We need to make this the last military takeover

[johnmarhall]

the coup is great now seeing corrupt people running and if the army do their job right they will not come back i want all the corrupt people to be gone and the fear of the army this time will work and the farmers will now know who they can trust in the future

[PREM-R]

can't see how... the majority of Thai's are vindictive and compromise is non-existent

what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge - a Mandala or a Ghandi or an Aung San Suu Kyi

"what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge"

They had one, Thaksin Shinawatra but his overwhelming popularity, spotted by the Amart as far back as 2002-3, was his downfall. Once they realized that "the genie was out of the bottle", the Amart set about a demonization process that culminated in the 2006 coup. The trumped up charges and criminal cases laid against Thaksin were just one more part of the Amart's desperate attempts to get Thaksin out of Thailand. I am not surprised that the 'educated' Thais fell for the anti-Thaksin propaganda, but it is amazing how many 'educated' farang on this forum also bought into the conspiracy.

Edited June 15, 2014 by PREM-R

[city]

"mother of all coups" If they do it right and stitch up all the processes so they can never be unravelled or questioned they will be able to retire to the barracks and count their illicit gains

[londonthai]

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and africa

Edited June 15, 2014 by londonthai

[MaxLee]

We need to make this the last military takeover

How about we make no more Election-Collection ever in Thai history... No election, no vote buying simple....

Edited June 15, 2014 by MaxLee

[Fat Haggis]

the coup is great now seeing corrupt people running and if the army do their job right they will not come back i want all the corrupt people to be gone and the fear of the army this time will work and the farmers will now know who they can trust in the future

Then you'd have a country full of tourists, and nobody else!! There's corrupt farmers out there too as has been recently highlighted in the Chiayaphum court case over "missing rice"

[Valentine]

can't see how... the majority of Thai's are vindictive and compromise is non-existent

what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge - a Mandala or a Ghandi or an Aung San Suu Kyi

"what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge"

They had one, Thaksin Shinawatra but his overwhelming popularity, spotted by the Amart as far back as 2002-3, was his downfall. Once they realized that "the genie was out of the bottle", the Amart set about a demonization process that culminated in the 2006 coup. The trumped up charges and criminal cases laid against Thaksin were just one more part of the Amart's desperate attempts to get Thaksin out of Thailand. I am not surprised that the 'educated' Thais fell for the anti-Thaksin propaganda, but it is amazing how many 'educated' farang on this forum also bought into the conspiracy.

Wow, a conspiracy theorist. Who would have thought as it all started so innocently with the "honest mistake" of having servants hold vast assets.

[ginjag]

can't see how... the majority of Thai's are vindictive and compromise is non-existent

what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge - a Mandala or a Ghandi or an Aung San Suu Kyi

"what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge"

They had one, Thaksin Shinawatra but his overwhelming popularity, spotted by the Amart as far back as 2002-3, was his downfall. Once they realized that "the genie was out of the bottle", the Amart set about a demonization process that culminated in the 2006 coup. The trumped up charges and criminal cases laid against Thaksin were just one more part of the Amart's desperate attempts to get Thaksin out of Thailand. I am not surprised that the 'educated' Thais fell for the anti-Thaksin propaganda, but it is amazing how many 'educated' farang on this forum also bought into the conspiracy.

What do you expect from a Derby County supporter ??

[RtotheC]

They need to keep having coups until they can learn how to be a democracy that doesn't involve rival parties killing each other. The police can't even stop people from blocking polling stations, what else can they do?

[ginjag]

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and Africa

SHE didn't want anything HE did.

senate--no comment,

! high speed train 2+ trillion baht. axed too costly fly cheaper quicker---sorry Chiang Mai.

Minimum wage, for only 7 provinces for starters, and these were already getting more.

Chinese JUNK, 30% delivered---15% not working, no service centres, 2 charge up points on average per class.

Pardon for Thaksin ??

Chalerms 3 years efforts for peace.???

[Flex2791]

Of course this will be the last coup. Well, as long as the majority votes for the "yellow" side from now on (if there is another election.) If the "reds" win again the "yellows" now know how easy it is to call up a few protesters and wait for the army to finish the job. "Yellows" claim to be fighting against corruption? Yea right. Where? Fact is, no one in Thailand is trying to fight corruption. If they did, the streets would be deserted and Thailand would be the hub of industrial sized jails.

[Snig27]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

I know it's not the West, but if it was a Western democracy and it was apparent the government were acting like criminals...exactly what would the people do? Sit back and let the government rape the treasury or take whatever action necessary?

That's an easy question to answer - they would, at the next election, vote them out. Anything else is utterly unacceptable in an democracy. Given that every administration since the 1940s has raped the treasury, the only solution seems to a degree of answerability to the electorate.

[billd766]

Loved "the loophole in democracy" line, you know, the one where the party with the most votes wins.

Actually it is not the party with the most votes who win but the party with the mostparliamentary seats who win.

If any party wins more than 251 seats in a 500 seat parliament they get to be the ruling party irrespective of how many actual votes they get.

[djjamie]

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and africa

Or yingluck stating she will never serve one particular man then empower Surapong as the foreign minister to give thaksin his passport back.

A fully elected senate to allow further abuse of the fundamental weakness in democracy that will allow drivers, maids, brothers, sisters and cousins of thaksin to take up seats. The new Udon senator smuggled her husband across the border to Laos to escape the law. The CM senator Is affiliated with RCM51, a minority driven, violent terrorist group. These lawbreakers will be responsible for passing laws. When the majority of the population has no idea what a senator's job entails this is a very bad sign that they have the power to vote for them. Thank god the entities that appoint a senate do so knowing full well the gravity of what a PTP senate could do.

A high speed train that is not needed while the current train network crumbles and the funding was not allowed to be scrutinized by parliament. Thus she wanted to fund it undemocratic and non transparently.

A minimum wage that has not been fully implemented and that increased inflation so it negated the minimum wage while the people that have not got the minimum wage yet suffer.

A tablet scheme that gave inferior tablets that broke to students in schools that didn't have electricity.

The only reconciliation bill in history that nearly started a civil war. A reconciliation bill that went against the PTP promise to stamp out corruption. by absolving 25 000 corruption cases.

Yingluck stamping out criminal acts by not arresting a single person responsible for over 28 deaths and over 700 injured yet under the junta crime has dramatically dropped, the Trat terrorists have been held accountable and weapons seizures are as common as killings of innocent protestors were under the PTP.

PTP were so serious about stamping out terrorist attacks in the South Chalerm refused to go down there as the head of the peace process team. He finally went once after public pressure demanded it and then he stayed for 1 night and returned. Yep, the PTP were really serious about that.

Thailand is not a coup. It is a counter coup. The train of democracy was derailed by the PTP and through the junta the tracks are being repaired (duel track too!) and the train is steaming along swimmingly onto the road to democracy through the stations of reconciliation (not the one that absolves criminals), reform and then elections and when I see the 3 fingered salute I smile because it is a 3 step process by the Junta.

The best thing is the Thai military are backed by the majority. Not the 7% rice farmers. Not the 14% UDD supporters. The majority.

It eats people up and it is time to leave the bitterness behind. Embrace the positive change sweeping Thailand and see what real reconciliation brings.

Edited June 15, 2014 by djjamie

[Snig27]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and Africa

SHE didn't want anything HE did.

senate--no comment,

! high speed train 2+ trillion baht. axed too costly fly cheaper quicker---sorry Chiang Mai.

Minimum wage, for only 7 provinces for starters, and these were already getting more.

Chinese JUNK, 30% delivered---15% not working, no service centres, 2 charge up points on average per class.

Pardon for Thaksin ??

Chalerms 3 years efforts for peace.???

In other words, you don't agree with PT. So you vote them out. Massively simple concept that is applied in most of the world. I understand it deeply confuses you but in a modern society the people who don't like, or strongly disagree with, the policies or actions of an elected party (and we know from three independent studies that PT were elected relatively cleanly despite your theories) vote against them in an election. They don't, because they are terrified that they will never win legitimately, orchestrate an overthrow.

[ginjag]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

I know it's not the West, but if it was a Western democracy and it was apparent the government were acting like criminals...exactly what would the people do? Sit back and let the government rape the treasury or take whatever action necessary?

That's an easy question to answer - they would, at the next election, vote them out. Anything else is utterly unacceptable in an democracy. Given that every administration since the 1940s has raped the treasury, the only solution seems to a degree of answerability to the electorate.

Again-We did not have a democratically run government and an early vote would have given us the same government that did not run it democratically---so what do we do have another one to see if Thaksin can have another 4 years ??? it's democratic to hold elections IF the guilty of government crimes are jailed and reforms need to be had---do you honestly believe PTP would have had mega reforms to stop their corrupt regime No Never.

[citizen33]

Loved "the loophole in democracy" line, you know, the one where the party with the most votes wins.

Actually it is not the party with the most votes who win but the party with the mostparliamentary seats who win.

If any party wins more than 251 seats in a 500 seat parliament they get to be the ruling party irrespective of how many actual votes they get.

Is that even bearly relevant?

[billd766]

can't see how... the majority of Thai's are vindictive and compromise is non-existent

what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge - a Mandala or a Ghandi or an Aung San Suu Kyi

"what you actually need is a great (civilian) leader to emerge"

They had one, Thaksin Shinawatra but his overwhelming popularity, spotted by the Amart as far back as 2002-3, was his downfall. Once they realized that "the genie was out of the bottle", the Amart set about a demonization process that culminated in the 2006 coup. The trumped up charges and criminal cases laid against Thaksin were just one more part of the Amart's desperate attempts to get Thaksin out of Thailand. I am not surprised that the 'educated' Thais fell for the anti-Thaksin propaganda, but it is amazing how many 'educated' farang on this forum also bought into the conspiracy.

Can you please specify what those trumped up charges actually are as I believe there are between 6 and 15 more awaiting his return.

In truth Thaksin COULD have been one of the best PMs Thailnd ever had if ONLY he had done the job he was elected for which was running Thailand for the benefit of ALL the Thai people.

He even broke the law when he was elected and declared his wealth and said he had made a "genuine mistake" in forgetting his maids, security staf and drivers just kept a few billions of baht in their accounts for him. If you believed that story I have many bridges for sale in various colours. Even several judges at the time when finding him not guilty later confessed to NOT keeping to the rule of law and convicting him.

I could see that back in 2001 when he was elected and I am not even any part of the ammart. I also saw back in those days that THhaksin wanted then and still does now to be the supreme person in Thailand and to be above everybody in the country.

[Johpa]

I know it's not the West, but if it was a Western democracy and it was apparent the government were acting like criminals...exactly what would the people do? Sit back and let the government rape the treasury or take whatever action necessary?

In my country, the USofA, that is exactly what the people do. They sit back and let the government become proxies for the big corporations and the financial sector, allow those same sectors to place their people as the members of the "Surpreme Court", and then sit back and watch the treasury be looted. Then they allow one of all of two political parties to run a candidate who professes to want to change things but who of course makes no major changes whatsoever and the beat goes on.

[djjamie]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and Africa

SHE didn't want anything HE did.

senate--no comment,

! high speed train 2+ trillion baht. axed too costly fly cheaper quicker---sorry Chiang Mai.

Minimum wage, for only 7 provinces for starters, and these were already getting more.

Chinese JUNK, 30% delivered---15% not working, no service centres, 2 charge up points on average per class.

Pardon for Thaksin ??

Chalerms 3 years efforts for peace.???

In other words, you don't agree with PT. So you vote them out. Massively simple concept that is applied in most of the world. I understand it deeply confuses you but in a modern society the people who don't like, or strongly disagree with, the policies or actions of an elected party (and we know from three independent studies that PT were elected relatively cleanly despite your theories) vote against them in an election. They don't, because they are terrified that they will never win legitimately, orchestrate an overthrow.

If I was a red shirt in perpetual poverty because the schemes were designed NOT to make me rich, but to offer rewards I would vote for them if they offered 40% above market value. If the PTP set fire to buildings in Bangkok, called the public garbage, told people they will get what they want when they vote PTP I would still vote PTP because I was getting 40% above market value.

Rest assured though when the PTP don't get the majority at elections they won't respect the results as they didn't respect the majority that did not want the amnesty. The majority that wanted the 2007 constitution. The majority that are happy the Junta have taken over.

So when you say vote them out I would if the DEM's offered 41% above market value. They however put the country first, not a very narrow 7% of the population to win votes.

This is why reform is needed. Not to allow the DEM's to win, but to stop the abuses of democracy post pallet box. When you see the govt doing the above post ballot box then something is wrong. Something is broken and the "vote them out" attitude doesn't seem to stop the abuses of democracy post ballot box and when should we ignore that attitude. When the country is in ruins. The PTP hold the voters in contempt now. The voters will be inconsequential given enough time. They already were when the amnesty was voted on.

It is a massively simple concept to understand and is applied in most of the world. Democracy begins post ballot box and when the govt win an election so they can abuse democracy then something is broken. I thank the PTP for highlighting it.

May reconciliation be with you. (Not the one that gets criminals and terrorists off the hook though)

[ginjag]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and Africa

SHE didn't want anything HE did.

senate--no comment,

! high speed train 2+ trillion baht. axed too costly fly cheaper quicker---sorry Chiang Mai.

Minimum wage, for only 7 provinces for starters, and these were already getting more.

Chinese JUNK, 30% delivered---15% not working, no service centres, 2 charge up points on average per class.

Pardon for Thaksin ??

Chalerms 3 years efforts for peace.???

In other words, you don't agree with PT. So you vote them out. Massively simple concept that is applied in most of the world. I understand it deeply confuses you but in a modern society the people who don't like, or strongly disagree with, the policies or actions of an elected party (and we know from three independent studies that PT were elected relatively cleanly despite your theories) vote against them in an election. They don't, because they are terrified that they will never win legitimately, orchestrate an overthrow.

You don't want to know because it goes against your agenda.

When 50% of the electorate are not up to date and kept ignorant as to the corruption within government, they do not change their voting habits.

Now what has just happened throws a different light on the problem. Protesters brought to light the Thaksin corrupt regime, and as things unfolded more and more of the PTP regime blunders arose.

We have now exposed a bad can of worms, that has to be dealt with---it would never have been dealt with by Yingluck, she didn't give a hoot or she would have stopped PTP in their tracks and put Thailand on the straight and narrow.

My theories you stated are a little lie, as I have posted that they were democratically elected (in a fashion) but were and achieved power but self destructed. Personal greed and no accountability. You do not recognize this as you seem to be posting to stir up anger.. democracy-elections-democracy election give us a break.

[Snig27]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and africa

Or yingluck stating she will never serve one particular man then empower Surapong as the foreign minister to give thaksin his passport back.

A fully elected senate to allow further abuse of the fundamental weakness in democracy that will allow drivers, maids, brothers, sisters and cousins of thaksin to take up seats. The new Udon senator smuggled her husband across the border to Laos to escape the law. The CM senator Is affiliated with RCM51, a minority driven, violent terrorist group. These lawbreakers will be responsible for passing laws. When the majority of the population has no idea what a senator's job entails this is a very bad sign that they have the power to vote for them. Thank god the entities that appoint a senate do so knowing full well the gravity of what a PTP senate could do.

A high speed train that is not needed while the current train network crumbles and the funding was not allowed to be scrutinized by parliament. Thus she wanted to fund it undemocratic and non transparently.

A minimum wage that has not been fully implemented and that increased inflation so it negated the minimum wage while the people that have not got the minimum wage yet suffer.

A tablet scheme that gave inferior tablets that broke to students in schools that didn't have electricity.

The only reconciliation bill in history that nearly started a civil war. A reconciliation bill that went against the PTP promise to stamp out corruption. by absolving 25 000 corruption cases.

Yingluck stamping out criminal acts by not arresting a single person responsible for over 28 deaths and over 700 injured yet under the junta crime has dramatically dropped, the Trat terrorists have been held accountable and weapons seizures are as common as killings of innocent protestors were under the PTP.

PTP were so serious about stamping out terrorist attacks in the South Chalerm refused to go down there as the head of the peace process team. He finally went once after public pressure demanded it and then he stayed for 1 night and returned. Yep, the PTP were really serious about that.

Thailand is not a coup. It is a counter coup. The train of democracy was derailed by the PTP and through the junta the tracks are being repaired (duel track too!) and the train is steaming along swimmingly onto the road to democracy through the stations of reconciliation (not the one that absolves criminals), reform and then elections and when I see the 3 fingered salute I smile because it is a 3 step process by the Junta.

The best thing is the Thai military are backed by the majority. Not the 7% rice farmers. Not the 14% UDD supporters. The majority.

It eats people up and it is time to leave the bitterness behind. Embrace the positive change sweeping Thailand and see what real reconciliation brings.

That's a huge number of words to say "we can't win, we will never be able to win and so we need to fix it so we win by illegitimate means". Happily, as the saying goes, history is liberal and progress is inevitable.

Most of your claims to progress don't survive even the slightest scrutiny. A "positive change" does not block conversation, opinion, dissent - or try to create a single Internet link to the world to control this. It doesn't block websites, rewriting history, "talks" on TV from the dictator and so on. Any single one of those takes your claims and puts them up against a wall and machine guns them. It makes them look both naive and foolish in the extreme.

[Now or Never]

We need to make this the last military takeover

This is a very admirable objective and will require a huge amount of work from the military before the next election.

The military will need to " Adjust the Attitudes " of many of the criminal politicians in Thailand.

​Perhaps jailing them for 20 years as was done to the Rice Miller last week would certainly make them think before they embark on another criminal corruption spree.

[Lancelot]

Downs a big glass of Kool Aide. "Well the last 12 coups have been productive; here's to a few more"

[ginjag]

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The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup.

I remember someone on TVF saying the Junta must read the posts and get ideas from here to implement. As much as I think it was a tongue in cheek comment it is rather apt.

I have lost count of the times I have compared America's stance on Thailand's return to democracy by the Junta and Egypt's return to democracy. Or America's favorable stance on thaksins "Thaksinomics" while condemning Chavez' "Chavismo."

Some people will still be willing to hang their entire argument on the fact that Morsi was duly elected and therefore there is no legal remedy until the next election. You know, electoral majority and all. America understand (when it suits them) that elections are not the only characteristic of a democracy and regardless of Morsis conduct to oppress political opposition, to manipulate the constitution, and violate individual rights he needed to be stopped. The Egyptian military, backed by the people, preserved their nation, countered the Muslim Brotherhood's insurgent coup, and reclaimed their country.

Shucks, this sounds kinda familiar. It is not similar it is nearly identical. BUT strip it all down to bare bone it is a coup. A coup is a coup. BUT some scoff when the Junta in Thailand say don't call this a coup. Why scoff? The Egyptian coup was not a coup..according to America.

Depending on what America has to gain or lose will depend on their reaction to an international event.

With the only difference between morsi and yingluck, that she wanted a fully elected senate, a high speed train, a minimum wage, a rise pledge, tablets for poor kids, reconciliation and amnesty, peace in the south and such criminal acts.

Comparing with morsi, who wanted a sharia state, war with israel and further destabilisation of a fragile peace in the middle east and africa

Or yingluck stating she will never serve one particular man then empower Surapong as the foreign minister to give thaksin his passport back.

A fully elected senate to allow further abuse of the fundamental weakness in democracy that will allow drivers, maids, brothers, sisters and cousins of thaksin to take up seats. The new Udon senator smuggled her husband across the border to Laos to escape the law. The CM senator Is affiliated with RCM51, a minority driven, violent terrorist group. These lawbreakers will be responsible for passing laws. When the majority of the population has no idea what a senator's job entails this is a very bad sign that they have the power to vote for them. Thank god the entities that appoint a senate do so knowing full well the gravity of what a PTP senate could do.

A high speed train that is not needed while the current train network crumbles and the funding was not allowed to be scrutinized by parliament. Thus she wanted to fund it undemocratic and non transparently.

A minimum wage that has not been fully implemented and that increased inflation so it negated the minimum wage while the people that have not got the minimum wage yet suffer.

A tablet scheme that gave inferior tablets that broke to students in schools that didn't have electricity.

The only reconciliation bill in history that nearly started a civil war. A reconciliation bill that went against the PTP promise to stamp out corruption. by absolving 25 000 corruption cases.

Yingluck stamping out criminal acts by not arresting a single person responsible for over 28 deaths and over 700 injured yet under the junta crime has dramatically dropped, the Trat terrorists have been held accountable and weapons seizures are as common as killings of innocent protestors were under the PTP.

PTP were so serious about stamping out terrorist attacks in the South Chalerm refused to go down there as the head of the peace process team. He finally went once after public pressure demanded it and then he stayed for 1 night and returned. Yep, the PTP were really serious about that.

Thailand is not a coup. It is a counter coup. The train of democracy was derailed by the PTP and through the junta the tracks are being repaired (duel track too!) and the train is steaming along swimmingly onto the road to democracy through the stations of reconciliation (not the one that absolves criminals), reform and then elections and when I see the 3 fingered salute I smile because it is a 3 step process by the Junta.

The best thing is the Thai military are backed by the majority. Not the 7% rice farmers. Not the 14% UDD supporters. The majority.

It eats people up and it is time to leave the bitterness behind. Embrace the positive change sweeping Thailand and see what real reconciliation brings.

That's a huge number of words to say "we can't win, we will never be able to win and so we need to fix it so we win by illegitimate means". Happily, as the saying goes, history is liberal and progress is inevitable.

Most of your claims to progress don't survive even the slightest scrutiny. A "positive change" does not block conversation, opinion, dissent - or try to create a single Internet link to the world to control this. It doesn't block websites, rewriting history, "talks" on TV from the dictator and so on. Any single one of those takes your claims and puts them up against a wall and machine guns them. It makes them look both naive and foolish in the extreme.

Your amazing you condone PTP government, if so it automatically makes you of the same mind.

Wanting a quick election the same as Yingluck was to get PTP back to running a UN democratic regime, so you think in this country election are the only way because it is written that this way is democratic. NORMALLY it is. This happening in Thailand is a no no until it reforms, returns to normal thinking and then elections.

[Now or Never]

I know it's not the West, but if it was a Western democracy and it was apparent the government were acting like criminals...exactly what would the people do? Sit back and let the government rape the treasury or take whatever action necessary?

A very good example of what Australians did in the state of Queensland when the old National Party ( also a farmers party ) was corrupt and rotten to the core was vote the corrupt politicians out and relegate them to the opposition benches for decades.

[Paulzed]

The coup in Egypt came with more than 3,000 dead but the US wouldn't call it a coup for fear that the legislative mechanism from the Congress would kick in. The Americans were also concerned about losing a strategic partner.

That's because it was most likely orchestrated and backed by the US.

[ramrod711]

Thaksin Shinawatra, a scam artist and a sore loser who had dug his own grave when he couldn't realise enough was enough.

Unfortunately, this is the nicest thing anyone can say about him. Pretty good description of the entire family as far as I'm concerned.

[Basil B]

The only way Thailand can go forward without a coup every few years is to have a well thought out constitution, a non political person appointed to keep and defend that constitution, (defender of the constitution), who has the power to dissolve any government in breach of the constitution, to whom the Police, Military and Judges answer too.

For this to work the said person must never be above the law themselves and the "Le Majestic" law needs reforming a to allow for fair criticism and debate, and if need be a proceeder that at any time given certain restraints a referendum may be called to remove that person from head of state.

[Fat Haggis]

The only way to stop populism is to stop having so many political parties vying for seats, so that needing a coalition to govern is a thing of the past, you need outright winners, even if that's only by 1%. You need to "convince" those who voted PTP historically to vote for A.N.Other, however, there's still no guarantee that they will vote for the "favourites" and in this case, it's the Democrats, don't forget that these other parties not aligned with the PTP also voted against both parties.

So how do you convince them, as in the PTP/UDD supporters ? Historically those who have voted democrat have always looked down on these "uneducated, dirty, lying, cheating, buffaloes" (anyone see a small problem here?). All you need to do is take a look at some FB pages to get a very quick idea that those who are anti reds, are some deep rooted bigots, and see anyone in Issan as less than pond life.. reconciliation starts with self education, if these attitudes remain, and the resentment towards the North East and Issan remains, then why should those living there vote for a side that can't treat them as equals?

I read with interest that one of the Generals "wishes" also includes a focus on Religion, there's some Thai's need to go back and read the values of what being a Buddhist means, and the core principles of Buddhism, as there's an awful lot of intolerance on ALL sides.

What General Prayuth, and all the potential future MP's need to do, is convince the country they're the right person to lead, by having core values,and core principals, and a set of ethics, that he's squeeky clean almost to the point that he's boring!!