Comments

angusk: I have noticed this also and have been busy trying to tilt the balance a bit by clicking “opposites”.

The hiding of unpopular comments also strikes me as a “group” imposed form of censorship. I think this rating system should be got rid of.

Nok,

It is interesting to see the amount of energy that you’ve put into your research by providing all the links of individuals with guns, rockets (fireworks) and such who are firing at the military. I’d like to know if you also have the photo and video links of the military breaking many NATO/UN rules of engagement by shooting unarmed protesters and photographers in broad daylight and using the top of a hospital as a position for snipers and spotters?

It appears that in your zeal to gather pro-PAD information you’ve lost sight of one facet concerning this standoff: The death toll started to accumulate after the military was brought in to disperse protesters (beginning with the April 10 clashes).

Take a look back at how the government treated the yellow shirts and how they are treating the red shirts. The yellow shirts were allowed to shut down the airport and the military did not attempt to disperse the airport. Then the court decided to fast track the corruption case against PT and new parties were formed and the new PAD coalition (finally) had enough MPs to form the majority.

Meanwhile, as the red shirts protest, a massive multi-million baht corruption case involving TPI polene (which benefited PAD members and the PM has been accused of trying to cover up – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abhisit_Vejjajiva) has languished in the courts since 2005. It’s my opinion it will simply be dropped on some (politically motivated) technicality and it will be business as usual unless things get so out of hand with the protests the case is decided against the PAD “in the national interest”.

Also, 27 protesters who were arrested on friday were sentenced to 6 months in prison the very next day.

I want to say I don’t approve of the UDD closing the areas around Rajaprasong, however, neither did I approve of the PAD closing the airport.

Can you say that you disapprove of the government applying a double standard? Hopefully you are reasonable enough to see that double standards are being applied. The democratic process has been thrown away in favor of a political process being played by the power brokers and government insiders on both sides.

In other words, nothing has changed.

What should be deeply disturbing to all Thais is that I have not heard one leader present any ideas as a political platform to end the cycle of military coups and whiteboard constitutions.

The current constitution of Thailand (which the Military junta squashed debate on by passing a law making it illegal to publicly criticize the draft) is over 230 sections. In my opinion, it is a poorly crafted hash of the “unspoken”, politically motivated rules and regulations, the form, function of government and the peoples rights (in that order of significance) .

As I see it, in the current environment, the only hope for breaking this cycle is the number of grass roots organizations who are now becoming more vocal and active. If a significant number of them can band together on a common platform for reforming these and other political issues (such as the government patronage system, military intervention in politics, corruption) without infringing on the “unspoken” then perhaps an equitable Democratic government can be instituted.

angusk: I watched the video, and here’s what I think: There was no sound of gunfire, no apparent agitation or fear amongst those gathered around, and therefore no reason to believe that the child was in imminent danger. I’m sure he was put up there as a photo-op, as a ‘little-revolutionary’. Since you seem happy to get your ‘information’ from local media, you haven’t seen the videos and pictures of protesters killed and pinned down by Army snipers. No mistaking the terror there. As for your ‘evidence’ of Red armaments, I must again protest that Thai media has forfeited all semblance of objectivity and credibility. When we see scores of soldiers dead of grenade wounds, I’ll believe that the protesters are firing the fabled M79s.

‘Democracy’ is NWO code for we’re going to steal your country’s wealth and leave you fighting each other. Gee thanks. Great stuff this ‘democracy’!

Correction to my above: The child is not crying in the vid. but in a later photograph, is.

The new rating system is interesting- and there looks like there is an interesting correlation developing. While its a very interesting idea to have the rating, its correlations look worrying. Anything even vaguely negative or critical of the reds attracts plenty of thumbs down. Anything anti Government gets plenty of thumbs up. Using a young child as a human shield on a barricade in one of the major hotspots is detestable and the interesting fact that the photo gets 14 thumbs down and only 4 up- yet there is no other commentary. Video of this disgusting event here http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-445256?ref=feeds/people/connect/freakingcat please give this as many negative ticks as you like.
It’s interesting that the facts are emerging about the armed struggle here on local TV last night they had more footage of armed reds (or black shirts) M79’s and what looked like the front sight assembly of an AK47. There are also photos out there of reds/blacks with pistols. What is becoming apparent is the movement is split- those who are genuinely aggrieved and what changed, yet are peaceful and those who are either paid – and yes there is evidence of this with some of our much loved and honest as the day is long former PM’s aids being caught with huge sums of cash, in their cars. And now the announcement from the stage that there has been “some” funding from the same PM.

Chirst, just saw this.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8688299.stm

UN just give ‘green light’ to Thai gov killings with this statement.

“To prevent further loss of life, I appeal to the protesters to step back from the brink, and the security forces to exercise maximum restraint in line with the instructions given by the government.”

Instruction given by Abhisit’s gov is actually a death warrant for the red leaders.

Once again, The HAND shown to be high up and very well connected , and one wonders how high?

Nok though clearly influenced by elitist, fascist anti-Thaksin propaganda over the past five years (never mind whether the actual facts match the rhetoic or even closely speak to the truth) is of course entitled to her views (but I wonder where her so well-informed sources come from?)
In response to Bh(-ikkhu?).V: good point. A pro-DP/yellow relative of mine recently circulated (yet another!) a mass email propaganda piece which shows pictures of disheveled Buddhist monks, clearly “out-of-place”, who attended the Nor Por Chor (Red) protests with
subheadings indicating how messy and ill-disciplined they are compared with the stricter, conservative middle-class
and elite supported monks. These latter monks would, so it was implied, would never partake of such overt political action. Red “germ” (Thongchai’s term) monks are shown as unshaven, untidy, bucolic,
lacking monastic discipline, proper lineage and demeanor and displaying uncontrolled passions. Interesting parallels were made with juxtaposed pictures showing liberal, sanctioned monks where they should be, inside royal sanctioned temple compounds or forest monasteries. These liberal monks are typified in the late Buddhadasa
Bhikkhu whose notion of “Dhammic Socialism” has also been interpreted as a moderate form of what I call a modernist Thai falangism; a regulated state to be controlled by aristocratic elites who seemingly know (what’s best).

Very few people in New Mandalaland, even the western anthropologists, have commented on the relationship of the Sangha to recent events. Readers of this brave new land may have seen pictures of monks blessing red-shirt protesters, or maybe even a monk or two participating in the violence, but what do lay people know of the “papaya monks,” the monks at the royal temples of learning in Bangkok (yellow on the outside, reddish inside) who often come from the Northeast?

Of course, monks do not readily divulge their political views to pious followers–whose views they hear nonstop, yet pretend monks do not have any–but ironically sometimes they open up to ignorant foreigners, whom they think are at least open-minded, though ill-informed (“The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid before him”). A stupid foreigner, for example, might wonder what the current Kittiwuttho this time around is saying. . .. or if his likeness cannot be found, why not?

The mentality of the red shirts. Place your baby, dressed in Thaksin supporter scarf, on the tyre barricade in line of sniper fire, as you continue to provoke and antagonize.

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-445308