Coss

" 20 bahts" is not the problem, it's the 500 bht or larger rip offs I mention, and I dress in no brand jeans and shirts, you won't find expensive gear on me. Thai greed is famous.

Well Fluffykins, the issue, for long-time travellers such as myself, is not one of paying a small amount more than the local before me, the issue is having to pay 500 or 1000 per cent more than the locals. So many times, I've seen the eyes of the vendor light up with greed on my approach, mental calculations spinning wheels in their heads, visions of Mercedes Benz floating in their minds. The notion that Thai people are poor and Farangs are rich is just that, notional. One of the the reasons people holiday in Thailand is that it's cheap, If it wasn't we wouldn't come. If we're to pay Paris prices for things, we may as well go to Paris, it's certainly cleaner and the food is arguably better.

Millers Crossing 1990 - Cohen Brothers - Film noir about mafioso types, Gabriel Byrne, understated, dark, not predictable, worth a watch.

Which, if you think about it, is a blessing.

Use the over head bins... Hazing ritual forces Chinese female flight attendants into overhead bins Images which show a female cabin crew lying in overhead luggage compartments went viral on Chinese social media. Photo / Facebook To make it as a female flight attendant in China, you must have the body of a model and the strength of a martial artist. Each of the coveted positions attracts thousands of applicants - an interest that has little abated despite routinely documented abuse. At China Southern Airlines, worthy candidates must be no older than 24 and above average height. At Hong Kong Airlines, they have to master kung fu. And at Kunming Airlines, it now appears, they should be as compact as pieces of carry-on luggage. Kunming Airlines said the company does not condone the tradition. Photo / Facebook A "Civil Aviation Tabloid" on Wechat, a popular social networking app in China, has released photos of female flight attendants lying uncomfortably in overhead bins. The initiation ritual, which has been in place for nearly five years, marks the employees' first 30 to 50 hours of flight service. Only women are subject to the treatment at the hands of their male colleagues, who force the female attendants into the compartments, sometimes even closing the lid on them, the article reports. Those who tried to avoid participating in the bizarre practice were deemed uncooperative and arrogant. Some pictures show the young women's faces buried in a corner of the bin; one features a male staffer flashing a peace sign as he poses beside an attendant covering her face with her hands. The photos and accompanying article went viral in China over the weekend, inciting considerable fervor from commenters who called the practice "an insult to females" and "really perverted." Others said the "joke" shouldn't be taken too seriously, pointing out that it looked like some women had climbed into the bins "for fun." Kunming Airlines apologised for the incident on Tuesday, noting in a statement that the company does not condone the tradition, which was the "personal behavior" of their attendants and security staff, conducted after flight hours. The carrier vows to discipline the workers involved and put an end to their conduct. Those who tried to avoid participating in the bizarre practice were deemed uncooperative and arrogant. Photo / Facebook But Kunming Airlines has long known about the ritual, the Wechat post claims, as female flight attendants had previously voiced their grievances to management without recourse. The hazing's distinctly physical nature echoes the strict standards that women in cabin crews are expected to meet. China's civil aviation authority mandates that female flight attendants between 5 feet 2 inches and 5 feet 7 inches tall must weigh between 110 and 150 pounds. In August, an attendant from Qingdao Airlines was reportedly grounded because she exceeded this height-to-weight ratio. It's no wonder, then, that the flight attendants appear to have been placed in the bins with ease. The suggestion seems to be that if a woman didn't fit the compartment, she wouldn't be fit to fly. http://www.nzherald....jectid=11528736

Charlie's Farm 2014 - Stryne movie, blood, gore, pieces, MLG covered her face and squealed a lot, a slasher film of better than normal execution. Also, novel use of Tractor. Worth a watch.

Bacon buttie, mmmm.....

Fantastic!

The Osterman weekend - 1983 - forced as some American movies of the era are, but worth a watch. San Andreas - 2015 - as Munchie says, enjoyable, I'm not normally interested in "spectacular", this was good. Some great moments are - Helicopters have a Hover button, who knew? And the 300 horse Mercury outboard that powered the rescue boat, sounded just like a '67 Mustang, or Camaro, again, who knew? A minimum of fist bumps and some very good cgi - worth a watch. 4 got 10 - 2015 - slow paced drug killing cops gone wrong etc - good - worth a watch.

For Fargo aficionados - I just watched episode 1 for series 2, set in time before series 1 - new cast, very enjoyable. The movies that relate to this TV series are - Fargo, Miller's Crossing and The Man Who Wasn't There. I intend to watch them.

I'm on a plane in the morning, it's only Jetstar, but then it should be cheaper ? I'll make sure I have $100 in my pocket, wink wink I'll report back.

http://www.straitsti...antic-data-pact Austrian Max Schrems waits for the verdict of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg on Tuesday. PHOTO: EPA BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT (REUTERS) - From Vienna cafes to the European Union's highest court, an Austrian law student's two-year battle against Facebook and mass US surveillance culminated on Tuesday in a landmark ruling that has rippled across the business world. Mr Max Schrems, a 28-year-old Facebook user finishing his PhD in law at Vienna University, took an interest in the subject of privacy while studying for a semester abroad at Santa Clara University in California. The legal battle against mass US surveillance that he subsequently pursued resulted in what lawyers called a "bombshell" ruling knocking down a data transfer framework between the European Union and the United States used by over 4,000 companies such as Google, Facebook and IBM . Advertisement "Max Schrems and Edward Snowden. What a combination. Two young men who have made indelible impacts on the world of data protection," wrote Mr Stewart Room, a partner at PwC. Like many Vienna residents, Mr Schrems has a cafe - the traditional Cafe Ritter in the Austrian capital's fashionable Mariahilf shopping district - that is like a second home where he likes to spend much of his time and receive visitors. In 2013, ex-National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden leaked details about the U.S. government's Prism programme that allowed it to harvest private information directly from big tech companies such as Facebook. Facebook has repeatedly denied being a "back door" for US spies. Mr Schrems took up the privacy battle and filed 22 complaints against Facebook in Ireland, where the company has its European headquarters. He set up a website, called europe-v-facebook.org, with the aim of ensuring that Europeans' privacy rights are enforced against "tech giants like Facebook". He then lodged a complaint with the Irish Data Protection Commissioner, asking it to stop Facebook's transfers of European users' data to its US servers because of the risk of US government snooping. That complaint was thrown out as "frivolous and vexatious". But Mr Schrems appealed. His case eventually wound its way to the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice, which on Tuesday struck down the framework underpinning the data transfers of thousands of companies. "Individuals now have far greater ability to exert a disruptive influence and shape law," said Ms Paula Barrett, partner at law firm Eversheds. Snowden, without whom Mr Schrems said Tuesday's victory would have been impossible, congratulated the Austrian privacy activist via Twitter. "Congratulations Max Schrems. You've changed the world for the better," Snowden tweeted. ---

Bangkok bomb: Has the case been solved? By Jonathan HeadSouth East Asia correspondent Image copyrightAssociated Press Twenty people died and more than 120 were injured in the horrific bombing on 17 August in central Bangkok at the Erawan shrine. But the investigation into who perpetrated the attack has seen conflicting statements and perplexing developments. Here are the twist and turns that took police from knowing very little after the deadly blast, to claiming to have identified their main suspect six weeks later. The immediate aftermath: conflicting statements On 18 August, a day after the bomb, another explosion in a canal sent a huge column of water over passers-by, but caused no injuries. Later police identified it as caused by a bomb similar to the one at the shrine. On 19 August police showed CCTV video, taken from the shrine and surrounding area. In it a man in a yellow shirt, with long hair and thick-framed spectacles, leaves a black backpack beside a bench at the shrine, and walks out just before the bomb explodes. Image copyrightThai Police HO via AP The police can ascertain nothing about his identity from the grainy images, and have no information after he was dropped off by a motorbike taxi about a kilometre from the shrine. On 22 August new CCTV video shows another man kicking a bag into the canal where the 18 August explosion occurred. This took place just 30 minutes after the first bomb. The police now know they are dealing with a network. But their often conflicting statements undermine public confidence in their competence. On 24 August the investigation stalls. Police complain that inconsistent witness testimony and broken CCTV cameras are hampering their work. Image copyrightAFPImage caption Soon after this image from CCTV, police lose track of the suspect's location "We have to use our imagination," admits police chief Somyot Poompunmuang. He says they do not know whether the perpetrators are still in Thailand or not. Arrests are made: 'But main suspect not caught' On 29 August there is a breakthrough - police and military officers detain their first suspect, a foreign man carrying a fake Turkish passport, found surrounded by potential bomb-making materials in an apartment north of Bangkok. The following day they find more materials in another apartment. A Thai Muslim woman and her Turkish husband are also named as suspects. Both are believed to be in Turkey. On 31 August Chief Somyot brings out a stack of cash - 3m Thai baht ($82,000; £54,000) offered as a reward for information leading to arrests - and gives it to his own officers. On 1 September the second suspect is detained, after being handed back across the border by the Cambodian authorities. Image copyrightAssociated PressImage captionYusufu Mierali - a muslim from Xinjiang -is identified as a key suspect He is carrying a Chinese passport that identifies him as Yusufu Mierali, a Muslim from Xinjiang where the Uighur minority lives. Police believe he may have assembled the bomb. They think the yellow-shirt bomber is still at large. By 5 September a total of 10 arrest warrants have been issued. Perpetrators are foreign: 'People smugglers are to blame' On 9 September police identify a man named "Izan" they believe organised the bombing, who left Thailand for Bangladesh the night before the attack. With the help of Bangladesh they trace his movements via Delhi and Abu Dhabi to Istanbul. Image copyrightEuropean Photopress Agency His passport shows his real name as Abudusataer Abudureheman, a Muslim Chinese citizen from Xinjiang. There is still confusion over whether Thailand has requested any help from Turkey. The Thai police have insisted all along that foreign assistance is not needed. By now it is clear most of the plotters are foreigners. Both suspects in Thai custody are Muslim Uighurs from China's Xinjiang province, as is "Izan", the man the Thais believe was the ringleader. Sources who have met the suspects say they speak of repression in Xinjiang and appear to have been radicalised. But the police continue to maintain the bombing was not an act of politically-motivated terrorism, but the work of people smugglers annoyed by Thai anti-trafficking operations. This despite the growing conviction among terrorism experts that it was most likely retribution for the Thai decision to forcibly repatriate 109 Uighur asylum-seekers to China in July. Yellow-shirt bomber: 'We had him all along' Police on 25 September say they now believe that the first suspect they detained, Bilal Mohammed, is the yellow-shirt bomber. They say he confessed to being the bomber on 23 September and that this is supported by new CCTV video and photographs from Yusufu Mierali's camera. Bilal had until then insisted he was just being smuggled to Malaysia using a false Turkish passport. His unexpected confession was made in military custody, without his lawyer. A source who has seen him tells the BBC he believes Bilal was coerced into confessing. Image copyrightAFPImage captionPolice announce the case is solved A total of 17 arrest warrants have been issued for suspects carrying Chinese, Turkish, Thai and Pakistani passports. Fifteen are still at large, probably outside Thailand. It is not clear what the Thai authorities are doing to track these suspects down. Outgoing police chief Somyot announces on 28 September that the case is solved, they have the main perpetrators in custody. He displays the 3m baht reward again. Image copyrightReuters He also suggests for the first time that there are links with a "political group", and names a man loosely affiliated with the red-shirt movement loyal to ousted Prime Ministers Yingluck and Thaksin Shinawatra, who is wanted in connection with two smaller explosions in 2010 and 2014. It turns out this man has been living outside Thailand for more than a year, and Gen Somyot backtracks. But other senior officials say they are still looking for him. On 30 September chief Somyot retires after a year in the job. He still insists the motive for the Bangkok bombing is anger among people-smugglers, not retaliation by militants for deporting Uighurs. Outside the police very few people are persuaded by Gen Somyot's theory. The two suspects in custody have yet to be charged. When they are, they face trial in a military court, which human rights groups have warned would not be equipped to judge a complex case like this. http://www.bbc.com/n...d-asia-34409348

I don't have a link, but I saw it in a news report, not too long ago, along with attitude adjustment visits to army camps by various folk. The student in question was "protesting" by reading George Orwell '1984' in public, in front of Army types.

No comment required

Chinese Tourists

So not only has NZ sold exactly the same cars, but they's quarantined them, to stop the dodgy software getting out and infecting other cars/people/native wild life http://www.driven.co.nz/news/news/vw-scandal-vehicles-quarantined-in-nz/?ref=NZHNetwork VW scandal: Vehicles quarantined in NZ BY MATHEW DEARNALEY, NZ HERALD • 05/10/2015 Volkswagen's New Zealand division has quarantined 36 new vehicles with emissions-cheating diesel engines, but acknowledges there are likely to be hundreds more on our roads. General manager Tom Ruddenklau says the company has halted the sale of 21 Tiguan SUVs and 15 Caddy vans, and is confident they are the only new VW vehicles in this country to have been caught up in the global scandal engulfing the German car-maker. "Just to be on the safe side, we've isolated those from being sold until we've got a remedy - it's just something that's the responsible thing to do," he said this afternoon. But he disclosed that there are likely to be hundreds of VW diesels of both those models and some others sold over several years in New Zealand fitted with the same four-cylinder EA 189 engine, although he was unable to identify those at this stage. Smaller numbers of Audi and Skoda vehicles with the same engines were also likely to be affected. Mr Ruddenklau said he hoped to have a definitive list from Germany by Monday night or Tuesday morning of the other models, to be able to notify owners and offer them a fix when one became available. The company also intended setting up a website during the week on which owners could enter their vehicle chassis numbers, rather than wait for the company to reach them. "Because what we are finding is customers with petrol engines for example are calling us and asking is their vehicle involved in this - and we are going: No, it's only diesel." Neither were VW Tourags with their V6 diesel engines affected. When the scandal first blew up, Mr Ruddenklau said New Zealand was not directly affected, as VWs on our roads were imported from the European Union market "and those cars are not involved in this emission-associated recall programme..." His comment followed the United States Environmental Protection Agency's revelation on September 21 that it had found "defeat device" software on diesel cars which could suppress nitrogen oxide emission levels during tests, only for those to soar by up to 40 times the permitted level in everyday use. Mr Ruddenklau told the Herald today he initially thought the problem was confined to the US market "but then the next day it transpired it was probably a little bit bigger than that." He noted that New Zealand did not require emissions tests for nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, and did not have a standard for those. "But emissions are emissions, and even if we don't test for them here, they are important and we can't be irresponsible or complacent over it." he said. "At the centre of this is a bit of a trust issue - there's been some dishonest behaviour from VW in Germany and that behaviour is not acceptable." A statistic analysis by the Associated Press news agency estimates that VW's pollution-control chicanery has not just been victimless tinkering, but is likely to be killing between five and 20 people a year in the United States, from excessive emissions of smog-forming nitrogen oxides.

If I could find the USA thread I'd use it.

This is akin to "Don't beat the shit out of your wife" and to reinforce this message we're going to beat the shit out of you.

University hazing gets stern new punishment in military-ruled Thailand In this Sept. 14, 2015 photo, students from Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University crawl on their stomachs through muddy jungle paths as part of an exercise designed to "break down their ego (and) humiliate them" at a military boot camp ordered as punishment for a hazing incident in Nakhon Nayok province, Thailand. In military-ruled Thailand there is a new method for teaching discipline known as "attitude adjustment," which until now has been used to silence government critics. But there are signs that the mentality of military rule is creeping into civilian issues - like college discipline. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit) (The Associated Press) BANGKOK – At a military facility outside Bangkok, a drill sergeant barks orders at a group of film students learning the hard way that creative license has its limits in Thailand. "You are here to learn discipline," the officer shouted. "Do you understand?" "Yes, sir!" shouted back the group of 53 aspiring artists — boys with shaggy hair, girls with tattoos and yoga pants. "Discipline means respecting the rules and regulations," he told them. "If you misbehave, you must be punished." In military-ruled Thailand, this is how university hazing is handled. The offense: a video posted online that showed a half-dozen fully clothed freshman doing an erotic couples dance as upperclassmen cheered. Social media dubbed it a "love-making dance." The punishment: three days of boot camp for a new type of disciplinary punishment known as "attitude adjustment." The military junta that seized power over a year ago pioneered the idea of "attitude adjustment" as a technique to silence critics. The junta summons politicians and others who voice dissent to military bases where they are typically incarcerated several days, interrogated and made to "confess" to their transgressions and sign a contract to not repeat them — a practice that has been widely criticized by human rights groups. Now there are signs that the mentality of military rule is being applied to civilian issues — like college discipline. For the students from the film school of Bangkok's Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, a three-day boot camp included reprimands, public humiliation and a grueling endurance test. "We're not telling our film students don't make creative films, but in Thailand there are social limits. They need to be creative within the limits," said Chin Tangtarntana, a lecturer in cinematography and one of several professors who chaperoned the 3-day session last month that included silent meals and group lodging on a barrack floor lined with mattresses. "We have to reset their clocks. That's why we're here, to rewind. We're saying, 'Go back. Start over. OK, now be creative.'" After a 2-hour bus drive northeast of the capital to the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy, a 33-square-kilometer (20-square-mile) facility surrounded by mountains, the students' cellphones were confiscated to ensure no outside communication and primarily to prevent more videos, Chin said. "The activities that will take place here will be good for you, and help you to become civilized people. Do you understand?" the drill sergeant, Sgt. Maj. Kongsak Klaeiklang, asked rhetorically. He led what he called an "ice-breaking" session that bore close resemblance to hazing: An overweight female student was singled out as a "hippopotamus" as others were told to "dance like hippos." Team games ended with the losers ordered to "walk like elephants," bent over in a human chain, clutching each other's hands between legs. Then they were driven to a steamy, mosquito-infested jungle. Under a steady rainfall, the students were put through a different type of hazing. Loud bangs exploded in the distance, and the students were ordered to run. "Faster! Just keep breathing, you won't die," shouted Kongsak, after one student nearly fainted and was allowed to sit on the sidelines. He then ordered them to "DROP!" and crawl on their stomachs through muddy puddles and at one point to hurdle a barricade of fire. "The idea is to break them down. Break down their ego. Humiliate them. And then we build them back up," Kongsak said, as soldiers led small groups on an arduous 5-kilometer (3-mile) jungle trek that included scaling rope ladders and balancing on swinging logs to cross a river. The boot camp incident sparked little public uproar in a country where the education system has always had a militaristic streak — public schools have mandatory uniforms, hair must be kept short and some teachers still wield bamboo canes to enforce discipline through secondary school. Problem teens in violent high-school gangs have been sent to boot camps in the past. But using the military to punish university hazing is a new approach, which commentators say sends a chilling message that the military is needed to solve society's problems even at institutions of higher learning. "This order to the students to report to a military base is at least as inappropriate as the hazing incident," the Bangkok Post said in a recent editorial on the subject. The university "lost a little public respect with the hazing violation. It continues to lose even more respect with its reaction." The very same university was also home to last year's infamous hazing ritual, which involved upperclassmen dripping hot candle wax on incoming freshman and burning the arms of several students. But in that case where bodily harm was actually caused nobody was punished, the editorial noted. Critics say the hazing case highlights a trend toward militarization of Thai society under the junta, where those in charge don't believe that "attitude adjustment" will actually brainwash people — but the aim is to intimidate and discourage the outspoken from speaking out. The former army chief who led the coup, Prayuth Chan-ocha, and is now serving as interim leader has launched a crackdown on dissent and has blocked public discussions about democracy. He regularly lashes out at those who question his authority and warns the public to stop asking for elections, which he says won't be held until 2017. Hundreds of politicians, journalists, professors and other critics have been hauled in for "attitude adjustment" in the name of maintaining peace and order. "People who say bad things and cause harm with their words, should they say those things?" Prayuth said to reporters last month, defending the latest round of political detentions that included a three-day incarceration of a prominent journalist, Pravit Rojanaphruk, and two politicians. "You cannot oppose me. No one will let you to do that." Social commentator Sanitsuda Ekachai called it a sign of the times that the rector of a university chose to resort to military-style "attitude adjustment." "When someone in his position believes that militarism is the answer ... it explains why the military still retains a strong grip on society," Sanitsuda wrote in a column for The Bangkok Post. In a separate column, she wrote that educators who rely on military discipline are sending a stifling message: "Those who resist will be punished. The country is heading full force toward being a military state." Whether or not attitude adjustment works on students appears to depend on the individual. An exhausted freshman, Natdanai Kedsanga, 20, ended the first day of boot camp with a realization. "We were having too much fun, that was the problem," said about the video in which he was one of the dancers. "Now that I think about it, maybe it wasn't appropriate." Pongpat Puchiangdang, a university senior, said the attitude adjustment had taught him a lesson — if you want to do something socially unacceptable just don't share it on social media. "Stuff like this happens everywhere at all schools, and sometimes it's even worse. They just don't post it online (Finally someone has worked it out! If you don't want people to see it, don't post it! Next they'll start valuing privacy!)," said Pongpat, a 22-year-old aspiring cameraman. "I don't think making that video was wrong. It's a good memory. We just shouldn't have publicized it." http://www.foxnews.c...ruled-thailand/

Twists and Turns in Thailand's Bombing Case Thai authorities claim progress, but many observers are dubious. By Joshua Kurlantzick More than a month after the deadly bombing at central Bangkok’s Erawan shrine, the Thai authorities have made two arrests in the case, and issued at least seventeen arrest warrants overall. On Monday, the Thai police announced that one of the men in custody was the person caught on closed circuit television on the day of the bombing in August—the man who appeared to be leaving a bomb at the shrine. But some Thai commentators remain doubtful that the government has gotten closer to actually solving the case. The lack of trust that the Thai authorities have arrested the actual perpetrators stems from several factors. First, in recent years the Thai police and security forces have demonstrated a pattern of problematic investigations of major crimes, whether the 2006 New Year’s Eve bombings in Bangkok, or the 2014 Koh Tao murder case, in which two foreign tourists were killed on the resort island. In the Koh Tao case, the police initially announced that two indigent Burmese migrants, who are now on trial, confessed to the crime, but the two later recanted their confession and claimed that they only confessed after being tortured. They are now standing trial, but there are significant amounts of evidence that call their guilt into question. Most recently, Thailand’s most prominent forensics investigator announced that DNA on the Koh Tao murder weapon does not match the DNA of the accused migrants. According to Time, “The [Koh Tao] prosecution’s case rests on DNA samples found on [one tourist’s] body that investigators say match the defendants. Defense lawyers had asked for the samples to be retested but police said the evidence had been ‘used up.’†As commentator Saksith Saiyasombut notes, the Thai police also continue to use methods that seem, at the least, outdated. They continue to have people arrested for crimes appear in public to “re-enact†the alleged criminal acts. In early September, Thai police led one of the Erawan suspects, Yusufu Mierili, around central Bangkok, where he went through the steps he supposedly took on the bombing day, with reporters there to cover the re-enactment. Such re-enactments, one would think, would make it more difficult for the alleged criminals to have a fair trial, though what they say at the re-enactment is theoretically not usable in court. In addition, Saksith notes, re-enactments do not further the investigation, and at times they have led to mobs of people attacking the suspect right after the re-enactment. The Thai police also sometimes receive large, publicly announced, rewards when they apparently make breakthroughs in cases, an unusual practice in law enforcement. In the bombing case, the Thai police already have twice announced that they will be keeping two rewards. The first reward, as the Associated Press reported, was originally “offered to the public for tips leading to the arrest of suspects†but police gave it to themselves. Then, earlier this week Thailand’s police chiefs announced the police were awarding themselves a second reward, essentially for making substantial progress in the investigation. The police chiefs brandished thick stacks of cash for the media earlier this week to demonstrate how much money they were getting. Third, there have been a range of inconsistencies in the statements of the people arrested, and in the statements of Thai authorities about those arrested and about the reasons for the attack. The Thai government has at times suggested the bombers acted to avenge a crackdown on their human trafficking network, to take revenge for Thailand’s deportation of a group of Uighurs back to China in July, to strike a blow for the insurgents fighting the Thai government in the deep south, or even for reasons related to Thailand’s domestic politics. At various times in the investigation, government officials have said that one of the men in custody, Adem Karadag, was not the man who planted the bomb; now, government officials say he is. The government also has tried to implicate a range of other suspects in the bombing, mostly local opponents of the military regime. Finally, more than a year in the Thai junta’s rule, the level of popular distrust in the government generally has risen; this distrust carries over to the government’s handling of the bombing case. Opaque policymaking and crackdowns on dissent remain the norm. Earlier this month, prominent journalist Pravit Rojanaphruk, an outspoken critic of military rule, was taken to a Thai army base for an “attitude adjustment†in a tiny cell. After his stay at the army base, he quit his job at The Nation, a prominent Thai paper, apparently under pressure from some of his colleagues. http://thediplomat.com/2015/10/twists-and-turns-in-thailands-bombing-case/

This from a nation where reading George Orwell in public can get you arrested... http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/NSC-working-on-mega-database-on-all-Thai-citizens-30270135.html A move to integrate state information databases into one data network is underway to spur national development and manage security more efficiently, the just-retired secretary-general of the National Security Council Anusit Kunakorn has said. He revealed this during an interview on NOW channel's "the 26th Hour''. An "electronic superhighway network" formally known as the Government Information Network (GIN) - or Super GIN - has been established to help the government boost economic growth, assist with natural disasters, tackle illegal trade, criminal activity and manage security issues, said Anusit, who retired at the end of last month. GIN is the initiative of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. "The PM believes integrating the country's databases will benefit not only the government but also the public, business or the private sector that can utilise this information sharing system,'' he said. According to a February 8 resolution by the Prayut Cabinet, the PM chairs a committee to implement this project. Deputy Premier Prawit Wongsuwan, who is also Defence Minister, oversees the project and Anusit was made secretary of the committee. Prayut wanted the Information Communications and Technology Ministry to be the main agency to pool information from various ministries, Anusit said. At this stage, information from different ministries is linked manually, such as databases of the Revenue Department, Department of Provincial Administration, which is in charge of civil registration, the Royal Thai Police, and the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (NCB). Many databases could not be linked yet, he said. But critics have questioned if this sharing of information, which includes civil registration databases, will intrude into individuals' privacy. Many people may not want their financial information or criminal records to be shared or known just via a single check. Presently the Civil Registration keeps fingerprint records of each individual (their right and left thumbs). Those without thumbs have prints of their index, middle, ring and little fingers kept respectively. What critics fear is that this project could be geared toward having all 10 fingerprints kept and even DNA collected and stored. But Anusit said: "To collect and keep DNA information, a new law would have to be passed." He argued that having complete identity records for people would be useful for many incidents, such as natural disasters. "People should not think that having 10 fingerprints make them look like criminals. For the country to move ahead people should think out of the box and we must adjust ourselves with the times. People have nothing to lose in having their 10 fingerprints kept in databases,'' Anusit said. "People who do nothing wrong do not have to worry. If you are not criminals but decent people who earn your livelihood honestly, or officials who are not corrupt, I believe you would not reject this system because all parties will benefit. Checks enabled by this system create transparency,'' he said. Benefits from the project would be huge, Anusit said. For instance, people could get new national ID cards faster, officials could check if ID cards were falsified or if criminals had used ID cards of people who had died or held several ID cards. Officials could check if migrants, hilltribe or ethnic minority people - who do not own national ID cards but are given different types of cards - hold only one correct ID card. They could be checked more easily if they illegally enter the country or engage in illegal activity. Landowners could check their ownership of land title deeds, and people may be able to find the whereabouts of missing family members. "Bank accounts, debts, credit cards can also be checked through this information sharing system,'' he said. The private sector can link databases with those of civil registration. This would enable companies to access information on applicants such as their authentic ID cards. They could also link to databases of the Labour Ministry, which would help them get information such as where applicants worked before. When the Asean Economic Community starts next year, surveillance information systems and information sharing would be useful for immigration issues such as when people cross borders. "Immigration officials would have criminal records or blacklists of the NCB or the Corrections Department. Criminals fleeing the country would find it much harder. The integrated system will be like you see in foreign movies, you key in ID numbers and you will know that person's criminal record," he said. To help boost security in the restive South, security officials could link the Land Transport Department's car registration information with Internet protocol (IP) by smart phones to check on cars. "The public also benefits from this information system if they encounter car thefts,'' he said. Anusit said the PM had long pushed for this project before the 17 August bomb attacks in Bangkok took place. If security databases were fully integrated, police investigations would be easier. "We would have had information about bomb parts because there have been patterns of bombs around the world. If the public does not have a negative attitude, they would enjoy greater security with this integrated system that can be efficiently managed and updated,'' he said. The ICT Ministry will design the system to identify the level of confidentiality in order to determine what information should be shared with various state agencies, or what data the private sector or the public can access, Anusit said.

Public urged to monitor the Koh Tao murder trial by Burmese investigators KOH SAMUI: -- Zaw Lin and Wei Phyo, the two men who stand accused of the murders in Koh Tao last September, are innocent and should be cleared of all charges according to a team of investigators representing the Burmese Government who spoke to reporters in Rangoon on Thursday. During the press interview the team urged the public to monitor the case as it continues on the 10th and 11 of this month, on what are due to be the final hearing dates. Burmese investigation teamThe two Burmese men are accused of the rape and murder of Hannah Witheridge, and the murder of David Miller, backpackers who travelled separately to the island last year. The gruesome murders have cast a shadow over the island and raised questions about tourist safety in Thailand and well as migrant worker issues. The accused, who initially confessed to the crimes, later retracted their confessions saying they were tortured into admitting involvement in the crime. Htoo Chit, a migrant rights advocate who has been leading the investigation team formed by the Burmese Embassy in Thailand said the evidence presented during the case was overwhelmingly in favor of the defendants and that the Thai justice system should declare them innocent. “At first, they confessed because they were tortured and threatened in police custody, but they told us everything because they trust us,†Htoo Chit said. “I believe they are innocent and will be free soon, but we must monitor [the decision of the court] and whether they are acquitted.†He went on to explain that one of the most crucial pieces of evidence was the DNA testing administered by the Thai investigators that has come under increasing scrutiny. He says that DNA testing typically takes around 20 days where the tests in this case took only three days. Furthermore Thai forensic pathologist Dr. Pornthip Rojanasunan, who was called by the defense testified that the assumed murder weapon, a garden hoe, did not show any trace of the DNA of either defendants. Those close to the case believe the two migrant workers are being used as scapegoats in a trial that has been riddled with ambiguity and accusations of foul play. During the proceedings the translator hired to assist with investigation was revealed to be a Rohingya Muslim who was fluent in neither Thai nor the defendants native Arakanese. Yesterday (October 2nd) marked one year in jail for the two 22 year old defendants who maintain all they did on the night of the horrific murders was play guitar on the beach close to where the crimes took place and have told members of their support group that they had no knowledge of either victim prior to the news they had been murdered the following day, had no motive for hurting anybody on an island they rely on to earn money to provide for their families and pray for justice for the families of the victims. The two, who face the death penalty if found guilty of the crimes, have remained calm during the trial during which they have received support from their mothers, both widows, who have travelled to the island to support their sons. Neither of the accused have a history of any criminal activity. -- Samui Times 2015-10-03 via ThaiVisa

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Panthongtae ready to hand over the 7-million baht cash reward Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s only son, Panthongtae, is ready to hand over the 7-million baht reward that he earlier promised to give to the police if they manage to arrest the Erawan Shrine bomber. An informed source said that Panthongtae planned to visit the National Police Office on Friday to hand over the cash reward to the national police chief, Pol Gen Chakthip Chaichinda, to be distributed to the officers responsible for resolving the case. However, Pol Gen Chakthip would not be available and the plan was called off. Earlier, Panthongtae posted a message in his Facebook page on August 21 saying that Thaksin had endorsed the promised cash reward but it should be divided into two portions – one portion of two million baht to be given to those who gave the tips leading to the arrest of the suspected bomber and the other portion, five million baht, are to be shared out among police officers responsible for investigating the case. One of the two suspects held in police custody, Adem Karadag, confessed to the police on September 23 that he was the yellow-shirted bomber wanted by the police. http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/panthongtae-ready-to-hand-over-the-7-million-baht-cash-reward