Thai army chief leads coup while prime minister away

[thanos]

Yikes.

BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- Tanks and troops patrolled Bangkok late Tuesday after the chief of Thailand's army said the military was taking control of the country.

The coup against the government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is being led by Thai army chief Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin and Thailand's opposition Party of Democratic Reform.

The coup plotters declared martial law and suspended the constitution of the Southeast Asia nation. (Watch tanks roll through the streets of Bangkok -- 3:53)

Thaksin, in New York to address the United Nations, declared a state of emergency and said his government was still in control of the country.

Troops on the streets of the Thai capital had yellow ribbons on their weapons, a sign of loyalty to the nation's king, to whom the coup plotters proclaimed their loyalty.

At least four tanks and a number of armored vehicles were stationed around the royal palace in Bangkok, CNN's Dan Rivers reported. Soldiers were apparently setting up roadblocks and what appeared to be members of the royal guard surrounded the palace.

It was unclear if the soldiers were loyal to the government or to those attempting to seize power.

Two tanks were parked outside the government headquarters, which houses Thaksin's office.

There have been no reports of violence.

Rumors have been swirling in the Thai capital in recent weeks that a coup d'etat was being planned.

Thaksin, who has been under considerable pressure to step down, decided Monday night to reschedule his speech to the U.N. General Assembly for Tuesday night and return to Bangkok afterward, according to U.N. officials. He had originally been scheduled to address the assembly on Wednesday.

Elections in Thailand are scheduled for November after the country's constitutional court ruled that a vote in April vote was unconstitutional.

Thaksin had called for the April elections, three years early, after opponents accused the billionaire leader of abusing the country's system of checks and balances and bending government policy to benefit his family's business.

Thailand has seen dozens of government coups since the end of World War II.

[DJ_Asia]

im at ground zero...in BKK.

There are tanks on the streets,and the military has seized all tv sations and cut off service roughly 2 hours ago.

Amazingly things are fairly calm at the moment,but the streets here are empty,which in BKK is surreal.

Thaksin is en route back from NY and if he has any supporters left in the military to oppose the coup we could have a repeat of 93 when thousands were killed in the streets.

So far so good all things considered.Just another reason to love your TS photographers...and I thought a king cobra in my kitchen was bad...jeez.

[peggygee]

Having been to Southeast Asia, and Thailand on a number of occasions, this deeply saddens me and troubles me.

Thailand is a wonderful country due to many things, it's people, it's history, and it's wondrous geography.

Further Thailand or, 'Land Of Smiles' (LOS) to those of us that know and love her is quite a stabilizing force in that region as well as an economic power.

I trust that there will be a speedy, yet peaceful resolution to this matter.

LOS, you are in my thoughts and prayers.

[Quinn]

In the modern era, Thailand's political landscape has always been fractious, but this is a shock. One of the foreign policy analysis sites I frequently visit mentioned the "rumors" of an impending coup. I completely disregarded it, thinking the author was out of his mind.

I'm completely stunned.

-Quinn

[GroobySteven]

Frankly, something should have happened before now.
They've a crook as a Prime Minister whose stolen millions as well as sold of some of the countries assets to other countries, whom they haven't been able to get rid off - he's recently said he will step down as PM but still be the head of his party - effectively still running the country yet not being able to take the blame.
He's highly disliked throughout the more educated parts of Thailand yet gets rural support by bribary (a chicken for every family was a rally a few years ago).
The faster they end this and get him out of power the better.
I no fan of the King but this was bordering on dictatorship.
seanchai

[AllanahStarrNYC]

I can't help but be very, very scared with DJ in Bangkok at the moment. I hope this has a peaceful resolution.

[hondarobot]

Holy shit, and I thought I was having a bad day.

I'm sure you don't need any advice and are handling things just fine, but I wouldn't be carrying around any cameras in public for awhile. Might get tagged as a journalist or something. These sorts of situations do not favor the press corp.

Watch your back, and keep us posted if possible.

[Quinn]

No doubt, many of us have friends there. Let's hope they all remain safe and keep themselves out of harms way.

DJ Asia, if you can, try and keep us updated as to what you see on the ground.

-Quinn

[BeardedOne]

I know a member of the Thai royal family (A distant cousin) and his tales of family and government intrigue always fascinated (And frightened) me.

Keep your head down, DJ, and watch out for snakes.

[BeardedOne]

BANGKOK, Thailand (Sept. 19) - Thailand's army commander ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a military coup Tuesday night while he was in New York, circling his offices with tanks, declaring martial law and revoking the constitution.

An announcement on national television signed by army Commander-in-Chief Gen. Sondhi Boonyaratkalin ordered all troops to report to their duty stations.

Sondhi, a Muslim in this Buddhist-dominated country, is known to be close to Thailand's revered monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

A senior army general, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said the armed forces chiefs were meeting with the king to discuss forming an interim government, suggesting it would probably be led by civilians.

As soldiers and armored vehicles moved through a drizzly Bangkok, an announcement from the military had earlier declared a provisional authority loyal to the king.

It declared that a "Council of Administrative Reform" had seized power in Bangkok and nearby provinces without any resistance. It recognized the king as head of state.

"The armed forces commander and the national police commander have successfully taken over Bangkok and the surrounding area in order to maintain peace and order. There has been no struggle," the announcement said. "We ask for the cooperation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience."

Thaksin, who has faced calls to step down amid allegations of corruption and abuse of power, was in New York at the U.N. General Assembly, and he declared a state of emergency in an audio statement via a government-owned TV station in Bangkok.

At least 14 tanks surrounded Government House, Thaksin's office. A convoy of four tanks rigged with loudspeakers and sirens rolled through a busy commercial district of Bangkok, warning people to get off the street for their own safety.

Army spokesman Col. Akara Chitroj said Deputy Prime Minister Chitchai Wannasathit had been removed from his post.

An army general, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said Chitchai and Defense Minister Thammarak Isaragura na Ayuthaya - two Thaksin loyalists - had been arrested.

"The government is no longer administering the country," Akara said.

In a vain attempt to stave off the coup, Thaksin in his state-of-emergency declaration from New York had ordered Sondhi to report to Chitchai immediately, effectively dismissing him.

Thaksin, who had been scheduled to address the General Assembly on Wednesday night, switched his speech to Tuesday at 7 p.m. EDT.

The coup went largely unnoticed in Bangkok's popular tourist districts, where foreigners packed bars and cabarets, oblivious to the activity about two miles away. But word raced among street vendors hawking T-shirts, who packed up their carts quickly and started heading home.

Hundreds of people gathered at Government House taking pictures of themselves with the tanks.

"I don't agree with the coup, but now that they've done it, I support it because Thaksin has refused to resign from his position," said university student Sasiprapha Chantawong. "Allowing Thaksin to carry on will ruin the country more than this. The reputation of the country may be somewhat damaged, but it's better than letting Thaksin stay in power."

The White House said it was monitoring the events.

Frederick Jones, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said President Bush's national security advisers had seen various reports of military movements as well as reports of a declaration of a state of emergency.

"We are monitoring developments closely, but the situation at the moment is unclear," Jones said. "We look to the Thai people to resolve their political differences in a peaceful manner and in accordance with principles of democracy and rule of law."

Former Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai, and a member of the opposition Democrat Party, said Thaksin had forced the military to act.

"As politicians, we do not support any kind of coup but during the past five years, the government of Thaksin created several conditions that forced the military to stage the coup. Thaksin has caused the crisis in the country," he told The Associated Press.

It was the first coup in Thailand since 1992, when an attempt by Prime Minister Suchinda Kraprayoon, a military general, to retain power was countered by mass street demonstrations and Suchinda's ouster. After that, the military vowed to remain in its barracks, in contrast to earlier decades when military coups were a staple of Thai politics.

Tuesday's coup came a day before a major rally - the first in months - was to take place in Bangkok by a anti-Thaksin coalition.

Massive rallies earlier this year forced Thaksin to dissolve Parliament and call an election in April, three years early. The poll was boycotted by the opposition and later annulled by Thailand's top courts, leaving it without a working legislature.

Thaksin's Thai Rak Thai Party twice won landslide election victories, in 2001 and 2005 and had been expected to win the next vote on Oct. 15, bolstered by its widespread support in the country's rural areas.

In March, Sondhi sought to ease speculation the military might join the political fray, as it last did in 1992 and more than a dozen other times during earlier crises.

"The army will not get involved in the political conflict. Political troubles should be resolved by politicians," Sondhi said at the time, echoing comments of other top military officials. "Military coups are a thing of the past."

On Monday, Thaksin had said he might step down as leader of Thailand after the upcoming elections but would remain as partly leader, despite calls for him to give up the post.

The first sign of the coup came when army-owned TV channel 5 interrupted regular broadcasts with patriotic music and showed pictures of the king. Later, several hundred soldiers were deployed at government installations and major intersections in Bangkok.

Thaksin's critics wanted to jettison his policies promoting privatization, free trade agreements and CEO-style administration.

Opposition to Thaksin gained momentum in January when his family announced it had sold its controlling stake in telecommunications company Shin Corp. to Singapore's state-owned Temasek Holdings for a tax-free $1.9 billion. Critics allege the sale involved insider trading and complained a key national asset moved to foreign hands.

Thaksin also has been accused of stifling the media and mishandling a Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand that flared under his rule.

In the mostly Muslim south, separatist insurgents have waged a bloody campaign that has left at least 1,700 dead, mostly civilians, since 2004. Citizens there have complained of rights abuses by soldiers and discrimination by the country's Buddhist majority.

Bhumibol, a 78-year-old constitutional monarch with limited powers, has used his prestige to pressure opposing parties to compromise during political crises. He is credited with helping keep Thailand more stable than many of its Southeast Asian neighbors.

He is the world's longest-serving monarch, celebrated his 60th year on the throne with lavish festivities in June that were attended by royalty from around the world.

Many Thais had been counting on him to pull the country through its political crisis, which has left it with no functioning legislature and only a caretaker government after the inconclusive election.

Bhumibol was born in Cambridge, Mass. He became the ninth king of Thailand's Chakri dynasty on June 9, 1946, succeeding his older brother, Ananda, killed by an unexplained shooting.

Since then, he has reigned through a score of governments, democratic and dictatorial. He has taken an especially active role in rural development.

In 1992, demonstrators against a military strongman were gunned down before the king stepped in to end the fighting and usher in a period of stability.



AP-ES-09-19-06 1449EDT

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

[peggygee]

Region under discussion


http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2/magi43/map-southeast-asia2.jpg

[Paladin]

Folks this is yet another muslim attempt to overthrow a government:

"The coup against the government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is being led by Thai army chief Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin and Thailand's opposition Party of Democratic Reform. "

This general is a muslim. all but one conflict in the world currently is between muslins their neighboors either internally or externally.

If he stays in power, you can all say goodbye to your planned trips over there!?!

[GroobySteven]

Folks this is yet another muslim attempt to overthrow a government:

"The coup against the government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is being led by Thai army chief Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin and Thailand's opposition Party of Democratic Reform. "

This general is a muslim. all but one conflict in the world currently is between muslins their neighboors either internally or externally.

If he stays in power, you can all say goodbye to your planned trips over there!?!

Uninformed, uneducated, bigotted IDIOT.

[BlackAdder]

So im not sure if this is good or bad???

[AllanahStarrNYC]

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The United States has urged Americans to reconsider any travel to Thailand while Britain told its citizens living there to stay in their homes, after the Thai military toppled the country's prime minister in a coup.

Japan and Australia advised citizens to be extremely careful in the Thai capital, where tanks surrounded government offices, and to avoid political rallies or concentrations of military personnel.

"In light of the very uncertain political situation and apparent military-led takeover of the government, we strongly advise Australians to reconsider their need to travel to Thailand until the situation is clarified," the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.

It asked those already in the capital to stay at home, and monitor the media.

The U.S. Embassy, in an e-mail to its citizens living in Thailand, said that while there had been no reports of violence in the overnight coup, Americans should "monitor the situation closely, avoid any large gatherings and exercise discretion when moving about the city."

"At this point, we are not advising Americans to leave Thailand; however, Americans planning to travel to Thailand may wish to carefully consider their options before traveling until the situation becomes clearer."

Britain's Foreign Office, in a notice on its Web site, warned that movement in the capital may be curtailed due to the imposition of martial law that came as Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was in New York attending the U.N General Assembly.

Japan and Singapore issued similar notices through their Foreign Ministries that urged nationals to remain in "safe" locations in the capital and avoid places of potential disturbances, such as the palace and government buildings.

South Korea advised its citizens against visiting Thailand, saying the situation remains "volatile."

New Zealand also warned its citizens in Thailand to be careful when moving around the city.

"Don't go sightseeing around government buildings. If a curfew is imposed -- and there is talk of a curfew -- then it should be respected," Ambassador Brook Barrington told Radio New Zealand in Wellington.

The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was assessing whether to change its advisory for Thailand.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[BrendaQG]

The comments on Islam being intolerant of transsexuals beg for me to reply. Instead of writing a especially long rebuttal I will just give you all some links. :-|

First the fact that transsexuality is permitted in Iran, they do not allow one to flat out say they will "never" have surgery. They believe that SRS is required of a Muslim who is found to have GID by a competent Muslim doctor. The medically prescribed treatment for what ails us. Wikipedia:Transsexuality in Iran (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transsexuality_in_Iran) The surgeons who perform SRS in Iran study in Thailand before going back to Iran. Reputedly Tehran has about as many transsexuals as any city in the world.

The second fact that this acceptance is rooted in the Muslim traditions by way of stories of how Muhammad interacted (called "ahadith") with people we would understand as being transsexual if they were around now. Wikipedia:Mukhannathun (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mukhannathun) "'A mukhannath is the one ("male") who carries in his movements, in his appearance and in his language the characteristics of a woman...." Sounds like how a 12th century person would describe a transsexual to me. That link goes on to tell one of those stories of how Muhammad protected such a person from an angry mob.

Hence transsexuals can be found in Cairo, Istanbul, even Mecca they just won't be posting pics anytime soon.

I will not kid you there is a catch. Muslim transsexuals have to live under the same restrictions as Muslim women. We are however allowed a bit more freedom of movement than a woman.


So if Sharia is imposed in Thailand here is what you can expect to see.

Practically Zero sex tourism from the west. However if the ruler is a Shiite they do have a form of legal sex work in Shia Islam. But only Muslim men would be able to partake of that.

No more open homosexuality. No more man like katoey's. Islam will not let one ride the fence on this matter. Must be TS or be quiet.

No more transsexuals performing in cabarets, or as strippers or anything erotic. Because while being Ts is not a sin, not forbidden the prophet on several occasions cursed them for their erotic singing and dancing (nothing new under the sun eh?. See here Cursed by the Prophet?: (http://www.geocities.com/leylasuhagi/prophet.html)).

They may not require the non Muslim inhabitants to live by the Sharia law. The Buddhist are (at least by Muslims in India) considered people of the book which would afford them some protection.

What you would not see:
Transsexuals being killed or harmed in any way as a matter of state policy.
SRS would still be performed though the chaos of the moment would make travel there for that very risky.

Plus there is the fact the place will probably be in a civl war now with the mostly Muslim south and the mostly Buddhist north facing off. This has been brewing for a while.

When this is over perhaps there will be less overall "sex tourism" in that area. I have heard some horror stories of women being brought here to Chicago to be sex slaves and such. Perhaps now that will stop for good.

One final thought. Please do not jump to conclusions about Islam based soley on the fundamentalist. I mean Gen Musharraf of Pakistan is a Muslim leading the only Muslim country that has the H-bomb. Yet Pakistan has been a US ally for 40-50 years. They have plenty of radicals. In fact it is where Bin-laden probably is. Yet have one of those H-bombs been give to Al-quaeda? No. Have we been attacked with such a weapon? No. So just calm the heck down. Ok.

Happy 27th of Sha-ban 1427 AH. Ramadan is only three days away! Do your shopping now :-)

[DJ_Asia]

Folks this is yet another muslim attempt to overthrow a government:

"The coup against the government of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is being led by Thai army chief Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin and Thailand's opposition Party of Democratic Reform. "

This general is a muslim. all but one conflict in the world currently is between muslins their neighboors either internally or externally.

If he stays in power, you can all say goodbye to your planned trips over there!?!

Man this has zero to do w/ Muslims.

The main beef is this guy has been running the country like his own private business and sold the top Thai communication company to a Singapore based company for 1.6 billion usd and did it in his kids names,thus avoiding paying ANY taxes,and putting ahuge Thai company in foreign hands.

Oddly if all coups were as non lethal as this one has been so far it might happen more often.
Martial law has been imposed here,and the streets are pretty empty,but its still business as usual.just on a smaller scale.
Tomorrow im gonna hire a car an go take photos of this coup up close...if you dont hear from me..I got blown up by a pissed off tank commander.

DJ Asia

[Quinn]

Man this has zero to do w/ Muslims.

No doubt. The Thai army is currently working to contain a growing Muslim insurgency/terrorist campaign in the south of the country. It It hardly seems logical that the army, whose senior officers are overwhelmingly Buddhist, would follow a commander acting to further Muslim interests at the expense of the nation's dominant culture.



Tomorrow im gonna hire a car an go take photos of this coup up close...if you dont hear from me..I got blown up by a pissed off tank commander.

Be safe, and if you get pics, post them

Also, as a side note, I noticed the army changed its tune to now state that it intends to retain control for an entire year, after which it will supposedly return state control to civilian institutions. It looks like they are following, step by step, the military dictator’s play book. Musharraf and other dictators have all said the same thing at different times -- with few of them ever keeping their word . I would hate to see Thailand go the way of Myanmar.

-Quinn

[BeardedOne]

DJ, any news from the front?

The whole thing is getting so little coverage at this end that it seems like little more than a blip on the radar of world issues in the eyes of the media. Even after a brief dip, the markets rebounded and moved on to other worries.

Last I heard, the King had urged cooperation with the interim government and things were getting back to normal (Or as normal as they can be with tanks rolling around town).

[GroobySteven]

From "The Nation", one of Thailand's English language newspapers and makes for an interesting read although I agree with the email I got of this posting, there is a lot of conjecture.

Sonthi outsmarted Thaksin at the eleventh hour


Had Council for Democratic Reform under Constitutional Monarchy (CDRM) leader General Sonthi Boonyaratglin not moved as fast as he did to stage a coup on Tuesday, Thaksin Shinawatra would have launched his own coup a day later. Don't be fooled by Thaksin's claim that he stands for democracy.
As the political crisis developed to the point of no return concerning whether Thaksin should stay or be booted out, General Sonthi had no choice but to swallow his words about the days of military coups being over. He had been very reluctant to resort to a coup, as he was known not to have any political ambitions. Moreover, he was not known to be an enemy of Thaksin. Although General Sonthi has a good relationship with both Privy Council President General Prem Tinsulanonda and Privy Council member General Surayuth Chulanont, he came to power partly due to a political compromise struck with Thaksin.
However, an intelligence report reached General Sonthi's camp stating that there would be bloodshed on Wednesday. The People's Alliance for Democracy had planned to hold a political rally that day at the Royal Plaza in order to force Thaksin out of politics. Had that rally taken place, there would have been clashes between the People's Alliance for Democracy and Thaksin's supporters and blood would have been spilt on Rajdamnoen Avenue . If only Thaksin had promised that he would take a break from politics and allow a period of political reforms to take place, the PAD and other branches of the anti-Thaksin movement would have declared victory. All political confrontations would have subsided. Thaksin could have run for office once the Constitution was amended, and he would have been returned to the premier's post, probably in the latter part of next year.
However, Thaksin never considered taking a break from power. Again, don't be fooled by his "taking a break" story - the idea never crossed his mind.
The General Sonthi camp learned that during the PAD rally, Yongyuth Tiyapairat and Newin Chidchob were planning to rally their supporters to create an ugly scene at the Royal Plaza . During the ensuing commotion, there would be human casualties. Thaksin would then have stepped in and declared a state of emergency, placing the country under martial law.
Now you can understand why he had time to prepare his state of emergency statement and read it at 9.20pm on Channel 9 from his New York hotel room. You can also understand why Yongyuth and Newin are now at the top of this country's most-wanted list and have surrendered themselves to the CDRM for interrogation.
Once the situation was under his complete control, Thaksin had planned to fly back yesterday in order to declare victory over anti-democratic elements in society. He had a military reshuffle list in hand that would have further consolidated his control over the military. With that accomplished, everything would have been easy. Virtually all institutions in the country would have been under his directive.
From his New York hotel, Thaksin was preparing to deliver an address at the UN Assembly. The room instead turned out to be the headquarters from which he attempted to launch a counter-coup and negotiate a political settlement. In New York , he planned to recruit top-notch American political consultants to advise him on his political campaign for the next election, which would have been pushed back from October 15 to some time in November.
Thaksin's talk of taking a break from politics was simply lip service. He told the Thai public he would decide whether to take a break from politics only after his Thai Rak Thai went to the Election Commission to register as candidates. This means Thaksin would have liked His Majesty the King to endorse a new election date before he made his decision.
Members of the Thai elite and the PAD, however, would not allow this to happen. If Thaksin were to run in the next election, he would have won. With 12 million votes or so, he would have claimed a democratic majority and he also would have stayed on as prime minister. After that he could rewrite Thai history by turning Thailand into his own regime.
General Sonthi had to act fast to head off Thaksin's coup. He staged a military coup on Tuesday, a day before the bloodshed was set to take place. He and Thaksin did have a telephone conversation on Tuesday evening, with Thaksin trying to buy time and negotiate a settlement.
He told General Sonthi that if he kept his cool, Thaksin would take a break from politics. He asked Sonthi to wait until he returned from New York so that the two could talk things out and said that he would reschedule his return flight to Bangkok to Wednesday, instead of yesterday as he had planned.
General Sonthi was polite, but told him that he had no choice, that he had to stage the coup.
In the meantime, Thaksin was checking on his military allies, who had control of Bangkok , for the most part. He remained certain that in a military power play, he could still emerge the victor. Maj-General Prin Suwannathat, commander of the First Infantry Brigade, is a close ally of Thaksin and he holds the most powerful military post in Bangkok . The commanders of the Air Force and the Navy are also good friends of Thaksin.
General Sonthi had the support of Lt-General Saphrang Kalayanamit of the Third Army, who had been outspoken in his anti-Thaksin remarks. The Third Army is in charge of all military operations in the North. Another key ally of Gen Sonthi is Lt-General Anupong Phaochinda of the First Infantry Division in Bangkok . Maj-General Sanit Prommas, the commander of the Second Cavalry Brigade, also came to play an important role in the power play to seize the capital.
Troops from Prachin Buri and Lop Buri were also mobilised to the capital to assist in the coup, the decisive outcome of which was ironically the victory of thaharn ban nok (upcountry military).
As it turned out, all of Thaksin's military allies, most notably Maj-General Prin, had been marked out - they could not move. General Ruengroj Mahasaranont, the supreme commander and a Thaksin ally, was to look after Bangkok once Thaksin had declared martial law. He too was subdued. Chidchai Vanasatidya and Prommin Lertsuridej were unable to launch any sort of counter effort.
Thaksin's wife Khunying Pojaman Shinawatra was supposed to take a 12am flight to Singapore on Tuesday night. She quickly changed her flight to 9pm. Well, Gen Sonthi had to let her off the hook.
Twenty-five minutes later, knowing that his wife was safely on an aircraft bound for Singapore , Thaksin read out his state of emergency address from his New York hotel room, effectively sacking General Sonthi.
But an hour later, General Sonthi declared a counter-coup to overthrow the Thaksin regime and tear up the Constitution.
The rest is history.
Thanong Khanthong
The Nation

[hondarobot]

You didn't space the paragraphs in an easily readible way.

It will never be read by pretty much anyone. I'm just saying, look at it.

I'm going to bed.

:?

[GroobySteven]

Go to bed and be quiet, it's paragraphed properly (as it was in the newspaper) it just doesn't have spaces between them, I read it easily enough.
seanchai

[hondarobot]

It reads like crap, look at it. Just my opinion.

Good night.

[GroobySteven]

It reads like crap, look at it. Just my opinion.

Good night.
So you said - have another drink and maybe it will make more sense, it was aimed at people with an interest in what was going on there - not in babbling on about themselves.
seanchai

[hondarobot]

Doh! You had to hit me where it hurts. You think I dont wish I was drunk right now?

Going to bed now, pretty much sober. Thanks for the salt in the wounds. . . ya English bastard.

:P

[GroobySteven]

Here's a little help.

[Quinn]

An interesting article. If it's true, then the Thai military might be compared to Turkey's military over the last two decades: using distinctly anti-democratic means to protect/restore a previously compromised democratic process. Time will tell. Articles like this often start to appear after a military coup, usually being fabricated propaganda to help justify the act.

Like most people, I wasn't sad to see the former PM go, but this coup makes me uneasy. Thailand has come a long way and, until recently, seemed assured of a prosperous future.

-Quinn

[DJ_Asia]

Update

Things here are running pretty normally...im doing photo shoots,still havent had a chance to take some good coup pics,but I will as soon as i can.

The commoners here seem to be either divided or more often,simply ambivilent towards the whole thing.And although martial law has been imposed people are pretty much going about their lives as normally.

The only real concern here is that the military wont relinquish power as promised.We shall see..when I get back to my island i will upload some pics.

DJ Asia