Complex conflict leaves little room for negotiation: Thai politics

[chadintheusa]

Govt vs Elite liars in media is one he missed.

How on earth is the timing of the election Yingluk's choice? She stepped down because Suthep marched a mob up to Bangkok! So she called an election. What happened next was laughable, we had to wait all afternoon while Suthep got his speech from his 'higher power' on what his demands were. When it finally arrived it was a joke!

400 unnamed people to be appointed in an unknown way to rule for an undefined amount of time to make unspecified reforms!

I kept waiting for the punchline, but no, this is it. So they've managed to block the rice scheme, and now they're marketing a handful of rice farmers as if thousands of them are descending on Bangkok. But whenever they show a photo, they've lined up less than 30 people with nicely printed flags. Because rural farmers are experts at computer DTP and offset litho flag printing!

Do they really think farmers are so stupid?

Oh boy, Nation, Bangkok Post, you guys are sooooo transparent it's painful.

I agree with your sentiments on this, however, Suthep did not demand a new election (I know, he wants a senate of his wise rich friends and the plebs can eat cake), it was Yingluck's decision to do that. Having decided that she was going to call a snap election, surely someone in her inner circle would have said something along the lines of,"Calling an election triggers articles in the constitution that limit our powers during the election process. Is there anything we should do before calling this election?" And some bright spark would have checked that they hadn't fully paid their rice farmers. "We better borrow some money to shut them up or they'll cause us grief during the campaign." There are probably other things they could have tidied up but this has come to bite them.

That's all I'm saying - it looks like an infantile political strategy... indeed, it looks like no strategy at all.

If she hadn't called elections and defused the mob, the army would have used to mob as the excuse to remove her.

Infantile to call elections when faced with a dictators mob? I don't think so. If it was, then why are they so keen to prevent elections?

Three out of the last four PMs have been puppets for a fugative. Who is the dictator in the equation? I can see why they would want to prevent an election that would just result in another clone. A snap election and return to the status quo doesn't allow Thailand to move forward. It just brings amnesty back into play while the PT bleeds Thailand dry.

[focus27]

Govt vs Elite liars in media is one he missed.

How on earth is the timing of the election Yingluk's choice? She stepped down because Suthep marched a mob up to Bangkok! So she called an election. What happened next was laughable, we had to wait all afternoon while Suthep got his speech from his 'higher power' on what his demands were. When it finally arrived it was a joke!

400 unnamed people to be appointed in an unknown way to rule for an undefined amount of time to make unspecified reforms!

I kept waiting for the punchline, but no, this is it. So they've managed to block the rice scheme, and now they're marketing a handful of rice farmers as if thousands of them are descending on Bangkok. But whenever they show a photo, they've lined up less than 30 people with nicely printed flags. Because rural farmers are experts at computer DTP and offset litho flag printing!

Do they really think farmers are so stupid?

Oh boy, Nation, Bangkok Post, you guys are sooooo transparent it's painful.

I agree with your sentiments on this, however, Suthep did not demand a new election (I know, he wants a senate of his wise rich friends and the plebs can eat cake), it was Yingluck's decision to do that. Having decided that she was going to call a snap election, surely someone in her inner circle would have said something along the lines of,"Calling an election triggers articles in the constitution that limit our powers during the election process. Is there anything we should do before calling this election?" And some bright spark would have checked that they hadn't fully paid their rice farmers. "We better borrow some money to shut them up or they'll cause us grief during the campaign." There are probably other things they could have tidied up but this has come to bite them.

That's all I'm saying - it looks like an infantile political strategy... indeed, it looks like no strategy at all.

If she hadn't called elections and defused the mob, the army would have used to mob as the excuse to remove her.

Infantile to call elections when faced with a dictators mob? I don't think so. If it was, then why are they so keen to prevent elections?

No, it was infantile not to have thought through all the consequences of calling an election, so they now face two problems: the Suthepistas and farmers. It is obviously an error as they are desperately trying to get hold of some money to pay the farmers but no longer have the legal authority to do so, which they would have had before calling an election.

[SamMunich]

How do you negotiate with a Hitler style mad man, who is blocking citizens right to vote, go to school, or pray. Thailand will be a Nazi Style state soon.

There we go again: Not knowing what you're talking about but bragging with it...

Neither is Suthep a second Adolf, nor is this demonstration a precursor for a Nazi-style state.

Hitlers chief propaganda minister used the same tactic you do: Throwing dirt and hoping some of it will stick. Now you know your (political) neighbours...

You might be living in Nowhere and be 60 years of age, but that is no excuse. Alzheimer would be.

[SamMunich]

The government - led by a fugitive criminal - against everyone. Solution?

More like the government and the people versus a few corrupt individuals in state agencies put there by the coup of 2006 trying to install their friend in power by illegal means.

It's easy to forget that Thai chose that government by majority.

Yeah, Codger, the Thais chose the government, that was promising the blue out of the sky. Sure the farmers would go for anybody promising them a price above market level,- they would be stupid to not chose those... unless they know, that the whole thing was/is a ruse to trap their votes.

How can you believe somebody with such outrageous lies like the PTP came up in the last election? Or the guy, who promised to get rid of the traffic jam in Bangkok within 6 months? That was an original Taksin promise. Would you trust somebody BS'ing you like that???

[BlueNoseCodger]

The government - led by a fugitive criminal - against everyone. Solution?

More like the government and the people versus a few corrupt individuals in state agencies put there by the coup of 2006 trying to install their friend in power by illegal means.

It's easy to forget that Thai chose that government by majority.

Yeah, Codger, the Thais chose the government, that was promising the blue out of the sky. Sure the farmers would go for anybody promising them a price above market level,- they would be stupid to not chose those... unless they know, that the whole thing was/is a ruse to trap their votes.

How can you believe somebody with such outrageous lies like the PTP came up in the last election? Or the guy, who promised to get rid of the traffic jam in Bangkok within 6 months? That was an original Taksin promise. Would you trust somebody BS'ing you like that???

Nice campaign speech SumMunich, if you actually believed that, you'd be egging your guys on to win elections now.

[Ulic]

There is no room to negotiate when Suthep is all in with his strategy not to register candidates to run in the election.

He will accept nothing but total capitulation so he has a free had (possibly two) to stuff his pockets.

[kurtgruen]

Reading the headlines, I figured, this article would be more appropriate. Please ignore the part about the numbers of protesters, as this has been discussed to death and it doesn't matter, if there was10, 10,000 or 100,000, it's about why they are there and as you read on in the article, it puts things together as good, as I have seen so far.

So if you want o educate yourself, on what is really going on, try to put your biases aside for the moment and just read the whole article, before commenting on it....

http://nsnbc.me/2014/01/13/thailand-occupy-bangkok-begins/

There has been too much BS and smoke and mirrors, with very little actual information lately, but the above article is the best I have read in a long time

[Scamper]

I like this article and I like the second paragraph particularly. The PDRC has made a terrible decision - in my view - by suggesting disruption of the vote. As this writer points out, that would play into the administration's hands, and give them their only other possible avenue out. There are so many elements that are pointing to the demise of this administration. The court cases will decide in the end. Having said all that, today is actually the possible turning point, because the Constitution Court will rule if the election can be delayed - which is the view of the EC. If The Constitution Court sides with the EC - which seems likely - then the election would be automatically delayed. And that would change the dynamic on the ground significantly. It would not make the administration's survival more likely. But it would allow the court process to run its course, with definitive rulings in the coming weeks.

[BlueNoseCodger]

Reading the headlines, I figured, this article would be more appropriate. Please ignore the part about the numbers of protesters, as this has been discussed to death and it doesn't matter, if there was10, 10,000 or 100,000, it's about why they are there and as you read on in the article, it puts things together as good, as I have seen so far.

So if you want o educate yourself, on what is really going on, try to put your biases aside for the moment and just read the whole article, before commenting on it....

http://nsnbc.me/2014/01/13/thailand-occupy-bangkok-begins/

There has been too much BS and smoke and mirrors, with very little actual information lately, but the above article is the best I have read in a long time

The number of protestors is actually the key to it all. Because in a democracy of one man one vote, that number decides who rules. And we can count that number, so when Suthep says he had 3.5 million people on the streets and the photograph shows 50,000, we know he is a liar.

If you want to remove smoke and mirrors, the first thing you do it verify the stuff you can verify, and from that you can see who is telling you the truth and who is feeding you propaganda.

As to the history lesson, voting is about the future not the past. Voters are voting for things they want, not things in the past they didn't want.

[Muhendis]

Suthep and everyone opposed to the present government are simply saying-

' Pheua Thai, can you please exist without being beholden to one man.You claim to be a democracy but every major decision is made by one man,a fugitive on the run. Please learn to stand up for yourselves and stop being servants. We don't want Thailand to end up like the Philippines under Marcos. Then we can reform Thailand together.'

At least PT are only in hoc to one man and we know who he is and he's out of the way in Dubai, whereas the 'Ruling Elite': the shadowy forces that are funding Suthep and have pulled all the strings for the past century and refuse to relinquish power, are unknown and hiding behind electric gates and CCTV cameras with private security and millions if not billions stashed in the safe.

Who would the Thai people prefer. The ruling elite (not sure about the ruling bit) or the top five richest predatory families making money of the backs of the rest of the population.