Red wave set to swamp Bangkok

[geriatrickid]

This thread is rather funny. There is no red wave, except in the imagination of the Nation Media.

The red wave occurred on election day when PTP voters came out to vote.

[prvtdetdave]

France delt with their elitists over 200 yrs ago,

[tonneke breda]

Many seem to be shouting war and trying to ignite one. All caused by one single person for greed and desire of greatness. 64 years old and gathered billions. Still it's not enough. How does he think he can return to Thailand and live? Become president of the north? It will not happen.

One really has to be a blind fool to write such rubbish. So you are against democracy?! Go back to your home country, Thailand does not need your kinds of expats!

Under the Shinawatra's there has never been a democracy so why talking shit yourself?????

[scorecard]

This thread is rather funny. There is no red wave, except in the imagination of the Nation Media.

The red wave occurred on election day when PTP voters came out to vote.

G'kid, I guess this must be your daily attempt at humour.

[tropo]

Agreed.

Thailand is not Iraq, Syria or North Korea (so stop comparing it with those).

Thailand is a proper democracy.

What???

Or should I say: LOL

[Hulkster]

If these yellow shirts (or military) try to obstruct the PTP from returning to power (assuming they win the election), then 2010 will look like a soccer riot compared to what will take place on the streets of Bangkok.

[fish fingers]

The Red Shirts accuse Bangkok of being 'elitist'. There is some truth in that..

Irony of ironies is that the rich elitists in Bangkok are mainly chinese.. and LOVE Thaksin!!!

[Maestro]

Removed a post using non-English language and the replies to it.

[scorecard]

More facts, less opinion. Interesting to read someone who has some knowledge of history, references to unbiased writings would be welcome, but sorry to say this all reads like selective "facts" and opinions to prop up a personal conclusion and opinion.

Funny how it is invariably the ones with the most obvious and extreme biased-leanings on the forum, who bleat on about others not having enough impartiality for their liking. Go get a mirror and take a hard look at what you see.

Hah, hah, yes, anything like trying to strike a balanced view of Thaksin and the Shinawatras in the context of politics and business in Thailand is an extreme biased leaning here in the 'I love to hate something, everybody needs a cause follow me' world of TVF News but it's not about 'enough impartiality for their liking' at all. If all you can do is spew empty cliches well I guess it's your thing, it's common as ants at a picnic here, but the alternative could be so much more interesting and informative if you've really got anything to say. Mirror? Prefer the printed page aye what...

Just your opinion, many would disagree for the many specific reasons stated on these threads many many times.

[outre99]

I think reasonable people can agree that elections is not the same as democracy anywhere in the world. In addition to "Free and Fair" elections democracy requires informed, participating citizenry, a real set of options to vote for, and most importantly respect for the democaratic process.

None of these prerequisites exist in Thailand. Come to think of it they don't exist in the US either, but that's besides the point.

To claim that somehow the reds are the champions of democracy while the bad yellows or whatever their color is seek to destroy it is preposterous. The reds similar to US Republicans have spend a lot of time stacking the system in their favor by often questionable means. Patronage, pooyai bribery, and vote buying have been used to subvert the weak democratic process in order to deliver winning results. The current system is not a democracy and must be rooted out and changed in order for Thailand to move ahead.

Unfortunately the people who are championing this position have not been blessed with the sharpest minds and have committed blunder after blunder, which essentially discredited them and precluded any chance of reasonable negotiations.

Both camps have employed mass street rallies, indimidation, and violence to subvert the proper democratic process and have demonstrated complete disregard for democracy as a concept. At least the yellows are honest about it and they have a point.

If the Thai masses behave this way they might not be ready for democracy and should leave the true governing to people who are qualified to make complex and important decisions for the country. The last few years of the red government have demonstrated that the people in charge now have no clue or business of running the country. The experience has been shokingly similar to whatching children playing house.

One might have reasonable debate about the degrees on either side but to come out and say that being against reds is like being against democracy is rather childish. You might want to go and play house too.

I really wonder how the hard core reds can convince their rice farming neighbours to continue voting for the incompetent PT after the whole rice pledging debacle. At least rice farm subsidies under Democrats were paid on time.

Many seem to be shouting war and trying to ignite one. All caused by one single person for greed and desire of greatness. 64 years old and gathered billions. Still it's not enough. How does he think he can return to Thailand and live? Become president of the north? It will not happen.

One really has to be a blind fool to write such rubbish. So you are against democracy?! Go back to your home country, Thailand does not need your kinds of expats!

The point you miss is :

The red shirt protests in 2010 were calling for new elections. They felt the judicial system had been perverted, they were disgusted by the Abhisit/Newin handshake and agreement to form a new parliament after the courts had stripped PPP of power.

All Yellow/PAD/PDRC protests, in 2006, 2008 and 2013/14 have been asking for coups, no elections, removal of democracy.

In my opinion of course.

The point i was trying to make was not partisan but rather existential. The current political system in Thailand is not a functional democracy. The current government has demonstrated on many occasions that they are incompetent, shortsighted, and corrupt. But due to the enduring disfunctionality of the Thai democracy they keep getting elected without any kind of accountability. This situation should be an afront to any Thai citizen informed and thougtful enough to see the whole picture. Unfortunately the ones that do are in the minority.

And since the whole system has been hijacked by the Thaksin aparatus, and the main opposition party can't seem to figure out how to win elections, and there's no other way to reform the system from within it is no wonder that the people have taken to the streets not only against a particular government but against the broken system itself. Now i'm not defending their barely coherent and utterly unthought through demands. Unfortunately the leaders of the protesters were not able to create nor communicate a plan to heal the country which leaves all of us at the current impass.

I do sincerely hope that a new group of Thai politicians will emerge in order to step into the leadership vaccuum created by the current players, which seems highly unlikely. Barring that a military coup followed by an appointed government of experts is the only way for Thailand to a better future.

[wolfmanjack]

Interesting

Now can you please tell me which group pays all the high taxes that sees the north have a reasonable life style

we live in Udon

we have electricity

we have water

we have roads to drive on

we have radio and TV

Udon is not the poor place that has nothing

but all the good things we have must be paid for by someone

Please show me links to where Tasking spent his money on the North

Not the taxes paid to the government by the people you hate

.

Interesting. Do you actually live in Thailand at all? This must be a contender for the most deluded post ever.

Have you ever been out into the countryside? In the growing season you can drive for hour after hour and see nothing but rice. That's where the real wealth of Thailand comes from. The wealthy traders in Bangkok are just parasites living off the labour of rural people while conspiring to prevent them from voting. Without Isaan, Bangkok would starve.

If you live in Udon Thani you cannot fail to have noticed that the local people pay taxes. Those that earn enough, and there are plenty in Isaan, pay income tax. Everyone pays purchase taxes. Look at your electricity and water bills, your telephone bill, your receipt from the gas station and the stores where you do your shopping, the garage where you have your car serviced and the restaurants you dine in. There is purchase tax on them.

Have you noticed all the new housing developments being built in and around Udon? In the main it is local Thais who are buying them which means they must have a good income on which they are taxed. Or do you spend your time and money In Soi Samphan?

Guess what, most of the taxes the people of Isaan pay gets spent in the greater Bangkok area. What Thaksin did was to increase the amount of government expenditure outside of the greater Bangkok area, which had been neglected by successive governments for decades. Put another way, he reduced the amount the rest of the country pays in subsidies to Bangkok. It is still 74/26 in favour of the metropolis, but that is much better than before Thaksin.

There are a lot more thais making good money and not paying income tax than you think. I am going to guess that most of the thais paying income tax are the ones working at factories and have their income taxes deducted from their checks.

I know several that are shop owners that are making a lot more than I was and laughed at me for paying income taxes and the ones that did pay tax were amazed at the amount that I had to pay compared to what they paid even though they made 10 times the amount I did.

The revenue department here is not like the irs in the usa.