Not at all Eric. I made my point clear and have also done so in an email to NF. I have had a positive response from AW.
As many readers I am reluctant to post comment when anything with my name gets flamed and down voted.
I have no intention of reporting the site or any other site to MICT. What a silly assumption, that is itself self-serving.
I doubt youtube will be blocked, Again, you are stirring dissent to suit your agenda it seems. You’re right though it’s more pertinent than your first two paragraphs.
Do you live in Thailand? Do you have a wide range of Thai contacts? Obviously, I don’t know but I rather doubt it.
How can anyone defend such a blatant totalitarian reaction from a regime handing out 2- 20 years prison terms for a gesture?
Surely this coup leader’s dictator-like demeanor will be the real catalyst for the civil war that’s been predicted for so long. Don’t think I want to be around for it.
Maybe according to the now muzzled and nauseatingly obedient Thai press, but plenty of video on You Tube with large crowds and plenty of angst.
Russian Times has most of it. Download it now before it’s blocked.
I showed my workers, who are thoroughly brainwashed by Suthep, Prayuth and Co, and I could see by their reactions they felt mislead by what they are being spoon fed by Thai media
Knew Dave well, a great man, and attended his send of in Perth last year….too sad. His fe─║low trooper mate Macka is about to depart as well and only one year later.
Only the good go early.
Mr Rees, it’s your self-serving posts I find objectionable, IMO, promoting your interests by getting your name published. You’re really only posting your personal like or dislike of either the article or the author without adding to the information.
If you feel you are being persecuted , perhaps your stance regarding barring the site from view within Thailand is a reason. Are you going to report it to MICT if you don’t get your comments aired?
Now I’ll add something pertinent- the best You Tube video reports I’ve seen yet on the anti- coup protests are from Vice TV and Russian Times. Look for You Tube to be blocked soon.
There is an objective truth and it’s worth writing for its own sake. Details matter and save lives. Carey’s error is revealing of the appallingly low standards held by those pushing the ‘narrative’. In the real world of real jobs, such poor standards are a sackable offence. Imagine for a moment 1999, Bishop Carlos is being held by Team Sera and Interfet is tasked to find him. Off they go to Viqueque based on Carey’s reliable reputation and sources. Oops. Yes, big oops.
Having erroneously placed Team Sera in Viqueque, Carey and those who read him are now just one step away from fitting them up with murders in Viqueque perpetrated by others.
Foxy,
The preferred ‘narrative’ promotes a number of key falsehoods.
1.Indonesia/Murtopo/Luis Taolin caused the Civil War.
2.E.Timorese are not responsible for their actions.
3.Indonesia murdered 200-300,000 mostly anonymous people.
4.The Civil War caused minimal deaths.
There is remarkably little evidence for any of these assertions.
1. The late Luis T wrote a thesis on the history of Indonesian Intelligence at Uni, and was noticed. Had he written a thesis on how Pancasila could increase corn production, like most of his contemporaries, he probably would’ve lived longer. Luis was just a field agent, one of many, not an analyst. He didn’t have the full range of information that Murtopo and his analysts did. It cuts both ways – there was much he knew and didn’t tell Murtopo.
Murtopo was obsessed with obtaining documentary evidence that Fretilin was Communist. After the founding Apodeti meeting in Dili, attended by none of those who later claimed leadership, sworn in by the Portuguese priest Pinheiro and sworn to an oath of non-violence, Murtopo sent a Ratel set to their Kasi [Kepala Seksi] Propaganda. He also sent him a mini Ratel brooch to wear as id. Murdani liked to give special watches as id for the chosen few. Others found to have miniature Apodeti daggers as id were shot by Fretilin. Silly idea really, like activists who take photos and develop them in Bali, but there you go.
Murtopo tasked Luis to obtain doc evidence that Fretilin was Marxist, so Apodeti members duly joined Fretilin, attended meetings, got new girlfriends etc and couldn’t find a thing. Murtopo began to think they were dissing him and turned to different Apodeti factions, and Kota. He never got the evidence he sought, but the Apodeti members had made new alliances with anti Communist members of Fretilin and a new, homegrown plot emerged.
Did Jakarta send a sub for Chico Lopes and task him to start a Civil War? Mr Carey and other purveyors of the ‘narrative’ believe so, without a scrap of evidence, if you please.
Could it just be that events in Lisbon, played out by proxie factions in the Portuguese Gov in Dili, along with the declaration of the Sergeants Movement, were the triggers? Or have Martians sent a UFO to take Mr Carey and buddies to the set of Star Trek?
Murtopo was so unprepared for the cascading events that followed that the Carrascalaos with their retreating forces blocked in Maubara by the Fretilin Barracks in Atabae, had to send letters pleading with Jakarta and El Tari to send Luis with some integration docs. Other UDT forces, led by Tavares, Oliveira et al trapped in Maliana by an Atabae – Bobonaro pincer movement, did the same thing independently.
You’d think, Foxy, that Murtopo, if he’d organised the whole thing, could have prepared a few Integration docs to sign well in advance, wouldn’t you? Instead of the mad scramble to knock up the Balibo doc? There was co conspiracy, just a preferred outcome and they were playing it by ear like everybody else.
The late Des Alwi, who’d been Permesta’s rep in Malaysia and maintained contact with his buddies in Intelligence in KL, was fond of telling how he’d been tasked to take M.Carrascalao to KL to lobby KL Intelligence to come good with some US and Brit weapons for the invasion. Dessie’s gone to the big clove plantation in the sky so won’t be making further comment, unless Mr Carey can send one of his UFOs. There are, of course, real conspiracies, but Murtopo starting the E.Timorese Civil War isn’t one of them. Put up or shut up.
Come to think of it, where is everyone? Not a word from red shirt leaders, no one really galvanizing opposition to the coup, and hardly even any protests -just kids playing cat and mouse with policemen for a laugh. And all this is true up country as well.
At the moment Suthep and his backers have won hands down, there’s no two ways about it.
(Curious to see how the army’s victory monument concert goes. Potential for massive trouble I would say).
I don’t completely agree but a very sound article. What spoils New Mandala are the flames included in any comment that the poster disagrees with. I could elaborate on this well written article but I know anything with mattowensrees’ name on it will be down voted and flamed. There’s therefore no point in engaging in rational debate.
Well, that’s alright then… Did you read the article? The country may well be a safer investment but that does not help anybody, except for them investors of course. The reality is that investors don’t care about democracy or dictatorship; they need stability- think General Pinochet’s Chile; great place to do business, not so good to be a citizen. Plus.. the uncertainty was created in large part by the same elements that have now taken over power (and they are probably the investors too..). You can’t create a problem in a clandestine manner, then solve it and claim that the solving of the problem is a mandate to govern. Confidence has gone up because there is now an enforced stability.. this is only a good thing if you believe in the pursuit of profit (for the rich, let’s face it) over and above the pursuit of accountable and legitimate government.
In absolute fairness, they ought to be allowed to say whatever they want. Regardless of political affiliation; free speech is a human right. Free speech ceases to work if someone decides what is wrong and what is right to say, hence the issue in hand. If they are wrong they will be shown to be wrong by other academics. Academia is a conversation over time; everyone should be permitted a chance to speak.
Najib made a stark point in his latest visit to Japan when he pretty much told a reputable Japanese daily instead of Abe that the Japanese should not throw Malaysia’s ties with China into jeopardy.
Tun’s policy of engagement with Japan when he was running the country may be useful when Japan was doing well and expansionist in the 80s, but now with its beleaguered economy showing no real signs of recovery to past heights together with the obvious shift of power in Asia now it is outdated and cannot be too seriously pursued even if the foreigners would perceive the government as “weak” in return like you have written. The one similarity between BN and the LDP is their heavy dependence on ruralites for their survival, and it is also notable that rivals China and Japan, in their fight for dominance in Asia, are now looking towards Malaysia’s past and present leaders for their support of either of them in great appreciation.
The desire of Abe to re-militarise Japan, rally other smaller Asian nations together militarily against China and apparently to make Japan their leader are greatly hilarious and time-consuming if not also unattainable for it is only a matter of time when he, or probably his successor, would come to realise the inevitably of Japan’s fate to globalise which means opening up(again) and like never before despite the longstanding resistance to the idea.
I joined a political discussion group at the University of Indonesia (UI) last week, a campus where student politics is now thoroughly dominated by Tarbiyah. The apparent conservatism within contemporary student politics seems associated to this dominanace, where Tarbiyah is linked directly with Partai keadilan Sejahtera (PKS) at the national level. Student support for the Prabowo campaign (or lack of support for Jokowi / PDIP) simply reflects the national-level coalition. I am not sure whether the Gerindra-PKS coalition should be considered conervative, however, in that Islamist reforms could be a shake-up of the largely secularist status quo. A different direction for contemporary student activism perhaps.
Reforms to ensure that the Democrats will stay in power after the next election. I am assuming here that, the Military appointed Govt will be the Democrats (in one form or another)
I do not see how that would be a legitimate Govt, but I still expect “congratulatory” messages from Western Govts.
Anyway, it will be really difficult to make the reforms not look like “toilet issue” if they want the democrats to win in an election. We have seen the distaste the Democrats have for elections. They just would not bother to improve themselves in the eyes of the electorate – no need to!
Thank you Pavit for this initial shot in the wholesale revision of the history of despotism.
Are the coup supporters also seeking to restore the reputation of Sarit Thanarat?
On the Facebook page Voice of Saranrom, there is an essay that preposterously asserts that Sarit is a model of forceful but clean and uncorruptable military.
Sarit? That is like Putin’s resurrection of Stalinism!! There are bookshelves filled with detailing the crimes of Sarit, and this author wants him as a model for the current coup.
As Pavin warns us here, beware the re-writing of history.
“Thailand’s consumer confidence index rose on Tuesday for the first time in 14 months, while its stock market continued to advance, indicating the Thai public and investors are feeling positive about the military junta’s steps so far to jump start the economy.
“Monthly consumer sentiment climbed in May to an index reading of 70.7, compared with 67.8 in April, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce reported.
“Meanwhile, the Stock Exchange of Thailand’s main index advanced on Tuesday for the sixth straight day, rising 0.9% and reaching its highest since October 2013. The SET index has gained 3.45% since the coup on May 22, which came amid monthslong and sometimes violent political turmoil. The consumer sentiment survey was conducted from May 24 to 30.
“And the Thai baht strengthened 0.5% against the U.S. dollar to 32.69, as investors responded to the consumer confidence data.”
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Video: Andrew Walker on latest Thai coup
Not at all Eric. I made my point clear and have also done so in an email to NF. I have had a positive response from AW.
As many readers I am reluctant to post comment when anything with my name gets flamed and down voted.
I have no intention of reporting the site or any other site to MICT. What a silly assumption, that is itself self-serving.
I doubt youtube will be blocked, Again, you are stirring dissent to suit your agenda it seems. You’re right though it’s more pertinent than your first two paragraphs.
Do you live in Thailand? Do you have a wide range of Thai contacts? Obviously, I don’t know but I rather doubt it.
After the coup
How can anyone defend such a blatant totalitarian reaction from a regime handing out 2- 20 years prison terms for a gesture?
Surely this coup leader’s dictator-like demeanor will be the real catalyst for the civil war that’s been predicted for so long. Don’t think I want to be around for it.
After the coup
Maybe according to the now muzzled and nauseatingly obedient Thai press, but plenty of video on You Tube with large crowds and plenty of angst.
Russian Times has most of it. Download it now before it’s blocked.
I showed my workers, who are thoroughly brainwashed by Suthep, Prayuth and Co, and I could see by their reactions they felt mislead by what they are being spoon fed by Thai media
Dave Everett and fighting for the KNLA
Knew Dave well, a great man, and attended his send of in Perth last year….too sad. His fe─║low trooper mate Macka is about to depart as well and only one year later.
Only the good go early.
Video: Andrew Walker on latest Thai coup
Mr Rees, it’s your self-serving posts I find objectionable, IMO, promoting your interests by getting your name published. You’re really only posting your personal like or dislike of either the article or the author without adding to the information.
If you feel you are being persecuted , perhaps your stance regarding barring the site from view within Thailand is a reason. Are you going to report it to MICT if you don’t get your comments aired?
Now I’ll add something pertinent- the best You Tube video reports I’ve seen yet on the anti- coup protests are from Vice TV and Russian Times. Look for You Tube to be blocked soon.
A lesson for researchers
Dear Foxy,
There is an objective truth and it’s worth writing for its own sake. Details matter and save lives. Carey’s error is revealing of the appallingly low standards held by those pushing the ‘narrative’. In the real world of real jobs, such poor standards are a sackable offence. Imagine for a moment 1999, Bishop Carlos is being held by Team Sera and Interfet is tasked to find him. Off they go to Viqueque based on Carey’s reliable reputation and sources. Oops. Yes, big oops.
Having erroneously placed Team Sera in Viqueque, Carey and those who read him are now just one step away from fitting them up with murders in Viqueque perpetrated by others.
Foxy,
The preferred ‘narrative’ promotes a number of key falsehoods.
1.Indonesia/Murtopo/Luis Taolin caused the Civil War.
2.E.Timorese are not responsible for their actions.
3.Indonesia murdered 200-300,000 mostly anonymous people.
4.The Civil War caused minimal deaths.
There is remarkably little evidence for any of these assertions.
1. The late Luis T wrote a thesis on the history of Indonesian Intelligence at Uni, and was noticed. Had he written a thesis on how Pancasila could increase corn production, like most of his contemporaries, he probably would’ve lived longer. Luis was just a field agent, one of many, not an analyst. He didn’t have the full range of information that Murtopo and his analysts did. It cuts both ways – there was much he knew and didn’t tell Murtopo.
Murtopo was obsessed with obtaining documentary evidence that Fretilin was Communist. After the founding Apodeti meeting in Dili, attended by none of those who later claimed leadership, sworn in by the Portuguese priest Pinheiro and sworn to an oath of non-violence, Murtopo sent a Ratel set to their Kasi [Kepala Seksi] Propaganda. He also sent him a mini Ratel brooch to wear as id. Murdani liked to give special watches as id for the chosen few. Others found to have miniature Apodeti daggers as id were shot by Fretilin. Silly idea really, like activists who take photos and develop them in Bali, but there you go.
Murtopo tasked Luis to obtain doc evidence that Fretilin was Marxist, so Apodeti members duly joined Fretilin, attended meetings, got new girlfriends etc and couldn’t find a thing. Murtopo began to think they were dissing him and turned to different Apodeti factions, and Kota. He never got the evidence he sought, but the Apodeti members had made new alliances with anti Communist members of Fretilin and a new, homegrown plot emerged.
Did Jakarta send a sub for Chico Lopes and task him to start a Civil War? Mr Carey and other purveyors of the ‘narrative’ believe so, without a scrap of evidence, if you please.
Could it just be that events in Lisbon, played out by proxie factions in the Portuguese Gov in Dili, along with the declaration of the Sergeants Movement, were the triggers? Or have Martians sent a UFO to take Mr Carey and buddies to the set of Star Trek?
Murtopo was so unprepared for the cascading events that followed that the Carrascalaos with their retreating forces blocked in Maubara by the Fretilin Barracks in Atabae, had to send letters pleading with Jakarta and El Tari to send Luis with some integration docs. Other UDT forces, led by Tavares, Oliveira et al trapped in Maliana by an Atabae – Bobonaro pincer movement, did the same thing independently.
You’d think, Foxy, that Murtopo, if he’d organised the whole thing, could have prepared a few Integration docs to sign well in advance, wouldn’t you? Instead of the mad scramble to knock up the Balibo doc? There was co conspiracy, just a preferred outcome and they were playing it by ear like everybody else.
The late Des Alwi, who’d been Permesta’s rep in Malaysia and maintained contact with his buddies in Intelligence in KL, was fond of telling how he’d been tasked to take M.Carrascalao to KL to lobby KL Intelligence to come good with some US and Brit weapons for the invasion. Dessie’s gone to the big clove plantation in the sky so won’t be making further comment, unless Mr Carey can send one of his UFOs. There are, of course, real conspiracies, but Murtopo starting the E.Timorese Civil War isn’t one of them. Put up or shut up.
After the coup
Come to think of it, where is everyone? Not a word from red shirt leaders, no one really galvanizing opposition to the coup, and hardly even any protests -just kids playing cat and mouse with policemen for a laugh. And all this is true up country as well.
At the moment Suthep and his backers have won hands down, there’s no two ways about it.
(Curious to see how the army’s victory monument concert goes. Potential for massive trouble I would say).
Video: Andrew Walker on latest Thai coup
I don’t completely agree but a very sound article. What spoils New Mandala are the flames included in any comment that the poster disagrees with. I could elaborate on this well written article but I know anything with mattowensrees’ name on it will be down voted and flamed. There’s therefore no point in engaging in rational debate.
NTEU condemns Thai coup
Michael
Those people should sometimes try their free speech in a plane and address listeners with HI JACK.
Dissonance in Malaysia-Japan relations
[…] Read original article here: http://www.newmandala.org/2014/06/03/causes-to-dissonance-in-malaysia-japan-relations… […]
NTEU condemns Thai coup
Well, that’s alright then… Did you read the article? The country may well be a safer investment but that does not help anybody, except for them investors of course. The reality is that investors don’t care about democracy or dictatorship; they need stability- think General Pinochet’s Chile; great place to do business, not so good to be a citizen. Plus.. the uncertainty was created in large part by the same elements that have now taken over power (and they are probably the investors too..). You can’t create a problem in a clandestine manner, then solve it and claim that the solving of the problem is a mandate to govern. Confidence has gone up because there is now an enforced stability.. this is only a good thing if you believe in the pursuit of profit (for the rich, let’s face it) over and above the pursuit of accountable and legitimate government.
A lesson for researchers
Quarantine alert! Surely not another outbreak of Windschuttle Canker, Dr Watson? Hopefully only one of the lesser fruit diseases like Bitter Rot.
NTEU condemns Thai coup
In absolute fairness, they ought to be allowed to say whatever they want. Regardless of political affiliation; free speech is a human right. Free speech ceases to work if someone decides what is wrong and what is right to say, hence the issue in hand. If they are wrong they will be shown to be wrong by other academics. Academia is a conversation over time; everyone should be permitted a chance to speak.
Dissonance in Malaysia-Japan relations
Najib made a stark point in his latest visit to Japan when he pretty much told a reputable Japanese daily instead of Abe that the Japanese should not throw Malaysia’s ties with China into jeopardy.
Tun’s policy of engagement with Japan when he was running the country may be useful when Japan was doing well and expansionist in the 80s, but now with its beleaguered economy showing no real signs of recovery to past heights together with the obvious shift of power in Asia now it is outdated and cannot be too seriously pursued even if the foreigners would perceive the government as “weak” in return like you have written. The one similarity between BN and the LDP is their heavy dependence on ruralites for their survival, and it is also notable that rivals China and Japan, in their fight for dominance in Asia, are now looking towards Malaysia’s past and present leaders for their support of either of them in great appreciation.
The desire of Abe to re-militarise Japan, rally other smaller Asian nations together militarily against China and apparently to make Japan their leader are greatly hilarious and time-consuming if not also unattainable for it is only a matter of time when he, or probably his successor, would come to realise the inevitably of Japan’s fate to globalise which means opening up(again) and like never before despite the longstanding resistance to the idea.
Student Politics in the Selfie-Age
I joined a political discussion group at the University of Indonesia (UI) last week, a campus where student politics is now thoroughly dominated by Tarbiyah. The apparent conservatism within contemporary student politics seems associated to this dominanace, where Tarbiyah is linked directly with Partai keadilan Sejahtera (PKS) at the national level. Student support for the Prabowo campaign (or lack of support for Jokowi / PDIP) simply reflects the national-level coalition. I am not sure whether the Gerindra-PKS coalition should be considered conervative, however, in that Islamist reforms could be a shake-up of the largely secularist status quo. A different direction for contemporary student activism perhaps.
Songsuda Yodmani and the 2014 coup
Reforms to ensure that the Democrats will stay in power after the next election. I am assuming here that, the Military appointed Govt will be the Democrats (in one form or another)
I do not see how that would be a legitimate Govt, but I still expect “congratulatory” messages from Western Govts.
Anyway, it will be really difficult to make the reforms not look like “toilet issue” if they want the democrats to win in an election. We have seen the distaste the Democrats have for elections. They just would not bother to improve themselves in the eyes of the electorate – no need to!
Songsuda Yodmani and the 2014 coup
Thank you Pavit for this initial shot in the wholesale revision of the history of despotism.
Are the coup supporters also seeking to restore the reputation of Sarit Thanarat?
On the Facebook page Voice of Saranrom, there is an essay that preposterously asserts that Sarit is a model of forceful but clean and uncorruptable military.
Sarit? That is like Putin’s resurrection of Stalinism!! There are bookshelves filled with detailing the crimes of Sarit, and this author wants him as a model for the current coup.
As Pavin warns us here, beware the re-writing of history.
Songsuda Yodmani and the 2014 coup
Khun Pavin krap, Gen. Prayuth wants to meet you. 555.
Making Peace with the Enemy
Before Indonesians can make peace with the enemy, they first need to make peace with themselves. That first act is incomplete.
NTEU condemns Thai coup
A Thai proverb: Peering at something, one sees only mud, another twinkling stars. Consequently, I am very keen on telling the truth about Thailand.
“Thai Confidence Improves After Coup
Consumer Sentiment Recovers, While Stocks and Local Currency Gain,” The Wall Street Journal(http://online.wsj.com/articles/thai-confidence-improves-after-coup-1401773381)
“Thailand’s consumer confidence index rose on Tuesday for the first time in 14 months, while its stock market continued to advance, indicating the Thai public and investors are feeling positive about the military junta’s steps so far to jump start the economy.
“Monthly consumer sentiment climbed in May to an index reading of 70.7, compared with 67.8 in April, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce reported.
“Meanwhile, the Stock Exchange of Thailand’s main index advanced on Tuesday for the sixth straight day, rising 0.9% and reaching its highest since October 2013. The SET index has gained 3.45% since the coup on May 22, which came amid monthslong and sometimes violent political turmoil. The consumer sentiment survey was conducted from May 24 to 30.
“And the Thai baht strengthened 0.5% against the U.S. dollar to 32.69, as investors responded to the consumer confidence data.”