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News and Views - May 2007
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)White elephant monument - May 15, 2007
From the placard at the right, title of this "arch" is "The arch of elephants of the King's grandeur." It further explains how the white elephant is very important for King and Nation and notes: If we find many white elephants in the age of King a it show the king's grandeur... and for this present King we found 21 elephants.
The Searchers - Nation Weekly, May 18, 2007
The Searchers... The chicken must fight - people must choose.
[Somsak Thepsutin sits on a fighting cock in a pose from the classic western, The Searchers. Somsak was labor minister in the TRT government and leader of the opportunistic Wang Nam Yom faction of politicians. This grouping will be a key faction in the future and is currently searching for a leader or configuration or partner to lead it in the next elections.]
"Spiderman Returns" - Nation Weekly, May 4, 2007
The caption to this graphic reads "Spiderman Returns."
Today is Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's birthday. It is expected that if he is to lead a new TRT party in lieu of Thaksin, one's birthday is an auspicious day for such an announcement.
Government officials wish a happy new year - May 20, 2007
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Happy New Year 2007 - Wishing you happiness and success in many years to come - By executives, council members and staff of Tambon Ta Madua Municipality [Songkhla Province]
Earthquake felt in Bangkok - May 16, 2007
Employee flee buildings in downtown Bangkok
Aftershock could be followed: Smith
Location of quake
Quake details
Chiang Mai, Bangkok feel powerful earthquake
Christian leaders back Thai move on AIDS drugs - Episcopal News Service, May 15, 2007
...In a May 4 letter urging Christian groups to support the Thai government's measures, the CCA was strongly critical of the U.S. decision. "Their action serves commercial interest only, and disregards the right to basic health care and right to life," stated the CCA, whose headquarters are at Chiang Mai in Thailand...
Earlier: USA for Innovation
City blinded by money in race to bind Thais - Man City should think twice before accepting Thaksin Shinawatra's millions - The Guardian blogs, May 23, 2007
...A spokesman for Seymour Pierce, which stands to make considerable fees if the deal goes ahead, said Thaksin's record had been considered:
"The information we have is that Thaksin was a successful and popular prime minister who was removed by a military coup. There are strict rules on money laundering and politically exposed persons, and we and all the professional advisers are satisfied we are able to act for Thaksin Shinawatra..."
IP in Thailand: Who's the Real Pirate? - Washington Post, May, 2007
Once an epicenter of the AIDS epidemic, Thailand won international acclaim in recent years for its aggressive health campaign to address HIV, reducing the...
The exclusive quality of being Thai - Bangkok Post, May 24, 2007
...The picture, splashed on the front page of a Thai-language newspaper, shows 19-year-old Miss Thailand, Fahroong Yutitham, in a colourful, navel-displaying costume that has the ethnic Hmong look, complete with Hmong-like headgear and silver ornaments.
Such a costume, the caption states, has stirred many to question whether it should be called a national Thai dress or not. The answer was quickly forthcoming from the culture police.
No, this is definitely not a Thai national dress, said Ladda Tangsupachai, director of the Cultural Surveillance Centre of the Culture Ministry.
The Thai national dress, she stressed, must be Thai. It also must be in line with the official, royal designs and it must be used for proper occasions. She also criticised Ms Fahroong for failing to do her duty as Miss Thailand to show the outside world an authentic national Thai dress.
Furthermore, wearing an ethnic dress but calling it Thai could confuse young Thai minds and set a bad example for the youngsters to emulate...
Drug addicts vomit out their ills in Thai monastery - Reuters, May 24, 2007
Sex slave victim wins abuse claim - The Age, May 28, 2007
...Thai woman Jetsadophorn Chaladone, known as "Ning", yesterday told The Age of the success of her compensation claim for the sexual abuse she suffered at a Sydney brothel in 1995, aged 13. Ning, now 25, said she hoped her story would raise awareness about sex slavery...
Hard times in Thailand
Man suffers Thai kidnap ordeal - ic Wales, May 31, 2007
After falling in love and marrying a 25-year-old Thai woman he met in a bar, divorced Gareth returned to South Wales to sell his business and home so he...
Blackburn man 'murdered' in Thailand - This Is Lancashire, June 1, 2007
An East Lancashire man has been murdered after he was mown down by his girlfriend on a road in Thailand, say police. Michael Butcher, from Blackburn...
Mobile phone: a drama in three acts - Chang Noi, May 28, 2007
...Over its 15 years under Shin management, AIS generated 97 billion baht of net profit (74 billion under Thaksin’s premiership). Economists have tried to calculate how much of its value was due to political influence. A TDRI study estimated about a third. Maybe the figure is nearer forty percent. That is how much the market value of Shin Corp has dropped since the day of the sale. The loss is around US$ 1.7 billion.
That suggests however much Thaksin might have invested in politics – in buying bureaucrats, communications ministers, MPs, political parties, voters, or judges – it looks like it was worth it. As long as the family can hold onto it. That’s the sequel...
Thai Prison Life.com - May 31, 2007
Richard Barrow: It might not be anything, but I think we will also have a problem with our www.ThaiPrisonLife.com site. I am being summoned to the prison tomorrow.
The next day: I think things went better than expected. It would seem that they were concerned about the pictures on the website that showed life INSIDE the prison. The Ministry of Corrections in Bangkok thought that one of the prisoners had a camera and was secretly taking pictures! And then had these smuggled out. They kept asking him how he got these pictures out.
As you can see, we have sourced those pictures as corrections.go.th which is the Ministry's own website! All of the other pictures taken from the outside are our own and were taken openly.
Secondly, Gor said that the last few days the guards have been hassling him about what he had written in his prison blogs. None of them can read English and I presume they are worried that he might have written something bad about them. He tried to assure them that he only wrote the truth and that in fact he has said that his guards are kind.
They know that Gor has just published his autobiography ("Thailand Life" which is available in Asia Books) and that he is presently writing the second volume which will be about prison life...
More from thai-blogs.com about Thai prisons: A Foreigner in a Thai Court - Part 1 and The Thai Court System - Part 2
Thai smokers a dying breed - EARTHtimes.org, May 28, 2007
Thailand's cigarette smokers are on the decline as a result of strict enforcement of seven anti-smoking laws and effective awareness campaigns, media reports said Tuesday. The number of Thai smokers over age 15 has fallen from 11.7 million in 1987 to 9.54 million this year, an 18.5 per cent decline, according to Manit Theeratantikanont, deputy permanent secretary to the Public Health Ministry...
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)Democrat Party poster in Songkhla Province - May 29, 2007
It reads: Democrat Party - Our Party, Our People - People Come First - Naris Khamnurak
Thai products, franchise draw much attention in Cambodia - TNA, May 20, 2007
Thai products and franchises have drawn a lot of attention from local people and businesspersons in Cambodia since their quality is recognised, according to Deputy Commerce Minister Oranuj Osathanont...
HTMS Nakha sets off on its last voyage of an interesting life - The Nation, May 23, 2007
After serving for more than six decades in the navies of three countries, a US-made warship recently decommissioned from the Royal Thai Navy departed Thailand yesterday - heading back to its home nation to serve as an historic showpiece at a naval museum...
Shinawatradio.com - May 19, 2007
MiniVDO: The Thai Navy ran operation drills to rescue supposedly kidnapped VIPs from a terrorist’s boat - ThaisNews, May 28, 2007
Drug raids continue in Bangkok - Bangkok Recorder, May 27, 2007
...So far, popular spots like Nanglen and Zantika have been raided, but authorities come away empty-handed. Fifty officers from Suttisan police station were also sent to search customers at Baan Mai Sadsaeng Deon bar but found nothing...
She's best friend to rapist, killers - Electric New Paper, May 28, 2007
The maximum-security prison is infamously dubbed the 'Bangkok Hilton' and also the 'Big Tiger' because those who enter seldom emerge alive...
Thai version of YouTube: SiamTube
[We are wondering how YouTube can be ripped off so totally--right down to exact look of the site.]
They talked BUSINESS but ended up KISSING - Electric New Paper, May 27, 2007
Marriage, an autobiography and a Thai version of YouTube is very much on the mind of former MTV babe Sonia Couling...
ADB and Thailand Enter Historic New Partnership - ADB, May 25, 2007
ADB and Thailand have entered into a five-year Country Partnership Strategy, the first ever of its type forged by ADB and a middle-income country...
Thai generals ask former assassin to be security adviser - IHT, May 25, 2007
Do not adjust your Net - the bizarre way the world sees Thailand - The Nation, May 26, 2007
...Working on the Internet, I am often dumbstruck at some of the questions I get asked by potential travellers to Thailand: "Steve, can I buy shampoo and toothpaste in Thailand or must I bring my own?" Or: "Excuse me Steve, if I eat on the street will I get food poisoning?" "Certainly", I reply, "and don't forget, when travelling north, the only mode of transportation is elephant".
Or how about this one I was told by a newly arrived backpacker, and I am not joking: "I heard that if I wanna score some dope I should go to the back of any police station and ask some dodgy-looking cop"...
Earlier: World press on the John Mark Karr incident
"Sukothai" hairstyle - May 26, 2007
A thread on this photo is here.
Right: ... "Sukothai," a three-tiered chignon designed by Mrs. Aruni Thongnopona of Ana Salon from Bangkok Annual Review Magazine, 1965
Baiyoke panorama - May 26, 2007
A thread on the panorama is here.
Mike writes: Here's a nice panorama from Bangkok's biggest tower to day.
Mike's other sites: Thailand Travel - Koh Chang - Thailand Imge - Sweden Stockholm for Thai in Thai
Old Paknam Prison and the Paknam Tower - ThaiBlogs.com, May 19, 2007
A reader points out: The Paknam Tower (the English name seems to be "Education National Park and View Tower" which is a bit pathetic) is being built on the grounds of the old Pakam Prison.
Also: Foundation stone ceremony pictures
"Bomb storehouse" - Khao Sod, May 17, 2007
Left: The police carry evidence of bombs and ASTV sharing document found in the room of Sribumroonmuang Apartment , Jaransanitwong 53, Bangkok that Mr. Sompong In-ngam and Mrs. Ruthaichanokor Panisara Sapasukdee were renting.
Also: Not sure if this is the same person, but there is a mention of a Sompong Inngam here.
"Thaksin voice" from overseas takes community radio station off the air - TNA, May 17, 2007
...Officials of the government's Public Relations Department (PRD) raided community radio station 87.75 FM and termed it closed for an indefinite period after it had broadcast the alleged voice of Mr. Thaksin for about nine minutes Wednesday night...
Right: American Soldiers drink the snake blood for fun after a Thai marine demonstrated how to catch the snake and survive in the forest. This is during the Cobra Gold practice at Ban Jankhasem field, Chantaburi Province, May 15.
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
I'm a man - May 16, 2007
Amusing advertising campaign from Robinsons
First airport express train - May 12, 2007
Svein writes: The first airport-expresstrain, based on Siemens Desiro UK , is finished and undergoes test at Siemens in Krefeld-Uerdingen, Germany. This train will arrive Bangkok in early October, 2007.
"Subway systems of the world, presented on the same scale" - May 10, 2007
Curtis points out this fantastic page showing relative scales of subway systems in different countries and asks: I wonder if there's a to-scale map of the Bangkok Metro available?
KONE delivers elevators to bangkok's tallest residential building - Kauppalehti, May 15, 2007
...KONE has won an order for the supply and installation of all the elevators in a prestige condominium development in Bangkok, Thailand, called the MET. When completed, the MET will be the tallest residential building in Bangkok...
Oyster find 'proves Bangkok was under the sea' - ABC Online, May 15, 2007
A giant oyster shell thought to be more than 5000 years old has been found in a Bangkok suburb, supporting the theory that the Thai capital was once under...
How to avoid financial crisis a la Thailand 1997 - China Daily, May 15, 2007
The financial unrest a decade ago was triggered by Thailand's announcement that it would drop its fixed exchange rate and let the currency float starting ...
Elephant hospital - May, 2007
Via Friskodude: A Russian website recently posted an outstanding series of black-and-white photos of an elephant hospital, presumable in Thailand, but since I can't read Cyrillic, who knows? Do check out the elephant ass photo as well as the elephant in chains.
Asia's rise in Caesarean sections? It's in the stars - IHT, May 9, 2007
[Thanks to Danny for pointing this out.]
...Caesarean rates have been known to spike on the eve of major holidays. One recent example was April 12, the day before the start of Thailand's Songkran festival, a time of family gatherings, which this year amounted to five days off. At Phayathai 3, a private hospital in Bangkok, the number of Caesareans rose to eight, compared with the usual rate of three or four a day, said Supakorn Phawanna, a hospital spokesman. Supakorn said patients chose Caesareans because they wanted to "have relatives and friends visit their baby during the long holiday..."
Thai firms receive low scores on environment - Bangkok Post, May 14, 2007
Thai businesses rank poorly in terms of energy and environmental management, according to the consultancy Grant Thornton International. Thailand received a score of just 178 out of 600, or second to last to Singapore...
Oxen disagree on harvest forecast - BBC, May 2007
[Thanks to Danny for pointing this out.]
Oxen in Thailand and Cambodia make their predictions about the coming harvest, but their forecasts disagree...
Dispersing the mob - Daily News, May 14, 2007
The caption reads: Dispersing the mob: Police and volunteers break up the mob who seized the palm plantation of Thaksin Palm Company (2521) limited in Amphor Kiriratnikom, Surat Thani. These people were decieved that the land was to be given away by the government.
Up, up and away - rare vulture returns to the wild - The Nation, May 11, 2007
Anakin, a rare Black Himalayan vulture nurtured back to health, was released yesterday morning in the wild near Burma in the hope that it would find its own way back to nesting grounds in China and Mongolia...
Deryng stays with value stocks in Thailand, Asia's worst market - Bloomberg, May 16, 2007
Petri Deryng arrived in Thailand from his native Finland in 1998, less than a year after a 45 percent plunge in the Thai baht triggered a regional financial crisis and the worst recession in 30 years. He started buying stocks...
Thailand's lady-boy industry going strong - EARTHtimes, May 16, 2007
... "Thai society allows katoeys to show off, so we have become a country with the most katoeys in the world," Vanlop said...
Nth Koreans flee on "underground railway" to Thailand - Reuters, May 16, 2007
When they first set foot on Thai soil, North Korean refugees breath a sigh of relief -- the threat of being sent back to torture and even death is over...
Blackpool man's Thai jail hell - This Is Lancashire, May, 2007
Mr Davies, whose Thai wife died while he was in prison, survived a stroke and an infection which nearly led to his foot being amputated...
In A General's Opinion (1968) - Thai Blogs, May, 2007
Rare soft-shell turtle found in Cambodia - Fish Update, May, 2007
CI Wildlife Biologist David Emmett was a member of the survey team that discovered the rare Cantor’s giant soft-shell turtle (Pelochelys cantorii) in Cambodia’s Mekong River...
New frog species found in Loei - The Nation, May 23, 2007
'Exported' tiger kills its Thai keeper in China zoo - Bangkok Post, May 22, 2007
A tiger at a zoo in south China, apparently agitated during the mating season, attacked and killed a Thai zoo keeper who had looked after the animal for years...
Ferocious Thai insects devour fish - MSNBC, May 21, 2007
Entomologists have discovered 50 new species of insects in Thailand, some of which are water bugs large enough to eat small fish-and inflict...
Pressure to rebuild Stilwell Road, from Assam to Yunnan - AsiaNews, May 19, 2007
Pressure to rebuild Stilwell Road, from Assam to Yunnan China India Myanmar road trade goods poverty development world war two military junta 1.736 kilometres long, the road was built during Second World War by the allies to bring supplies to China at war with Japanese invaders...
More on laying of the foundations tone of the Paknam Tower - Thai Blogs, May 19, 2007
Thailand's new Miss Tiffany foresees "lady boy" premier - Monsters and Critics, May 12, 2007
Thanyaras Jiraphatphakorn, after predicting that Thailand may one day have a 'lady boy' for prime minister, was crowned the new Miss Tiffany Universe early Saturday morning at the country's oldest transvestite beauty pageant...
Expats a political force in Spain - BBC, May 12, 2007
Independent political parties dominated by expatriates - many of them British - are campaigning for the first time in Spain's local elections...
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)Mobile protest - May 19, 2007
12:09 - "No to the constitution" group speaking to Saturday shopping crowds around Victory Monument.
15-minute blackout - May 15, 2007
A bit late, but here are the promotional posters for last Friday's 15-minute blackout.Right: 9 May - 4 p.m. at Central World - Stop increase the global warming for Bangkok - Contest to decrease the electricity cost to get the big benefit - The hot world... you can solve.
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)Left: 9 May 16.00-20.00 at Central World - Stop the increased heat for Bangkok - Switch off electricity for 15 minutes for our Bangkok.
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)Prem billboard in the south
It reads: Honoring statesman Gen. Prem Tinsulanonda - Prem Tinsulanonda, a Songkhla local, is a statesman who revere religions, the nation, and the King - Utis Chuchuay, Chairman of Songkhla Municipality
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)Bangkok sunset - 6:49pm, May 26, 2007
"Bangkok - Street view" - May 26, 2007
Somewhat fanciful view of downtown Bangkok from The Earth and its Inhabitants - Asia (India and Indochina) by Elisee Reclus, published D. Appleton and Company, 1891
Wise Kwai's Thai Film Journal - May 10, 2007
Thailand's 'Condom King' girds for new battle against AIDS - AFP, May 6, 2007
..."You've heard the saying, winning the battle and losing the war. Now this may happen in Thailand," he says.
"We have seen a 90 percent decline in infections. Terrific. It's just that now it's beginning to turn up again. Over the last three years, public education in Thailand by the Ministry for Public Health has almost been zilch.
"Younger generations are now saying, is AIDS still around? We thought it was gone. That's why we're not using condoms anymore. It's entirely tragic. We've done it, and now we just let it fall, fall back," he says...
Tourist abducts Thai elephant - ImediNews, May 1, 2007
...Ben-Hamo was convicted of kidnapping the elephant -- the animal is the national symbol of Thailand -- and holding it hostage, the report said. Local media reports indicted Ben-Hamo was let off with a small fine.
We Are Human Beings! We Demand a Better World! We Will Not Accept Slavery in Any Form! - Revolutionary Communist Party, USA, May 1, 2007
...The world cries out for revolution. From the unjust war launched by the U.S. in Iraq, to the children slaving in sweatshops in Pakistan. From the sex trade in Thailand, to the gunning down of Black youth by the police in the streets of U.S. cities...
Buddha doormat - May 9, 2007
Fredrik writes: Have you see this doorcarpet to scratch your dirty shoes off, so terrible... Check www.vigar.com
The struggle to save classic Thai architecture - IHT, May 7, 2007
Putting the 'bang' in Bangkok - Dallas Voice, May 3, 2007
Former go-go boy Dannee Phann becomes a party philanthropist, supporting the very life he’s toned down in recent years...
Coroner critical of Thai pool death inquiry - Stuff.co.nz, May 1, 2007
The Wellington coroner has taken the unusual step of criticising a foreign police investigation into a New Zealander's fatal fall into a Thai hotel pool...
U.S. puts 29 foreign properties on the market - Fox News, April 30, 2007
...If commercial space is what you need in the Thai capital, the State Department has a 78.5-acre vacant lot south of Bangkok near the new international airport amid several major roadways now under construction. Yours for only $2 million...
Thaksin is new PGA president - Bangkok Post, May 1, 2007
...He said Mr Thaksin is suitable for the title due to his contribution to the Thai PGA. Mr Thaksin, who has been in exile since the Sept 19 coup, is likely to make a policy statement soon. The fact he is overseas poses no management problems.
Mr Torpong said he pulled out because it was pointless to run against Mr Thaksin.
"There are no political implications," he added.
Thaksin rivals ridicule election as Thai PGA chief - AFP, May 2, 2007
(Photo: Sadortu for 2Bangkok.com)May Day in Hat Yai - May 1, 2007
Sadortu reports: Network of migrant workers who work in Had Yai rally on May Day at the Had Yai Railway Station.
Left: Holding flags - The rally of Homenet workers slowly move on the main road in Had Yai to show the power and unity of workers.
(Photo: Sadortu for 2Bangkok.com)Above: Burmese and Karen workers from the Migrant Workers Network join to celebrate May Day at Had Yai Train Station, Songkhla.
(Photo: Sadortu for 2Bangkok.com)Above: "Homenet worker have the rights to the equal social (protection)"
