Not sure where I was worried about who hit who, but I do find it difficult to disagree with amberwaves at #7, where s/he seems to sum things up nicely.

The Bangkok Post is a newspaper not a direct connect to Ralph Kramden’s highly opinionated little mind.

It presents a full spectrum of opinions rather than being rude to someone under an assumed name, taking potshots, and claiming that its opinion is the only one around. As for obsessing over who hit who at a protest or whether my punctuation and spelling is correct, bon appetite. Have fun.

Unlike Kramden I openly admit when I don’t know about something. But that Thaksin and his red shirts will lose in the end is one thing I am fairly sure about.

Nepal used to be a beutiful country, full of hope, now it is a desparate country with its people in despair. People unknown, ok, maybe not so unknown saw it fit to use mob rule to get their own way. This animal, once release, has a way of going out of control.

The result after 10 years or so – go see for yourself

What? (BTW, conciliatory words at end)

Idle abuse? Not like your “Are you sure you have your head screwed on straight this morning Giles?”?

I asked whether ASTV (talk about own mythology!) was a credible source on whether the PAD was peaceable, or whether people should believe their own eyes.

I’m not demanding that you agree with me, I’m asking you to acknowledge certain basic facts _ and I think it’s fair to describe them as that _ and take the argument from there.

But on the bigger picture, it seems to be it just may boil down to whether one believes the PAD cure is worse than the Thaksin disease. To put it in simplest terms.

I don’t really think you are a dope, apologies for that, like you (I assume) I find the current situation stressful, and sometimes let emotion get the better of me.

But I still think you are a curmudgeon. A well-informed and articulate curmudgeon.

Please keep writing. Dialogue is more useful than monologue.

Hope that was cathartic Amber Waves, seems exactly like the “idle abuse” barred from this forum, but definitely keeping with the ridiculous one-sided approach of Giles and his fans to events. Systematically avoid mentioning or talking about what you disagree with. Cite only half of the evidence with maximum emotional hyperbole, demand that everyone agree with you rather than persuade (quite like PAD in this respect), Lumping everything from anti-Thaksin, anti-monarchy, anti-PAD, together…and ending up creating your own mythology…grenades lobbed into PAD camps. That is violence. I don’t see it being talked about here. The notion that you could support the red shirts and not have Thaksin come back is also ridiculous and right now the notion that Thaksin could come back seems crazy, and objectively speaking, whether you like it or not, whether it makes you upset or not, in the face of political lethargy (kaan meuang naa beua, 90% of everyone I talk to) PAD is playing a pivotal role in ensuring just this, that Thaksin does not come back, or is nominee proxy brother in law, much as Mao’s red guards once did (for Marx lovers like Giles).

Do you actually read, watch or listen to The Manager/PAD propaganda machine? Somsak yesterday denied that the people who were shooting at the Redshirts were from the PAD. Tell it to the TPBS cameraman who risked his life to film the incident, and was later threatened by them.

There are both film and witnesses’ accounts that show the PAD has used guns on earlier occasions as well.

And this from People’s Alliance for Democracy Announcement 26/2008: “…Armed with only the plastic hand clappers, the PAD protesters have marched to various key locations including Parliament, Finance ministry, the Metropolitan Police Bureau and the government’s temporary seat at Don Muang Airport…”

Is that true? Isn’t that called the “big lie” technique?

Why assume the grenades were not a PAD provocation? They are pragmatic above anything, aren’t they? Isn’t that clear?

BTW, they don’t share your high opinion of Nidhi, who has been savaged from the PAD stage and in Manager, with the website comments piling on vile personal attacks.

Students of the Nidhi and Charnvit schools _ Thailand’s most respected historians _ don’t share your laissez-faire attitude towards the PAD shenanigans, whatever they feel about Thaksin.

And what about the DAAD guy they beat to death on Sept. 2? Are you upset that justice hasn’t been done in that case?

PAD violent? Yes. And they set the tone when their masked thugs burst into NBT on Aug. 26.

Nidhi Eoseewong was more convincing:
http://www.bangkokpost.com/261108_News/26Nov2008_news19.php

Some beauty hints, cut the hyperbolic self-gratifying leftist verbage: fascist thugs, dictators, middle class intellectual enemies,…yawn, yawn…

PAD violent? Someone keeps lobbing bombs with a grenade launcher
into their camp while they sleep (aerobics commander Khattiya?).
The grenade launch down the street in Klong Toey market last week at 2am even woke me up. If you don’t mention facts like this you are simply not being objective Giles. Supporting pro-democracy Red Shirts, while refusing to support ex-PM Thaksin? Are you sure you have your head screwed on straight this morning Giles? The latest from ASTV makes PAD sound very dangerous indeed:

11:15 The food situation has apparently been taken care of, but now there is an urgent call from Suwarnabhumi for toothpaste and toothbrushes. With all the shops closed there, the announcers are saying this is a great opportunity for PAD supporters to sell goods there. They also say foreign tourists who missed their flights, especially Russians, are sitting with the protestors and enjoying the music. PAD rallies are always full of live performances.)
http://www.readbangkokpost.com/articles/airportupdates.php