"Who torched our nation's assets?"

[thonglor55]

Abhisit's latest election slogan (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/election/242610/pm-attacks-red-violence) is "Who torched our nation's assets?" This is a different question to ones he should also have asked like "Who closed our nation's airports?". Perhaps that's coming tomorrow. And then there's "Who owns our nation's assets?" (which can be answered by reassembling P, B and C into a well-known acronym in Thailand) and even, possibly, "Who won the last two elections?". It all makes for a very questionable campaign.

Meanwhile Army chief Prayuth (here's another question: "Who gunned down unarmed civilians?") has given the okay for Army personnel to challenge politicians who criticise the army's role in politics (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/241634/prayuth-gives-nod-to-target-pheu-thai). And in a move to promote democratic values, a provincial governor in Isaan has vowed to crack down on the self-proclaimed "red shirt villages" (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/election/242613/red-shirt-villages-in-isan-face-crackdown) in the province.

Abhisit's latest election slogan (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/election/242610/pm-attacks-red-violence) is "Who torched our nation's assets?" This is a different question to ones he should also have asked like "Who closed our nation's airports?". Perhaps that's coming tomorrow. And then there's "Who owns our nation's assets?" (which can be answered by reassembling P, B and C into a well-known acronym in Thailand) and even, possibly, "Who won the last two elections?". It all makes for a very questionable campaign.

Meanwhile Army chief Prayuth (here's another question: "Who gunned down unarmed civilians?") has given the okay for Army personnel to challenge politicians who criticise the army's role in politics (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/241634/prayuth-gives-nod-to-target-pheu-thai). And in a move to promote democratic values, a provincial governor in Isaan has vowed to crack down on the self-proclaimed "red shirt villages" (http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/election/242613/red-shirt-villages-in-isan-face-crackdown) in the province.


Fabulous,

So they are all in for free and fair elections then as usual!!

[Khor tose]

Fabulous,

So they are all in for free and fair elections then as usual!!

Yes, they know Pheu Thai is going to win big. They are doing their very best to make sure the win is small enough so they can steal they election through the courts or bribes like they did to the last three elected governments. The speech by Gen. Prayuth and the naming and defaming of "Red Villages" are all to make sure the win is not so large they cannot defeat the winners through other means. I really think a coup will backfire on them this time, but these old (To quote BL) crusty fucksticks will do anything to keep their power.

[cameroncat]

Seriously? You guys want Thaksin's "Clone" sister to win? (Clone is his words, not mine). I for one remember all the stupid raides on Gay clubs and gay saunas under Thaksin. Thaksin is a well known homophobe.

[Beachlover]

You have a good point there, Cameroncat. I don't care much for the guys currently in power but I can't believe the farangs on these boards who actually want the Yingluck/Thaksin team to win.

Personally, I think whoever gets into power is going to have a very f*cked up job on their hands. The chances are, they're either going to need to keep various powers above and around pleased OR they're going to be looking over their shoulders everyday.

I think both sides have some difficult questions to answer and of course, none of them will be answered!

To Abhisit...

- Who closed the nation's airports and temporarily f*cked the economy?

- Who allowed the protests to get out of hand?

- Who failed to adequately arm and protect the troops for the threat faced (leading to soldiers' deaths)?

- Who is failing to conduct a fair investigation into unlawful shootings during and after the red shirt protests such as the temple killings?

- Who was completely and unprepared (possibly deliberately) to control the rampaging mob after the red shirts were dispersed?

To Pheu Thai...

- Who held the capital city hostage for several weeks, disrupted the lives of 100,000+ residents/workers and temporarily f*cked the economy?

- Who violently attacked government buildings and a hospital?

- Who murdered and maimed Thai soldiers and civilians by deploying armed militants during the protest?

- Who lobbed 40mm grenades into crowded public spaces and the Dusit Thani Hotel? (Hotel shut down and guests evacuated into basement one night)

- Who WALKED away from negotiations and back flipped on their demands after coming to a reasonable agreement for early elections to end the civil unrest?

- Who attempted to incite mass civil unrest and possibly a civil war?

- Who torched dozens of buildings in Bangkok and around the country?

- Who set fire to an office building and trapped the employees inside while it burned?

[thonglor55]

Seriously? You guys want Thaksin's "Clone" sister to win? (Clone is his words, not mine). I for one remember all the stupid raides on Gay clubs and gay saunas under Thaksin. Thaksin is a well known homophobe.Surely there are two elements to answering a question like that. Do I want Thailand to be a country of free and fair elections where the will of the electorate is genuinely accepted by both sides, where there is a truly constitutional monarchy along the European model and an Armed Forces under civilian control (as in Yurrup and the US of A)? If not, why not? Because I don't want a homophobe party to win? That (foreign self-interest) is the sort of shallow thinking that I expect of Beachlover (and true to form that's what he's come up with, as if this is a truly even-handed contest that one side (who in the last ten years or more has always been the losing side in a democratic contest) won't immediately rig to their own advantage).

Whatever happens Thailand has many, more years if not decades before it becomes a truly democractic country. What with the army heavily involved, and also owning most prime land in Bangkok, plus the deeply ingrained corruption throughout Thai society it's just not going to happen. And wait until 'you know who' passes on it will probably get worse before it starts to get any better.

Whatever happens Thailand has many, more years if not decades before it becomes a truly democractic country. What with the army heavily involved, and also owning most prime land in Bangkok, plus the deeply ingrained corruption throughout Thai society it's just not going to happen. And wait until 'you know who' passes on it will probably get worse before it starts to get any better.


Yes,

It will get worse and a power vacuum is already being created but the other guy who leads the Reds will fancy his chances in a skirmish, I am sure.

That's the problem with these guys over there now, they are no better than Gaddaffi, Amin, Saddam Hussein, Kim jong, they just try to do it a little more polished.

It's a joke calling it a democracy.

[Khor tose]

I can't elieve the farangs on these boards who actually want the Yingluck/Thaksin team to win.



Believe me I do. I guess I am just a sentimental populist who does not understand people who come from a democracy but support statism.

[Smiles]

"Who torched our nation's assets?": The Boston Bruins


[youtube:35s2kyou]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihAx8WyXS9o[/youtube:35s2kyou]


Unfortunately this didn't help. (But it's better than the game) :protest:


[youtube:35s2kyou]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5HsnnV7YFs[/youtube:35s2kyou]

[thonglor55]

There's an interested op-ed piece in The Nation anout Thailand's "invisble hand" (http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/06/15/national/Invisible-hand-throttles-our-democracy-30157823.html) which is worth reading for those who are genuinely interested in the Thai political scene and Thai democracy.