Shocker ! ! ! Andrew Drummond Leaving Thailand

[blowin]

Sorry to see this as he is a brave man and a champion of freedom of free speech . Not like some of the rags in Pattaya!! Good luck Andrew if you read this and bad Karma to the scum he tried to expose which I am sure are reading this .

[Don Aleman]

I am sure once he is settled he will have a lot to say publicly about Thailand which he couldn't say here.

[WitawatWatawit]

Drummond can't write to save himself - that was clearly evident from his early blog efforts. His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. On his blog, he did not have that luxury until recent times. To parody Drummond's style of writing, you could say that if you gave him a gun, the safest place to be around him would be right in front. He sprays words every which way and with no sense of direction or coherence. His saving grace was his doggedness and fearless approach. That reputation was such that people felt compelled to go to him with information - which he then assessed and followed up. Considering where that information often lead him, he was indeed a brave man. I wonder just how many people have been saved from the scammers - the sorry-assed fake lawyers, developers, boiler room filth - because of his efforts? How many more will not have such luck now that he is gone?

"His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. " Since you know this, you then must know the names of the editors, etc. the publications involved, etc. So please supply them ere we think you're spewing rubbish.

You can't be serious! Apart from the fact that you failed to detect my little humourous dig at Andrew, who IS a sub editor's nightmare (you can trust me on that), and that you have chosen to ignore my otherwise praiseworthy words, do you really think there are that many sub editors who are known to the public? The publications are already noted on his website. Lighten up, my selective friend.

[maidee]

what is the exact story ... why he does not give info himself or some official news ?

it start with one poster, not even a moderator, with no link to the origin of the news / story about the who, what where .... who does threaten his family, or is that also a secret ?

[Gang Warily]

He mightn't be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I would dearly love to know how Tim Ward has maintained a current visa for so many years while others have been shown the door. As for opinions, he's never short in that department - I could only shake my head when one of my Thai associates told me her brother thinks he's 'cool' after his tirade at the Pattaya cop shop.

Off-topic, but what happened with the Tim Ward case? I thought I'd seen a headline about it being settled, but I didn't look at the time and now can't find anything.

I'm just being nosey, no invested reasons.

Think he got a phone call that straightened him out, as he suddenly became very contrite

and said it was all a big mistake...

I did?

[sydneyjed]

Yes, he was a brave soldier and I am sad to see him leave.

But he was just a blogger and not an investigative journalist. He got many facts wrong for most of the articles that I was interested in reading. That lost him a lot of credibility - it's a pity he did not posses professional skills. I do believe he stepped on some toes and that's good he did. Hope his work and risk taking will benefit in some way.

At the end of the day he always reported on the side of the battler..the victim!His sheer persistence in chasing the story and exposing the wrongs associated in this were not driven by ego or selfishness. He always tried to expose 'the truth'!In a country such as Thailand that will always hold an element of risk and danger and for any of the 'knockers' on here who think they can do a better job..Well here's your chance boys n' girls..off you go!Thank You

Andrew Drummond!

Jed.

[Gang Warily]

Drummond can't write to save himself - that was clearly evident from his early blog efforts. His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. On his blog, he did not have that luxury until recent times. To parody Drummond's style of writing, you could say that if you gave him a gun, the safest place to be around him would be right in front. He sprays words every which way and with no sense of direction or coherence. His saving grace was his doggedness and fearless approach. That reputation was such that people felt compelled to go to him with information - which he then assessed and followed up. Considering where that information often lead him, he was indeed a brave man. I wonder just how many people have been saved from the scammers - the sorry-assed fake lawyers, developers, boiler room filth - because of his efforts? How many more will not have such luck now that he is gone?

"His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. " Since you know this, you then must know the names of the editors, etc. the publications involved, etc. So please supply them ere we think you're spewing rubbish.

You can't be serious! Apart from the fact that you failed to detect my little humourous dig at Andrew, who IS a sub editor's nightmare (you can trust me on that), and that you have chosen to ignore my otherwise praiseworthy words, do you really think there are that many sub editors who are known to the public? The publications are already noted on his website. Lighten up, my selective friend.

All reporters were sub editors' nightmares Watawitawat. But that's what they are paid for. Reporters blame sub editors for changing the accuracy of the stories.Its not so much that I cannot spell. I can. Sometimes I cannot see the errors. Comes from the old days of writing at speed and throwing the copy page by page up a shute. The subs wanted the copy quick rather than perfect.

(When I first wrote this i wrote shoot but i would have been detected instantly) Most stuff gets corrected. To the person who wrote I never correct errors the answer is I always correct errors on request if that is what they are.

[jomcondo]

Once you sit outside of Thailand and its draconian libel laws you can really ratchet up the exposing of pattaya scumbags.

[cooked]

Drummond can't write to save himself - that was clearly evident from his early blog efforts. His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. On his blog, he did not have that luxury until recent times. To parody Drummond's style of writing, you could say that if you gave him a gun, the safest place to be around him would be right in front. He sprays words every which way and with no sense of direction or coherence. His saving grace was his doggedness and fearless approach. That reputation was such that people felt compelled to go to him with information - which he then assessed and followed up. Considering where that information often lead him, he was indeed a brave man. I wonder just how many people have been saved from the scammers - the sorry-assed fake lawyers, developers, boiler room filth - because of his efforts? How many more will not have such luck now that he is gone?

"His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. " Since you know this, you then must know the names of the editors, etc. the publications involved, etc. So please supply them ere we think you're spewing rubbish.

You can't be serious! Apart from the fact that you failed to detect my little humourous dig at Andrew, who IS a sub editor's nightmare (you can trust me on that), and that you have chosen to ignore my otherwise praiseworthy words, do you really think there are that many sub editors who are known to the public? The publications are already noted on his website. Lighten up, my selective friend.

All reporters were sub editors' nightmares Watawitawat. But that's what they are paid for. Reporters blame sub editors for changing the accuracy of the stories.Its not so much that I cannot spell. I can. Sometimes I cannot see the errors. Comes from the old days of writing at speed and throwing the copy page by page up a shute. The subs wanted the copy quick rather than perfect.

(When I first wrote this i wrote shoot but i would have been detected instantly) Most stuff gets corrected. To the person who wrote I never correct errors the answer is I always correct errors on request if that is what they are.

Gang warily? As in due diligence?

[WitawatWatawit]

^^^

"Gang warily? As in due diligence?"

Jeez, you're a genius to guess that. Or a Scot.

[wilcopops]

One has to assume that the people who think Drummond's stuff is poorly researched have done or know better themselves....one has to ask HOW?

[wilcopops]

just because you don't agree with someone's opinion it doesn't mean it is ill researched - Drummond's opinions are based on a profound knowledge of w=hat is going on in Thailand today and a much better informed and honest interpretation that almost anything in the mainstream Thai media......he is a shining light of reason in a murky fog of prejudice and propaganda promulgated by successive governments and the draconian anti freedom of expression laws that they use to gag any dissent.

Je suis Andrew!

[tullynagardy]

Thai visa can be made criminally liable for permitting certain types of news information that may not be from credible

Surprised they aren`t constantly in court then for posting the daily ramblings of TAT

[StealthEnergiser]

Drummond can't write to save himself - that was clearly evident from his early blog efforts. His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. On his blog, he did not have that luxury until recent times. To parody Drummond's style of writing, you could say that if you gave him a gun, the safest place to be around him would be right in front. He sprays words every which way and with no sense of direction or coherence. His saving grace was his doggedness and fearless approach. That reputation was such that people felt compelled to go to him with information - which he then assessed and followed up. Considering where that information often lead him, he was indeed a brave man. I wonder just how many people have been saved from the scammers - the sorry-assed fake lawyers, developers, boiler room filth - because of his efforts? How many more will not have such luck now that he is gone?

"His newspaper reputation was saved by his desk editors and sub editors, poor bustards, who pulled his raw, rough and rambling copy together and turned it into readable prose. " Since you know this, you then must know the names of the editors, etc. the publications involved, etc. So please supply them ere we think you're spewing rubbish.

You can't be serious! Apart from the fact that you failed to detect my little humourous dig at Andrew, who IS a sub editor's nightmare (you can trust me on that), and that you have chosen to ignore my otherwise praiseworthy words, do you really think there are that many sub editors who are known to the public? The publications are already noted on his website. Lighten up, my selective friend.

All reporters were sub editors' nightmares Watawitawat. But that's what they are paid for. Reporters blame sub editors for changing the accuracy of the stories.Its not so much that I cannot spell. I can. Sometimes I cannot see the errors. Comes from the old days of writing at speed and throwing the copy page by page up a shute. The subs wanted the copy quick rather than perfect.

(When I first wrote this i wrote shoot but i would have been detected instantly) Most stuff gets corrected. To the person who wrote I never correct errors the answer is I always correct errors on request if that is what they are.

All the Best Andrew will you continue reporting on Thailand ?

[Gang Warily]

just because you don't agree with someone's opinion it doesn't mean it is ill researched - Drummond's opinions are based on a profound knowledge of w=hat is going on in Thailand today and a much better informed and honest interpretation that almost anything in the mainstream Thai media......he is a shining light of reason in a murky fog of prejudice and propaganda promulgated by successive governments and the draconian anti freedom of expression laws that they use to gag any dissent.

Je suis Andrew!

Thank you and all the other posters who have made tributes on this site. Yes despite the punctuation errors, spelling and grammatical glitches some of which leap out at me when I read them today - I am a professional journalist. Always have been. Always will. That I made a decision many years ago after 12 years in 'The Street' to work independently from 'staff reporters' on TV radio and print news was personal choice. Had I been so I would not have been able to go near half the stuff I have been doing out of SE Asia. I have no problem with sub-editors.Some of my best friends are sub-editors.I even drink with them after work, when they want to learn the real nitty gritty. Subs do not as a rule have nightmares with reporters copy - its their job to make it sing, Of course sometimes they make it croak. Film editors are a much grumpier lot they cannot change the sync or video they have.

[HerbalEd]

Who is A. Drummond. cliff-notes please.

There's this great new thing called the internet. You should try it out sometime.

[HerbalEd]

After reading up on him and his practices and litigation along with sums of money owed by court order -along with a seeming tidal wave of troubles he might be getting out while he can.....seems amazing he's been here this long......looks like he's made some mistakes/enemies along the way.....

The "mistake" he's made as a journalist is to expose the deep corruption in Thailand ... esp. about foreign crooks who operate in Thailand with the help of high Thai police officials. His life and the life of his children have been threatened. I'm surprised he's still alive.

[SGD]

This must be the first time that a thread on Andrew Drummond or his activities has been allowed to run so long on Thai Visa. Any mention of his activities were quickly snuffed out by the moderators, which made one wonder if the TV hierarchy were also part of the cover ups of the cr iminal fraternity.

Wrong.

Thai visa can be made criminally liable for permitting certain types of news information that may not be from credible or official sources to be published on their forums, especially when accusations are made against people prior to them being found guilty in a court of law. TV has to always cover it`s own behind the same as we all do in Thailand.

As regards the exposures of iffy farangs in Thailand, this I guess is not such a difficult task considering that many farangs are into some sorts of dodgy dealings here. Up here in Chiang Mai the behind the scenes crooked business owners are easy to find and for anyone taking a keen interest would find it easy to seek them out and expose their activities that actually doesn`t involve a lot of skill in the process.

If the Thai authorities were really serious about taking foreign law breakers and criminals to task, then they could create an anonymous hotline for people to report them, as is done by the police in the UK. But the way the present situation stands, someone like Andrew Drummond is up against the odds entirely on his own, with no backup or support, in actually a thankless task and therefore a losing battle. I think he has made a wise decision getting himself and family out of Thailand.

Not true. Thai Visa is not domiciled in Thailand, it just cosies up to the status quo and doesn't want to rock the boat which provides the cash cow that is its advertising base.

[SGD]

He is working on an expose that would be impossible for him to do here. Plus he's not young any more and the pressure he has been under is immense. Plus he wants a good education for his kids, which he can't afford here. Be interesting to see what happens with a lot of the issues he's been following - will someone else pick up the cudgel?

No, I don't think anyone else will.

The expense, the risk of outrageous and bought legal judgements, the corruption and finally the violence and lèse-majesté will mean we never see his like again.

[Wat dee]

You know the Asian saying about messing with someone else's rice bowl... AD has ruffled more than a few feathers over the years...

There seems to be an entire segment of old timers that have had it with Thailand and are moving on... Things were always better in the "old days" to these guys... I wish them well where ever they go, because the entire world has changed in the last 20 years and the "old days" are long gone in a lot of places...

You are of course correct, I have been here 37 years straight and prior to that was stationed here during the Vietnam War. I can't return home to NY or any other city. I have made my bed and here I will die. Sure the place has gone to the dogs but now they're my dogs too. At 67, a widower with two grown children where would a pensioner like me return to the bliss that is America with their whiny women and entitled princesses? No thanks I will take my chances here with my fluent Thai, massages and overpriced wine and cheese.

If it wasn't for my Thai partner I would consider moving away from Thailand after 11 years here. Unfortunately, I find Thais are becoming increasingly pushy and disrespectful, even to old guys like me. I see so much selfishness and bad manners around that it makes me fume. Some of it is also very dangerous, especially inconsiderate driving. I could live in many places around the world, but I'm kinda stuck here, although it's not too bad. It's just that it's getting worse all the time..

You think it's just Thailand?

[mikiea]

Please next time explain who is who

If you don't know, it doesn't matter. If you can't be bothered to use Google, it matters even less.

mymy you are one nasty poster, dudette stop trying to be the queen of mean. pull up your big girl pants & stop posting, no one wants to read your whine. :-)

[Konini]

Not true. Thai Visa is not domiciled in Thailand, it just cosies up to the status quo and doesn't want to rock the boat which provides the cash cow that is its advertising base.

I don't think we can complain about the boat not being rocked; the purpose of being in business is to make money after all, and as for cosying up to the status quo, I think everybody in business around the world do that in order to remain in business. The only real exceptions I can think of in Europe/US/Australia/NZ are the media, which has indeed proved to be fearless on countless occasions. Not forgetting of course that without profit there would be no ThaiVisa Forum.

[micmichd]

what is the exact story ... why he does not give info himself or some official news ?

it start with one poster, not even a moderator, with no link to the origin of the news / story about the who, what where .... who does threaten his family, or is that also a secret ?

He might be on an airplane.

And this is not a topic about criminal behaviour within the UK.

[RigPig]

Very sad - a lone voice in the wilderness - the only safe option these days is ..

More like .....

[MrY]

Only met him once when he was starting in Thailand but have followed his career on and off since that encounter. He sure looks different now... IIRC he was doing an exposé piece for BKK Post at the time. I regret to see him go and wish him best of luck. Hopefully he was already out of Thailand before posting "...matters I am dealing with cannot be written about safely in Thailand, and if I am to continue to function as a journalist it must happen outside Thailand’s borders." on his site. On the other hand, he's going back to where some of his adversaries came from, so safety is a relative term here. There is an old saying that goes something like "Do not make me take your threats seriously", so hopefully he has landed in safety already. Good Luck.

Note: I just reported one more attack site that hasn't been mentioned here. These thugs are nothing if not productive...

Edit: Italics

Edited January 18, 2015 by MrY

[Chonburiram]

One pantopragmatic smatterer less, good riddance.

[Thongkorn]

One pantopragmatic smatterer less, good riddance.

deer Pleae explain in Simple English, this is thai visa not a physicist forum.

[MrY]

One pantopragmatic smatterer less, good riddance.

I'm not leaving, Andrew is...

[MrY]

One pantopragmatic smatterer less, good riddance.

deer Pleae explain in Simple English, this is thai visa not a physicist forum.

pantopragmatic (adj.) = of someone sticking their nose in other people's business

smatterer (n.) = someone lacking in-depth knowledge [on the subject]

riddance = ....

[ggt]

But he was just a blogger and not an investigative journalist. He got many facts wrong for most of the articles that I was interested in reading.

Never let facts...stand in the way of controversy...satire...or just plain good humor...

Most people can see thru the veil of mis-information and enjoy the comments anyway...