Thailand Voice

Thailand’s anti-government red shirt protesters began gathering here in Bangkok today. All in all, it was a surprisingly quiet day. The demonstrations, as we know, are expected to culminate with — red shirts say — a protest comprising one million participants on Sun… Read full story >>>

There be Red Shirts… Thursday afternoon I tried to focus on a Friday post. Sigh. But I could not, would not settle. Because with everything going on this weekend, there was too much on my mind. The closer the Red Shirt rallies came, the… Read full story >>>

  Here in Bangkok, our city awaits an uprising, a showing of great strength, a sudden burst of violence, a failure to mobilize, or just an inconvenient weekend. People could die, or cocktail parties could be cancelled. It all depends … Read full story >>>

This is the fourth and final review of Golf courses in Ubon Ratchathani. The other three can be found here . สนามกอล์ฟ เขื่อนสิรินธร Sirindhorn Dam Golf course is located the furthermost from Ubon but in my opinion it is the best… Read full story >>>

Well either it was too hot or their numbers just didn’t cut it yet, but a few hundred red shirts marching along selected locations in Bangkok called it a day after the widely announced start of the government’s end this… Read full story >>>

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Peerasak Chaidaisuk, Chat sua wai lai [Once a Tiger, Always a Tiger] . Bangkok, Matichon, 2008. pp. xiii + 239. In Thai. This is the Year of the Tiger, but the tiger in the title of this book refers to bandits, robbers, cattle rustlers and ne’er-do-wells who plied their … Read full story >>>

The Sak Yant design, Phra Narai Song Khrut, is a complex Yant containing three figures from the ancient Indian epic, The Ramayana. The Ramayana was adopted by Thailand during the 18th Century, even though the Ramayana contains stories from Hindu … Read full story >>>

Burma watchers should be urged to study the election laws exceedingly carefully rather than automatically reacting with condemnation. The popular media have already asserted that the law is a “ mockery of democracy ”, however, only portions of the law have been released, and it is expected that Naypyidaw will continue to… Read full story >>>

UPDATE: Sorayud on Channel 3 just did a segment about this. They first showed him on his trip to Bangkok to plead for a peaceful final posting. He was in tears back then. He first started in the same police station he ended up as superintendent at. Sorayud… Read full story >>>

Supalak in The Nation (yes, The Nation) The government, with collaboration from the mainstream media, managed to portray itself as an angel and the red-shirt group as former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s evil lackeys – ready to use all violent means to bring their boss back to power…. Read full story >>>

With the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival going on, festival director Chi-hui Yang is interviewed by New America Media. They ask him: What’s next for Asian film? They also get his answer on what happened to Asian films at the Oscars , but more importantly, what’s he … Read full story >>>

This weekend the only topic in Thailand is the big rally of the red shirts protesting against the government, so I can’t resist and post something vaguely related to the political troubles in Thailand of the last 4 years. Last week the website 2bangkok.com… Read full story >>>

The SET was up 0.7% on news that pro-democracy supporters were about to set forth on the campaign to bring down the tyrannical , unelected, military-supported and deeply-hated Abhisit regime – OK, let’s not have any more stupid stories (yes… Read full story >>>

Hannah Arendt observed in On Revolution that it is when revolutionaries focus on one goal (freedom from oppression or freedom from poverty) that a revolution is likely to be successful. So, she argues that the American Revolution was successful because it was able to focus on the political aspect since the country itself was … Read full story >>>

Seth Mydans in the NYT on this weekend’s red shirt protests: While pledging nonviolence, protest leaders say they will gather hundreds of thousands of mostly rural supporters for mass rallies and blockades of government offices, starting on Friday and building over the following days.Thousands of buses, trucks and … Read full story >>>

It is, right?  Forget politics. Feet in ice cubes. That's something.  From The Nation .   Read full story >>>

Today saw DTAC offically launched the Apple iPhone for its network in Thailand ( as blogged last month ) rivalling True, the operator that previously enjoyed iPhone exclusivity. Sadly I wasn’t there ( invite in the post? ) and there no press release on the… Read full story >>>

Quick note — this NYT story does a good job of surveying the scene ahead of the upcoming red shirt protests, which are due to start tomorrow (Fri. the 12th) here in Bangkok. I will, as ever, be blogging here and posting snippets on Twitter . If you … Read full story >>>

Again… the good old tactic of hot and cold… The premier ensured the public that his government will by all means do nothing to intensify the situation, saying he never rules out his resignation or the House dissolution, but the decision will be made upon national interest. “I will… Read full story >>>

A popular recreation for Thai people at the seaside is playing on a Banana Boat like this one. The whole family jump on the back wearing life vests. They are then towed up and down the beach front by a …

A fisherman works on his fish farm on a partially dry reservoir on the Mekong River during a drought affecting the Thai-Lao border area of Wiang Kaen district, Chiang Rai province, north of Bangkok March 11, 2010. Severe drought has hit Southeast Asian…

pol·y·glot [pol-ee-glot] –adjective- able to speak or write several languages; multilingual. Lately I’ve noticed a trend in language blogs and articles pertaining to learning languages where the emphasis in learning is placed on time more so than skill sets or fundamentals. This … Read full story >>>

Starting Wednesday night, a total of 50,000 soldiers, police, civilians and volunters had been deployed for peace-keeping operations. They include 30,000 troops. He said they are not equipped with weapons, but have protective gear. Members of the peace-keeping forces have a clear authentication tag, he said. Only a… Read full story >>>

  For several weeks now, I've been scouring certain neighborhoods in Bangkok for space for my bar. Ducking into narrow alleyways and dodging motorbikes and cars that squeeze through the streets. Wondering if people would stop there for a drink, or buzz on by. I've come across forgotten go-go bars and … Read full story >>>

I have devoted numerous posts to Thailand’s ongoing political instability of late, often linking to various media reports. But I realized that I have neglected, in recent months, to point to some of my own stories. So here’s a re-cap: In addition to filing … Read full story >>>

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A Thai policeman stands guard outside Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva’s house in Bangkok March 10, 2010. The Thai government has invoked a tough security law, the Internal Security Act, giving the armed forces broad powers to control an upcoming rally by supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra if necessary….