Gaybutton

Looking for something different to do, and in precisely the opposite direction of the Red-Shirt demonstrations? You might be interested in the Chanthaburi Durian Festival: _____ World Durian Festival 2010 to Be Held in Chanthaburi in May Chanthaburi is recognized as the only province in Thailand, and in the world, where the majority of farmers are engaged in durian production. The province organizes a World Durian Festival each year to promote durian consumption and introduce its tourist attractions and local products. The 2010 World Durian Festival will be held from May 1 to 9 at Thung Na Choei Lagoon and Chanthaburi Stadium. The opening ceremony is scheduled for May 2 at 5:00 p.m. Visitors to this area will see rafts decorated with fruit and locally made products that make a name for Chanthaburi. They will have a chance to buy fruit, seafood, and other agricultural products of high quality directly from farmers. The festival will feature a food fair, a demonstration of making durian jam, a bazaar of local products under the One Tambon, One Product (OTOP) program, an exhibition on fruit production, a durian-eating competition, and cultural shows. It will also include various contests, such as food preparation from fruit and fruit decorations. The fruit contest focuses on five varieties of fruit, namely durian, rambutan, mangosteen, longgong, and zalacca. There will be a top-quality gems and jewelry fair, as well. Dubbed the

Cabinet Acknowledges Need for Army Move Against Red-Shirt Demonstrators By PIYANART SRIVALO THE NATION Published on May 3, 2010 The Cabinet yesterday acknowledged the need for the use of Army force against red-shirt pro-testers occupying the Rajprasong intersection, as Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva grimly warned the public in his weekly address to expect undesired results from future government action. A closed-door Cabinet meeting accepted a bigger role for armed troops who, since the "Black Saturday" drama on April 10, have still played mostly a secondary role to police commandos. "The government's action from now on will carry the risk of clashes or losses which could affect the feeling of the general public," Abhisit said. "But the government has its duty and will have to do what needs to be done." It was Abhisit's first such public statement. He and other top officials yesterday reiterated the government's determination to reclaim the Rajprasong intersection from the protesters. An SMS campaign will be launched to persuade as many demonstrators as possible to leave the area. Abhisit said the government had made significant progress in inquiries into a series of incidents, which he said confirmed suspicion that some were acts of terrorism. Yesterday's emergency Cabinet meeting followed an invasion of Chulalongkorn Hospital by some protesters that increased pressure on the government to deal with the pro-longed rally. "We want the operation to take place as soon as possible so we will do everything we can to ensure the least losses and maxi-mum safety for people involved," said acting government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn. Panitan denied that the Cabinet discussed the possibility of imposing martial law in the area. Cabinet acknowledges need for Army move against red-shirt demonstrators

I voted for car, mainly because that's what I drive. When I first came to Thailand I saw no need for personal transportation at all. One thing available just about anywhere in Thailand is public transportation. Then when we graduated to a motorcycle I didn't know how we ever lived without one. Later when we graduated to a car, I didn't know how we ever lived without one. I can certainly see driving a motorcycle for local transportation. After all, it's far less expensive for everything ranging from fuel to maintenance to insurance, etc. But having a car allows me to go anywhere I want in Thailand any time I want, by any route I want, with stops anywhere I want for however long I want in air conditioned comfort and in any kind of weather. I am also able to do shopping much easier and am stopped by cops far less often. Also, there seems to be much more motorcycle theft than car theft. Aside from the obvious difference in expense, the disadvantages I've encountered with a car are mainly difficulties finding a place to park, navigating narrow sois, and getting stuck in traffic while watching motorcycles breezing right on by. For me, obviously I prefer a car.

Since this thread is about what it takes to purchase a motorcycle, if there is to be a debate about whether it is better to have a car or motorcycle, I would like to suggest starting a new thread so that this thread doesn't end up going off on a tangent.

You seem to have covered everything. So, just one more question. Do you have a particular shop from which you recommend buying?

There is no conflict. GT is the boss around here and anything he says overrides anything I say. Very simple. Sorry if the rules don't cover every imaginable circumstance, especially the ones that should be perfectly obvious. If you are confused about what we will or will not accept, then you have the option of submitting what you wish to post to us by PM to see if it is something we can accept. Your other option is to just go ahead and post something we may not accept and hope for the best. Unless you wish to be someone who causes problems here, I suggest just leaving the monarchy out of it. If you want to place your own freedom at risk for the sake of a post that few readers are going to really give a shit about in the first place, that's up to you, but don't even think about risking mine.

As far as I know, he hasn't said anything.

Given the way things seem to happen in Thailand, it's getting harder and harder to imagine why anyone with the right qualifications would even want the job. Sooner or later someone is going to emerge as Thailand's next Prime Minister. I don't think it will be Thaksin and I don't think it will be Abhisit. No matter who it is, it's a job I wouldn't want. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems to me that the most stable government Thailand had in years was the military government following the coup. I'm wondering if the outcome of this will end up being another military government.

You're right. I can. But since neither GT, the other moderators, nor I owe you an explanation about a damned thing, I can't be bothered.

Then the best suggestion I can make is to look again periodically. Often things only show up when someone who has it is online. What about getting a copy from Amazon or eBay?

There is another torrent program called Ares. http://aresgalaxy.sourceforge.net I'm pretty sure I've seen it on that one. I checked VUZE again. Actually I saw that they do have it, but you have to join and pay for some other site to download it. I don't recommend that. Those things are usually full of viruses.

Ok, the Sawatdee forum has returned.

"Civil War. What an oxymoron. How can there be a civil war?" - George Carlin

Try the VUZE bit torrent. http://www.vuze.com . I just checked. That one does have it.

What happened to the first post? It's not there and from my end I can see that none of the moderators deleted anything.

Be that as it may, I and the other moderators will be the ones who make those decisions, thank you very much. I'm not about to have my life in Thailand jeopardized for the sake of posts on a message board. I'm also not going to have other people decide for me whether I'm taking a serious risk or just being paranoid. Maybe I'm going overboard by saying there can be no posts about the monarchy at all, but if I or the other moderators determine that a post contains language that potentially can place us in such jeopardy, rest assured that post will be gone and the person who wrote the post will be warned. If he persists, he'll be gone too. I'm sorry, but I simply will not permit anyone to place my life here in jeopardy. While I realize I'm going to hear all about how I'm being paranoid, I've seen too many instances of Lese Majeste arrests that stemmed from writing that seemed to be perfectly innocent. I'd much rather be labeled paranoid than to find myself in jail waiting to be sentenced. It just isn't worth it to take those kinds of risks. I have yet to see a post on any board anywhere that is so important that the people directly involved with that board should allow themselves to be placed in that position. So, if people really feel a pressing need to post on this board about the monarchy that's their choice, but don't be surprised if the post quickly disappears.

Very good find! That site is quite accurate. My monthly retirement benefit came in the the day before their latest posting and that site was accurate to within 300 baht of what I received. From now on, that's the site I'll be checking.

I want to remind everyone about our policy about even mentioning the monarchy on this board. While nothing has been posted that I would interpret as negative, please let's leave the monarchy out of posts here. I don't think you need me to tell you how strict Thailand can be when it comes to their ideas of Lese Majeste violations. I think we'll all survive just fine without posts about the monarchy. Let's just drop any further posts about the monarchy, ok?

Most homeowners, including me, installed those large blue holding tanks during that miserable drought we had a few years ago. Since then I've had no problems about water, but at the time I learned to be careful about who I'm buying water from if the city water runs out. It's been so hot over the past several days that the water stored in the tank absorbs much of that heat. Lately not only has it not been necessary for me to activate the on-demand water heater when showering, but the water coming from that tank has actually been hotter then I usually want from the water heater.

That's where the confusion is. Nobody who actually knows the story has posted anything on any of the other boards. That leaves everyone who has in interest in the Sawatdee board in the dark as to what is going on. People are speculating as to why the account was suspended, but nobody seems to know if the board is going to come back or not. It doesn't make sense to me that jinks would suspend the board while on holiday. As far as I know, he's never done that before. Why would he do that now, especially without a prior announcement? He most likely looks at the Internet no matter where he is and he could just as easily moderate from anywhere. I doubt that is the explanation. I don't think it would kill whoever does know to let the rest of the world at least know if the board is going to come back online. The board does have a large following and I think it is perfectly reasonable to let that following know something. While I realize I am not welcome on that board, that doesn't diminish its importance to a lot of people out there. I hope the board does come back and in the meantime I hope someone will inform everyone as to what to expect.

I hope that's the case. I found it very difficult to even imagine a doctor advocating a raid on a hospital. Of course, a raid on a hospital is bad enough no matter who was behind it and who participated. And now, re-reading that section of the article, the way it is worded is confusing as to whether it was the father who actually tried to stop the raid or the son. It could also be interpreted that the father tried to stop the raid and that the article merely mentions that he has a son who is also a doctor. Now the Red-Shirts are saying the hospital evacuation was nothing more than a front to make the Red-Shirts look bad. I wonder what they think a raid on a hospital was going to do even if it was greatly exaggerated by the press, make them look good? Has anyone heard if they are still blockading the hospital?

All of the gay Thailand boards have their fans and their critics. Whether you like the Sawatdee board or not, so far all I have seen is speculation as to why it says the account has been suspended. I don't have any idea why the board is suspended. You know why? Because Elephantspike hasn't told me and as far as I know he also hasn't told anyone else. For all I know, it is entirely possible that even he has not yet been told why the Sawatdee account has been suspended. It could be because the account has not been paid, as many seem to think, but it also could be for other reasons. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me to be guessing what happened. It does make sense to me to wait for Elephantspike to tell us what happened if he chooses to do so or tell us if the board is going to return online. Don't forget, the Pattaya Passions board also suddenly disappeared not long ago. As far as I know, the owner has yet to disclose any reasons.

May 01~15 Gourmet Set Menu House Champagne *** Amuse Bouche *** White Wine Cackle Berry Chardonnay, Australia 2007 Pan-fried Frog Legs with Olive Oil, Garlic and herb on Tomato Salsa *** Cold Cucumber Soup with Sesame coated Shrimps *** Spinach and Ricotta Cheese Cannelloni *** Orange Champagne Sherbet *** Red Wine Optimus Berry, Shiraz Cabernet, Australia, 2006 Roasted Duck Breast stuffed with Walnut & Raisin Served with roasted Rosemary Potato Pancake in Pink Pepper Sauce -or- Grilled Lamb Cutlets on Layers of Potato and Egg Plant Tart with Fresh Mint Sauce *** Chinese Mango Pudding on Sweet Coconut Sabayone -or- Selection of premium international Cheese *** Coffee or Tea Calvados, Grappa, Remy Martin, Williams Food only 1,550 Baht (36.50 Є) Menu with Unlimited Beverages 3,350 Baht (78.90 Є) Restaurant Pattaya Casa Pascal

Condemnation poured in. Simmering public anger at the disruption of daily life now has had an added cause. That a red-shirt leader is a doctor only served to magnify resentment of a public totally losing its patience. weng Tojirakarn, whose son is also a doctor and has been assigned a job at a provincial hospital, reportedly had tried to stop the invasion, but he might not have done enough, or probably the red leadership has become too fragmented to act on consensus anyway. That's from the 'Losing Patience' article. My read of it is the father, a doctor, was an organizer. It was the son, also a doctor, who apparently tried to stop it.

I agree. Another aspect of this is that Thailand has been gaining a reputation as a place to come for what has been termed 'medical tourism.' I can't help but feel this is going to cause great damage to that reputation if people feel that they risk having their hospital blockaded or even raided if an uncontrolled mob decides it's a great idea to do things like that. Another example of cutting of their own noses to spite their faces. Another nail in the coffin. The news reports indicate that even a great many staunch Red-Shirt supporters are outraged over this incident. No matter how sincere the Red-Shirt leadership apology might have been, the damage has already been done. It is even worse since after the apology the same hospital ended up blockaded again. A friend of mine once said, "You know something? It takes at least a dozen 'attaboys' to counteract one 'awww shit'." With this incident I think he vastly underestimates the number of 'attaboys' it will take. What are these people thinking? Even if soldiers really were hiding out in the hospital, which makes no sense to me in the first place, my logic tells me the same mob could have captured them when they tried to come out. So, why the raid? And what would this mob have done if soldiers really were hiding in the hospital, start shooting? Inside a hospital? I wonder if they at least considered what the global reaction to something like that would have been. Can you imagine what that raid must have been like for the patients and staff? And even worse, I didn't know until I read the article that the Red-Shirt leader who organized that raid is himself a doctor! How would you like to be one of his patients? This whole protest is getting way out of hand and it's starting to look like the Red-Shirt leadership is losing control of their own hordes. I wonder how many more outrageous incidents are yet to come.