in the long run for it's short term myopia.

Example, one of the promises.

Just wonder what will happen if the minimum wage is raised to 300 baht, now standing at 190-200 baht?

Without raising productivity?

Think prices will rise around 10%-15%?

Export will get more difficult or plunge?

What will happen then?

The Chinese upper top of the Thai population will agree to this?

Guess not.

Interesting video here http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/07/03/thailand.election/index.html

An analyst says that implementation of the promises made would cost 5x the national budget and Thailand would be broke within a year.

[Deez]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

And more sour grapes from you about the Nation. We get it. You dont like the paper. Did they fire you or something? Why dont you ask them to run an expose about corruption in business?

[geriatrickid]

Interesting video here http://www.cnn.com/2...tion/index.html

An analyst says that implementation of the promises made would cost 5x the national budget and Thailand would be broke within a year.

Creative editing?

The key part of the comment was; Supong Limtanakool of Bangkok University's Center for Strategic Studies said both parties made big promises they just can't keep.

The comment was not restricted to the PTP platform. I too share these concerns, but I also know that what the PTP presented was a vision and a set of goals. One cannot advance if one doesn't have a mission statement and a defined goals. That's how it works in the real world.

The fact of the matter is that once the PTP finance minister gets a look at the books he or she will soon see that Thailand ddoes not have the funds in the Treasury to support anything extra and that finance minister will have the difficult task of explaining that to the public.

[ozzieman05]

A wonderful day !!!!

The corruption of the events of 2006 is put right yet again.

TRT/PPP/PTP have now won every election for what is fast approaching 20 years. Everyone remember how corrupt the Democrats were back before TRT and Thaksin rose to power.

Having lived through Democrat corruption and the rise to power of TRT and then its downfall at the hands of the military and the elite invisible hand - I can assure you TRT and Thaksin is far better than anything else THailand has seen and its why the people CONTINUALLY vote for them.

The excuses of the only reason Thaksin won is because TRT was in power are blown away, they have won when the military where in control and against then and now won when the Democrats/BJT were in control and against them.

A wonderful day for Thailand. The Thai people in the majority have shown who they support, and well done to them for YET AGAIN choosing the TRT/PPP/PTP and rejecting the others.

I think we are living in different Thailands

Or you are in a dream

[ToffeEFCpower]

Now ther is no dictatorship, what will the UDD change its name to?

[arrowsdawdle]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

Case in point. Did you even read the OP?

[ozzieman05]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

Quite true, the big lie that this is a rural poor versus Bangkok elite issue has been told repeatedly by the absentee multi-billionaire. His chinese ancestry seems to have been completely forgotten by the poor ethnic Thais of Isaan and the premeditated conspiracy to cause many deaths amongst their number has also been forgotten. The phrase 'Useful idiots' springs to mind here and now Thailand will pay in the long run for it's short term myopia.

Example, one of the promises.

Just wonder what will happen if the minimum wage is raised to 300 baht, now standing at 190-200 baht?

Without raising productivity?

Think prices will rise around 10%-15%?

Export will get more difficult or plunge?

What will happen then?

The Chinese upper top of the Thai population will agree to this?

Guess not.

The uneducated people of Issan may have opened Pandora's Box

So far we have see the way to win is violence

The real queation did PT win because they had better policies, or told bigger lies to the uneducated, only the future will answer this

In Australia we have a Female Prime Minister who won the election with Lie after lie and is sending our country down a roller coaster of destruction

If the new Government do what they said before the election and put the people first before her older brother, maybe Thailand can find peace

But if her election promises where just lies like the Australian Prime Minister, Thailand has sad days ahead

[Steely Dan]

The fact of the matter is that once the PTP finance minister gets a look at the books he or she will soon see that Thailand does not have the funds in the Treasury to support anything extra and that finance minister will have the difficult task of explaining that to the public.

But they knew all along they were talking a cheque which could never be cashed, which is somewhat ironic considering they were accusing Abhisit of being good at talking. Actually having no dog in this fight I would quite like to see 45baht to the dollar so bring on the minimum wage, high inflation and a collapsing exchange rate.

[arrowsdawdle]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

See you can not leave it alone because you are full of prejudice, Hatred begets hatred, They are trying to move forward, but some would rather see the world annihilated if it was not to their own preference, They should stop trying to be God and become a PART of the Human race

I have read what you have said though many seem to have chosen to ignore it, You are absolutely right, If it does not go their way they want to take their ball and go home so nobody can play, or as you put it would rather see the world annihilated.

Sad human beings, self self self Everyone else is stupid but not them

I think many may have chose to ignore the words because they make no sense whatsoever in response to my comments that don't show an ounce of anger, prejudice, hatred or wanting of God like powers and simply stated my concerns based on logic and fact. One can only guess that some posters choose to believe that their own internal issues apply to others because both of your comments have absolutely nothing to do with my comments ... which by the way, I have no problem with somebody having a different view to my comments and actually enjoy when somebody shows me another side I haven't considered. However, how can one respond to the above two replies except to say they make no sense what-so-ever when it comes to my post.

Perhaps, that is because your post made no sense.

[KeyserSoze01]

The real queation did PT win because they had better policies, or told bigger lies to the uneducated, only the future will answer this

No need to wait for the future as it is evident that the PT told whatever lies necessary to get into office, just like any good politician would do.

[EarthAlien]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

These are two of the most intelligent and relevant posts I have seen on this topic.

This sums it up very accurately and concisely. Thaksin has run a very skillful and cunning strategy of "divide & conquer" and has been an impediment to the carrying on of real government and real leadership and simply used the downturn in economy and national divisiveness that he created to blame upon the democratic government's incompetence.

He is indeed a very shrude, capable and cunning individual,- but so is the devil and there is no truth in him either!

A wolf in sheep's clothing have the "people" elected and in due course this will become a very clear fact in the political history of Thailand when viewed in hindsight over the next 10 to 20 years.

Anyone that believes for a moment that the political and domestic issues of any country can be rectified within the first 6 months of new government's office (as Yingluck has promised) is either completely naive or a total fool!

People get the governments that they deserve,- and unfortunately that is the case here and until such time as the standard of education, social and ethical responsibility and minimum wages for working class improve then Thailand will not progress, improve or shake off the shackles of oppression, endemic corruption and dysfunctionality!

[toybits]

And the best that you can do is to make snide comments about how uneducation people "STOLE" the mandate from the "RIGHT" kind of people?

The uneducated people of Issan may have opened Pandora's Box

So far we have see the way to win is violence

The real queation did PT win because they had better policies, or told bigger lies to the uneducated, only the future will answer this

In Australia we have a Female Prime Minister who won the election with Lie after lie and is sending our country down a roller coaster of destruction

If the new Government do what they said before the election and put the people first before her older brother, maybe Thailand can find peace

But if her election promises where just lies like the Australian Prime Minister, Thailand has sad days ahead

[Nisa]

Interesting video here http://www.cnn.com/2...tion/index.html

An analyst says that implementation of the promises made would cost 5x the national budget and Thailand would be broke within a year.

Creative editing?

The key part of the comment was; Supong Limtanakool of Bangkok University's Center for Strategic Studies said both parties made big promises they just can't keep.

The comment was not restricted to the PTP platform. I too share these concerns, but I also know that what the PTP presented was a vision and a set of goals. One cannot advance if one doesn't have a mission statement and a defined goals. That's how it works in the real world.

The fact of the matter is that once the PTP finance minister gets a look at the books he or she will soon see that Thailand ddoes not have the funds in the Treasury to support anything extra and that finance minister will have the difficult task of explaining that to the public.

Creative editing? I didn't edit the video nor did I make any claims about it except for what is factually stated, which you appear to be saying may very well be the case. You are reading too much into a simple link I shared.

Even though I didn't mention a party it would seem kind of obvious the only relevant promises are the ones by the party that won ... regardless of budgets, Abhisit is not in the position to implement any of his promises and that what my reply was about is the new leader(s) will be able to keep their promises. Note also I didn't mention a number of other non-relevant things in the video including the fact they called Thaksin one of the most polarizing figures in Thailand.

[geovalin]

I'm impressed how all of you take this story to heart.

Maï Pen Raï

[arrowsdawdle]

A wonderful day !!!!

The corruption of the events of 2006 is put right yet again.

TRT/PPP/PTP have now won every election for what is fast approaching 20 years. Everyone remember how corrupt the Democrats were back before TRT and Thaksin rose to power.

Having lived through Democrat corruption and the rise to power of TRT and then its downfall at the hands of the military and the elite invisible hand - I can assure you TRT and Thaksin is far better than anything else Thailand has seen and its why the people CONTINUALLY vote for them.

The excuses of the only reason Thaksin won is because TRT was in power are blown away, they have won when the military where in control and against then and now won when the Democrats/BJT were in control and against them.

A wonderful day for Thailand. The Thai people in the majority have shown who they support, and well done to them for YET AGAIN choosing the TRT/PPP/PTP and rejecting the others.

And TRT/PPP (perhaps also PTP) have been disqualified from every victory, from vote buying. After Thaksin was booted out with a coup it became possible to put him on trial and reveal the full extent of his corruption, I urge the new government to look for similar corruption from the Democrats in the recent govt.

And don't kid yourself that it's all about numbers, because without the 20 million in Isarn willing to sell their vote or easily bamboozled with handouts, Thaksin would never have even made it past the first election.

Standard excuse from losers.

In 2007 the military attempted to make sure minimal vote buying by any party. Result PPP won.

In 2011 the military/Democrats/BJT/Multicolours all tried to make sure minimal vote buying by PTP and it seems IGNORE all other parties vote buying. Result PTP won.

Vote buying is not something that TRT/Thaksin invented. It is standard practice by all. And TRT/PPP/PTP have shown they can win without it.

After the 2006 coup the top judiciary was changed by the military and then the very same military appointed judiciary and the military appointed panels to investigate Thaksin SURPRISE found the man they kicked out guilty, which then justified to themselves their action and justified their AMNESTY they gave themselves.

Corruption - the Thai people continue to vote against the biggest corruption. Its just the corrupt cannot accept the result and keep trying to nullify it.

Well stated, and how lame does one have to be anyway to believe that there is any substance to vote buying, especially in Thailand were a contract is just a pause in negotiation? Money may change hands but votes cannot be bought. All that is bought is a promise. There is no guarantee what happens to any promises once one is inside the voting booth. This is why any actions predicated on vote buying, such as removal from office or dismantling of a party, are mere examples of selective enforcement of vague laws set up to be selectively enforced.

[Chalard]

A wonderful day !!!!

The corruption of the events of 2006 is put right yet again.

TRT/PPP/PTP have now won every election for what is fast approaching 20 years. Everyone remember how corrupt the Democrats were back before TRT and Thaksin rose to power.

Having lived through Democrat corruption and the rise to power of TRT and then its downfall at the hands of the military and the elite invisible hand - I can assure you TRT and Thaksin is far better than anything else THailand has seen and its why the people CONTINUALLY vote for them.

The excuses of the only reason Thaksin won is because TRT was in power are blown away, they have won when the military where in control and against then and now won when the Democrats/BJT were in control and against them.

A wonderful day for Thailand. The Thai people in the majority have shown who they support, and well done to them for YET AGAIN choosing the TRT/PPP/PTP and rejecting the others.

I bet you 500 baht your wrong. Anyway, that's what the going rate was from TRT to buy your vote in Ratchaburi!

[arrowsdawdle]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

These are two of the most intelligent and relevant posts I have seen on this topic.

This sums it up very accurately and concisely. Thaksin has run a very skillful and cunning strategy of "divide & conquer" and has been an impediment to the carrying on of real government and real leadership and simply used the downturn in economy and national divisiveness that he created to blame upon the democratic government's incompetence.

He is indeed a very shrude, capable and cunning individual,- but so is the devil and there is no truth in him either!

A wolf in sheep's clothing have the "people" elected and in due course this will become a very clear fact in the political history of Thailand when viewed in hindsight over the next 10 to 20 years.

Anyone that believes for a moment that the political and domestic issues of any country can be rectified within the first 6 months of new government's office (as Yingluck has promised) is either completely naive or a total fool!

People get the governments that they deserve,- and unfortunately that is the case here and until such time as the standard of education, social and ethical responsibility and minimum wages for working class improve then Thailand will not progress, improve or shake off the shackles of oppression, endemic corruption and dysfunctionality!

Three's a crowd and this crowd has come together under the aegis of misery loves company. You bet on the wrong horse and still believe you were right, vilifying the winning jockey for guiding the winning horse to victory against your delusion of how reality ought to be.

[virtualtraveller]

JALTSC it's all relative, there are more have-nots than haves in most countries, The have-nots in Thailand have more than the have-nots in most other SE Asia or third world countries, and the gap between them, believe it or not (according to the gini co-efficient) is less than in the US, UK and Singapore.

What the have-nots have not here is a better sense of judgment and information as to the background of the conflict, what is true or only half-true, what is outright lies and what lies ahead if you follow one or the other. And when the continually vote in government that fall short of the democratic/transparency expectations of the haves (the educated and informed) they get denied through courts and other means of disqualification. Ultimately they remain have-nots from one generation to the next.

[RickBradford]

More sour grapes. The Nation and is pandering to hate is a key culprit in the negative perceptions. How come the Nation never crusaded against corruption, naming and shaming? Let the Nation set the example and expose the corrupt practices in Thailand's business world.

The Nation is an English language newspapers. How can it effect the opinion of most of the Thai people?

One reason would be that the Nation Group also publishes in Thai -- in particular the mass-circulation Komchadleuk daily newspaper. the Turagit business daily and the Nation weekend magazine.

In 2006, it was forced to suspend publication for a number of days after a mob of 2.000 Thaksin supporters besieged its headquarters, so it clearly does have impact among Thais.

Edited July 4, 2011 by RickBradford

[Thaddeus]

Reconciliation can never come as long as Thaksin is pulling the strings and that is the bottom line. Allowing Thaksin to run another puppet government does nothing but move Thailand backwards. I could care less if an actual Thaksin clone won the election but at some point all Thais have to realize that having Thaksin in anyway running the show is bad for all Thais in the long run. If Thaksin cared even one ounce about the Thai people he would have handled his life as fugitive very differently.

A big part of why what you say is true is because; Thaksins strategy and tactics to win and maintain power are specifically based on keeping the hatred going in a big way. He took the demagoguery of 'Us vs Them' and brought it to new lows that Thailand may never be able to recover from. He no doubt thinks this was 'leadership' since his political machine is leading the polls, but true national leaders unite, not divide. As you said, as long as he seeks to control the country via his machine the hatred will remain, revenge and retribution will be the order of the day and reconciliation is not possible.

These are two of the most intelligent and relevant posts I have seen on this topic.

This sums it up very accurately and concisely. Thaksin has run a very skillful and cunning strategy of "divide & conquer" and has been an impediment to the carrying on of real government and real leadership and simply used the downturn in economy and national divisiveness that he created to blame upon the democratic government's incompetence.

He is indeed a very shrude, capable and cunning individual,- but so is the devil and there is no truth in him either!

A wolf in sheep's clothing have the "people" elected and in due course this will become a very clear fact in the political history of Thailand when viewed in hindsight over the next 10 to 20 years.

Anyone that believes for a moment that the political and domestic issues of any country can be rectified within the first 6 months of new government's office (as Yingluck has promised) is either completely naive or a total fool!

People get the governments that they deserve,- and unfortunately that is the case here and until such time as the standard of education, social and ethical responsibility and minimum wages for working class improve then Thailand will not progress, improve or shake off the shackles of oppression, endemic corruption and dysfunctionality!

Now you can make that three posts.