Rowdy Rally Forces Thaksin To Cancel Meeting In Los Angeles

[jayboy]

This still doesn't explain why you chose to use the racial distinction to describe the US protesters (post #218). Or your assumption that those protesters harbour denigrating views about the educational status of Thaksin's supporters.

In the first instance I don't see Sino-Thai as a derogatory term at all.In fact Thailand has benefited hugely from their presence.

As to Thais in the US it's a fair assumption that most would be Sino Thai because most are middle or aspirant middle class (see previous post)

It is also true that the Sino Thai urban middle class holds the rural population responsible for their plight - poor education, lack of initiative etc.The reasons for this I have touched on earlier - and some are valid.

The interesting question is why this segment of society has so resolutely fallen under the wing of old and discredited feudal/business/military elites.In other countries the advance of democracy has produced a more confident and independent middle class.The ethnic issue is perhaps one aspect but also a sense of unease perhaps that in Thailand's extraordinary economic progress over the last 50 yeats while everybody has benefited their segment has done so much better than the rural population.

[Buchholz]

After his aborted appearance in Los Angeles, the Daily News has him flying back cross-country to Washington, DC... allegedly to meet American politicians.

http://www.thaivisa....ost__p__5568676

Having moved on from Los Angeles, I'm curious as to just which American politician Thaksin met with yesterday.

In the ramshackle nature this disastrous adventure has become renowned for, the fugitive's normally well-oiled PR machine is herky-jerking right along with no media coverage, no photos, and no pronouncements.

Noppadon is pronouncing that Thaksin met with U.S. Secretary of State. No, not Hillary Clinton.

No, Noppadon is saying Thaksin met with the Secretary of State from 39 years ago under disgraced President Nixon, Henry Kissinger (age 89).

Thai Rath (article in Thai)

http://www.thairath.co.th/content/pol/283768

[Buchholz]

Noppadon also said that Thaksin's trip around the USA has been judged a success, although he didn't mention Thaksin meeting any one of note from this century.

Kom Chad Luek news

http://www.komchadluek.net/detail/20120815/137708/%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%93%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%97.%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%81%E0%B9%87%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%94%E0%B9%89.html

[cloudhopper]

Makes me wonder what he went to see Dr K about though...and what might motivate Dr K to see Dr T.

[rubl]

Does the latest news mean k. Thaksin already left the US of A? I mean he just got there on the seventh or eight I think?

[metisdead]

An off topic post has been removed, this is not about the Bush regime.

[Buchholz]

Does the latest news mean k. Thaksin already left the US of A? I mean he just got there on the seventh or eight I think?

I was under the impression he'd be there until August 23rd.

webfact Posted 2012-08-09

NEW YORK: -- Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra kicked off a two-week visit to the United States

http://www.thaivisa....s/#entry5556310

[geriatrickid]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

Edited August 15, 2012 by geriatrickid

[Buchholz]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

You're impressed by the 30 supporters he got in New York, the 40 he got in Las Vegas, the 10 he got in San Francisco, and the 150 he got in L.A.?

You impress very easily.

There were any number of non-Thais with the Red Shirts in LA (if you need more photos highlighting that, just let me know). Over the course of all his travels thus far in the USA, clearly the overwhelming majority of both detractors and supporters have been Thai.

The rest of your soliloquy, "Ode to a Despot", I'll let pass with the acknowledgement that Noppadon and you are both in agreement that the disastrous USA tour has actually been highly successful and that his stated goal of meeting American politicians and American businessmen has exceeded anyone's wildest dreams.

.

[nurofiend]

so every thai you have ever seen has been personally paid to vote?

and do you ask every thai national you speak to?

or is that just hyperbole?

mmmm

Yep.

And I don't ask, they tell, it's very common talk, gossip, he paid this etc ..... if you are unaware of this, then you are unaware of this.

i'm not unaware of the existence of vote buying and i'm not denying that it happens.

but your answer was "Practically every Thai national I know, have spoken to or seen"

which means you think (practically) every thai national gets paid cash to vote, and it's hyperbolic bs.

So, you are aware of the existence of vote buying then and you don't deny it happens.

For you, as a farang, who cannot vote or have any involvement in the electoral system, to be aware of it, must mean that it is pretty blatantly obvious, doesn't it.

And please, don't try to infer that when I say 'every Thai national I know' it means 'every Thai national'

Free and Democratic elections, again, my backside.

yes and yes.

but to me, your post of - to paraphrase "every thai i know, have talked to or have ever seen' suggested, to me, that you were basically suggesting that every thai does it.

it wasn't an intentional attempt to spin what you said, genuinely, it's just what it came across like.

[nurofiend]

yeah, maybe try answering my question instead skywalker69, instead of posting the video of red shirts getting money for the trip to bangkok.

i know you're probably of the opinion that they value their lives less than 2000 baht or whatever it was and only went to bangkok to get their expense money.

It really doesn't matter of it was 20 or 20 million people who were paid to vote - it's against the law.

I wouldn't imagine that the envelopes in the video contained any small print to the effect that the receiver is not contractually obliged to vote PTP - would you?

what a strange thing to say, for example would it really not matter whether 20 million people were murdered or 20 - because it's against the law?

of course it matters, and especially if you're talking about the legitimacy of ptp's win.

but anyway, we all know that vote buying goes on with all parties.

[whybother]

"What they fail to recognize in their failed effort was that even something culturally rude is tolerable and protected as long as it is non-violent."

You might want to explain that line of thought to the lady from New Zealand who made certain gestures recently and was greeted by a baying crowd of yellow shirts at Suavanabhumi airport trying (and suceeding) to stop her from meeting her flight

Actually, she didn't even go to the airport. She was put into "care" before that, so the yellow shirts didn't "succeed" in stopping her from doing anything.

Didn't stop them from getting onto their "my little pony" smartphones and organise a whole bunch of them down the airport though did it?

And it didn't stop you twisting things to suit your agenda.

I don't agree with what they did, but that doesn't mean you should lie about it.

[Insight]

An interesting take on the situation and strong verbiage from an outside Thailand news source...

Hypocrisy: Syria Burns While Mass Murdering Dictator Roams Freely in USA

Starting in February 2003, and over the course of 3 months, some 2,800 people (approximately 30 a day) would be extra-judicially murdered in the cities and countrysides of Southeast Asia's Thailand. Accused of being "drug dealers," they were systematically exterminated based on "hit lists" compiled by police given carte blanche by then Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (a former police bureaucrat himself). It would later be determined by official investigations that over half of those killed had nothing to do with the drug trade in any way. Human Rights Watch (HRW) would confirm this in their 2008 report titled, "Thailand’s 'war on drugs'," a follow up to the much more extensive 2004 report, "Not Enough Graves."

Continues:

http://hamsayeh.net/...ely-in-usa.html

Hamsayeh News - August 15, 2012

Interesting source.

Yes it's written by none other than Tony Cartalucci, who out tinfoils the the craziest and most paranoid of us all.I imagine Buchholz is just having a laugh in posting it.I mean if it was meant to be taken seriously that would suggest....

You could always "meet" Buchholz with an "article" by Andrew Spooner.

[Fozfromoz]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

You're impressed by the 30 supporters he got in New York, the 40 he got in Las Vegas, the 10 he got in San Francisco, and the 150 he got in L.A.?

You impress very easily.

There were any number of non-Thais with the Red Shirts in LA (if you need more photos highlighting that, just let me know). Over the course of all his travels thus far in the USA, clearly the overwhelming majority of both detractors and supporters have been Thai.

The rest of your soliloquy, "Ode to a Despot", I'll let pass with the acknowledgement that Noppadon and you are both in agreement that the disastrous USA tour has actually been highly successful and that his stated goal of meeting American politicians and American businessmen has exceeded anyone's wildest dreams.

.

Seems quite a few here have a myopic fixation on attendance numbers. Did Thaksin state some numbers or was going for Guinness book of records or something?

[Buchholz]

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

You're impressed by the 30 supporters he got in New York, the 40 he got in Las Vegas, the 10 he got in San Francisco, and the 150 he got in L.A.?

You impress very easily.

There were any number of non-Thais with the Red Shirts in LA (if you need more photos highlighting that, just let me know). Over the course of all his travels thus far in the USA, clearly the overwhelming majority of both detractors and supporters have been Thai.

The rest of your soliloquy, "Ode to a Despot", I'll let pass with the acknowledgement that Noppadon and you are both in agreement that the disastrous USA tour has actually been highly successful and that his stated goal of meeting American politicians and American businessmen has exceeded anyone's wildest dreams.

Seems quite a few here have a myopic fixation on attendance numbers. Did Thaksin state some numbers or was going for Guinness book of records or something?

Seems some here don't seem to think having 30 people sitting in walk-up, third-rate food shop as an embarrassment for a former Prime Minister. Seems some here agree with Noppadon that the abysmal dining places that are hosting him as he goes from coast to coast to deliver empty speeches at nearly empty venues can be judged as phenomenal success. Some see to agree that despite the tour's stated itinerary of meeting with the movers and shakers in the USA and that has yet to transpire as something the organizers shouldn't be called on.

Why has the holder of a PhD utilizing the English language not attempted to draw a wider audience by conducting his speeches in English? Where are the interviews with CNN, Fox, AP, Reuters, or even the weather girl on a local television channel? He's gotten no traction whatsoever with this fiasco, but hey, go ahead and defend the flop. Noppadon can use the help.

.

Edited August 15, 2012 by Buchholz

[MikeOboe57]

Why has the holder of a PhD utilizing the English language not attempted to draw a wider audience by conducting his speeches in English? Where are the interviews with CNN, Fox, AP, Reuters, or even the weather girl on a local television channel? He's gotten no traction whatsoever with this fiasco, but hey, go ahead and defend the flop. Noppadon can use the help.

Who would want to listen to an incoherent stammering consisting mainly of : "Ah, ah, ah, ah, I, I, I, you know, you know, you know, no, no, no, two demockassy, two demockassy..." etc. ad infinitum?

[scorecard]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

Well your comments about impressive numbers at the various US locations falls apart very easily.

He was able to 'organize' 10,000 / 20,000 etc., (many very poor) Thais to travel from across all of Thailand, but just 10, 20, 30 from across US.

Now how can they be impressive numbers?

The rest of your post, I was moved to tears.

[OzMick]

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

27" Hg

[yoshiwara]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

The awful thing is that this really is the message peddled on Red TV. Whether he managed to touch the hearts and minds gathered to listen to him in the restaurants of New York is a mystery.

[Reasonableman]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

Hello, hello, hello... Wot's all this then??? Trenchant sarcasm and satire from our beloved GK? Never expected to see the day. Thanks for the belly laugh, GK!!

Edited August 15, 2012 by Reasonableman

[ratcatcher]

Here we go again. Taksin Shinawatra is world famous. That is a fact.

and the massive audiences he garners everywhere he goes is proof positive of that.

.

At least you acknowledge the Dr. Thaksin's enduring popularity with many Thais. Considering the Thai population is distributed over large areas in the USA, I am impressed that he can gather the numbers he does. The attendees all seem to be of Thai origin. Quite different than the protestors who seem to be include the usual "oh good a protest, I want to join" non Thai origin collective,

Thais that are attending the meet and greet have a strong interest in Mr. Thaksin. It is much more difficult to attend an event where one is harrassed, then it is to go and do the harassing.

I think some people in TVF are jealous of the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging Dr. Thaksin. It must distress them so, to see how he is able to touch the hearts of so many and elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many Thais. Let the bells of freedom ring, and allow the peoples hearts to soar with joy as their champion of an elected government carries on in his tough struggle against the military and rentrenched elites' minions.

"the magnetic charm of the delightful engaging "******"

"he is able to touch the hearts of so many"

"elicit the genuine love and admiration of so many "

"Let the bells of freedom ring"

"peoples hearts to soar with joy"

"carries on in his tough struggle against the military".

OMG, Are we talking about the second coming here?

Let us pray!

Edited August 16, 2012 by ratcatcher

[Buchholz]

Ah well, another day for our intrepid tourist, another town, another Thai eatery, another protest opposing him.

Next up for Thaksin and his foes is the Galae Thai Restaurant and Sushi Bar in a suburban strip mall in Alexandria, Virginia where he is scheduled to speak and which protesters have shown up.

.

[ratcatcher]

Ah well, another day for our intrepid tourist, another town, another Thai eatery, another protest opposing him.

Next up for Thaksin and his foes is the Galae Thai Restaurant and Sushi Bar in a suburban strip mall in Alexandria, Virginia where he is scheduled to speak and which protesters have shown up..

Perhaps he would get a larger audience if he threw an all you can eat barbecue at the Astrodome?

[waza]

After his aborted appearance in Los Angeles, the Daily News has him flying back cross-country to Washington, DC... allegedly to meet American politicians.

http://www.thaivisa....ost__p__5568676

Having moved on from Los Angeles, I'm curious as to just which American politician Thaksin met with yesterday.

In the ramshackle nature this disastrous adventure has become renowned for, the fugitive's normally well-oiled PR machine is herky-jerking right along with no media coverage, no photos, and no pronouncements.

Noppadon is pronouncing that Thaksin met with U.S. Secretary of State. No, not Hillary Clinton.

No, Noppadon is saying Thaksin met with the Secretary of State from 39 years ago under disgraced President Nixon, Henry Kissinger (age 89).

Thai Rath (article in Thai)

http://www.thairath....tent/pol/283768

I wonder why?

And why did they go along to bail out AIG? Because Henry Kissinger is on the board of directors and they are intimately tied with BlackStone Group and the Carlysle Group.

Kissinger McLarty Associates has a “strategic alliance” with the Blackstone Group – seen by many as nothing more than another arm of the Carlyle Group. The Blackstone Group describes their relationship thus:

Continue reading at NowPublic.com: Feds AIG Bailout = Henry Kissinger= Carlyle group.Get 150billion | NowPublic News Coverage http://www.nowpublic.com/world/feds-aig-bailout-henry-kissinger-carlyle-group-get-150billion#ixzz23fKDIMgD

• Ties to the Carlyle Group through Lobbyist David M. Marchick, senior adviser to Kissinger McLarty Associates [20] http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Henry_Kissinger
  

Director of The Blackstone Group, and before that was head of Asian mergers and acquisitions at The First Boston Corporation in Tokyo. Mr. Colby also served on the National Security Council staff under the direction of Dr. Henry A. Kissinger. http://www.carlyle.com/about-carlyle/team/jonathan-e-colby

Ah thats why.

[jayboy]

An interesting take on the situation and strong verbiage from an outside Thailand news source...

Hypocrisy: Syria Burns While Mass Murdering Dictator Roams Freely in USA

Starting in February 2003, and over the course of 3 months, some 2,800 people (approximately 30 a day) would be extra-judicially murdered in the cities and countrysides of Southeast Asia's Thailand. Accused of being "drug dealers," they were systematically exterminated based on "hit lists" compiled by police given carte blanche by then Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (a former police bureaucrat himself). It would later be determined by official investigations that over half of those killed had nothing to do with the drug trade in any way. Human Rights Watch (HRW) would confirm this in their 2008 report titled, "Thailand's 'war on drugs'," a follow up to the much more extensive 2004 report, "Not Enough Graves."

Continues:

http://hamsayeh.net/...ely-in-usa.html

Hamsayeh News - August 15, 2012

Interesting source.

Yes it's written by none other than Tony Cartalucci, who out tinfoils the the craziest and most paranoid of us all.I imagine Buchholz is just having a laugh in posting it.I mean if it was meant to be taken seriously that would suggest....

You could always "meet" Buchholz with an "article" by Andrew Spooner.

Could do but it wouldn't be comparing like with like.Not as you are suggesting the two extreme ends of a spectrum.Spooner may be obsessive to a degee, a bit of bore and (my complaint) just raking over old material but he is obviously not a lunatic, far from it.Cartalucci is as mad as a box of frogs.

[jayboy]

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

That's a rather strange way of describing a man who is by any measure by far the most popular politician in Thailand with many millions of supporters, and whose party keeps on winning election after election.

It's perfectly in order to dislike and criticize him but when that obsession reduces someone to ridiculous untruths it either displays a spectacular igmorance or a step into Cartalucci land.

[waza]

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

That's a rather strange way of describing a man who is by any measure by far the most popular politician in Thailand with many millions of supporters, and whose party keeps on winning election after election.

It's perfectly in order to dislike and criticize him but when that obsession reduces someone to ridiculous untruths it either displays a spectacular igmorance or a step into Cartalucci land.

Jayboy

Thaksin wasn't in the TRT, PPP governments and isnt even a member of the PT Party, when was the last time his popularity was tested? He has been corrupt, a convicted criminal and fugitve from justice longer than he was PM, so he is more infamous than popular.

PS: ditto

Edited August 16, 2012 by waza

[jayboy]

I acknowledge his endearing popularity with a handful of people.

That's a rather strange way of describing a man who is by any measure by far the most popular politician in Thailand with many millions of supporters, and whose party keeps on winning election after election.

It's perfectly in order to dislike and criticize him but when that obsession reduces someone to ridiculous untruths it either displays a spectacular igmorance or a step into Cartalucci land.

Jayboy

Thaksin wasn't in the TRT, PPP governments and isnt even a member of the PT Party, when was the last time his popularity was tested? He has been corrupt, a convicted criminal and fugitve from justice longer than he was PM, so he is more infamous than popular.

PS: ditto

His popularity was tested when those parties you mention easily won general elections in Thailand.None of this means he is a reputable person and, though you may not credit it, I actually agree with much of your case against him.But if it is seriously suggested that he is a marginal figure without a huge popular base, truth itself is a victim.

[SuneeTH]

Most Thai in the USA are Rich.

Hence most Thai in the USA are Yellow PAD.

[jayboy]

Most Thai in the USA are Rich.

Hence most Thai in the USA are Yellow PAD.

No you haven't got it quite right.Most Thais in the US are middle class but only a minority are politicised.For reasons already discussed the Anti Thaksin faction there would have much more support than the redshirts.

Incidentally given the eclipse of PAD and the yellow shirts I'm not sure it's helpful to retain those labels to describe those who detest Thaksin.As I have always conceded there are se very honourable people in that grouping.