Comments on: Thailand in the News Week Ending 2/20/10

By: john

john — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:30:26 +0000

what ever happens to him he seems to be doing pretty well my taxi ride near is residents bought for 20 million pounds two houses knocked into one looks like he may be intending to keep a base in the UK for a while never mind a return to Thailand .-= john´s last blog ..Phu Phra Bat Historical Park, Udon Thani =-.

By: Martyn

Martyn — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:13:35 +0000

Wilai was considering travelling down to Bangkok for the red shirt rally but I managed to convince her otherwise. I pointed out that her puppy dog Pepsi would miss her and that was enough to win the day. These political nuts are obviously a soft touch. Thanks for inspiring me to write a post, I was running dry on ideas until reading your excellent up write up. .-= Martyn´s last blog ..Faith, Hope and Charity =-.

By: Talen

Talen — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:27:24 +0000

Martyn, it is s a possibility but they could still take it all …I guess we’ll find out for sure on Friday.

I can say for sure that it’s not affecting the village too much as Pookie is going to a Buddhist house warming ritual on Friday.

As for Thaksin , I have no doubt that he will not only live in Thailand again but be a part of politics as well.

By: Martyn

Martyn — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:09:42 +0000

Talen until I read this post I assumed the courts would take all of Thaksin’s money but your views make a lot of sense. To take or give all would lead to big trouble and so meeting both parties somewhere near the middle just might offset any major problems.

I hope you are right and the outcome ends this whole sorry affair but we both know Thaksin ain’t going to give up the fight until a major victory of some kind is his.
.-= Martyn´s last blog ..Mafia Wars Bangkok =-.

By: Talen

Talen — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:28:04 +0000

Cat, it’s commentluv that’s the problem…you may have to register with them to fix it.

As for Thaksin…he has ingrained himself in rural Thailand. A smart move from the beginning . No other politicians would take the time or had the inclination to speak to their needs. And while he used their votes to secure his power he did do right by them…unfortunately while doing so he pocketed large sums of cash.

Abhisit…he may be nicer but he has the same aspirations as any other politician.

By: Catherine

Catherine — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 09:49:49 +0000

I’ve been getting an earful over this issue. But before that happened, I was able to ask three questions.

1) Where did Thaksin, a mere policeman working up the ranks, got all his money?

Response: Thaksin’s family was rich.

2) If Thaksin came from a wealthy family, why did he want to become a policeman?

Response: Power.

3) What about Abhisit?

Response: He’s a nice guy, but he can only talk, talk, talk. He is too young to have gained enough power to run the country.

After that point, the party line came into play: Thaksin loves the people, Thaksin did everything for the people, Thaksin…

(Talen, your commentluv is giving me bad juju…)

By: Talen

Talen — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 07:06:58 +0000

Chuck,
They may not be two different sides completely but they definitely want two different outcomes.

Yup, it’s definitely the cost of doing business…and no doubt Thaksin took that into consideration a long time ago when he started whipping the red shirts into a frenzy in his name. Even if he only walks away with a small portion of his fortune he is a very very rich man.

By: ChuckWow

ChuckWow — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 06:46:01 +0000

I hate to sound cynical but…

“The Supreme Court has no doubt heard from all sides in this matter from the government to Thaksin’s people and it’s a sure bet that everyone involved wants their pound of flesh.”

Are “the government” and “Thaksin’s people” really two different sides ?

“It is very possible that when they hand down the verdict this coming week that they will only seize a portion of Thaksin’s assets and relinquish the balance to the ex Prime Minister.”

That makes it sound more like a bribe and just the cost of doing business.

IMHO This sounds just like politics as usual in America.