THE election result thread

[Gadfly]

I also think AIS shares went up by over 10% on the SET yesterday. I think the size of the victory took Bangkok by surprise.

[Gadfly]

A few initial observations on how people in Bangkok reacted to the elections:

 

1. Let's start with BGs since this site is devoted to Nana Plaza. Every BG and girl I know in "the industry" is a redshirt, except one. (This is also based on pre-election experience.) The one exception is unusual: she says she is a Christian, she is not really in the industry anymore (I know where she works) but just sidelines, she was born in Bangkok, lived in Australia for awhile (Farang boyfriend?) and is older (30ish). Most of the BG are also pro-Thaksin, except a few older ones who support the red shirts, except aren't keen on Mr. T. The older ones are old enough to remember what life was like under Purachai (I have kept some old friends from the scene).

 

2. I would say about 90% of the taxi drivers are red shirts. There are a few exceptions, but they are rare. These are brief rides so I don't have much insight beyond that.

 

3. My office is a really mixed bag. This is rough, but I would divide them into four categories:

 

3.1 The maids, drivers, etc. All red shirts, but quiet about it because they fear their bosses.

 

3.2 Some of the younger more thoughtful professionals aren't red shirts, but weren't impressed with the Dems either. They wish they was a meaningful other choice. Someone who wasn't a stooge of military, but also wasn't a stooge of Thaksin either. Someone who is competent and can articulate the political values they learned while studying in the U.S., UK, Australia a few years ago They're turning cynical fast.

 

3.3 The politicians. These are older ones who, as a general rule, are incompetent and hold good positions because they change views at the drop of a pin to go with what their boss says. When T came in about ten years ago, they were big T supporters. When T went out, they hated T. Now that T is back in, they claim they were always T supporters. They have absolutely no principles. They want to be on the winning side. I would say this describes the majority of management.

 

3.4 The well heeled. These come from powerful families. They are yellow, anti-democratic (meaning they really don't think Thailand should have a democracy) and really don't bother to try to hide what they think. The drive nice cars; nicer than there salaries can support. They have contempt for Mr. T, and they also have contempt for the average poor Thai. Their not the majority, but they do occupy important positions of power. Most have decent educations and those that work hard are good managers. The lazy ones are horrible and often contemptuous of more capable foreigners. They all have a sense of entitlement. They're a scary lot.

 

That is essentially my world, or at least how I see it two days after the elections.

[gobbledonk]

This thread seems to be coming along nicely - pistols at thirty paces, gentlemen, or daggers at considerably closer range ?

 

As far as the assassination quip goes, I cant think of a worse outcome for Thailand, regardless of the strings being pulled from Dubai or wherever.