Can it get any weirder? So a Prime Minister, more considered to be a raving lunatic than anything else, is told that his pathetic appearances on a cooking show make him ineligible to be the Prime Minister. This is some funny shit but at the same time this is all quite calculated and may be the only way to move forward. Why? Well the PAD is not going to stop as long as Samak is in charge. There are deep pockets being siphoned from to ensure that the PAD can keep going as long as it takes. For a primer on all of this start here:
http://www.2thebigmango.com/main/2008/09/03/here-we-go-again/
Let’s keep in mind that Samak was not elected but his PPP party was - which everyone knows is a Thaksin proxy. But the newly emboldened courts, influenced by the head coach of Team Yellow, already fired a warning shot over the Thaksin regime and Thaksin fled with his tail between his legs. He may be back but not yet. So there was really only one way for the powers that be to deal with Samak - find some crazy way to get him out. Hence the cooking show debacle.
The superior court’s dismissal of Samak is unprecedented in the country’s political history. He becomes the highest-ranking politician to lose a court battle while in office and the first prime minister to be removed through a legal process. The world, too, may have never witnessed the leader of a country forced to resign for the misdemeanor of receiving a modest honorarium, estimated at 5,000 baht (US$145), for serving as a television chef.
“There is something theatrical, something unreal, bizarre about this verdict,” Michael Nelson, a German academic specializing in Thai political culture. “The court forced the prime minister to step down for a small matter knowing full well that he can be reinstated by his coalition parties in a few days.”
It is only the latest farcical twist in a political drama unfolding on Bangkok’s streets which threatens to make the country a regional laughingstock. The drama, which has pitted the PAD against Samak’s administration, has seen equally surreal turns, including the police being condemned for trying to enforce the law and the army praised for disobeying it.
Sure. He can come back but that is not the point - the point was to take him out. Now the parties need to decide what to do. At first blush it looked like they would just reinstate him and I am sure this is what Samak was planning on but read between the lines and the court is sending a strong message. Pick a different PM.
The Nation is covering this pretty well:
Former Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej’s hope for a political comeback suffered a severe blow this morning when his allies both outside and within the ruling party boycotted a special House session to select a new chief executive.
The allies disapproval of Samak’s re-instatement forced the boycott. The House is scheduled to convene again next Wednesday to elect a new prime minister, but Samak’s chances now appear doomed.
All eyes are on the coaltion partners now, as none of them sent MPs to join the urgent House session. Even senior PPP leaders are acknowledging that the possibility of Samak’s return has caused widespread conflicts.
No matter what side you are on or which team you play for this is all starting to make people edgy because it is affecting business at all levels - not just tourism. Keep in mind Samak was suppose to pull the trigger on a bunch of Government lead projects to inject some life into the economy. All that has been put on hold.
From the Financial Times:
The PAD, which seized control of Government House on August 26 and has occupied the area since, view Mr Samak as a proxy of Mr Thaksin, who was ousted in a coup in 2006.
Turmoil has dented Thailand’s economy. Surapong Suebwonglee, finance minister, said gross national product growth could miss its target of 6 per cent for the year’s second half.
Today’s IHT probably has the most candid commentary on what is really going on now:
“This is a very weird situation where a reactionary movement is mobilizing people by using conservative ideology mixed with leftist language,” said Prajak Kongkeerati, a leading political scientist at Thammasat University.
The situation is weird but to some extent predictable, reflecting many of the social tensions visible throughout the region. A government that is hardly democratic, pursuing autocratic policies and seeking to neutralize the checks and balances of the Constitution, bases its support on the votes of the poor. That alienates powerful interests that are used to getting their way, which breeds confrontation, paralysis and, possibly, instability.
Whichever way the confrontation ends, analysts say, democracy is unlikely to be the winner.
I think that pretty much tells it like it is. This type of stuff has always been going on but we now have had about 2-3 years of it. Couple this with inflation, a global economic slowdown and all the normal crap and you have a recipe for disaster to some extent. Of course maybe this well dent things enough to really wack the baht and bring back some sort of demand to the country based on price slippage. Who knows. My guess is though that Samak can’t come back or we will return to where we started a few weeks ago which is not progress.
Fun stuff and at the end of the day none of this is really affecting Thailand all the much from a holiday angle. Unless you are a Brit, wither the poor pound, the Baht has been losing against the dollar and I suspect 35 to the dollar is on the way. I would not cancel a trip to Thailand over all this since there seems to be more women than ever and the late night scene is actually coming alive again.
However according to Quagmire the 3some scene needs some help. 
Quagmire - safe journeys and we will see you back in Bkk on your next break!
Quagmire strikes out:
This was a first for me. I had went to one of my favorite watering holes and chatted up one of the staff, a lovely girl with beautiful dark skin, jet black hair and a nice smile. I know I know, that about sums up about 95% of Thai women.
Anyways the pub closed and we debated on weather to hit an after hours venue or not, me, in typical form having already consumed an excess amount of San Miguel Light was ready for a romp and a nice night of sleep. So I chose the latter of the courses of action, being getting a place to sleep with a little vigorous exercise before.
Before our departure she called her sister and asked if we could use her place. My place is kind of far and I do not bring women back to my place. It’s my sanctuary, and I like to keep it that way. Yes, I do typically hit up a hotel if I have a lovely young lass in tow, but if I don’t have to pay for a hotel I won’t, that’s more money saved for drinking and whoring. The sister agreed to let us stay, we had to make one more stop at the local 7-11, for “feminine tissues”. She told me she was on her period, I thought no problem, at least I’ll get a BJ.
So off we go to the apartment, the sister is a little older, but still attractive. I’m asked if I want to take a shower, of course. This is pretty much standard operating procedure before the action begins. I’m also pondering whether the sister might join in on some action or just pretend to be asleep. I clean up, and am even provided a new toothbrush which I scrub the old fangs with. This is going to be a good night!
My girl takes a quick shower and all three of us end up in bed together. I’m on one end, the sister on the far side of the bed with my topless beauty in black “boy shorts” pressed right up against me. She has a killer ass and the boy shorts really help accentuate those two beautiful little buns.
I press against her, she grinds against me, and then she reaches back to grab me and give a few nice tugs. She turns and gives me a couple of little kisses, things are going well. Then she turns back over and nothing, I think alright, I’ll get this party started again, perhaps it’s like starting a lawnmower, sometimes you have give the string a few tugs before she turns over. We repeat the same process of grinding, grabbing and kissing a few more times, nothing! Ok, no problem, I’m hammered, I’ll pass out and make another pass in the morning.
The sister takes off for work a little later in the morning. Me and my dark skinned beauty wake a up a little later, mess around a bit, more grinding, light kissing and nothing. I ask outright, how about a smoke, she says she doesn’t like to. She said “I told you last night I was on my period”. So does this mean that when she’s done with that time of the month I’ll get another run at it? Sadly I may never know, as unfortunately I must soon depart my beloved land of smiles and return back to the states. When I return to Bangkok I may make another run at this bird if she is still working in the same bar, we’ll see.
I thought I have to be the only guy in the history of Bangkok that winds up in bed with two lovely Thai ladies and doesn’t even get a handjob.
Hopefully this spells the end of Samak, but as the political writers like to ask, “Whither from here?”
The idea of a Democrat-led coalition seems unlikely, so we’re down to a handful of potential PMs. Is there anyone who has the strength, personality and skill to bring and end to the crisis and move Thailand forward?
Reading the histories of the primary candidates I read touted in the newspapers, its difficult to see anyone who fits the bill.
Personally, I’m leaning towards starting a movement to draft Pants Elk as the new Prime Minister; he speaks a lot more sense than most other candidates, is in touch with the common man, and is a highly effective communicator, much like PE’s personal hero Ronald Reagan. I’m sure he’d bring about a new era of Thai pride, prosperity, and “peace through strength” as well as an end to the Evil Empire of the Soviet… what?
Oh… yeah.
Anyway. You get the idea.
PE for PM!!!
View all comments by Werewolf
ww - I can’t argue with the logic.
pe - any speeches on utube one could point to so we can at least see what we are in store for?
how about we do a cooking show at the mango to kick things off. Since u are currently not the PM then this should not cause any conflicts.
Or maybe just draft an acceptance speech we can post on the blog?
View all comments by sideshowBOB
sad how such a beautiful country is at the mercy of people such as this. If only there was a former bodybuilder and action star who could lead them out of the darkness and into the light leading with the cherry end of a stogy and inspire the masses as no other leader before.
or maybe start a war since that can bring a country together like it did for the states during that rather hilarious Vietnam endeavor.
If PE was the prime minister would we be treated to a new first lady every week? it’d be nice to see a lovely isaan ambassador with one of those Imelda Marcos hairdo’s.
View all comments by UnCochinoWetback
Ah! You haven’t been reading the press releases…
PE is **in love** and comfortably settled with his Isaan princess in Thailand’s northeast… happy as a pig in shit, just as he should be.
“K. Pants” is a settled man and a fitting figure to lead our country. I think he’s pretty much an action hero-type as well.
No rotating bevy of beauties with our PM-to-be.
View all comments by Werewolf
I think a game changer here would be the PE as the PM but with a running mate. I mean fuck - look what pinup star pallin is doing for mccain. Practically brought him back from the dead.
The first lady idea is brilliant and I am sure PE has some candidates but still a running mate is in order.
wetback - u should step up. Think of it. How a poor mexican from the wrong side of the tracks ended up in bangkok as the running mate of a french refugee who claims to be a brit. has all the makings of a swan swong.
so I will wait for the PE acceptance speech further announcing the choice of uncochinowetback as running mate. I see the slogans now - never fear poor isaan farmer for my back is wetter than yours.
I am going to hire stickman to start doing some background checks. I hope to god your closet is clean or do you have illegitimate children in fresno that we don’t know about? I am sure there are some but as long as it stays under the 2 limit rule for running mates in a banana republic as stated by the bylaws.
we can post your background check as soon as stick gets back from pattaya.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
unless you are into livestock then there’s really nothing to fuck in Fresno let alone make a baby with unless they’re hiding some raelian geneticist somewhere in that god forsaken dust bowl.
i’d much prefer “give me your tired, your hungry, your barely legal daughters” as a more appropriate campaign slogan anyhow.
so with samak unable to be PM does that mean i get to watch him cook again? his show was more addicting than baywatch.
View all comments by UnCochinoWetback
Fantastic news on the After Hour scene going very late again!!! Hope it stays like this for the months ahead! Great.
View all comments by Phoenix
I slick back my air with a damp palm, shifting uneasily in my cheap suit and clip-on tie. The make-up girl leans in to powder my nose, glowing rosily under the TV lights. I practice the line under my breath. “I have not sought election, but if called upon to serve the good people of Thailand will consider it not only an honour but the duty of a citizen and subject of the King to accept the nom-”
Someone is shaking me. “Pants!” she says, “you’re dreaming!” I sit up, drool swinging from my lip. The empty Cheers bottle is still in my fist. My knuckles are bleeding. Someone steps over me on his way into the Seven.
“I … they want me to be Prime Minister …” She helps me to my feet. I have apparently wet myself.
View all comments by Pants Elk
apprently?
View all comments by jack dawson
It could have been Penfold.
View all comments by Bangkok Bad Boy
It’s the dropped “h”
View all comments by Pants Elk
ssB wrote: So a Prime Minister, more considered to be a raving lunatic than anything else, is told that his pathetic appearances on a cooking show make him ineligible to be the Prime Minister.
Just to set the record straight… Samak’s appearances on the cooking show were not illegal under the constitution. However, renumeration/compensation in any form for those appearances was illegal. A fine point you say? Not really, as it opens the door for the occurence or appearance of graft. He was also admonished by the court for falsifying/altering evidence of payment in this matter after the fact.
Samak stated that his legal advisors said all was kosher in this deal. In fact, Samak and his crew just figured that he didn’t have to apply the law to himself. After all, he was democratically elected. And in Thailand, if you win an election, you can do as you damn well please… the law be damned.
It’s only a trap if you ignore the sign with large bold letters that says “Danger Will Robinson! Don’t do this!”
View all comments by Rene Descartes
Will Pants Elk be using his “cunt” picture as his election campaign poster to be placed on every lamp post around Thailand?
Should be popular, the Thais have a knack for voting for cunts.
View all comments by Nok Opayop
they’d get more attention if you placed them on noodle carts or on the back of little luk krueng babies on the skytrain.
View all comments by UnCochinoWetback
@Nok Opayop: Can you recommend an industrial-strength cleaner for my monitor and keyboard? I just spewed my “cha-yen-sai-nom” as I read your last comment. Priceless!
View all comments by Rene Descartes
@Quag: Two words: hand job
View all comments by pmmp
Quagmire that is doubly more depressing more than my story. WTF? You had 2 shots bro. My last night there I was scrambling for bit of early evening fun. I was all set and logistically had planned out a great little agenda to follow for the final 8 hours in Bangkok. Pack my suitcases… “Check” Have a beer with long time buddy… “Check” Get a piece of ass to have me dreaming happy thoughts on the plane… “???” Oh man say it aint so! Yes that is right I squandered a whole day between the rain and being super picky all I got was a taxi ride and pitched tent while sitting on the plane. Let me explain; after the rain subsided I went to the Beer Garden on the advice of some dear friends. Oh Brother why did I go there?! I sat at the middle counter and ordered a drink then kind of scoped out the place. Yup 5pm is definitely not the time to go there; oh man let me tell you, talk about shock and awe. Someone had opened the bar to the 40 and up club or something (that’s just my observation). Then just as I got ready to blow the scene a rather large with fair complexion Thai women comes up and says my friend likes you, who was also a rather large woman (my estimate 50kg.) As I look around the pole in the middle of the room she waves and smiles at me; her teeth were jacked up. I immediately go in to safe mode to block these unwanted advances by talking to another girl sitting next to me at bar. She or he turned out not be a girl at all. Nevertheless I get the heck out of there and head over to Soi 5 to check out Gulliver’s.
O.K. I walk in and the scene is really dead but there is this one smoking hot philly sitting at the bar with her girlfriend. What are you kidding me; she’s looking at me? She had beautiful dark skin, about 42kg, silky white dress, with a smooth flawless face. I mean this cute face with her little California girl nose made me just want to walk up grab her by the hair and make out with her at the bar. She seemed to be classy gal at first look; I thought to myself “wow this chick can’t be a bar girl.” But what are the rules in Thailand? No seriously what are they? So after I ordered my beer I cruised over to offer to buy her a drink plus her girlfriend had left out the front door. You know I’m a good looking dude and I thought now is my time to strike. Small talk, small talk, blah blah, what’s your name, that kind of stuff. Yeah I told her that I’m going home that night and I’m just hanging out a little. I finally get to my favorite question “where do you work”; and like I heard so many times before in Bangkok, “right here at the bar.” I think JACKPOT this is what I’ve been looking for all day with my Jerry Seinfeld like shrewdness. I proposed that we should leave there and go do something back at the hotel. She then laughed with the most condescending laugh I have ever heard come from such beauty. Sort of like if you’re watching Anime and the super villain is a women and she is about to kick some ass; yeah that kind of laugh. Her response to me in the most perfect English was “you know I am really expensive.” As I replied you can’t be that expensive didn’t you say that you were 34 years old? That’s when hit me like a ton of bricks, I had already told this chick that I was leaving in a few hours and she done the math. I had to know what her definition of expensive was so I asked exactly how much she was talking about. “Short time 3500 baht”; I almost fell off my stool. Alright calm down because at this point I am almost ready to drop it on her just to prove I’m no broke bastard that she can just laugh at. After 5 minutes of my super negotiating skills she is still firm. Jeez… whatever I had a boner and everything as I left the bar after paying for her drink and figured to myself I’ll just save the 2000 baht in my pocket for the taxi ride to the airport. I can’t wait to come back so I can drop it on her free lancing ass. I would have settled for hand job or whatever I should I just went to Lolita’s.
View all comments by Xagrin
We feel your pain, Xagrin.
Just for a change of pace, can we see a post or a comment from someone - anyone - who has successfully persuaded a Bangkok prostitute to have sex for money?
View all comments by Pants Elk
Yes, I picked one up in the soi 7 beer garden last week, but she wasn’t a prostitute, she was “different”, we really had a “connection”.
View all comments by Nok Opayop
In order to get Samak out of politics he will need another form of employment. Why not offer him a job as cook in the Big Mango kitchen? Apparently he has experience.
View all comments by Wombat
rd - he was not elected. his party was. the courts have been told they needed to get rid of samak so they were going to use any tool at their disposal. the cooking show was the easiest and mos visible way of doing that. I am sure they had other options but they needed a quick one. it worked. he is legally over and now to embarrassed by his own party to even get re-elected. so pretty much played out how I described it?
x - bro? how long are u away for? if she was hot do you think you wil be kicking yourself more for not banging her or for saving the measly 1500 baht?
nok - send me the picture of her 3 titties. otherwise sorry - she is same same - not different.
wombat - he is done. over. probably heading to england to cry over spilled milk with dufus jr.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Sideshow - sure she was “different” (the quotes were supposed to indicate sarcasm), she had a hump like Quasimodo. You don’t see that every day do you? And the “connection”….. well that’s what I was paying her for right?
Anyway, who wants three tits? I used to know someone with 4!
View all comments by Nok Opayop
no - I know. that is just my are they different litmus test.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Here at the headquarters of the Coalition for a United Nation of Thailand (… pause … resume) the campaign to elect me as PM is well under way. Posters of the party logo (see avatar) are being printed up at the local copy shop, or will be as soon as the machine has been reassembled (as soon as the hens are shaken out of the body shell) and will be distributed amongst the party faithful to ensure a media blitz. My platform is simple (necessarily so, given the low educational standard of my demographic):
- Cheaper beer throughout the kingdom, funded by massive cuts in the military budget.
- Opening times and sale-of-alcohol regulations to be suspended, except for Thais.
- One visa to cover all types of visit (if you’re here, you’re here), at one price, to last six months, multiple entry, renewable at any immigration office on production of passport. No Muslims.
- Farang Food introduced as a subject on the national curriculum.
- Er … did I mention the cheap beer?
Any questions? Yes - you at the back, sir? With the SAMESAME t-shirt?
View all comments by Pants Elk
Cheap beer subsidised by the miltiray budget, round-the-clock alcohol sales for foreigners, no muslims, easy visas all sound like policies to me; what about the bribes? And, what is this rubbish about a national curriculum? You surely don’t want to educate these cretins do you?
Fewer policies and more details on vote buying would be a far stronger electoral platform.
View all comments by Nok Opayop
@Xagrin: Woops, sorry that advice on the soi 7 Beer Garden didn’t work out. It’s hit or miss but usually if you wait around long enough something pops out. Lolita’s was Plan B (Blowie) so it seemed like a foolproof plan. Sorry you had to wank it in the plane’s bathroom.
View all comments by pmmp
Damn it PE, what about education? Education in Thailand sucks. You know it does so don’t go diversionary on me. And what if they don’t have the sense to use one of them there expensive condo’s before sex? Then the poor girl will never finish grade school.
I mean, at the very least, could you promote some vocational program so these girls at least know how to do something other than the Bangkok shuffle when they enter the bidness?
View all comments by Bubba
You said: “Let’s keep in mind that Samak was not elected …”. Isn’t he an elected member of parliament?
Having said that, I cannot find any web site in English that confirms what constituency he’s the MP for so maybe you are correct.
View all comments by Artful
ssB, I’m not trying to get into a pissing contest with you, but I think your wording sometimes leaves the reader with the wrong impression about the facts.
Samak was, and still is, an elected member of Parliament. They are two kind of MPs, those representing districts and party list MPs.
When marking a ballot, the voter has two chances to vote. One vote is cast for their favorite candidate running in their district, the other vote is cast for their favorite political party.
Each party makes their own list of party candidates. Although, I am not sure exactly about this, Samak was probably first on the list of party candidates as Party Leader.
The EC counts votes for each district candidate. The winning district candidate is the one with the most votes.
The EC also counts votes for parties. Party list candidates win if their name is up high enough on the list to be selected, as these are awarded on a proportional basis compared to the other competing parties.
View all comments by Rene Descartes
There’s been a lot of debate here at C.U.N.T. headquarters over policy. In the light of the issues raised I’ve now streamlined our manifesto to these core proposals:
- Free Beer
- No visa requirements
- Skytrain extended to your house
- 2000 baht for every vote cast for C.U.N.T.
I am confident that this enlightened reform programme will usher in a new era of prosperity and well-being for me. Uh … can we take that again? It’s going out live? Shit.
View all comments by Pants Elk
2000 baht for every C.U.N.T voter - that’s more like it. This stuff about free beer is a bit vague though - looks like the sort of thing politicians throw out in order to deceive. How much free beer are we talking about exactly? I don’t want to waste my vote on you and then be given half a glass of Chang that has been used as mouthwash by the staff of Lolitas. I got a whole crate of the stuff when I voted for Thaksin in 2000 (Chang that is, not mouthwash)- how do you compare to that?
View all comments by Nok Opayop
CUNT - Citizens United for a Normal Thailand?
Certain Undesirable Non-Thais?
View all comments by Werewolf
Pmmp & SSB; No worries, I kicked myself a little bit for not paying up but at the same time I felt a sense of accomplishment by passing on the pricey beauty making a stand for all Farang across Bangkok and saying no to high prices (sarcasm). How’s that for a campaign slogan?
View all comments by Xagrin
artful and RD - he was an elected MP if you buy that whole election $process$ to begin with but he was not elected to be a Prime Minister. His party, proxy for Thaksin, and the other parties that got the suitcases full of thaksin cash chose him. They all knew it was bad from the start and it looks like they were right. He was never going to last.
As one of my friends who is too lazy to comment says:
So back to my point. Samak was never chosen by the people to be a PM and most people think he is a rude psychopath. Now he is out and won’t be back. Even his MP folks from team sticky rice are over him now. But never fear the party will now choose someone married to Thaksin’s sister or another dude who is owned by Thaksin and works in Chiang Mai. Oh wait - sorry. These will be more of the democratically elected members taking their turn at the top of the non Thaksin proxy government.
Nice article on the BBC with all this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7613113.stm
So all is quiet for now, the emergency decree is due to be lifted but the farce is far from over.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
@ssB - I know what you were trying to say and don’t disagree with your point of view to a significant degree. However, I was trying to point out that your choice of words to express an idea is not always clear and could lead to misunderstandings about the situation. One unfortunate result was Artful’s response above.
In your latest example, you wrote:
“…he (Samak) was not elected to be a Prime Minister.” This is just plain, simply, unequivocably FALSE.
In fact, He WAS elected to be Prime Minister. In Thailand, PMs are not directly elected by the electorate. Thai PMs are elected by the Parliament. PMs are not elected by the same process as American presidents. I think you were trying to make a value judgement, which however valid or invalid, was poorly expressed with a patently false statement.
If you had wrote: “…he (Samak) was not elected _by the people_ to be a Prime Minister”, it would have been a true statement. However, no Thai has ever been elected by the people to be Prime Minister, so the statement is essentially meaningless except as a value judgement. And we all know the effectiveness of overlaying western values/practices on Asian values/practices.
You tried to restate your initial point with: “So back to my point. Samak was never chosen by the people to be a PM…”. However, what you wrote initally and the meaning you were trying to convey were not the same.
Perhaps we can make a deal… I am no Times Literary Critic, but I will agree to tutor you in writing in exchange for “bargirl insurance” you described in another thread. If you negotiate hard with me, I will probably throw in an extra class about homonyms (your/you’re/yore - there/their/they’re - etc.).
In any case, you and I agree that living in Thailand’s cross-eyed version of “Alice in Wonderland” and High Tragic/Comic Opera is an experience not to be missed.
View all comments by Rene Descartes
Just in case the idea of the PM being elected by his party and not directly by the people sounds like some Mickey Mouse invention of a third world democracy… it is essentially the same system used in other Parliamentary democracies such as England, Australia, etc
To be precise, you might as well point out that the American president is also not directly elected by a majority vote of the people. He is elected by a majority vote of the Electoral College. American voters actually vote for Electoral College ‘electors’ in November; they do not vote directly for the candidate, which is why some presidents have been elected to office with a minority of the popular vote.
The fact is, that when Thai voters cast their ballots for the PPP in December, they knew that they were choosing Samak as PM just as well as American voters this November who vote for Electoral College delegates will know that they are really choosing McCain or Obama.
View all comments by Werewolf
rd - so u basically have said in another way what I was saying. sorry if it did not all come out perfectly.
samak was not elected by the people of thailand to be a PM. I was not really getting into the process but stating that the people did not really care about losing him. They only people who were worried about it, mostly over face, were Samak and Thaksin. Even most of his own party was backing away from him and most wanted him gone.
His party was elected. I get that. They chose him. I get that.
So taking him out was not a big knock to democracy cause democracy is still in place. His party was elected and they made stupid decision as their PM. Now they can try again to see if they can do better than the last time. In my opinion if they choose another crony of Thaksin the PAD may not let up.
So seeing him go is not a big deal to the people who did not choose him or too democracy. It is not meaningless to say the people did not elect him because I think even if the people could choose a PM - they would have never chose Samak.
So although I don’t agree with the PAD, I think they were doing anything they could to let it be known that although the PPP chose Samak - most of the people of Thailand did not agree with their decision.
Here is my deal RD - its called reader submissions
get on it.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
ww - I think they knew they were going with a Thaksin proxy government. I think they were bitching about Samak from day one. So were the other coalition parties but they were told they would not see any Thaksin money unless they caved.
Point is Samak as PM was an all around eff up. Nothing has been accomplished, he started that Cambodian temple shit and the PPP is taking a beating over it all.
So my guess is the PPP and coalition parties all regret this since it has set them all back a bit and given the Democrats some leg room.
I was not really getting into how the process works but given my new and budding role as the leading political analyst on this particular blog - I am going to bone up some more.
I hear PE was going to write a new book - how to understand Thai politics for dummies. On nutter is doing the preface. There will be sections from YP that help to boil down the issues into a language that whore mongers can understand since at the end of the day that is the real concern. How does it effect the “trade”.
As always I see my posts as the basis for dialogue. 37 comments in and this post is still in the top 5 for current daily traffic.
mission accomplished.
others are always free to submit their comments or write a better post. Not claiming to be an expert here.
View all comments by sideshowBOB
ww - rd
last thing. you are correct on the process and I was not saying anything about the process. I was pointing out Samak was not popular and needed to go.
If his party was really being democratic they could have asked him to step down and if they were listening to the people that voted them in they should have. However the courts needed to step in with some bogus type of case and push him out.
So I see all this democracy talk and for the people hype but it does not really come across in the action column all that much.
So before someone jumps on the American system. I am not there and nor am I defending it. Just talking about Thailand here for the moment and how senior members of a court have to hear a case about appearances on a cooking show for the purpose of removing a PM that everyone wanted gone anyway.
Stay tuned for the John McCain rally at The Big Mango!
View all comments by sideshowBOB
@ssB - Actually, I wasn’t saying anything. I was telling you to be more careful and precise in your wording. I wasn’t saying anything because I generally agree with your assesment. Perhaps you thought my correcting you was on par with pointing out typos or misspellings. My criticisms of your writing were offered in good faith and friendship. We have met in real life and we have had nothing but friendly discussions before.
Now I WILL say something or two.. or three.
I agree with you in your characterization of Samak. He is a crude, foul-mouthed, stupid, egotistical, ham-fisted (no pun intended) little man.
However, I think you misjudge his popularity among some Thais. He is widely-admired by the under-class Thais for frequently putting a thumb in the eye of the powerful. His style coincides with how they wish they could act to the powerful.
Samak was elected Governor of Bangkok by appealing to this under-class. He used the poor for votes before Thaksin thought of it. Thankfully, as you say, he is finished now. Although, he is still admired by these powerless people and there was sizeable support by some for his get-tough strategy. Paid thugs have ideologies too.
Samak’s disqualification to remain PM by the Constitutional Court for paid appearances on a cooking show was NOT a small, insignificant technicality to be rid of him. It was a sound, strict and legally rigorous decision designed to show that this Constitutional Court would be using their legal minds and power to clean up Thai politics. They realized the effect of the ridiculous decision(s) by the same Court (although different judges) to look the other way in Thaksin’s first trial (ca. 2000) for hidden wealth by proxies. This Court is determined to show that the laws for politicians will now be enforced strictly. This does not bode well for Thaksin and his cronies in the upcoming corruption trials.
I have no doubt that Team Yellow will come out on top in the near term. Always has, always will… except for the minor hiccup in 1932.
My real interest and anticipation is what will happen when the Great Commissioner retires the current Team Yellow Coach. It is not a forgone conclusion that Team Yellow will be coached in the future by the obvious hereditary choice. This choice may be rejected because of close ties to dark and unsavory characters (Thaksin included).
Few people (Farang and Thai) realize that Team Yellow Coaches are chosen by Team Yellow’s Council after the retirement of the Coach. They are under no obligation. There are no rules except a proven blood link. There really is no “line of succession”.
My biggest fear is the Coach’s retirement before Thaksin has been permanently dealt with.
View all comments by Rene Descartes
rd - great stuff. thanks for keeping it coming.
I think samak has appeal with the same poor folks who Thaksin appealed to. Seems they went after the same thing and Thaksin followed Samak in this? So that is how these guys get in but that is not who the Bkk groups want but I think Samak pretty much pissed off the whole lot this time.
I know the court stuff is real and valid but you have to admit it is funny. The rest of the real world thinks it is and I know many of the bkk elite do as well but it is legal and if that is what was needed to get him out of the way then so be it. Still funny.
The stuff you hint at is the next big deal and it will get interesting. I always think he may decide to wrap up the plans before he retires. Might be the best option for the country as well.
I have heard some really interesting views on what will happen. For the record I don’t think they will ever let a female run the joint.
Anyway great stuff.
You should send in some submissions…
next time the beer is on me
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Samak was a terrible terrible PM.
The manner in which the PAD has sought to get rid of him has damaged the country.
I don’t think that Thailand is in an ‘either-or’ situation where being against either Samak or the PAD means that you are in favor of the other.
I believe that the country needs real leadership. It would be great if a political leader could take control who can heal the country and move it forward.
I have no idea whether any Thai person in politics is currently capable of it. But leadership in times of turmoil can spring from unlikely places. I doubt whether anyone would have ever thought that LBJ, when he was VP of the US, was capable of steering a country through the turmoil that followed Kennedy’s death. It wasn’t smooth, and it took a great toll on him personally, but I believe history looks kindly on the amazing efforts and accomplishments of Johnson in a time when the US felt like it was being torn apart by racial division and inequality, changing social values and an unpopular war.
Personally, I’ve been opposed to the actions of the PAD in 2008 because they have not allowed the judicial processes to of the EC, ACCC, the courts and the other arms of the law to run their course.
It *appears* that the courts are trying to do what courts are supposed to do — apply the law in an even-handed way, no matter who the defendant is. This may not be reality — my observation of the court system is based on reading newspaper articles — but they have decided against Thaksin and his family (repeatedly), supported the Electoral Commission most of the time (but not against the Democrats), have found Samak guilty at least twice in the past year (defamation & receiving money for his TV appearance), have issued arrest warrants against leaders of the PAD and orders for them to clear out of Government House.
This is what the “rule of law” looks like. Laws are passed, and the courts make rulings about people’s behaviour versus those laws.
So far, the police and the military have acted in ways that leave a question mark over law enforcement. The orders against the PAD and it’s leaders have not been enforced, but that may have been GOOD judgment rather than bad governance given the volatile situation.
If the courts have, indeed, matured then this is good news for proponents of Democracy in the Kingdom. If the police and military are up to the same old, same old, then this is very very bad news for proponents of Democracy.
Team yellow has been surprisingly quiet so far, and there are many speculations about why that can’t be openly discussed.
Absent leadership from any other quarter, the country needs true political leadership at the moment. The selection of the new PM this week will offer the opportunity to heal the country and move it forward, or simply continue with more of the same.
I have no idea whether Somchai is the man for the job, but having served the Democrats in the past, having been a judge, and having been *previously* identified by Sondhi as an acceptable candidate, perhaps he can be. Certainly, in deciding to lift the state of emergency in Bangkok today and declaring the political situation ‘under control’ he had demonstrated excellent judgment in making his first critical decision.
Let’s hope he impresses us all by being a man of outstanding character and judgment, as well as a leader who can unite people to a common cause.
God knows Thailand has a leadership vacuum right now that needs to be filled.
Of course, if Somchai isn’t the guy for the job, there’s always the CUNT’s choice, Pants Elk.
View all comments by Werewolf
ww - well said but I thought most of the listed possible PM contenders are still Thaksin cronies but we shall see.
I think Team Yellow is internally disagreeing and there is no consensus but maybe they continue to embolden the courts?
The lifting of the lame ass emergency decree is a great step and things need to get going.
I take the military stand down as something good really since they should not be doing police work, they should not be doing anything to make it look like they want to take over and I think they knew Samak had to stand down. So they waited. Might have been the prudent move.
Chaos had been ruling so maybe things can get normal again or at least normal by Thai standards…
View all comments by sideshowBOB
A happy ending to my tale. I’m happy to report that I was able to hit my intended target the last night I was in Bkk. It was a bit pricy, but in hindsight absolutely worth it! She was hands down one of the best performers I have had in recent memory. And for someone that doesn’t like to “smoke” she did so like a champ. All is well that ends well I suppose.
View all comments by Quagmire
q - in a few months I am sure the price won’t really matter
glad to hear it turned out okay!
View all comments by sideshowBOB
Bob, hell it’s only been a week now, and it doesn’t matter at this point.
View all comments by Quagmire