Thaksin Returns As Pm

[sriracha john]

A Blacklist Goes on Sale

A clandestine report, Enemies of the Burmese Revolution, is quietly on sale in Rangoon, according to residents. It lists the military regime’s hierarchy and members of their families.

The report, which is believed to have been compiled by dissidents in exile, is available on computer floppy discs for 450-500 kyat (US 35 cents) in the city’s downtown area, said one resident who recently bought a disc.

The Irrawaddy has also acquired a copy. It lists some 500 “enemies” of Burma’s pro-democracy movement, including military leaders, high-ranking government officials, celebrities, domestic and international scholars, journalists and some of the world’s political leaders.

Apart from the junta’s top leaders, the list includes their family members such as supremo Snr-Gen Than Shwe’s wife Kyaing Kyaing. She is dubbed “the corrupt first lady.”

Among businessmen listed is tycoon Tay Za, known to be particularly close to Than Shwe. The report says he is the “junta’s main arms buyer.”

World leaders on the list include Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, because he is deemed to be friends of the regime.

- Irrawaddy

[sriracha john]

Based on reports published in the three newspapers, Thepthai compared Thaksin to a wandering spirit trying to get back into a body, the writ said.

It also says Thaksin was portrayed as a ghost called "Pop" feasting on intestines in an effort to tarnish his reputation by implying that he was plundering the country.

The Nation

I kind of like Thai Day's version:

Thaksin sues Democrats, editors for 800m baht

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday filed criminal and civil lawsuits seeking 800 million baht in damages against the Democrat party, its executive and the editors of three daily newspapers for allegedly calling him a flesh-eating zombie

The alleged comments and articles compared Thaksin to ‘Pee Pob,’ a loathed demon in Thai mythology that feasts on human innards and feces, (well, if the shoe fits...) because of his alleged attempts to regain power through political collusion.

Difficult to decide which description works best:

PM sues over 'blood-sucking demon' smear

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday filed a libel suit against the Democrat party, its election staff and three newspapers for typifying him as a ''blood-sucking demon'' cheating the country. Lawyer Werapat Srichaiya laid the criminal charges against Democrat election coordination centre spokesman Thepthai Senpong, Matichon's editor-publisher Suwapong Chanfungpet, Khao Sod editor Thakoon Boonpan, and Daily News editor Pracha Hetrakul.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/15Jun2006_news06.php

------------------------------------

Perhaps a poll would be the best determinator:

TN: Intestine-feeding ghost

TD: Flesh-eating zombie

BP: Blood-sucking demon

[sriracha john]

[ovenman]

PM sues over 'blood-sucking demon' smear

Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday filed a libel suit against the Democrat party, its election staff and three newspapers for typifying him as a ''blood-sucking demon'' cheating the country.

I swear, one couldn't make this stuff up...

[John K]

I guess the way Thaksin lets you know he agrees with your assessment is when he files a lawsuit and you are the defendant.

So the journalists who report the facts are getting another hit. I guess the lawsuits are being ignored now as so much hot air. I think the defendants could probably defend themselves without a lawyer at this point.

[hammered]

Good God if they had something like the UKs Private Eye in Thailand the courts would grind to a halt.

[ColPyat]

I personally think that extending mandatory education would be counterproductive - education in government schools really isn't "free" and rural elemantary schools are already severely underfunded, understaffed and of poor quality. Rather than offering pipe dreams like university educations for all, there needs to be a focus on guaranteeing a certain standard of primary education that can be obtainded by all at no charge.

Again, you restore my faith in humanity by re-introducing the concept of original thought into this discussion.

Yes, this idiocy of extending mandatory schooling has been discussed here since years. The proponents of extending mandatory schooling are a typical example of people who have no idea whatsoever about realities in Thailand, who judge from their own class limitations the whole of the country. Already now, with 9 years mandatory schooling we have far too many drop-outs, mainly in the rural areas, who don't have the certificate so necessary to get even the simplest of carreer jobs.

Absolutely right - the focus should be on improving the quality of education, and not extending the years kids have to go to school. If the mandatory time is extended - the only result will be a higher percentage of drop-outs, especially in the already under priviledged sectors, and only increase the already far too high gap between the have and the have nots.

It is so easy to scream and froth against Thaksin, but where are the alternatives?

All we hear is platitudes, we get accusations, lawsuits from all sides, but where are the realistic policies, where is a feasable vision for Thailand's future?

Oh, sorry, i forgot, this is not important yet, important being now solely to get rid of Thaksin, as if this would solve Thailand's problems...

[penzman]

It is so easy to scream and froth against Thaksin, but where are the alternatives?

It may be possible to see where these alternatives are once he's out of the picture and the huge dust cloud he's created over the years has settled down.

[thedude]

those are very nice ideals colpyat.

but i think the general approach now is to go for quantity before reaching first for quality.

you don't get accused of leaving the less priviledged behind this way, or of creating unrealistic and elitist education policies.

the more people you put through a 'mandatory' system, the more the education statistics will actually favour you. its a numbers game for the government unfortunately. i'm not saying its right, but it may just be more practicle given the situation at this time.

and furthermore, how do you define quality? you'll probably open a can of worms there that won't be solved even within this non-coalition government's term in office.

and so i think they should take the broadest strokes first, covering the most ground, and recognise that educational advancement is a process which requires many adjustments. there is an old chinese saying that a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a first step. we cannot achieve high standards all at once, but we can begin by taking first steps and perhaps plucking the lowest lying fruits. personally, i'd really want for there to be mandatory english to a certain level, thailand falls behind her neighbours on this front. i'd really want for there to be some universal coverage on computer skills that promote self learning. i'd really want for there to be basic education on democractic rights and the constitutional process. i'd really want for there to be universal coverage on HM's priciples of self-sufficiency and environmental sustainability.

politics have barely moved to a stage where parties canvass on a policy platform, even though the TRT is seen as the first to actively engage on such platforms. the challenge is for the democrats to get off their fat bourgeois <deleted> and dare to run on a platform that doesn't merely pander to middle class sensibilities and soap opera like gentility.

[ColPyat]

It is so easy to scream and froth against Thaksin, but where are the alternatives?

It may be possible to see where these alternatives are once he's out of the picture and the huge dust cloud he's created over the years has settled down.

And this is a point i do contest.

The alternatives are rather easy to see if one disengages personal feelings and emotions from the issue.

And presently, those alternatives are dire. Which is the problem here in Thailand. Thaksin is only part of the problem, but as long as the Democrats, the biggest opposition party, cannot manage to come up with a vision and policies for Thailand's future, and manage to communicate them to the electorate, they will not be a party that is ready to form a government.

Only being against Thaksin as a base is no vision, is no policy to govern. And it will not get the support of the majority of the population.

[ColPyat]

those are very nice ideals colpyat.

but i think the general approach now is to go for quantity before reaching first for quality.

you don't get accused of leaving the less priviledged behind this way, or of creating unrealistic and elitist education policies.

the more people you put through a 'mandatory' system, the more the education statistics will actually favour you. its a numbers game for the government unfortunately. i'm not saying its right, but it may just be more practicle given the situation at this time.

and furthermore, how do you define quality? you'll probably open a can of worms there that won't be solved even within this non-coalition government's term in office.

and so i think they should take the broadest strokes first, covering the most ground, and recognise that educational advancement is a process which requires many adjustments. there is an old chinese saying that a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a first step. we cannot achieve high standards all at once, but we can begin by taking first steps and perhaps plucking the lowest lying fruits. personally, i'd really want for there to be mandatory english to a certain level, thailand falls behind her neighbours on this front. i'd really want for there to be some universal coverage on computer skills that promote self learning. i'd really want for there to be basic education on democractic rights and the constitutional process. i'd really want for there to be universal coverage on HM's priciples of self-sufficiency and environmental sustainability.

politics have barely moved to a stage where parties canvass on a policy platform, even though the TRT is seen as the first to actively engage on such platforms. the challenge is for the democrats to get off their fat bourgeois <deleted> and dare to run on a platform that doesn't merely pander to middle class sensibilities and soap opera like gentility.

Personally, i believe that the quality of schools here are in the process of improvement, judging from what my young nieces and neviews in their village schools learn nowadays compared to what my now grown up nieces and neviews learned ten years ago there.

Their knowledge is better, their abilities to question and to think independently are far better. I believe that extending the mandatory time in school would only jeopardise these improvements as their parents can only afford to send their children for this time to school, and not longer (unless they are highly intelligent and get scholarships). Their abilities will be lost to the market (and therfore to the country) if they cannot afford to go to school long enough to get a certificate.

Rome wasn't built in a day.

And, yes, i entirely agree on the need for the Democrats to transform themself into a party that canvasses on a policy platform that not only speaks to a small urban based elite, and to their powerhouse in the South.

[cclub75]

Please get rid of the romantic notion of the happy Land of Smile, the beauty of the Thai villages. This is only a product of a clever marketing campaign that has nothing whatsoever in common with a far more dire reality.

I totally agree with your answer.

It's insane to pretend that Isaan economy is "stable".

On the contrary, as you said, it is profoundly unbalanced.

And further more, regarding the "political game"... Dissolve or not dissolve TRT, that's eventually not the question if I may say.

The fact is : after the King's party is over, the dirty game is coming back at full speed.

Thaksin has just launched a new set of "lawsuits" against Democrat party and newspapers.

Business as usual. And the proof that the power struggle is not over. Far from it.

[Plus]

Mandatory education is important, and it's guaranteed by Constitution, and was implemented by TRT. BUT, Thaksin shifted these 12 years to start from Kindergarten and end at M3, which is short of unversity requirements but is cheaper to run.

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

The way Thaksin botched the education reform makes me absolutely sure that Democrats can't possibly do worse. I expect less politicking and more actual reform.

[hammered]

I personally think that extending mandatory education would be counterproductive - education in government schools really isn't "free" and rural elemantary schools are already severely underfunded, understaffed and of poor quality. Rather than offering pipe dreams like university educations for all, there needs to be a focus on guaranteeing a certain standard of primary education that can be obtainded by all at no charge.

Again, you restore my faith in humanity by re-introducing the concept of original thought into this discussion.

Yes, this idiocy of extending mandatory schooling has been discussed here since years. The proponents of extending mandatory schooling are a typical example of people who have no idea whatsoever about realities in Thailand, who judge from their own class limitations the whole of the country. Already now, with 9 years mandatory schooling we have far too many drop-outs, mainly in the rural areas, who don't have the certificate so necessary to get even the simplest of carreer jobs.

Absolutely right - the focus should be on improving the quality of education, and not extending the years kids have to go to school. If the mandatory time is extended - the only result will be a higher percentage of drop-outs, especially in the already under priviledged sectors, and only increase the already far too high gap between the have and the have nots.

It is so easy to scream and froth against Thaksin, but where are the alternatives?

All we hear is platitudes, we get accusations, lawsuits from all sides, but where are the realistic policies, where is a feasable vision for Thailand's future?

Oh, sorry, i forgot, this is not important yet, important being now solely to get rid of Thaksin, as if this would solve Thailand's problems...

Why not dream big? Improve quality of education an increase mandatory schooling. If both are achieved then that has to be good for the country. Maybe that sounds a lot but lets have a look at some of Thailands achievements. Some are quite impressive:

Poverty reduced from 27.2% in 1990 to 9.8% in 2002.

Proportion under food poverty line reduced from 6.9% in 1990 to 2.2% in 2002.

Underweight Children reduced from 18.6% in 1990 to 8.5 % in 2000.

Thailand will achieve universal primary education well before the UNs 2015 target.

Already halted and reversed the spread of HIV/AIDS before the UNs 2015 target.

More girls than boys entering higher education.

These also were achieved under a succession of coalition governments, something which belies the idea that a single powerful government is needed. Sure Thailand has problems but looking at some of the figures above they aint what they used to be unless of course things have deteriorated drastically in the lasy few years, which I doubt. If Thaksin is gone I'm sure whoever is in government will continue policies recommended in National Economic and Social Development Plans as well as their own, and as always the existing policies put in place by previous governments.

One of the remaining areas that probably does need to be looked at is the top one percent owning over half the wealth of the country. It is one thing to cloud inequalities into a division between a tax paying urban middle class and a rural peasantry. However, that only hides a more glaring inequality, between 99% of the people and a tax shy super elite.

[ColPyat]

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

Promises are easy. And this is a typical example of a completely unrealistic promise similar to Thaksin's most idiotic scemes. Complete disregard to reality of the socio-economic situation the vast majority of Thais find themselves in today.

The main task, and difficult enough, is getting people of the lower echelons of society to even finish the bare minimum. The rest of the students of the upper classes anyhow have the opportunities to get a proper education - they do not need political protection.

This is nothing but talking to middle class sensibilities while ignoring the problems of the rest of the country, the inherent handycap of the Democrats.

[Plus]

Democrats are the ones who started the education reform and they talk from experience. Why do you doubt they can provide/improve free education? It's already there anyway.

Money is not a big problem - Thaksin just didn't think investing in educaiton was important, comparing to investing in vote getting, populist schemes.

[tettyan]

Democrats are the ones who started the education reform and they talk from experience. Why do you doubt they can provide/improve free education? It's already there anyway.

Wrong. "Free and universal" public education, although it exists in paper, is but a myth in reality. Aside from paying teachers' salaries, the Education Ministry provides only 1100 baht per student for schools to cover ALL expenses. That includes supplies, equipment, utility bills, you name it. It's tough enough for city schools with a 1000 students to make ends meet with this funding - it's nearly impossible to cover fixed costs when you're an isolated rural school with less than 50 students. So how do schools make ends meet? By collecting "donations" from students' families, which are really de facto tuition fees. Moreover, spaces in schools in many areas are limited. To secure a spot for their child, parents often have to compete by paying bribes to principals and education officials.

These problems arn't new - they've been with us through two Democrat governments, Banharn, Chavalit, Thaksin and since before then. But there you have it. If the Dems are to convince me that they're the ones to solve the problem, they should directly address the issues I just enumerated. Just making vauge, Santa Claus-like promises by itself isn't going to convince people. Outlining a plan would be a good place to start. If your realistic and show you're in touch with everday problems, people will start to listen.

[hammered]

Democrats are the ones who started the education reform and they talk from experience. Why do you doubt they can provide/improve free education? It's already there anyway.

Wrong. "Free and universal" public education, although it exists in paper, is but a myth in reality. Aside from paying teachers' salaries, the Education Ministry provides only 1100 baht per student for schools to cover ALL expenses. That includes supplies, equipment, utility bills, you name it. It's tough enough for city schools with a 1000 students to make ends meet with this funding - it's nearly impossible to cover fixed costs when you're an isolated rural school with less than 50 students. So how do schools make ends meet? By collecting "donations" from students' families, which are really de facto tuition fees. Moreover, spaces in schools in many areas are limited. To secure a spot for their child, parents often have to compete by paying bribes to principals and education officials.

These problems arn't new - they've been with us through two Democrat governments, Banharn, Chavalit, Thaksin and since before then. But there you have it. If the Dems are to convince me that they're the ones to solve the problem, they should directly address the issues I just enumerated. Just making vauge, Santa Claus-like promises by itself isn't going to convince people. Outlining a plan would be a good place to start. If your realistic and show you're in touch with everday problems, people will start to listen.

Well maybe we could start with the 10% off the top of all the megaprojects/any project that Snoh mentioned. How about redistributing that to rural schools

[tettyan]

Why not dream big? Improve quality of education an increase mandatory schooling. If both are achieved then that has to be good for the country. Maybe that sounds a lot but lets have a look at some of Thailands achievements.

There's nothing wrong with dreaming big. But when it makes you lose sight of reality, then it's a problem. What's the use of promising everyone a brand-new Ferrari when you're already struggling to provide used Hyundais?

I don't see why everyone is so fixated on the importance of requiring education through M6. In Japan, compulsory education has always been fixed at 9th grade, and this didn't have an adverse effect on their development the last time I checked. In fact, I think this shows they chose their priorities correctly. Japan's education policy throughout the high-growth period was characterized by very high spending on elementary education by OECD standards, but pitifully low spending when it comes to university education. At the same time, it's worth noting that the Japanese economy is probably the most successful development story in the postwar era.

Yes, I think providing free P1-M6 education for all is a laudable goal. But Thailand (contrary to what you may hear from Thaksin) doesn't have all the money in the world, and priorities have to be chosen. And the best priority would be to guarantee a basic minimum level of education for all - at least make sure they can read & write, have a basic grasp of statistics and be able to manage their own finances. Then we can worry about everyone elses' wish lists.

Edited June 15, 2006 by tettyan

[jdinasia]

I'd put education on a much higher priority than that Tetty ...

Japan's education system is not comparable to Thailand at all. The 1 million baht village fund could have actually gone a long way to accomplishing it ... added with the rest ...

but hey ... graft is more important

[sriracha john]

Bringing stability by having an Education Minister that could last longer than few months seems to have been an impossibility during Thaksin's regime, even he himself tried it for a stint in a dual role.

What progress has Thailand made in the field of Education during his tenure? Precious little... many would say it's worse.

Nope... sorry, but education is anything BUT Thaksin's forte'.

Edited June 15, 2006 by sriracha john

[hammered]

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

Promises are easy. And this is a typical example of a completely unrealistic promise similar to Thaksin's most idiotic scemes. Complete disregard to reality of the socio-economic situation the vast majority of Thais find themselves in today.

The main task, and difficult enough, is getting people of the lower echelons of society to even finish the bare minimum. The rest of the students of the upper classes anyhow have the opportunities to get a proper education - they do not need political protection.

This is nothing but talking to middle class sensibilities while ignoring the problems of the rest of the country, the inherent handycap of the Democrats.

Actually my experience up in the villages is that many people of even extremely modest means want their kids to not only complete education but to also go to college or University. Sometimes that means they have to make sacrifices, but as it is explained to me, they dont want their kids to work the farms and always have a hard life, or have to perform other menial and dangerous tasks. It has also been my experience that most kids want to get through school rather than just drop out and this is actually increasing as their older peers who have been through college and now work return to the villages on holidays with more fashionable clothes, new mobile phones, some disposable income and even in a few cases second hand cars. It is not only the middle classes who think of education in my experience.

[tettyan]

I'd put education on a much higher priority than that Tetty ...

I am not belittling the importance of the education issue at all. In fact, I commend any party that wants to make it a top priority. But what I want to see are reasonable plans that reflect the realities on the ground. And even though the Dems are trying to make edu a top campaign issue (something that's commendable in itself, I believe), they don't seem to have put out any concrete plans yet. Of course, I think TRT's policies in this regard have been atrocious. But it's the Dems, not TRT, that have a credibility gap with the poor. Education is a good issue to try and close this gap, so long as the Dems seriously use it as an opportunity to show that they are actually in touch with real issues. I admit I do quite a bit of Democrat-bashing here, but it's all intended as friendly advice. I wish them all the best, but they have only themselves to blame for their failures.

Japan's education system is not comparable to Thailand at all. The 1 million baht village fund could have actually gone a long way to accomplishing it ... added with the rest ...

My point about Japan is that university education is not the be-all and end-all of education policy, esp for developing economies, which Japan was only half a century ago. Japan's phenomonal economic development was supported by unusually high levels of investment in primary education. Contrast that to the Philippines, which has decent univerisities (at least for those who have the means to go) but an abysmal public education system. Even their university system is no consolation - not when a huge chunk of your graduates end up emigrating anyway!

Edited June 15, 2006 by tettyan

[Plus]

Democrats are not promising free university education, just an opportunity. If students have to pay through the last three years (M3-M6) then it automatically discualifies a large segment of population from ever attending one. I don't see how you can argue with that. I don't think it's even a choice - free kindergarten or free high school.

Yes, education is underfunded, everyone knows that. BUT, a large portion of the budget is spent on unproductive things like huge marble structures with schools names on them. Simply re-structuring the budget will free enough resources to make significant improvements. That's just an example.

Bottom line is - with TRT in charge education will never improve. Why deny Demos a chance? Democrats were the ones who actually introduced edication reform and made a commendable progress with it in a few short years just after the crisis. Their track record is a lot better than TRT's.

[ColPyat]

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

Promises are easy. And this is a typical example of a completely unrealistic promise similar to Thaksin's most idiotic scemes. Complete disregard to reality of the socio-economic situation the vast majority of Thais find themselves in today.

The main task, and difficult enough, is getting people of the lower echelons of society to even finish the bare minimum. The rest of the students of the upper classes anyhow have the opportunities to get a proper education - they do not need political protection.

This is nothing but talking to middle class sensibilities while ignoring the problems of the rest of the country, the inherent handycap of the Democrats.

Actually my experience up in the villages is that many people of even extremely modest means want their kids to not only complete education but to also go to college or University. Sometimes that means they have to make sacrifices, but as it is explained to me, they dont want their kids to work the farms and always have a hard life, or have to perform other menial and dangerous tasks. It has also been my experience that most kids want to get through school rather than just drop out and this is actually increasing as their older peers who have been through college and now work return to the villages on holidays with more fashionable clothes, new mobile phones, some disposable income and even in a few cases second hand cars. It is not only the middle classes who think of education in my experience.

What people want, and what people actually manage to do is two different matters. Problem is, as tettayan already mentioned, that education is only free on paper. I have to send regularly money upcountry for certain fees for books, school uniforms, etc., small amounts for me, but too much for the parents to pay for.

[hammered]

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

Promises are easy. And this is a typical example of a completely unrealistic promise similar to Thaksin's most idiotic scemes. Complete disregard to reality of the socio-economic situation the vast majority of Thais find themselves in today.

The main task, and difficult enough, is getting people of the lower echelons of society to even finish the bare minimum. The rest of the students of the upper classes anyhow have the opportunities to get a proper education - they do not need political protection.

This is nothing but talking to middle class sensibilities while ignoring the problems of the rest of the country, the inherent handycap of the Democrats.

Actually my experience up in the villages is that many people of even extremely modest means want their kids to not only complete education but to also go to college or University. Sometimes that means they have to make sacrifices, but as it is explained to me, they dont want their kids to work the farms and always have a hard life, or have to perform other menial and dangerous tasks. It has also been my experience that most kids want to get through school rather than just drop out and this is actually increasing as their older peers who have been through college and now work return to the villages on holidays with more fashionable clothes, new mobile phones, some disposable income and even in a few cases second hand cars. It is not only the middle classes who think of education in my experience.

What people want, and what people actually manage to do is two different matters. Problem is, as tettayan already mentioned, that education is only free on paper. I have to send regularly money upcountry for certain fees for books, school uniforms, etc., small amounts for me, but too much for the parents to pay for.

We have to beg to differ on this. Yes education is not free but the amounts requested are not huge and occur infrequently and in my experience the families I know pay them out of their own pockets and some of these people are already repaying debts, some of them like the Lao Khao more than they should but they make or put aside the money as it is important to them.

Personally I have never been asked to either send money up country or been asked for it while I was there.

[John K]

Mandatory education is important, and it's guaranteed by Constitution, and was implemented by TRT. BUT, Thaksin shifted these 12 years to start from Kindergarten and end at M3, which is short of unversity requirements but is cheaper to run.

Democrats are promising to ensure that anyone can enter university and that education will be as free as possible. Drop out rate is not the reason to deny the opportunity to the rest of students.

The way Thaksin botched the education reform makes me absolutely sure that Democrats can't possibly do worse. I expect less politicking and more actual reform.

One thing you forgot to think about is underlying reason the education system sucks. One thing Thaksin fears is education of others. If there were more people educated very simply this thread would not be here because he probably would have lost the regular elections for his second term.

I feel your points are valid but very superficial.

I don’t know what school policies he started way back when, but the fact is the first paragraph of this post is true and constant no mater what is going on and who set the policies.

[ColPyat]

We have to beg to differ on this. Yes education is not free but the amounts requested are not huge and occur infrequently and in my experience the families I know pay them out of their own pockets and some of these people are already repaying debts, some of them like the Lao Khao more than they should but they make or put aside the money as it is important to them.

Personally I have never been asked to either send money up country or been asked for it while I was there.

I am not "asked" to send money upcountry, i send it because i want to.

And, yes, part of poverty is not just having no money but a moral/ethical collapse as well. And for people who survive over long periods of time in the off season from food the hunt and gather, a few hundred baht are a lot of money.

An extension of the mandatory school term is only counterproductive as the only thing that is achieved with it is increasing the amount of drop outs, that will never get a career job, that will only raise children that will also turn into drop outs.

[ColPyat]

One thing you forgot to think about is underlying reason the education system sucks. One thing Thaksin fears is education of others. If there were more people educated very simply this thread would not be here because he probably would have lost the regular elections for his second term.

Sorry, but i think you should start familiarising yourself with facts, instead of voicing assumptions based on what you belive to be so.

The education systhem sucks because of a baggage of decades of dictatorships, and inefficient democracies, that came straight after feudalism, more or less. Thaksin has introduced several policies that may have been mismanaged, but still have left an impact. More underprivildged children than ever before do get scholarships, from primary school level up to scholarships to study in the west.

Stop blaming Thaksin for faults of Thailand that have been there before he even was born. There is more than enough to blame him for already. Simplifying Thaksin as a primitive old style dictator is underestimating the man, and in the end, will lead to the same situation the Democrats find themselves right now - they have no answer on how to counter Thaksin, as he has the vote of the vast majority of the Thai population.

[John K]

One thing you forgot to think about is underlying reason the education system sucks. One thing Thaksin fears is education of others. If there were more people educated very simply this thread would not be here because he probably would have lost the regular elections for his second term.

Sorry, but i think you should start familiarising yourself with facts, instead of voicing assumptions based on what you belive to be so.

The education systhem sucks because of a baggage of decades of dictatorships, and inefficient democracies, that came straight after feudalism, more or less. Thaksin has introduced several policies that may have been mismanaged, but still have left an impact. More underprivildged children than ever before do get scholarships, from primary school level up to scholarships to study in the west.

Stop blaming Thaksin for faults of Thailand that have been there before he even was born. There is more than enough to blame him for already. Simplifying Thaksin as a primitive old style dictator is underestimating the man, and in the end, will lead to the same situation the Democrats find themselves right now - they have no answer on how to counter Thaksin, as he has the vote of the vast majority of the Thai population.

I am not looking to point fingers, like I said I don’t know the details. I do know that Thaksin fears educated people. Of that I am absolutely certain.

The segment you quoted changes the context of my post. Look at it in it’s entirety and I think you will answer your own quote.

I know Thaksin (has or had) the power to fix it if he wanted. The no fail policy being removed is a good start. I see is the biggest single temptation to young Thais. Why study whey you will pass even if you sleep. I think the cost to change that should come up to about 100 ThB.

Personally I think education is a great debate but does not belong in this thread. So for the moment I will not debate it but if you wish to, please carry on. Actually I am waiting for the next piece of meat from the local press. That should be served up in the next 8 hours or so.

Edited June 15, 2006 by john Krukowski