drogon Posted April 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2009 -> a possible police explanation provided this morning by some BM. Army: Has certainly strict orders not to use too much force....for now. I also suspect (heard from a good Thai friend linked to the "taboo family") that the government: being now assured to have some local, political, army and international support -> is letting the reds get crazy.... so they "discredit themselves" more in the eyes of the local population (pissed Bangkokians) Otherwise, I don't know....all I see for now is the Reds are the ones killing people and wreacking havok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lazyphil Posted April 13, 2009 Report Share Posted April 13, 2009 This is just a prelude to what will happen to the whole world. pecieved injustices or real ones, class war, race wars, dwindiling recources, global warming, armaggedon. Get training in the gym, get fit to fight and run away!!!!, arm up, stock up with baked beans and ravioli and prepare for all out war in the not to distant future :happyeaster: :thumbup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted April 13, 2009 Report Share Posted April 13, 2009 This is just a prelude to what will happen to the whole world. pecieved injustices or real ones, class war, race wars, dwindiling recources, global warming, armaggedon. Get training in the gym, get fit to fight and run away!!!!, arm up, stock up with baked beans and ravioli and prepare for all out war in the not to distant future The end is nigh! Just become a member of a certain pentecostal church (ask S. Palin for the details), move to Alaska and await Armageddon and resurrection. or :content: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 Errrrr, I am sitting here ready to go...waiting for that erection... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 THE NATION's most recent: ANALYSIS: Round Four: Reds in Retreat By Tulsathit Taptim The red-shirted movement and government crackdown have put Thailand on a crucial juncture. How will the country emerge from the Black Songkran? The Red Shirts are retreating politically as much as logistically and strategically. It has been a day when the movement risks shrinking back to its very core. Public sympathy, which has been on a decline since the collapse of the Asean summit, is apparently at its lowest on Monday, [color:red]underlined by a brief but telling scene at the Din Daeng flat community. Fearful and angry following the protesters' threat to blow up a hijacked gas truck to counter troops' advance, the flat residents sided with the security forces and formed a human shield to protect the soldiers.[/color] Burnt buses, gunshots, thick smoke in many spots and shouts of abuses make it Bangkok's blackest Songkran ever. But resentment against the Red Shirts was not caused by the forced absence of festivity. It is the traffic turmoil, the fear and anxiety, intimidation of press members, and the general feelings that the protesters have gone too far that is chipping away at their credibility and respectability. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, under siege politically, may have problems with his command and clout. But he has never wavered when it comes to the right principles which have been reflected throughout the first day of the crackdown. Reports coming in from various scenes confirm the government's insistence that force has been used discreetly. Given the magnitude of the protesters' aggression, things could have become much worse than October 7 last year, when several Yellow Shirt protesters were killed and many lost their limbs in a clash with security forces. As it turned out, there has been less violence, although what the troops' relative leniency will lead to in the next hours remains to be seen. If anything, the fact that the crackdown operations so far seem to still be going Abhisit's way underscores his statement on Sunday night that his government, police and the military remained united. After all, there are so many things rebellious police or soldiers can do to turn today's fragile events into something a lot worse. In an interview with CNN, red-shirted leader and fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra claimed force was being used indiscriminately against innocent people. It will be his words against Abhisit's now. One thing is certain: if Thaksin has got the ears of the international media, what the local Thai media have seen so far does not back up the ousted prime minister's claim of rampant state aggression against "innocent, unarmed citizens fighting for democracy". There was one scene Monday evening showing some female Red Shirts giving flowers to soldiers, begging them not to push them back further. This might be a one-off, or it may reflect a change in the movement's strategy after being dealt major logistical and political blows in one day. The tide can still change, as the Red Shirts have dispersed into unorganised, virtually rudderless pockets of unruly mobs who have burned dozens of vehicles and kept on provocative activities. It will be up to the troops and their commanders to keep their cool heads. Supreme Commander Songkitti Jakkrabat seemed to mirror Abhisit's principles when he announced that the bottom line of the crackdown operation was "Everyone is Thai". How long that can hold will determine not who wins this showdown, but how Thailand will emerge from this very black Songkran. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 THE NATION 14 Apr 2009 US condemns violence, urges peaceful protests The United States on Monday condemned violence by pro-Thaksin protesters in Thailand. State Department spokesman Robert Wood told US media the US is watching events "very closely" in Thailand, where pro-Thaksin Red Shirts battled soldiers and Bangkok residents. The United States condemned "this unacceptable violence by the protesters," Wood said. He said the United States urged the "protesters and their leaders to foreswear additional... use of violence, to exercise their right to assembly, but... to do so... peacefully." "Our desire to see tensions reduced and for there not to be violence -- that's something that certainly the government of Thailand knows is the position of the United States," he said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bangkoktraveler Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 I got a feeling Thaskin is planning a major assault. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coss Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 with tongue firmly in cheek... "... Thaskin is planning a major assault...." With stingingly hysterical TV interviews? Cheers Coss Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 Reports say the troops are preparing to move against the remaining protest sites. Soldiers are armed with shields and police baton, plus the water cannons are on hand. It's SONGKRAN! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCorinthian Posted April 14, 2009 Report Share Posted April 14, 2009 Where is you know who in all this? I imagine if he asked them all to cut it out, they would. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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