Calling Chuck Bao

[Okla-homey]

Whats really going on in the Kingdom nowadays? Media reports here state folks have been killed by the cops.

[Chuck Bao]

If you are referring to the Kingdom of Thailand and the killing of Red Shirt political protesters by the army, I can say a lot and probably more than I should. I didn't know if anyone would be interested here.

Those pics you see on TV - that is where I have worked for the last 8 years. It is in the commercial heart of Bangkok with the two largest shopping malls in Southeast Asia there and now closed for more than a week. It is very upmarket with all of the top-end designer shops that you would see in NY, Paris or London. I actually like the location choice by the Red Shirts. Although it is a huge problem for tourists, it is not as bad as the Yellow Shirts' decision to storm the airport and hold it for a week at the peak of the tourism season in 2008.

I do not think the Abhisit government can survive for much longer. When it falls, I will be celebrating. Prime Minister Abhisit was quiet yesterday (Sunday) after the army's failed attempt to dislodge the Red Shirts after the bloody clash on Saturday.

I suppose he is holding out on the hope that with the long Thai New Year holiday coming up this week that some of the protesters will go home. Instead, I think more are arriving from the provinces and I get a sense that more and more Bangkokians are turning against this government.

Afterall, all the protesters are asking for is fresh elections and turn back the power to voters. PM Abhisit and his Democrat party came to power illegimately with Army arm twisting of enough of the smaller political parties to cobble together a majority in parliament.

There are now only two likely scenarios - another coup d'etat or Abhisit finally resigning and dissolving parliament. Sadly, I think the odds are more on the former with the powers that be finally deciding that they can better control things through a non-elected, unity goverment with a year-and-a-half mandate to change the constitution before holding fresh elections. The sticky thing about that is it really needs to be a unity goverment representing all of Thailand.

Seriously, I dunno how this divide in Thai political society can be resolved and how we can move on from this mob-shoot-me-and-you-lose political death spiral that we seem to be devolving into.

[Chuck Bao]

By the way, I am Red Shirt. Crimson. Not to worry, you won't see me out there with an OU shirt on.

[SicEmBaylor]

Seriously, I dunno how this divide in Thai political society can be resolved and how we can move on from this mob-shoot-me-and-you-lose political death spiral that we seem to be devolving into.

A strong armed dictator who hangs the right people from lamp posts and thereafter governs in a moderately benevolent manner. Seriously. It doesn't sound like they are at all ready for a stable democratic government and the rule of law.

Democracy isn't for everyone.

[Chuck Bao]

A strong armed dictator who hangs the right people from lamp posts and thereafter governs in a moderately benevolent manner. Seriously. It doesn't sound like they are at all ready for a stable democratic government and the rule of law.

Democracy isn't for everyone.

Dude, DUDE! I couldn't disagree more. How can you say hang them from the lamp posts and a stable, democratic government and the rule of law.

So, you think that Thai Prime Minister Abhisit was right to issue a state of emergency last week? A state of emergency bans all political meetings of more than five people. A state of emergency allows the police to arrest and detain anyone for 30 days without charges being brought against them. On top of that the government banned all Red Shirt media.

The Red Shirts had their radio and TV stations. That was all of the hullabaloo last week with the storming and re-taking and re-storming and re-taking (now I am confused) of the satellite relay station of THCOM. I think it is temporarily on air again.

Sic’em, you may not like this but we are not in a mid 19th or mid 20th century conflict here.

Besides that, I really challenge your idea about democratic ideals. Democratic means all registered adults have an equal vote. That is one of the truths that I personally hold dear – all people should have a say. The other one is that all people around the world are essentially the same. If you don’t believe me, I suggest you go share a dinner meal in the home of a family elsewhere in the world.

[Tulsa_Fireman]

They need a 3/5ths clause for skinny white Confederate sympathizers.

[Chuck Bao]

Nope came home at 1:30am and said that there were 100,000 red shirts at Rajaprasong. Probably we should discount his numbers a bit. He did say that the Red Shirts are not going home for the Thai New Year holiday of Songkran. Everything is shut down anyway for the next three days as we celebrate the new year. Many of the Bangkok elite are on holidays upcourty or abroad and there shouldn't be much inconvenience. I am going to be brave enough venture out to buy a new camera since Nope just destroyed my last one.

[Crucifax Autumn]

Stay safe Chuck.

[delhalew]

Be careful for sure. Thanks for the good info.
As far as the other conversation...all I know is that in their hearts, all humans want to be free.
I commend the Red Shirts for demanding legitimacy from their gov.

[Chuck Bao]

One of the Red Shirts major reasons for finally standing up for their side is that the judicial system has been unfairly attacking and banning the provincial political parties and representatives for election violations and simply ignoring those of the current ruling Democrats and their major constituencies largely in Bangkok.

It is certainly a victory for the Red Shirts that the Election Commission finally today decided to pass the case to the Consitution Court for the disbandment of the ruling Democrats and ban their leaders for five years including standing prime minister Abhisit.

What the heck is this? The judiciary is throwing the government under the bus to save themselves?

Honestly, if I were to name the most corrupt in Thai society, I would start with the judiciary. That statement alone could probably land me in jail.

Thanks for the support and advice. Besides taking my chances posting here, I will remain safe.

[TUSooner]

Stay safe!

And don't worry about Sic'Em. He's correct in only about 1 in 478 posts. All he really means is simply that little brown Asians can't govern themselves like proper white American southern gentlemen can, and that it's therefore OK to hang a few of the former, for their own good of course. :eek:

[C&CDean]

1. "Democrats" everywhere are pretty ****ed up.

2. I commend you for being over there Chuck, but isn't this really a Thai battle? Why are you getting involved when you don't have a dog in the race? My white American *** would be on the next plane out.

3. Does the average Thai citizen own guns? Do you? If not, it's not very smart going to battle with armed folks.

4. Stay safe and don't do anything stupid. What a waste/shame it would be to get hurt - or worse - over something like this.

[Chuck Bao]

Good grief, this video made me cry.

http://www.state.gov/video/?videoid=77621375001

The text version was on the Bangkok Post website.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/174585/clinton-calls-for-peaceful-dialogue-in-thailand


Clinton calls for peaceful dialogue in Thailand
Published: 13/04/2010 at 12:36 PM

As long-time friends of Thailand, President Obama and I, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, are deeply saddened by the recent violence and loss of life in Bangkok. As you prepare to celebrate the upcoming Songkran holiday, the United States renews our call for both the opposition and the government to return to the negotiating table and to seek agreement on a way forward that strengthens your democracy and the rule of law.

The challenges you are facing cannot be resolved by force, but only by dialogue. We believe firmly that a negotiated solution is possible.

We are hopeful that this New Year will be a time of renewal and reconciliation, and an opportunity to gather with family, friends, and neighbors to honor Thailand’s rich traditions and culture.

While you continue on the path to resolve your political differences, we remain confident in the strong, enduring bonds between the United States and Thailand. I wish you and Thais around the world a safe and peaceful New Year.

A video message is available here:

http://www.state.gov/video/?videoid=77621375001

[OULenexaman]

Is it hot enough there for ya??

[C&CDean]

Dang Chuck, I was expecting some violent video or some other cry-worthy piece and it's a video of the Hill? Dude, it made me cry too, but for very different reasons.

She read that statement. No heart, no feeling, no nothing.

That being said, how are you making out over there?

[Chuck Bao]

It is plenty hot. Normally, I am in some provincial village drinking rice wine with the local folk or in the mountains or at the beach. I promised to spend tomorrow at the Red Shirt rally. Thank goodness that they chose a great place for it this time. I mean I can slip into the Hyatt or Four Seasons hotels and enjoy their great buffets or mixed cocktail drinks and if I get sick, there is the large police hospital across the street.

[Tulsa_Fireman]

Bring your gat.

[C&CDean]

If I read about you in the news I'm gonna kick your *** Chuck.

[Jello Biafra]

slippery slope dude. they kill people for less in those parts. keep your head low and wear kevlar.

[Chuck Bao]

Dang Chuck, I was expecting some violent video or some other cry-worthy piece and it's a video of the Hill? Dude, it made me cry too, but for very different reasons.

She read that statement. No heart, no feeling, no nothing.

That being said, how are you making out over there?

Dean, it was emotional for me because I think there are some pretty strong pro-American feeling in Thailand and I have benefited from that. And even if the return thanks and support comes in the guise of Hill, I am still like liking it. I suppose that that message will be carried nationwide on all Thai TV stations and in the abscence of any other authority, it is extremely poignant. I don't know if anyone else catches my drift here, but yeah.

Nope returned home tonight at 2am and said that there are rumors spreading around among the protesting Red Shirts that the army will come through early this morning to push them out and this time they will mean "business".

Great ****ing idea! Tanks rolling into the center of Bangkok would be like tanks rolling down Madison Avenue in New York City.

So far, the military seems to be content to play both sides against each other and let all of the responsibility fall on Prime Minister Abhisit. If they mean "business" then they are signalling that they are in control and we are under a military government.

Nope wants me to wake him up if there is a military putsch. Yeah, like hello! Thank god that I never allowed him to buy a gun.

Meanwhile, I am doing great and planning my return to the US for several months in May and June.

[Chuck Bao]

If I read about you in the news I'm gonna kick your *** Chuck.

If you read about me in the news...since my quotes sometimes make it to the news...I will probably be in jail and you can kick my *** all you want. I just don't like the military being used against its own people.

[olevetonahill]

Good grief, this video made me cry.

http://www.state.gov/video/?videoid=77621375001

The text version was on the Bangkok Post website.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/174585/clinton-calls-for-peaceful-dialogue-in-thailand



Heres yer YouTube version Bro. And like Dean said ya can see shes reading that str8t off the teleprompter , just watch her eyes .

LPGYKvoDma8

[Chuck Bao]

Heres yer YouTube version Bro. And like Dean said ya can see shes reading that str8t off the teleprompter , just watch her eyes .

LPGYKvoDma8

Thanks for embeding this vid, Olevet. As I have mentioned before that this vid is really important and will be carried by all Thai TV stations.

I cried because the US really does have such a huge moral influence on Thailand, as it does in countries around the world. This video is coming at a time that we need to hear the words and support for democracy.

I am proud to be an American and the country that leads through ideals and practice and not name-calling and demagoguery.

Edited to add: Hill is wearing red. Aha!

[Chuck Bao]

This thread is worthless without pics.

Nope and some famous retired army general who came out in support of the Red Shirts.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/Nopeandsomefamousgeneralresized.jpg

Political rallies, in my opinion, are only as good as the venders selling food and souvenirs.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/April%2013%202010%20Red%20Shirt%20Rally/Redshirtrallyvendersresized.jpg

Famous Songs for Life artist lends his support to the Red Shirts.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/April%2013%202010%20Red%20Shirt%20Rally/Songsforlifesingerresized.jpg

[OULenexaman]

glad I'm in the states...

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Hey Chuck, does the red color signify anything in Thai society? I know yellow is the color for the King and they have others colors for the royal family. I was wondering if red had any significance.

[Okla-homey]

Why does the retired general pictured above have hand grenade pull-rings festooning his hat? :eek:

That last picture with the guy wearing the Mao hat and red kerchief looks very commie. You sure this "red shirt" stuff isn't code for an attempted communist ("red") revolution? srsly.

[Chuck Bao]

According to the Red Shirts, the color red does not stand for communism or anything remotely like that. Nope said that the color red stands for the people of Thailand.

Actually, all Thai school children are taught from an early age the symbolism of the red, white and blue colors of the Thai flag. The top and bottom red stripes represent the people or blood of the people. The inner white stripes represent purity or sanctity of religion. Then, the blue center stripe represents the monarchy - the center and moral heart of the Kingdom of Thailand.

So, the color red does not carry any ideology with it. The red just simply stands for the people and that is all the Red Shirts are asking for is a new election and return power back to voters. They will end all protests as soon as Prime Minister Abhisit resigns and dissolves parliament. Hopefully, they will not have to don the red ever again.

There wouldn't be any Red Shirts today if it weren't for the Yellow Shirts. The Yellow Shirts did adopt the royal color of yellow and made it clear that they were defending the monarchy against the corrupt governments of Thaksin and the succession of prime ministers following the 2006 coup and subsequent election that was still won by pro-Thaksin politicians in the heavily-populated and poor North and Northeast.

The Yellow Shirts claim that Thailand isn't ready for democracy and those poor, uneducated voters in the North and Northeast cannot be trusted to elect proper candidates. Let me tell you that there are many very educated and wealthy Thais from the North and Northeast that did not take too kindly to this insult. It is akin to a group of New Yorkers saying that the people of Oklahoma are too poor and uneducated and stupid to elect responsible politicians.

This Abhisit government is illegitimate. The coalition parties were arm-twisted by the army to accede power to the Democrat party as a direct response to the Yellow Shirt rallies and closure of Bangkok’s airport for one week at the end of 2008. Essentially, the Yellow Shirts flexed their muscle and won. Like in most political things, that victory was short-lived and it gave rise to the Red Shirts.

Personally, I hope we retire all of the shirts. The danger is that the Yellow Shirts come back later and if they do, the Red Shirts will as well.

[Chuck Bao]

Things are getting pretty serious here. I hate that the Abhisit government is warning Red Shirt protesters that they are being used as human shields as the government labels the Red Shirt leaders as terrorists to be exterminated. That means that a crackdown is coming.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36596750/ns/world_news-asiapacific/

Here is a better editorial in the Bangkok Post which explains more about the conflict. Even though the Bangkok Post is partially owned by the Central Group (owner of the largest shopping mall in Southeast Asia and closed for more than a week) and other heavily pro-government groups, the Bangkok Post article is only slightly slanted but overall fairly well written. I am glad to see that there are pockets of good journalism and integrity.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/36125/headed-for-a-dead-end

The comments following the opinion piece are the best part because they represent a vast array of opinions. But, they are nearly unanimously agreeing that the police and the army have been totally inept in handling this. Yesterday was high comedy as the police went to arrest a Red Shirt leader at a hotel and the whole nation watched on live TV as the guy got away climbing down a rope from his hotel room balcony into the cheering group of Red Shirt protesters who then whisked him away. Adding insult to injury, the Red Shirt protesters temporarily kidnapped the police generals sent to arrest that Red Shirt leader.

I was watching live on Thai TV and just cracking up and getting into a lively debate on Facebook. There is just a huge divide in Thai society. Some think that the police and army are just half-hearted about it because they are not so sure which way this will go and besides all of the failure is on the prime minister. Some think that the army and police are too inept and ill-trained to handle the situation. Some think that the government should hire foreign mercenaries to come in and clean house. Read some of the comments in the link.

Even Nope is getting scared. He promised me that he wouldn’t go to the Red Shirt rally this evening. But when his reception of Red Shirt radio went out again, he was pacing around like a tiger in a cage. I agreed for him to go to the protest site on the condition that he stayed only an hour. He stayed three hours and came home safely.

Who knows what today will bring.

[Okla-homey]

Some think that the army and police are too inept and ill-trained to handle the situation. Some think that the government should hire foreign mercenaries to come in and clean house.
Who knows what today will bring.

I don't know about Thai military ineptitude. All the Thai officers I served with were squared-away. Methinks that Thai military prowess is also why the nation was never colonized. Methinks if the Thai military got the word to square away this Red Shirt business, they've got the goods to do so.

And I gotta tell you Chuck, I've been reading some stuff available through US government channels that indicates this Red Shirt stuff is, at its heart, a generally cold socialist movement that, for some reason, hasn't gone hot yet -- as in violent revolution. Perhaps thats why the government is holding back, so as not to spark escalation into a shooting war.

[Chuck Bao]

I don't know about Thai military ineptitude. All the Thai officers I served with were squared-away. Methinks that Thai military prowess is also why the nation was never colonized. Methinks if the Thai military got the word to square away this Red Shirt business, they've got the goods to do so.

And I gotta tell you Chuck, I've been reading some stuff available through US government channels that indicates this Red Shirt stuff is, at its heart, a generally cold socialist movement that, for some reason, hasn't gone hot yet -- as in violent revolution. Perhaps thats why the government is holding back, so as not to spark escalation into a shooting war.

Homey, I can say with a very high degree of confidence that you have very bad sources or you are terribly misinterpreting them. Did you read what I wrote? I gave props to the journalists who should be very slanted in their opinions and yet they are not. They see both sides.

Then, there is the fact, as you admit, that the Thai military would win if they really wanted to. The question really is whether they really want to go in firing weapons? To the credit of the military, they were so humiliated during the ’92 popular uprising against military strongman Suchinda who tried to rig the elections and backdoor seize legitimate power, that they are reticent to flex their muscle. The 2006 coup was from a faction of the military with a built-in power base and generally popular perception and most of that support evaporated when the next election brought back the same but under a different name and guise.

Trust me when I say that the military and police are divided. Hence, the watermelon jokes – green on the outside and red on the inside.

Thais hunger for democracy and rule of law. The problem is that with 19 coups and even more constitutions that the definition of democracy is now the key debating point.

I got to tell you Homey that you are way, way off base in any allegation or inference that the Red Shirts are socialists. ALL THEY ARE ASKING FOR IS A NEW ELECTION AND FAIR REPRESENTATION.

[Crucifax Autumn]

Chuck...Mellow out. This is the SO. Anyone not interring people to concentration camps is a Socialist. lol

[Okla-homey]

Chuck...Mellow out. This is the SO. Anyone not interring people to concentration camps is a Socialist. lol

Yeah, and that "letting everyone vote" plank in the Red Shirt platform is pretty danged pink around the edges. ;)

Frankly, I agree with Ann Coulter* who once opined that if US women were denied the vote, as they were until passage of the XIX Amendment, no democrat could ever again be elected to national office. :D And I still think its absurd we let 18 year-olds vote, but we think they lack the judgment and maturity to buy 3.2 beer at Quik Trip.

* Ann Coulter: American political commentator, believed by some to be the only conservative skinny drag queen in the United States.

[Chuck Bao]

There is no Red Shirt platform to be danged pink around the edges about. I am not sure you read my previous post about the Red Shirts being a very loose group of people who want democracy. Some non-Red Shirt people are calling it a class struggle and I think they are wrong. The Red Shirts will completely disband when there is an election and return to democracy.

I am planning to join the Red Shirts early tomorrow morning. The protesters were talking last night about rumors of a crackdown coming at 6am. Nope hasn't attended any of the protests the last two nights because it is getting increasingly dangerous. But, we both feel compelled to go tomorrow morning to offer our support for the democracy fighters.

The latest official word is that the government has ordered the police to set up check points to stop anyone from entering the area. I don't think that will work and I don't think they will stop me.

[Okla-homey]

I am planning to join the Red Shirts early tomorrow morning. The protesters were talking last night about rumors of a crackdown coming at 6am. Nope hasn't attended any of the protests the last two nights because it is getting increasingly dangerous. But, we both feel compelled to go tomorrow morning to offer our support for the democracy fighters.

The latest official word is that the government has ordered the police to set up check points to stop anyone from entering the area. I don't think that will work and I don't think they will stop me.

If you get locked-up and charged with being a foreign agitator, don't come crying to me.;)

Srsly, why don't you stay out of this? It seems like its something the Thai people should sort out.

[C&CDean]

I think I already said that to Chuck. He ain't got a dog in this fight.

[Lott's Bandana]

Chuck...why April?

This happened last year in April and by July I'm enjoying an evening in Bangkok before spending several days scuba diving in Phuket...not a red or yellow shirt in sight.

Is the holiday the driving force behind the timing?

[Chuck Bao]

If you get locked-up and charged with being a foreign agitator, don't come crying to me.;)

Srsly, why don't you stay out of this? It seems like its something the Thai people should sort out.

I know that I will be criticized for attending the Red Shirt rally since it really shouldn’t be any of my business. To some degree, I agree. I am not a Thai citizen and I can never be one and vote in an election. But, Thailand is still my adopted home country for 22 years now and I have been granted the rare privilege of residency (the right to spend the rest of my life here).

I have attended every political rally since arriving in Thailand. That’s because it was part of my job to write about local politics as a major factor affecting the Thai stock market. I even attended the Yellow Shirt rallies two years ago, even though I didn’t agree with their protest points. I was never satisfied to just draw my conclusions from the newspapers and government owned or controlled media during a political crisis: I always wanted to go out and see it for myself and talk to the demonstrators. Besides that, I had always got brownie points for calling overseas fund managers from the rally site and explaining my own impressions.

I am not a journalist and I could never be one. They are out trying to get the story, even if they put themselves in harm’s way. I am not doing that. I am more interested in the big picture and what it all means in the longer term. After all, stock market investors want to buy when there is blood on the street with the applied idea that the worst is over. So, investors ask me exactly that question: “Is the worst over?”

I have never done anything illegal and will not do anything illegal except for breaking curfew and the ban on political gatherings of more than five people during periods when a “state of emergency” is in effect, as it is now. I am fairly confident that this often used “state of emergency” is unconstitutional no matter which of the many constitutions that Thailand has had. I will not go crying to anyone if I am arrested and I think there is an extremely low probability of that. I have plenty of powerful friends. The biggest danger would be getting in the middle of a bloody clash between the military and protesters and I learned from the ’92 incident to not linger around where the two sides are confronting each other. I am not ignorant. A Red Shirt sniper could easily take me down and blame the government and make international headlines. I DO NOT LINGER WHERE THEY ARE FIGHTING OR MAY FIGHT.

And yes, I have a dog in this fight and his name is Nope. I sympathize with the Red Shirts: he is obsessed with the Red Shirt idea of democracy and representation for all Thais.

[Mjcpr]

And yes, I have a dog in this fight and his name is Nope.

Sooo....Nope dog?

[Chuck Bao]

Chuck...why April?

This happened last year in April and by July I'm enjoying an evening in Bangkok before spending several days scuba diving in Phuket...not a red or yellow shirt in sight.

Is the holiday the driving force behind the timing?

I don't think there is any seasonality to Thailand's political problems. It is an all-weather event.

But, I guess that there are many holidays in April, including the long New Year holiday. April is also the hottest month of the year and school children are out on the summer break. So, I guess families can attend these political protests together. But, I did not see any children during my venture through the Red Shirt rally site camp yesterday.

[SicEmBaylor]

I wouldn't say Chuck doesn't have a dog in the fight. He lives and works there. What happens with the government is likely to have a big impact on the nation's economy and will likely have an impact on his job.

[Chuck Bao]

I had a fun day walking through the Red Shirt demonstration area and then through the army’s massive troop mobilization on Silom Road. It really opened my eyes to what is going on.

We started out early. Nope left the Red Shirt rally the previous night because of rumors spreading through the camp that the military would stage a removal campaign starting at 6am Monday morning. I wanted to be there before 6am. That rumor seemed somewhat confirmed with the government talking about the military protecting the buildings and controlling the tops of all of the buildings.

Nope dropped me off at one end of the demonstration area and he went on to his health club to work out before going on to sell things at his market stalls.

At 5:30am and still dark, I started walking down the street near the Discovery Center on Rama I Road which was filled with camp stalls on the street. Immediately, I was high fiving, waiing and thumbs upping everyone awake there. I was yelling “pra chart tip pa ti” which means democracy to everyone I met.

Most of the street campers were already awake and I guess that most of them being farmers are used to getting up early. It is either that or extremely loud music blasting from huge speakers set up on the street every 300 yards or so and I assume that it was playing all night. I don’t know how anyone was able to sleep and I can see the reason for the criticism of loud music all night near Chulalongkorn Hospital.

I realize that this protest is not unlike previous protests, but this time the protest is not in a political area but the prime commercial area of Bangkok with the clear idea of disrupting business and the two largest shopping in Southeast Asia as well as several large luxury malls and high end hotels. Those sleeping on the street have been allotted their stalls to sleep. They are selling food and protest gear. They have set up porta potties and constructed big tents on the street for the protesters to shower.

Nope was talking about a million people there. He was angry when I told him that I think that there were less than 10,000 sleeping on the street. Even 10,000 seems like quite a lot to be sleeping on the street in their allocated street stalls. Anyway, the protest area spreads from the Ratchprasong intersection and a mile in each direction.

I am wearing a dark red crimson shirt and stop at one of the stalls open at 5:30am and buy a red ribbon to go with my hat that simply says “dissolve parliament” and I got a large bandana to tie around my neck with the “Truth Today” logo. This is just in front of my previous office building. I make it to the Ratchprasong intersection and there is a huge stage built in the middle of the intersection. There is a rock band playing at 6am and a very large group of young people dancing in the street. I am impressed and dance with them for a song or two. This picture doesn’t really show them dancing, but trust me they were shaking it all about. I was the only foreigner dancing with them and I had a cheering section because I can shake it and do all of the hand gestures of Thai dance.

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/WelcometoThailandApr1910.jpg

I wanted to see what else was going on so I walked down Ratchadamri Road to see more and the only thing that caught my eye was about 100-200 people queued up at the coffee tent. This made me hungry and I doubled back to the intersection and started walking down Ploenchit Road looking for American fast food. The 24-hour McDees at Amarin Plaza was closed. Boo McDees! I walked until I found a McDees open on Chitlom Road, just outside the protest area.

I stay there because it is very hot for early morning and it seems like the best place to chill.

By 8am, I decide that it is time to go pick up my airline ticket home from my travel agent on Silom Road since it was the last day that they said I had to pay for it. So, that took me south on Ratchadamri Road to the hot spot of the Ratchadmari, Rama IV and Silom intersection.

There was a huge group of Red Shirts there itching for trouble. They were beating drums, waving Thai flags but the most shocking thing was barbed wire across the street. This is the place I should not linger, so I cross over to the other side.

The Abhisit government has already said that they will not allow the protest area to further grow and they will protect the Silom area. The Red Shirts had scheduled a protest rally in front of Bangkok Bank headquarters on Silom road but basically cancelled it. The Red Shirts are not yielding to the government and say that if their protest area needs to expand (apparently to allow more street campers) that they will take over Silom Road. Tuesday, today, the Red Shirts have called for a mass rally and there will be more upcountry people coming in and they will need a place to sleep. Today is going to be interesting.

My travel agent is on Patpong Road which is just a short side street off Silom road and internationally infamous as one of the best red light districts in the world. I know Patpong very well because my old apartment where I lived for most of my 20 years in Thailand was within a five minute walk.

I was shocked, I tell you SHOCKED. All of the bars were closed at 8am. I did find one outdoor restaurant that was serving beer, while I kept trying to call my travel agent. I was not sure if my travel agent would open because of the massive military troops assembled. Okay, they were young kids and dressed out in camouflage and anti-riot gear that looked something like black storm troopers from Star Wars. They had the breast and back plates and arm and leg plates. Only some had crotch plates and I found that to be incredibly humorous as I was drinking beer after beer and watching them joke around with each other.

I kept wanting to ask how many of them are watermelons – green on the outside and red on the inside. The best guess, I suppose, was one estimate that 60% are sympathetic to the Red Shirts and they are not about to kill their brothers, sisters, moms and dads if it comes to that.

At 10:30am, I finally got my airline tickets and I head north back to the intersection and I am amazed at the sidewalks of Silom Road being cordoned off with barbed wire. Also, it is clear to me that the closer I got to the intersection the more serious the military personal seemed to be. They were older and seemed much more bad ***.

Gee, Super ***** is getting protection from our men in green.

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/SuperpunnayApr1910.jpg

As is the Safari bar and go-go

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/SafariDiscoGogoApr1910.jpg

And, the fast food restaurants on Silom Road get military protection as well.

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/KFCApr1910.jpg

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/KFC2Apr1910.jpg

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/SubwayApr1910.jpg

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/ClosedbusinessesApr19090.jpg

The most shocking of it all was the barbed wire stretched out on the sidewalks of Silom road.

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/BarbedWireApr1910.jpg

Even if the Red Shirts never make it to Silom, the businesses there are already affected by the mass army build up.

Let's see what happens today with the planned mass rally of the Red Shirts.

No, I am not planning to go there.

[Crucifax Autumn]

Surreal.

[Collier11]

was the military cool with you taking pics of them?

[Chuck Bao]

was the military cool with you taking pics of them?

They were hamming it up. Some of them were taking pics of themselves because this is pretty historic.

[Collier11]

Well if things get dangerous I can recommend a highly trained sniper, he is good from 1000 yds with a spotter :D

[Chuck Bao]

Well yeah, I went to the gay street off Silom to see our troops and none of them were there. Either the army does not think it worth protecting or they figure that the lady boys there are too bad *** and the Red Shirts wouldn't venture down that avenue anyway.

[Crucifax Autumn]

In reality they avoided that area so the soldiers wouldn't be distracted by the potential for some raunchy ladyboy action.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/SuperpunnayApr1910.jpg
.

I like the VD Clinic sign... :)

Hey Chuck, is military service compulsory or volunteer in Thailand?

Is this anywhere near where we met at my hotel (The Sukhothai on Sathorn Road) on my trip to Thailand?

[Bourbon St Sooner]

Well, so, how did today go? I'm on pins and needles.

[Chuck Bao]

I like the VD Clinic sign... :)

Hey Chuck, is military service compulsory or volunteer in Thailand?

Is this anywhere near where we met at my hotel (The Sukhothai on Sathorn Road) on my trip to Thailand?

THA, military service in Thailand is sort of a lucky draw system. At age 18, all Thai males are required to report to a military station and reach into a bag and pull out a ball. If the ball is red, they have to enlist in one of the armed forces. If the ball is black, then they do not. Those who are or will be attending a university are exempted from this ball-grabbing exercise.

University tuitions in Thailand are incredibly cheap. The barrier is achieving a high enough score on the national college entrance exam to get into one of the universities. Poor quality secondary schools in the provinces give a huge advantage to Bangkokians. So, Bangkokians largely exempt out and the military is nearly 100% provincial kids. That is not 100% correct, but you get the idea.

Then, there is the issue of numbers. With an increasing larger portion of those college age males attending college (about 20% at the end of the 90s and possibly 25-30% now), there are claims that the number of red balls in the grab bag was increased to a level that it was nearly certain that the kids in the provinces not exempting out would pull out a red ball.

This reminds me that I have never asked Nope about this because he never served in the Thai military.

THA, I can image that you are concerned about your colleagues on Sathorn Road. It is very close to the protest area. But, I seriously doubt if the Red Shirts will expand their protest area down Sathorn Road. I don’t think they will expand down Silom Road either given the government’s determination to keep them out and all of the troops stationed there and barbed wire across the sidewalks. I drew you a map so you can see.

http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/MapofRedShirtProtest2.jpg

[Crucifax Autumn]

Something about ball grabbing exercises in Thailand makes me giggle inside.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Thanks Chuck. Our company global security dept. has put travel to BKK as deferred until further notice with the exception of expats living in BKK and Thai passport holders.

[Chuck Bao]

Well, so, how did today go? I'm on pins and needles.

Sorry for the late update. Nope came home at 1am and said that the massive rally planned for Tuesday night went off without a hitch. I am uncertain whether they achieved their goal of bringing in more protesters from upcountry. Nope isn't talking to me anymore about the number of protesters since I discounted his earlier claim of a million people on the street.

He did say that there was a Yellow Shirt rally on Soi Saladaeng (just off Silom Road). He said that there were a few hundred Yellow Shirt protesters there.

Thai news early Wednesday morning is pretty much dominated by accounts that the Red Shirts are digging in and making home-made bombs and sharpening sticks and such in anticipation of a military move to extract or eradicate them.

I tend to look at the big picture and the longer this drags on the more damage it will do to the country that I love. I am not talking about commercial loss but the divide keeps widening. A harsh crackdown will be met with more violence. I do not understand why this government does not accept the fact that it has lost control and do the honorable thing and return power to the people through a new election. Their reticence to a new election is just proving the point for the Red Shirts.

[Collier11]

Something about ball grabbing exercises in Thailand makes me giggle inside.

why you think Chuck went to Thailand :D

[Frozen Sooner]

Those who are or will be attending a university are exempted from this ball-grabbing exercise.

What if they go to A&M?

[royalfan5]

How big of factor in this is the reportedly ill health of the King, and the dislike for the Crown Prince?

[Chuck Bao]

Oh **** and let me introduce you to the fan! The Nation newspaper should know better than this. Maybe it is intended to scare people away but I am taking the opposite and will go to lend support to the Red Shirts. It is just a pity that the Nation newspaper didn’t have the balls to say the same thing about the Yellow Shirts when they closed Bangkok’s two airports for a week or took over government house for three months.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/home/2010/04/20/opinion/Another-crackdown-more-bloodshed-expected-30127428.html


Another crackdown, more bloodshed expected
By Sopon Onkgara
The Nation
Published on April 20, 2010

All was set as of yesterday afternoon for "operation payback" by teams of troops to disperse the red shirts who are still occupying Rajprasong intersection. But there had been no action as of press time. The forces were still awaiting the final green light from Army chief General Anupong Paochinda.

Maybe the plan has to be fine-tuned to ensure minimal loss of life. Casualties must be avoided on both sides. If there is to be some collateral damage, the level must be contained to avoid a backlash.

But the military obviously does not want the bitter events of April 10 to recur. The heavy losses suffered during the security operation in the Rajdamnoen area were a disaster, as well as a tactical blunder, from the military point of view.

The upcoming mission is inevitable now that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has given the go-ahead order by appointing the Army chief to handle the task - despite the PM's extreme reluctance to command a military crackdown on the red shirts.

The general, due to retire at the end of September, has to choose between national survival, together with that of the monarchy, or a regime that sees Thaksin Shinawatra's triumphant return via the help of the red shirts.

The red shirts are no longer regarded as genuine campaigners for democracy as they have claimed. In the eyes of fair-minded observers, the ringleaders have committed high treason. Armed terrorists are their fearsome supporters, who carried out indiscriminate shootings at soldiers and civilians on April 10.

The red shirts know that their days are numbered. They can never walk around like free men again. But surely they want to live to spend the fortune they have extracted from Thaksin through his campaign funding. But the circumstances and the severity of their crimes simply forbid such an opportunity. The red shirts must fight to win so that they can get amnesty later.

The longer the Army chief vacillates on the decision to order his men to take action, the greater the damage resulting from the eventual action. And the damage will be very hard to write off when the full account, and the full body count, is complete.

If the red shirts can mobilise more supporters by today, the crowd could spill from Rajdamri into Silom Road, the heart of the central business district. If that happens and the area is brought to a standstill, it would be a calamity for the national economy.

Already, five-star hotels around the Rajprasong area are waiting to temporarily shut down, now that guests have moved out to more secure places. At the same time, red shirts are hollering that they have been marked for certain death, with snipers and marksmen also in position.

Business operators in Rajprasong and nearby areas have already begun counting their losses. Billions of baht have been lost and the numbers continue to climb as the days pass. Worse, they have no idea when their ordeal will end and the red ink will stop flowing.

The military spokesman at the operations headquarters has talked tough over the past few days. Terms such as "acceptable collateral damage" have been heard, to test public reaction. But there is a common awareness that the country now faces the gloomy prospect of urban terrorism.

A crackdown is certain. The only question left is when. Some troops are eager to take revenge for their fallen comrades and those suffering long-term medical treatment and recuperation. Many will never be the same after their discharge from hospital.

The red shirts are also aware that they are pariahs, increasingly feared and despised by Bangkok residents who have been tormented by the lawlessness of these hired goons now enjoying extra income out of Thaksin's pockets.

What is most likely to happen in the next 24 hours? Another confrontation between the red shirts and troops, possibly involving Silom residents fighting to protect their interests. That means more bloodletting and a high number of casualties on both sides. The innocent people mobilised by Thaksin's money will fall victim in the firefight, just like the mayhem 10 days ago.

[Chuck Bao]

How big of factor in this is the reportedly ill health of the King, and the dislike for the Crown Prince?

I hope I don't get myself into trouble for honestly commenting on this issue.

His Majesty the King deserves all of our respect for working tirelessly to benefit all Thais during his long reign on the throne. HM the King has served as a safety valve during the worst of the political episodes. 1992 is a very good example.

During this current crisis, the palace has been very quiet except volunteering to pay for the hospital bills of both injured protesters and police and military personnel.

There are some who say that this political crisis started because now disgraced and exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin wanted to interfere in the crown succession issue and that is why the Royalists turned on him so vehemently. Don’t quote me here because that is just whispered among friends. But, it would explain why the Yellow Shirts are so opposed to the provincial-based political parties and would rather ditch democracy than see Thaksin or someone like Thaksin form a government.

That is just one theory. Another is that the Bangkok bureaucrats lost power under Thaksin who started to shake out the corruption and give more power to the provincial people. Certainly, we have seen a revenge by the Bangkok bureaucrats since the 2006 coup d’état.

Going back to the palace issue, I have never seen Thais openly criticize the monarchy in my 22 years in Thailand until just recently. I have heard that some provincial people have taken down pictures in their homes of the most revered institution. The feeling is that royal issues are starting to create more political problems and divide rather than unite the people, as the monarchy has in the recent past. I think that some provincial Thais feel that the royal succession issue shouldn’t be a reason to ditch their right to vote or forsake Thailand's fledgling democracy.

I reserve the right to delete this post at any time, so please do not quote me on subsequent posts.

[Chuck Bao]

It is going down today, everyone is saying. Most businesses anywhere near the central business are closing doors and sending employees home.

Please say a prayer or send good thoughts Thailand's way.

[Chuck Bao]

Nothing much happened today despite all of the rumors of an imminent crackdown and very strong anti-Red Shirt rhetoric used in all of the local newspapers. The only thing that happened, according to the official press, is that the Red Shirts and Yellow Shirts (now calling themselves Multi-colored shirts) had a loud speaker yelling war at the Rama IV, Silom and Rajadamri intersection, which turned into sling shots being fired at each other and eventually the Red Shirts throwing molotov cocktails at the Multi-colored shirts.

The official press also reported that the Red Shirt leaders showed up and told them to quit that **** because it isn’t helping anything. People who live around Soi Saladaeng (near that intersection) were posting on Facebook that the police did not do anything and just hid behind their riot shields.

The local mood is certainly going against the Red Shirts. I need to explain that the Multi-colored shirts are not just Yellow Shirts, but Bangkokians and businesses who are really tired that this political protest is disrupting their businesses. The Multi-colored shirts are scheduling their main rallies from 12pm until 1:30pm, so that office workers can participate during their lunch break and some businesses are reportedly encouraging their employees to participate. You know I would go along with them if they were not saying that they are strongly opposed to a new election. What do they mean? This just flies in the face of my own belief that democracy can work and all people should be given a chance to vote and select their leaders.

I got into an argument with a former colleague today about this. He was saying that the Red Shirts are just a bunch of hired thugs and if they get their way, the same corrupt politicians will come back in power. I asked him if he thought Nope was a hired thug. I guess Nope could be a thug, but he is my thug.

Nope came home at 1:30am this morning and said that the yellow shirts (multi-colored shirts) are vigilantes as well. He said that one taxi driver who had a red ribbon tied around his rear view mirror was attacked by yellow shirts and drug out of his taxi and beaten up. He said another Red Shirt protester was shot. Yeah, and he takes my motorcycle to these rallies and has red ribbons tied all over it. I will have to remember to take the red ribbons off, when I ride it.

Anyway, I think this is all a setup. Yeah, I panicked yesterday with all of the rumors. I think we will get this for several days and the government can say that the protesters had plenty of warning and preparing everyone for the bloodshed on the eventual crackdown. If I were a betting man, I would say that just after the Thai stock market closes on Friday that the push will come to shove. The idea is that it will give the market a few days to see stability return before opening on Monday.

I tell you that businesses do not like to be disrupted by politics, but it is really all about stock market share prices, afterall.

[Chuck Bao]

As some of you know, the last week in Bangkok has been pretty intense. Most Thai people are still in a state of shock that the social fabric holding a nation together can come unraveled so quickly. With the animosity and entrenched positions of the two sides, the sad thing is that the Thai political situation won’t likely get better until after it gets a whole lot worse – meaning that it will require much more blood to be spilt to finally trigger either the prime minister resigning or the military seizing power.

We have been hearing rumors from the Red Shirt camp that the Thai military would make a move to dislodge them from the protest area almost every night this week. There is fear and there is an equal amount of frustration and determination and resolve. After all, the Red Shirts protesters are largely provincial farmers who know something about frustration and determination and resolve to scratch out a living every day. The Bangkok-based Yellow Shirts openly call the Red Shirts dirty, poor, lazy, uneducated and incapable of voting for proper representatives in national parliament, which is just adding further fuel to the fire. Some people say this is class warfare. I would really hate to see that because all socio-economic classes would lose and lose quite badly.

Anyway, the military appears to be playing mind games with the Red Shirt protesters, trying to scare as many off from the protest site before the eventual crackdown comes in an attempt to limit the bloodshed from the more innocent protesters. It is seriously backfiring. As the rumors spread at night, more of the Red Shirt sympathizers in Bangkok rush to the protest site and more arrive from upcountry.

So, Nope got a call on Friday morning at 4:30am that the military was beginning their push through the Red Shirts. I guess that they were assembling their troops in front of the Red Shirt bamboo stick and tire barricades across the road.

We hurriedly dressed and headed out to the protest site. We parked in Lumpini park and walked out at the Soi Sarasin road exit just near the Red Shirt barricade.

They had only bamboo sticks as a barricade there.

This is Nope and a friend at the barricade.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/NopeandredshirtfriendatSarasinbarri.jpg

Yeah, I just had to grab one of the bamboo sticks and thump it on the ground and yell: “You shall not pass!”
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/GuardiansoftheSoiSarasinbarricade.jpg

As we were walking to away to the main barricade on the intersection of Rama IV and Silom Road, one Red Shirt guy on a motorcycle rode up to tell us that if the military is coming through, they are coming through here and we should go back and man the Sarasin barricade. We ignored him and walked a little bit faster.

Along the way, there were lots of Red Shirts who wanted to take pics with us.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/FriendsattheRedShirtrally.jpg

Heh! And, then I had to take a pic with their target practice. The face on the target looks familiar but I don’t know who it is supposed to be.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/Targetpracticingwiththepicofafamili.jpg

We made it to the barricade at the Rama IV-Silom Road intersection which has been in the news over the last few days. I now think that there is security videotape evidence that the grenade attack on the Silom Road side the night before came from the Red Shirt side of the barricade. That is still not to say that it actually came from the Red Shirts because some saboteurs could have easily infiltrated the Red Shirt side.

Me in front of the now infamous barricade.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/RamaIVbarricade.jpg

I will say that we were extremely lucky. Shortly after we left, the Riot Police marched up to the barricade and supposedly the Red Shirts climbed on top of their barricade and started pouring fuel on it. Both sides eventually agreed to back off 100 yards from the barricade.

I wanted to cross over to the other side and I was just thinking about breakfast at Burger King on Silom Road. Luckily, Nope talked me out of it. There are reports of the Yellow Shirts (in the guise of Multi-colored shirts) beating up anyone who they thought were Red Shirt sympathizers including a journalist and a motorcycle taxi driver. The military and police intervened and stopped any deaths, but it must have been pretty intense with the Yellow Shirts threatening to storm the Dusit Thani hotel since some of the supposed Red Shirt sympathizers were taken inside for refuge.

That whole grenade launcher thing from the Red Shirt side could be true, but the vast, vast majority of Red Shirt protesters just have sticks. Except, there was this one guy who had a golf club. Heh! There is finally a good reason to own a golf club. In this pic, I am not really pointing at the Yellow Shirt side and saying send it over there.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/Onlyreasontoownagolfclub.jpg

We then went back into Lumpini park. You can see from this pic that we are really talking about the battle for the central business district of Bangkok.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/GeorgeLumpinipark2Apr2210.jpg

Normally at 7am, Lumpini park is filled with joggers and old Chinese practicing their Tai Chi. It was fairly empty, although I don’t think that violence will spill out into the park. We took some pics on our way back to Nope’s truck.
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/NopeatLumpinipark.jpg

And no, I am not crying here. I am sweating buckets at 7am. Oh, if you noticed, I am wearing an amulet for protection. Nope made me wear his. Great guy, huh?
http://i805.photobucket.com/albums/yy339/geohuebsch/GeorgeLumpiniparkApr2210.jpg

We got back home at 7:30 after stopping at a hotel to get our buffet breakfast. Only later do we find out about the problems that we just missed.

Before all of the criticism that Nope and I were just plain stupid begins, I just want to say that Nope went back there tonight and came home at 1am vowing to never go again. Apparently one of the Red Shirt leaders is now talking about ending the monarchy. Nope said that this isn’t about willingness to shed blood for democracy but pursuing a civil war with no chance of success for anyone.

[Okla-homey]

Thanks for the updates Chuck. Allow me to reciprocate, sort of. Here's the story (from wire reports no doubt) in today's Tulsa World.


Thai protesters want Parliament dissolved in month


http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab7/Okla-homey/20100424_thailand24_package.jpg
Pro-government demonstrators wave flags and chant slogans during a rally Friday in Bangkok, Thailand. Apichart Weerawong/Associated Press

By Associated Press
Published: 4/24/2010 2:25 AM
Last Modified: 4/24/2010 4:40 AM

Thai protesters seeking a change of government softened their demands Friday, saying they are willing to give the prime minister 30 days to dissolve Parliament and call new elections, instead of insisting that he take action immediately.

The offer came a day after grenades killed one person and wounded 86 near the red-shirted protesters' rally site in Bangkok's central business district.

Five M-79 grenades struck areas where a group opposed to the protesters had gathered to denounce the Red Shirts, tens of thousands of whom have occupied parts of the capital for six weeks.

The Red Shirts consist mainly of rural supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and pro-democracy activists who opposed the military coup that ousted him in 2006.

They believe Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's government is illegitimate because it came to power under military pressure through a parliamentary vote after disputed court rulings ousted two elected pro-Thaksin governments.

Their opponents include workers inconvenienced by the demonstrations and members of the Yellow Shirts, a group whose main purpose is to oppose Thaksin's return to power and who themselves staged protests in Bangkok two years ago.

Jaran Ditthapichai, a Red Shirt leader, claimed that the government had privately expressed a willingness to compromise, suggesting it could dissolve the government in three months instead of the six on which it originally insisted.

He said the proposal for a 30-day deadline — instead of immediately — was offered to try to avoid new violence.

Abhisit did not respond directly when asked by reporters about the offer. He said that what was most important now was everybody should abide by the law. By Associated Press

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20100424_13_A6_Progov951880

[Chuck Bao]

Thanks for the updates Chuck. Allow me to reciprocate, sort of. Here's the story (from wire reports no doubt) in today's Tulsa World.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20100424_13_A6_Progov951880


Thanks Homey. I appreciate reading international coverage (especially that being reported in Oklahoma) of the current Thai political crisis.

Prime Minister Abhisit has officially rejected the Red Shirt compromise of parliament dissolution in 30 days and new election in 3 months. I am not surprised.

First of all, Abhisit and his Democrat party are not to be trusted in any negotiations of more than a month in the future. Just recently, Abhisit and the Democrats promised to amend the constitution and when it came down to it, they finally decided not to do anything. It doesn’t make sense for the Red Shirts to just go home and trust that Abhisit will do the right thing.

PM Abhisit is not credible and his government is not credible. They are being controlled by the powers that be. The military made the Abhisit government look silly in that embarrassing arrest attempt of the Red Shirt leaders last week. After that, Abhisit had no choice but to take national security control from the Deputy Prime Minister Sutep and give it to army commander-in-chief Anupong. So, the Army is in control without a coup and without responsibility. Anything bad that happens will still stick to PM Abhisit and his Democrat party. Talk about throwing someone under a bus.

The powers that be do not like or trust politicians or democracy, whatever color shirt they wear. The Democrats are just contributing to their own demise.

This is a dangerous situation for everyone. The Red Shirts are now telling their supporters NOT to wear red because a military crackdown is coming. This is just not about showing colors, but concern that there is no reason for anyone to be a martyr.

I have to say here that I am biased and I hate the Democrats. I have hated them from the ’92 political crisis when they didn’t get involved with the highly popular political protests against military dictatorship and then they were popularly elected afterwards as a compromise party. The then Democrat prime minister and leader Chuan Leekpai did nothing to advance democracy in Thailand in the aftermath of a huge political upheaval and popular mandate. They stand for nothing and they do nothing.

You got to understand that many Thais love Prime Minister Abhisit as the golden boy of Thai politics with his good looks and articulate English. After all, he was born in Newcastle, England and educated at Eton. He then went on to gain a bachelor degree in philosophy, politics and economics, first class honors, and a master degree in economics, both from Oxford University.

The flip side is that this Thai leader we can all be proud of appears extremely elitist. His condescension and apparent lack of concern for the provincial poor is more fuel on the fire. The fact that he rose to power only because the courts banned most provincial parties and candidates under this controversial constitution and then the military did some arm twisting of the smaller political parties to give the Democrats their majority coalition in parliament and elect Abhisit as PM, who now serves as their puppet.

I told a high-profile advisor to the Democrat party last month that it would be in the best interest of Abhisit to concede and dissolve parliament. My idea was that he would not gain in popularity as this crisis worsened. I still think that I was right. But, it is not like our Golden Boy with a golden tongue is actually in control.

I will not attend any more Red Shirt protests. I have to admit that my experiences were pretty good before and yelling “Pra-cha-tip-pa-ti” (democracy) at the top of my lungs and getting all of the high fives and hugs and stuff was fun. I was lucky and I now see that it is just too dangerous.

I honestly do not know what will happen next.

[delhalew]

Those are great pics. I'm not going to call you stupid. If I were there and were invested in the country emotionally, I couldn't stay away.

[Chuck Bao]

I know that some of you are not at all interested in the problems of some small country on the other side of the world. But, a few posters here have expressed interest, so I will continue.

One of the most interesting things for non-partisan outsiders is the war of words on the internet as Thailand is on the brink of civil war and failed state status.

Personally, I don't think it will come to that, but it is still shocking that the Kingdom of Thailand, which prides itself as being the "Land of Smiles", as well as its Buddhists beliefs and seeking a middle path (compassion and compromise) and the role of the monarchy in serving as the stabilizing moral force, could see such a quick deterioration in its social structure.

Have we ever seen a civil war through the internet? Okay, we did see blogging from Iraq and Iran, but Thailand is much more open to the internet with thousands of posters on both sides posting their opinions.

It could also serve as a warning to the US. Be careful what you wish for. In Thailand's case, nobody wins and everybody loses.

I am not sure how the internet changes things, if at all. I do know that the government's attempts to control the media has effectively bolstered traffic on the internet.

Previously, I was dismissive of facebook, but now it seems like the best source to keep up to date and find out about the latest announcements from both sides, train schedules and stops around the protest area and perioidic updates on the closed or limited hour shopping malls. The comments expressed are pretty terse and probably reflect the diverging views of the general public.

This is one example from a facebook link to a Nation newspaper site. Read the comments below the article to get the wide range of views.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Thai-PM-Abhisit-Vows-Retake-Bangko-t359289.html

[Chuck Bao]

Now, I guess this is how civil wars get started. Red shirts throughout the North and Northeast are blocking any army or police movement south into Bangkok. This article was written yesterday and it appears to be intensifying further today. It isn't like there will be a battle there or anything like that because the police and the army stationed in the North and Northeast sympathize with the Red Shirts.

The whole focus now is not on the Red Shirt protesters in Bangkok, but the splintering military forces.

Oh the part about the police negotiating and then deciding to go back home at 3am. I bet there was some drankin involved.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/36618/udd-takes-battle-to-provinces


UDD takes battle to provinces
Police trucks blocked from entering Bangkok
Published: 26/04/2010 at 12:00 AM

Red shirt protesters have stepped up their campaign against the government following Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's rejection of the group's proposal that the House be dissolved in 30 days.

Red shirt protesters block police vehicles from the central, northern and northeastern provinces at kilometre marker 36 on Phahol Yothin Road in Klong Luang district, Pathum Thani. The vehicles yesterday carried police for reinforcement in Bangkok. The blockade caused heavy traffic jams on Phahol Yothin Road. Surapol Promsaka na Sakonkanorn

The situation was relatively calm in the capital on Sunday, but tensions flared in Pathum Thani, Udon Thani, Phayao and Ubon Ratchathani where members of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) blocked police from entering Bangkok and led anti-government demonstrations.

About 400 UDD members had blocked the inbound lanes of Phaholyothin Road in Pathum Thani's Khlong Luang district starting at 3.30pm yesterday to prevent vehicles carrying police from Nakhon Phanom, Nakhon Sawan, Chai Nat, Sing Buri and Lop Buri from entering Bangkok.

Thirty-five vans carrying 500 police officers and 15 prisoner transport vehicles were barred from entering Bangkok, as it was believed they were on their way to the capital to crack down on UDD protesters.

The UDD maintains a makeshift checkpoint in Pathum Thani, which UDD co-leader Natthawut Saikua said would be an important site to block government forces from entering the capital.

In Udon Thani, more than 200 UDD supporters from several districts gathered on the Friendship Highway in Non Sa-at district at 11pm on Saturday to stop 178 police officers in 10 vans on their way to Bangkok.

Pol Col Dusit Thongwiset, the police chief Udon Thani's Sang Khom district who led the forces, explained the officers were on their way to replace those already in the capital so that the first batch could return home.

The red shirts were unconvinced and refused to let them go. As the stand-off went on, about 150 additional protesters from nearby provinces such as Nong Khai, Nong Bua Lamphu and Sakon Nakhon arrived and joined the blockade.

The stand-off ended at 3am yesterday after the police agreed to abandon their plan to travel to the capital.

Also yesterday, Udon Thani red shirts set up another makeshift checkpoint at an intersection linking the province with Nong Bua Lamphu. The protesters stopped two vans carrying about 20 police officers from Nong Khai and a truck carrying five soldiers.

UDD leaders in Bangkok yesterday renewed their warning that a government crackdown on demonstrators would further erode Mr Abhisit's legitimacy to run the country.

"Please revise your plan [to use force to disperse the red shirt protesters]," said Mr Nattawut Saikua.

"Mr Abhisit should ask himself if he really wants to see Ratchaprasong intersection turn into a killing zone," he said.

If a violent crackdown on Ratchaprasong happens, it would add fuel to the fire add strengthen the anti-government movement.

"You can demolish the Ratchaprasong protest, but you can't root out the red shirt movement. We will come back even stronger," he said.

The red shirts had anticipated a military crackdown after the prime minister declined their request that he dissolve parliament in 30 days in exchange for an end to the protests which began in mid-March.

Mr Abhisit reiterated that he would not call for fresh election until the situation returned to normal and conditions are in place for a fair and safe election campaign.

The government also has the duty to pass the state budget for the next fiscal year in parliament, he said.

"We have to discuss all problems including creating an atmosphere conducive to fair elections. The next election must not be a bloody one.

''All candidates must be able to campaign freely as should be the way in a democratic society,'' he said in his weekly programme, Having Confidence in Thailand with Prime Minister Abhisit.

The prime minister said a political situation must not be limited to settling the dispute between the government and the red shirts. "Other groups have started their rallies. They have the same rights as those [in the UDD]. I must listen to all parties," he said.



Edited to add: Today, the Yellow Shirts are demanding that the Abhisit government immediately issue a State of Emergency in all of the Red Shirt provinces to stop the Red Shirt roadblocks and rein in a potentially disloyal military and police.

[StoopTroup]

I think Most of us lean towards Red Shirts here. Yellow...while an interesting color...not that much hated.

Hope all is well Chuck. Stay Safe.

ST