Interesting article in Stickman Weekly recently << http://www.stickmanweekly.com/StickmanB ... nBrown.htm >> . . . a must read if you want to understand the role of cops 'n petty corruption ~ and some not so petty ~ in Thailand.
Interesting (first hand) observations on the almost-poverty conditions low level cops generally live in, which of course underscores the general western attidtudes towards police corruption, i.e. pay them a very good salary from the get go and lower corruption very significantly. Pay your cops very low salaries, and watch corruption become obtrusive, endemic, institutionalized.
Living long term in Thailand as I do has given me a chance to think about some very fundamental goals: two of them are . . . at all times stay as far away from (1) the police, and (2) hospitals as is humanly possible. To get there, I (1) don't drive, and never will, in Thailand, and (2) eat well, drink not too much, and exercise regularly to keep oneself as healthy as possible.