As the world watches, PM Prayuth goes abroad

[kurnell]

Does this dude speak English?

Yes, sapeek Englit can.

I assume from your sarcastic tone that you are fluent in Thai and can hold your own in any conversation in Thailand or do you speak barstool Thai.

He is taking an interpreter to make sure that he doesn't look as foolish on the international stage as his predecessor, who must have been fluent in speaking, reading and writing US English as she has a degree from a US university.

You can hear my tone via your monitor? Which app do you use?

Yes, being fluent in Thai is really relevant to this subject isn't it? Or are you just trying to pick a fight?

[Krataiboy]

Now it is time to show the world what kind of person is Prime Minister Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha. The world's microscope will be zero in on him

General who?

[Pii Kate]

When he is on foreign trips, Prayuth will be alone ….

I think he should at least take along his DNA expert. You know, the one who has been advising him so far.

Oh, and his women's advocate advisor.

Women advocate advisers in Burkas.

[Expat Girl]

Wow, you lot are not going to give this guy a chance are you. One minute he is the bee's knee's for trying to clean up the city and beaches, next thing he receives a whole host of comments about pathetic things such as 'can he even speak English' or Thai's using knives and forks.... do you know you actually embarrass yourselves with these words, my advice to you is...clear off, head home where you may feel more comfortable with the leadership. or alternatively climb back into your holes and get on with your sorry little lives.....

Ahhh feel better for that.

You need to understand that it's unusual to like or love people who hold guns to your head figuratively speaking....be it a bank robber or coup leader taking over a nation .

It's largely , ( even after time) not universally approved by democratic nations.

If you feel this is harsh or unfair , well perhaps you might be in a small minority camp ?

A coup yes, a gun to our heads, no. I actually don't believe i am in the minority when it comes to the army taking control, the problem is the PM is under so much scrutiny that his every move causes a mass of knee jerk reactions. I am not for dictatorship or military rule, i am 100% for democracy, but look at the way the country was heading with the previous governments, what would you have suggested, was there an alternative, please let me know if there was. As the PM has said on numerous occasions, his tenure is temporary until the country stabilises and viable alternative are out there who can be democratically elected. Personally i can see the PM being in office for the next 2 years at least, and if he does a good job for the country, why not.

[PETDCAT]

So will the General be wearing his uniform with abundant medals or a suit?

[djjamie]

Goodness me. The very same people that defended Yingluck's lack of English skills stating her ability to speak English has no bearing on her ability as PM are the very same people denouncing General Prayuth's lack of English.

One can be assured that unlike yingluck, General Prayuth will not even attempt to speak English, but will have an interpreter that will facilitate an effective narrative that will allow the good General to ensure he is completely understood and his points are not misconstrued or misinterpreted.

Of course one can be assured he will not say "Overcome" instead of welcome when he greats the leaders. The good General knows that would only give a perceived view of him as being a court jester and ensures his advisors are viewed as a group of imbeciles that did not even have the foresight to advise on a translator.

Well done General Prayuth. I am sure he will be warmly welcomed just as America have warmed to him over the last few months.

[Tatsujin]

Wow, you know so much about "protocol" . . . and it's amusing to note that you could also substitute the names of Yingluck, Thaksin, Abhisit, Suthep or any one else you care to mention for "him", "he", "his" etc and it still works . . . same, same, not different

You shouldn't have "removed all doubt", as the last part of the cliche goes. You should have just waited to see.

But since you didn't, NOTA is comparable to the General-Prime Minister-Military Chief. None.

That was a little too cryptic for me . . . what do I need to wait and see about?

And you mentioned "NOTA", I assume you meant "None Of The Above" rather than the #1 Google result for "NOTA" I got which was "National Organisation for the Treatment of Abusers". Or was my assumption in error?

[wandasloan]

A coup yes, a gun to our heads, no. I actually don't believe i am in the minority when it comes to the army taking control, the problem is the PM is under so much scrutiny that his every move causes a mass of knee jerk reactions. I am not for dictatorship or military rule, i am 100% for democracy, but look at the way the country was heading with the previous governments, what would you have suggested, was there an alternative, please let me know if there was. As the PM has said on numerous occasions, his tenure is temporary until the country stabilises and viable alternative are out there who can be democratically elected. Personally i can see the PM being in office for the next 2 years at least, and if he does a good job for the country, why not.

It's largely , ( even after time) not universally approved by democratic nations.

If you feel this is harsh or unfair , well perhaps you might be in a small minority camp ?

Yes, there is ALWAYS an alternative.

Almost all countries except Thailand have taken what you weirdly call an alternative, to thrash it out and determine which way the country should proceed. Sometimes it involves great violence, sometimes not. Almost no country has gone the route that Thailand has gone. The idea of a "middle way" where a year or seven of gun-to-the-head peace on the streets will have everyone in a moderate mood and loving the other side is crazy. It never has done so in Thailand, let alone in other countries. Every time the Thai military regime has ended, the disputes began - restarted, to be more accurate. Every time. No exception. The idea that this motormouth can change that streak is laughable. There is quite literally nothing he does that promotes, let alone achieves unity of political thought.

"You! Yes you in the red shirt! Get in line.Right now!" Yes, that will work. Sure it will.

And that's not what he's doing anyway. What he's doing is starting to install a fixed, rigged system where he and buddies run the country, as happened in Burma for 50 years and is mostly still happening. It's as if Prayuth were thinking, "Well, from Pridi Banomyong to Sonthi Boonyaratglin, those people weren't harsh ENOUGH". After thousands of political deaths, I might add, almost all of them by the Royal Thai Armed Forces. The alternative? Stop using armed forces who swore to protect the country from foreign invasion to kill your own people for peace. That's my alternative.

The way forward in every country on earth is disputatious. There is no country that doesn't have huge divides, massive national arguments and sometimes even civil war - sometimes separatism and secession over it. So it's Thailand that's the ridiculous outlier here, taking a strange, virtually unknown "alternative". And they've done it time after time after dreary time. And they've never succeeded. Not once.

But now you're here, you seem quite confident everything will work fine for the first time in Thai history. Why?

.

[fab4]

Since the seating of participants follow aphetically, Prayuth will sit next to US President Barrack Obama,

Now, was that meant to be read as alphabetically, or did the author try and sneakily slip in some satire and really meant apathetically?

[ALFREDO]

So will the General be wearing his uniform with abundant medals or a suit?

A suit, I think, last time saw him in nice slightly pink one, as in gold and sky blue.

Not possible, allowed, to upload one of these photos.

[ALFREDO]

I doubt if he will be even received by many of the ministers of the other countries attending.

He is likely to be be persona non grata?

Its, on the end all about economy, business and money what counts! So, I doubt your opinion.

[cardinalblue]

Honestly, no one really cares outside of Thailand...

CB

[Expat Girl]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

[ALFREDO]

The English grammar in this reportage is appalling.

I'd like to see you write a similar piece in perfect Thai.

Why me? Do you know how good I am at writing in Thai?

Your point is moot.

The real point is - why not just get someone who can actually write a proper article in English - ( ie someone whose native language is English) to write it?

You very rarely get international writers blogging in Thai - completely pointless.

So, "you" think.

[chainarong]

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

... , as for Australia not welcoming P.M. Prayuth, as has been said , show me that memo from the Australian Governments media unit or any interview from Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, as I haven't seen any that says that , Thailand has close ties with Australia and the heads of departments or business are in Australia or vise versa on a weekly basis.

I've been testing this brand new thing... Gruel or Groggle... something like that. Seems to work.

(Reuters) - Australia downgraded ties with Thailand on Saturday in the wake of this month's military coup, imposing a travel ban on the junta leaders and cutting defence cooperation in some of the toughest punitive measures taken by a foreign government.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/05/31/uk-thailand-politics-australia-idUKKBN0EB06O20140531

First we have Mark that speak perfect English... [snip] [snip]

I'm pretty sure there were a couple before him. They didn't wait for you to start appointing prime ministers. Most spoke no English but it never seemed to matter and I'm sure it doesn't matter today, either. I'm unaware of a single achievement or a single disappointment to Thailand or a political leader (or a jackbooted military thug, lord knows there were too many of them) that resulted from language ability.

Frankly, "Oh he speaks English so well" is about as patronising as you can get without the adjective "Oriental" thrown in.

.

Must been dreaming I am sure the Royal Thai Air force was in OZ the last 2 weeks on exercise in Darwin with US, OZ , Kiwi, Canada Sing and French air forces and navy as well ,you must remember the blue blood set includes foreign Minister Julie bishop and like like her boss, 1 Term Tony , must be seen to be doing something when doing nothing at all , and Thailand has a strong trade balance , ops mentioned money , oh well there go's the restrictions.

[jpeg]

As the world watches

[Fred Flinstone]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome

Its not what we think of our current "hosts" (by gun) of Thailand .

But State departments , CIA , MI5, and Federal Police , world Governments , and libertarian historians .

Unfortunately , they dont share your love.

People in hostage situations sometimes empathise with their captives takers.

You might mean well.

have limited understanding.

But please don't call force - peace.

Thailand cannot decide its course.

The people are not deciding.

[jpeg]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

[emilymat]

So will the General be wearing his uniform with abundant medals or a suit?

Good point. I thought he was due to retire from the army this month. So, is he a general or a Mr?

[Expat Girl]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome

Its not what we think of our current "hosts" (by gun) of Thailand .

But State departments , CIA , MI5, and Federal Police , world Governments , and libertarian historians .

Unfortunately , they dont share your love.

People in hostage situations sometimes empathise with their captives takers.

You might mean well.

have limited understanding.

But please don't call force - peace.

Thailand cannot decide its course.

The people are not deciding.

So let me ask again, what would you have done, would you have let things continue as they were, give me a viable alternative that would have stopped the unrest and from what i understand the deception and corruption of the previous government. I don't think the Stockholm syndrome has anything to do with this, that is more attributed to close quartered relationships, such as hostages and kidnapping. Actually it may be the Lima Syndrome, and as the army has developed sympathy for the people.

Again, what force, i do not see any military personal out there dictating what we do each day, no one is holding a gun to my head, yes they seized control of the country and by defacto any army doing this is seen as a show of force, no one is denying that but day to day life has not changed.

Again, i pose the question to you, what was the alternative.......

[Nickymaster]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Of course. Because there are still a few places left on the corruption perception index before Thailand hits rock bottom. Everything was going fine. Well, at least for the Shin clan. And that is all what counts I guess.

http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1

And there will be elections in a year. Prayuth has stated many times that he only wants to clean up and stop Thais from fighting and killing each other. Don't know what all the fuss is about. We all agree Thailand was/is a mess. Something has to be done. Or do you believe that the ones in charge of Thailand the last 15 years or so did a good job?

[Gonzo the Face]

So will the General be wearing his uniform with abundant medals or a suit?

Good point. I thought he was due to retire from the army this month. So, is he a general or a Mr?

Your question speaks volumes to the level of your knowledge on the subject...... I think you should know........ the answer to your question is not general nor Mr. .... he is Prime Minister

[wandasloan]

Must been dreaming I am sure the Royal Thai Air force was in OZ the last 2 weeks on exercise in Darwin with US, OZ , Kiwi, Canada Sing and French air forces and navy as well ,you must remember the blue blood set includes foreign Minister Julie bishop and like like her boss, 1 Term Tony , must be seen to be doing something when doing nothing at all , and Thailand has a strong trade balance , ops mentioned money , oh well there go's the restrictions.

Do you not understand who "junta leaders" are?

If not, then you don't. Too bad, but there is always 10%.

[Nickymaster]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Of course. Because there are still a few places left on the corruption perception index before Thailand hits rock bottom. Everything was going fine. Well, at least for the Shin clan. And that is all what counts I guess.

http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1

And there will be elections in a year. Prayuth has stated many times that he only wants to clean up and stop Thais from fighting and killing each other. Don't know what all the fuss is about. We all agree Thailand was/is a mess. Something has to be done. Or do you believe that the ones in charge of Thailand the last 15 years or so did a good job?

Way too silly to bother reply-

This Junta allowed (by CIA notes) Thailand to fall into this situation.

It repeatedly, warned Police "'not to intervene"

If your ability to check facts is so poor, that the Junta line is swallowed…thats fine.

LOL. So you have nothing to say.

[jpeg]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Of course. Because there are still a few places left on the corruption perception index before Thailand hits rock bottom. Everything was going fine. Well, at least for the Shin clan. And that is all what counts I guess.

http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1

And there will be elections in a year. Prayuth has stated many times that he only wants to clean up and stop Thais from fighting and killing each other. Don't know what all the fuss is about. We all agree Thailand was/is a mess. Something has to be done. Or do you believe that the ones in charge of Thailand the last 15 years or so did a good job?

You and your Expat Girlfriend are incapable of looking as to how and why this situation has been arrived at (again) and will continue to be the status quo up and until ... geddit?

[Expat Girl]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Ohh come on, listen to yourself, if things were left as they were do you seriously believe they would have self rectified over time and not festered into more unrest and power struggles. To some effect they were suppressing the dissent of multiple factions as their actions were beginning to have an adverse affect on the common person. I agree suppressing common political dissent should be a no..no, as this is normal democratic behavior, but when it gets to the stage it did, then someone needs to make a decision to step in and stop the rot.

It is a long road ahead and non of us know if we will see a democratically elected government rule with the peoples interests truly at heart, but at the moment i do not see anything better, do you ?

[tbthailand]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Of course. Because there are still a few places left on the corruption perception index before Thailand hits rock bottom. Everything was going fine. Well, at least for the Shin clan. And that is all what counts I guess.

http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1

And there will be elections in a year. Prayuth has stated many times that he only wants to clean up and stop Thais from fighting and killing each other. Don't know what all the fuss is about. We all agree Thailand was/is a mess. Something has to be done. Or do you believe that the ones in charge of Thailand the last 15 years or so did a good job?

You and your Expat Girlfriend are incapable of looking as to how and why this situation has been arrived at (again) and will continue to be the status quo up and until ... geddit?

it is hard to understand how some people don't understand. What can you do?

[wandasloan]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

Answer a question with a question. What are you afraid of?

I "seriously" think the country will resolve its differences without the military. All the army has done is assure that more people will die, the ones it is about to kill - again! What are they? Not innocents?

I'm quite positive the last government and its street opponents certainly would have thrashed out nothing at all. So what?

If you think the political "in fighting" and "factions" have stopped, you are trapped in a dream. It will stop AFTER everyone finally thrashes this thing out. It is hubris and also stupid to think that I have a plan, or you. This disagreement has a long way to run. How many civil wars and disagreements and violent political protests has your country had in the past... oh, 500 years?

The one thing I am certain of, the one thing I know for sure is that the army has stopped NOTHING. There is a timeout. How nice.

Now let me ask you again. How (or why) do you think that this imposed, at-gunpoint armistice contributes to settling Thailand's political future? You can keep evading and avoiding of course, that's your right.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Who said an alternative has to be "good"? And who judges that? Do you think it would have been good if Mr Lincoln had just said, "Okay, secede?" Do you think it would have been good to just let Louis Riel have his way? Should the army have stayed home and let the Scots have it? Should the army have stepped in and killed all those red shirts who stormed the Bastille and threw out the kings?

There is always an alternative. All I'm asking is why you think this particular, weird, universally criticised alternative by the Thai army, at this time, is bound to succeed in democratising the country and healing all political wounds, as Gen Prayut lies and you seem to believe? You can't see any other possibility. That's it? That's the reason?

And speaking of "reverting back in time to past events" - that is exactly what the Thai army is doing - as it has done, over and over for 82 years.

Out of curiosity, two more questions for you. How many coups have you been present for in Thailand? And can you give your opinion about which coup or coups since 1932 that you think were successful? It's an internet forum. Your response is up to you entirely.

.

[Expat Girl]

I am not sure if the response was to me, as you seem to have mixed in two responses into one quote nest, but i suspect it is.

Do you seriously think if the army had not stepped in there would have been resolution to the way the country was being managed, would the previous government have sat down and thrashed out a resolution, the in fighting between the various factions would have continued, more innocent deaths would have occurred, pretty much overnight this stopped. At some point someone needs to step in and quell all the fighting and political unrest that occurs.

History is there to be changed, and i don't see any reason why i should doubt that it will not happen, you cannot simply keep reverting back in time to past events to judge what is occurring today. Non of us can foresee what the overall intentions of the new government are, but i for one m willing to give them a chance and from what i have seen so far is a man determined to make change.

I still have not seen a good 'alternative' to what occurred, and your post still does not address this, the army is not going around killing people for peace, they are stopping the killing of people in the name of peace.

Yes, I do. IF all this country's army's hadn't 'stepped in' oh so many times, and the people of this country had been ALLOWED to DEVELOP democracy, as that which was fought for and won in the West. But they weren't. Do try to think of the bigger consequences of continually supressing dissent, in all it's forms.

Of course. Because there are still a few places left on the corruption perception index before Thailand hits rock bottom. Everything was going fine. Well, at least for the Shin clan. And that is all what counts I guess.

http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1

And there will be elections in a year. Prayuth has stated many times that he only wants to clean up and stop Thais from fighting and killing each other. Don't know what all the fuss is about. We all agree Thailand was/is a mess. Something has to be done. Or do you believe that the ones in charge of Thailand the last 15 years or so did a good job?

You and your Expat Girlfriend are incapable of looking as to how and why this situation has been arrived at (again) and will continue to be the status quo up and until ... geddit?

What the hell are you blathering on about, i have looked at this long and hard and would only state my opinion if i knew what i was talking about. I may not have a full understanding of the historical events that have occurred in thailand and i have only been here for 5 months, but what i do know is there was little opportunity for all this end end in a civilised manner so something had to be done. From your post you seem a little frustrated that we are not aligned to your train of thought, but hey that's what we are here for, to debate the topics at hand

[Thanet]

He is banned from Australia from travel here-

He is also never going to be addressed or given any ear by "'any "" Australian Parliament representative.

The other Government members are also banned. *(From Australian soil)

Interesting. Why?

Maybe because PM Prayuths ideas on bikinies and women reminds Australians too much of their attitude to Sheilas

What a childish post, which shows that you don't know anything about Australia, other than what you may have seen in Crocodile Dundee. If you visit Australia, you'll find that the people there value equality just as much as you Dutch do.

@falangjim - he was banned after the coup, because Australia is a democracy and does not welcome leaders who seize power by force.