Thailand Thread

[afisher 0]

[/color]

Just checking into the new Thailand thread...

Can you cite your source as to the Queen paying the PAD?

Uhhhhh. my wife? LOL! I'll ask her where she heard it from. She seems to know some people who are quite updated and know the extended story past the news media (the why's).

She knows lots about the bombings (maybe because hot news brings fast rumors). One at pratunam was because someone was selling beef and the police and beef mafia wasn't having any of it (also an undercurrent of yellow shirt this is how it's always been done vs red shirt "I need to make a living" age old arguement.

She hates politics but seems to know a bit (who knows what's on general TV since I don't understand enough Thai). I'm not one to spread false stuff so I will do my best to find something better than "the soi dog told my wife and the food vendor told the dog"... Then again, if I knew, then the news would know...that's right, they can't report it.

When she did tell me that (back when they occupied the airport) all of the government, military and police moves were in line with it, so it made too much sense (to the point I was thinking, why didn't I think of that)? I think that also explains why tempers are so hot now because for the first time, the King didn't get involved at all.

Let me table this and I'll have to wait 'till she wakes up to find out where she learned this. I doubt I'll get names since saying that is illegal over there but I'll try to find how she learned this (imagine that....illegal saying such a simple thing that if real, it's the perfect situation...do everything and no one can talk)!

Regarding all the Thaksin posts. They all know (red shirts) he's dirty, a crook, etc but when it comes down to the wire, they directly benefitted (money in their pocket) so they don't care, they're that poor, who does what as long as someone relieves their food/financial/healthcare stress no matter how little since 100% of them are corrupt. They don't realize the magnitude and how much it hurt their country but since when has the 'country" as a whole looked out for them? (Just analyzing if it were me and basing this on what they say when I say Thaksin is a crook...and they say "no one else is standing in line to help us...he's all we've got...we haven't even the king now..."

Your wife and my wife are obviously from the same part of Thailand. She thinks it is true also about the royal family paying the yellow shirts. I don't buy it. Yellow shirts are from Bangkok. They have money already, and I also know Thais here in the U.S. that were financing the cause of the yellow shirts.

I also agree that he is a crook and threw the Isaan people a few crumbs. Compared to how he raped the country while he was PM, I think it's pretty small.

This is a great opportunity for Abhisit and the democrats to get their heads and a$$es wired together and start investing in some projects up country. That would go a long way to marginalize Thaksin. I personally think he is finished now, as are the red shirts.

The rich and middle class in Bangkok would be wise to learn a lesson from all this. Like I said in previous post, my wife already considers the illegals here the same thing as Isaan in Thailand because they seem to be the people doing all the menial labour.

Full disclosure: My wife is from Si Saket. Moved to Bangkok when she was 13. Went to high school in Bangkok and lived and worked there up until we moved to the US. (1.5 years in Chiang Mai before we came actually) She still considers herself Isaan.

My girl is from Issan, Maha Sarakham, to be exact, and she hates Thaksin. Thinks he is a huge crook.

[daboyz 36]

He's definitely a huge crook. I guess alot of Isaan people consider him some kind of Robin Hood.

[bill13060 0]

Nanathai_Ike got 221g. They are being real jerks there. Especially since all of this stuff has already been approved by NVC.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=192509

The embassy is getting so fu%^&*( rediculous. i can't believe they expect us to follow thier rules and then they stray away from them about whats required.

On another note i do agree with daboyz that the "red shirt" guys should not have linked themselves with T. and they should have been a little more organized and keep things under control. It might have been a different outcome if they had.

[rin and john 71]

Sorry to change to topic. Anyone ever flown Air China? There is an extremely cheap ticket from BKK to SFO (350 +tax) but I don't want to sit in misery for 25 hours if I can avoid it. Although the 9 hour layover in Bejing might be nice, never been to China. Can anything be seen done in 9 hours there?

USCANdual have you ever flown Israair... I want to avoid a plane like that, where the seats are so close together even the 4'10 girl sitting next to me felt uncomfortable.

We got ready and were walking out the door at 6:30 this morning to pick up the visa when I decided to look at the card they gave us, and realized it said to come at 3:00, oops.

Thanks,

Noi

I've flown AC within China. Very little leg room (but I'm 6'1"). But don't know about their trans-Pacific service which should have a little more room. To leave the airport in Beijing you will need a visa prior to US departure.

Here is a great site for comparing airlines and choosing a seat:

http://www.seatguru.com/

Most US domestic flights have a 31" seat pitch in economy. AC shows 34" for their planes, so maybe it would be bearable.

Edited April 21, 2009 by rin and john

[*Robert* 2]

(side mention about an earlier gross-misquote...I love Thai food, people, culture...just don't like prejudice which is fueled by this shirt color politics). The reason I'm getting married? (I won't bother responding; why does anyone)! The PM's sent to me reveal I'm not off topic with the concerns of others, as well...I apologized for the length...just feeling frustrated at the k1 process and the fact it's been many months and no NOA2 and also empathizing with the losers in this class war in Thailand.

You were not quoted, at least not by me, so you better go back and re-read my post. Here is a portion of what I wrote:

Hyena, concerning your rant about prejudice, I feel you are going to have real problems if you ever bring your fiancée to the US. If you can’t handle the prejudice in Thailand, how will you handle it here? Do you think that Thailand is the only Asian country with the prejudice you talked about? What about all the prejudice that still exists here in the US?

It always concerns me when I hear you going off on the food, language, and customs of Thailand. If they bother you so much, why the hell are you trying to marry someone from there? Do you think you are rescuing her? Bringing her here to the US does not guarantee her happiness. Not everyone believes life is golden here in the US.

So as you can see, I asked you questions, I didn't quote you. You even got my question about marriage wrong, as it wasn't why you were getting married. So next time, try not to say you were grossly misquoted, when it is you misquoting me.

And by the way, you weren't the only one getting PMs, and I'm not the only one that was put off by your rants.

[Niels Bohr 72]

There are more Cambodians in the US compared to Thai. I'm surprised that there are no Cambodians here often on VJ.

[*Robert* 2]

Uhhhhh. my wife? LOL! I'll ask her where she heard it from. She seems to know some people who are quite updated and know the extended story past the news media (the why's).

She hates politics but seems to know a bit (who knows what's on general TV since I don't understand enough Thai). I'm not one to spread false stuff so I will do my best to find something better than "the soi dog told my wife and the food vendor told the dog"... Then again, if I knew, then the news would know...that's right, they can't report it.

So now you are married and applying for a K-1 visa?!

But spreading rumors is all you're doing. Without a credible source, that's all they are.

[anya-D 8]

The rumor about the royal family 'fund' the yellow shirt starts with the email forward that showed that the King's granddaughter forward email about Thaksin.. and the rumor started blooming from there. I got the forward too.. it's mostly about how crooked Thaksin is so it's not surprise the opponent take that as that she's sided with the yellow shirt.

Then as Noi pointed out too that the Queen gave some donation to the girl who got killed by the police (and she heard that this girl is a suicide bomber... which is not true - the police force is under Thaksin.. and during that incident, they throw granate and tear gas to the crowd) so that started another rumor that the queen's behind this... this act can means nothing or can means anything depends on how people sees it. I for one think it' means only the queen shows her generosity to the family that lost their daughter from the police that use excessive force to break the protest (which was quite peacefully compared to the latest one). (surprise? it was Thaksin's brother in-law who was the PM at that time)

The rumors about who paid who goes both ways... each person believe their side of the story.. mostly on yellow shirt side (my grandfather who is 84 also joined) it said to provide food, drinks and transportation... those money are from donation from everywhere.

I'm not fond on them using yellow shirt for their cause either.. I'm not their side btw..but most of the yellow shirt reports has pretty good evident on their cause whereas the red shirts rely heavily on creating rumor and didn't provide evident and just doing it for Thaksin.

And I'd say that there are a lot of people like me..

[scandal 951]

Uhhhhh. my wife? LOL! I'll ask her where she heard it from. She seems to know some people who are quite updated and know the extended story past the news media (the why's).

Hyena, did you get married? Like, actually really married, legally?

I hope I'm just pointing out the obvious by noting that you are filing a K-1 FIANCE visa? And are still awaiting your NOA2 for that?

In which case you must be UNMARRIED until she gets her visa, comes to the US and you marry in the US?

I'm hoping for your sake that you're calling her your 'wife' more as an informal reference.....

I personally go to great lengths in all settings, formal and informal, to point out that we are still UNMARRIED and she is my fiancee not my wife.

When showing pictures of our Buddhist ceremony last Sept to friends and family, they will say "oh your wife is lovely!", and I say"Yes, she's lovely. But no, she's not yet my wife..." and proceed to bore them to tears about the intricacies of K1 vs K3 / CR1 filings.

Please tell me you didn't get married while you still have an active K1 proceeding....

[daboyz 36]

Uhhhhh. my wife? LOL! I'll ask her where she heard it from. She seems to know some people who are quite updated and know the extended story past the news media (the why's).

Hyena, did you get married? Like, actually really married, legally?

I hope I'm just pointing out the obvious by noting that you are filing a K-1 FIANCE visa? And are still awaiting your NOA2 for that?

In which case you must be UNMARRIED until she gets her visa, comes to the US and you marry in the US?

I'm hoping for your sake that you're calling her your 'wife' more as an informal reference.....

I personally go to great lengths in all settings, formal and informal, to point out that we are still UNMARRIED and she is my fiancee not my wife.

When showing pictures of our Buddhist ceremony last Sept to friends and family, they will say "oh your wife is lovely!", and I say"Yes, she's lovely. But no, she's not yet my wife..." and proceed to bore them to tears about the intricacies of K1 vs K3 / CR1 filings.

Please tell me you didn't get married while you still have an active K1 proceeding....

Laugh, you too? You don't know how many times people have said, "well you're married, why didn't she just come back with you?" After a 20 minute explanation, they regretted asking that question.

[scandal 951]

There are more Cambodians in the US compared to Thai. I'm surprised that there are no Cambodians here often on VJ.

Sorry that you feel lonely here. This is the Thailand thread, so you'll have to permit us to wallow "in all things Thai" and not extend to other SouthEast Asia countries (we apparently expand our content only for Texas )

The US based populations are very similar in size. From US census, 2007 estimates:

US Total population: 301,621,159

Thai Alone or in any any combination: 210,850

Thai Alone: 154,235

Cambodian Alone: 218,624

Not sure why you don't see more Cambodians on VJ. Perhaps there are simply fewer K1/K3 based petitions since Cambodia has less Western tourism and so less opportunity for US/Cambodian couples to meet.

Sources:

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IPTab...se&-format=

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IPTab...se&-format=

http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/IPTab...se&-format=

[daboyz 36]

The rumor about the royal family 'fund' the yellow shirt starts with the email forward that showed that the King's granddaughter forward email about Thaksin.. and the rumor started blooming from there. I got the forward too.. it's mostly about how crooked Thaksin is so it's not surprise the opponent take that as that she's sided with the yellow shirt.

Then as Noi pointed out too that the Queen gave some donation to the girl who got killed by the police (and she heard that this girl is a suicide bomber... which is not true - the police force is under Thaksin.. and during that incident, they throw granate and tear gas to the crowd) so that started another rumor that the queen's behind this... this act can means nothing or can means anything depends on how people sees it. I for one think it' means only the queen shows her generosity to the family that lost their daughter from the police that use excessive force to break the protest (which was quite peacefully compared to the latest one). (surprise? it was Thaksin's brother in-law who was the PM at that time)

The rumors about who paid who goes both ways... each person believe their side of the story.. mostly on yellow shirt side (my grandfather who is 84 also joined) it said to provide food, drinks and transportation... those money are from donation from everywhere.

I'm not fond on them using yellow shirt for their cause either.. I'm not their side btw..but most of the yellow shirt reports has pretty good evident on their cause whereas the red shirts rely heavily on creating rumor and didn't provide evident and just doing it for Thaksin.

And I'd say that there are a lot of people like me..

Maybe I'm a little biased because I think Thaksin is a selfish and evil man. I have seen him try to bring the royal family in to this mess numerous times from his cowardly phone-ins and video link-ups. So if anyone is guilty of using the royal family to pursue their own political gains, it is Thaksin.

Edited April 21, 2009 by daboyz

[scandal 951]

Sorry to change to topic. Anyone ever flown Air China? There is an extremely cheap ticket from BKK to SFO (350 +tax) but I don't want to sit in misery for 25 hours if I can avoid it. Although the 9 hour layover in Bejing might be nice, never been to China. Can anything be seen done in 9 hours there?

USCANdual have you ever flown Israair... I want to avoid a plane like that, where the seats are so close together even the 4'10 girl sitting next to me felt uncomfortable.

We got ready and were walking out the door at 6:30 this morning to pick up the visa when I decided to look at the card they gave us, and realized it said to come at 3:00, oops.

Thanks,

Noi

Noi, I flew IsraAir once. Typical discount airline service, no better or worse than most others. From 2004-2008 when I was living in Israel and doing a lot of travel (London, Europe, NY, Toronto Asia mostly) it was almost exclusively on El Al due to company policy. I had Gold status on El Al, used to get bumped to business all the time, and still hate flying with them. In the more distant past (late 90s) I used to fly Air Canada a lot on the Tel Aviv-Toronto run, and then use Toronto as a gateway to the US - that was much better. I used to be SuperElite with them (their equivalent to Platinum) and used to get really pampered.

My most recent long haul flight was on United in December, round trip ORD-Sao Paulo Brazil. That sucked. Cattle class, noisy, surly.

I'm so glad i have a job now where the only travel I do is commuter rail.

Good luck with your travel plans. The site I've been monitoring for Thailand-US flights is www.asiatravel.com

Uhhhhh. my wife? LOL! I'll ask her where she heard it from. She seems to know some people who are quite updated and know the extended story past the news media (the why's).

So now you are married and applying for a K-1 visa?!

LOL!! We posted the same thing at the same time. Bored minds think alike....

[anya-D 8]

Maybe I'm a little biased because I think Thaksin is a selfish and evil man. I have seen him try to bring the royal family in to this mess numerous times from his cowardly phone-ins and video link-ups. So if anyone is guilty of using the royal family to pursue their own political gains, it is Thaksin.

Oh I'm with you on this.. no question about that. And I do not think it's wrong for anybody who loves this country to forward info about Thaksin.. He tried to bring the royal family to be part of the politic (it's his plan) then he will twisted as they are interfering with democracy.. then you know what's coming..

Here is what I sent to Ricker.. I think it's useful...

"As a Constitutional Monarch King Bhumibol has only three "rights": the right to encourage, the right to warn, and the right to be consulted." from http://www.chiangmai-chiangrai.com/hm_king_bhumibol.html

[anya-D 8]

There are more Cambodians in the US compared to Thai. I'm surprised that there are no Cambodians here often on VJ.

You are welcome here!!! regardless of the border conflic.. Thai and Cambodian are brothers and sisters anyway.