Posted on 09/30/2006 7:13:39 AM PDT by killjoy
A taxi driver was in critical condition Saturday after slamming his car into a tank in Bangkok's Royal Plaza to protest the military council that seized the power from Thaksin government.
The driver, Nuamthong Praiwan, said he painted the words "Destroy the country" on the side of his taxi, and the word "Suicide" on the trunk, before speeding into one of the tanks parked at the Royal Plaza.
"I did it intentionally to protest the junta that have destroyed our country, and I painted all the words by myself," he said from his bed.
Nuamthong suffered broken ribs and injuries to his chin and his eye.
A police however downplayed the incident, saying the driver was drunk and no message was sprayed on the taxi. "I didn't see any spray-painted words. Initially police suspected the driver might have fallen asleep, or it could have been reckless driving," police said.
The words painted on the car were however visible in photographs and television images of the taxi.
Taxi drivers are among the strong supporters of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's populist policies.
The military deposed Thaksin last month while he was in New York.
Nuamthong suffered broken ribs and injuries to his chin and his eye.
"Mass dictates policy"
Greg "Raybo" Pynn
I don't know why everyone is so unreservedly busting on this guy. A democraticly elected government was ousted by a coup. What do the coup leaders intend? What will they achieve? No one here knows. But what we do know is that Thailand went from an imperfect democracy to a dictatorship and that this taxi driver sacrificed himself in protest of that action. Have we no sympathy for this patriot?
Like years of physical therapy.
Patriot? LOL. No.
"You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin' to? You talkin' to me? Well, I'm the only one here. Who do the f**k do you think you're talking to? Oh, yeah? Ok."
The profundity of your argument is completely overwhelming.
I'm with you. This is akin to the Buddhist monk self-immolations in VN. If the man-in-the-street is willing to go to this extreme to protest a military coup then maybe things are not as rosy as some ex-pat Americans would want us to believe.
I, too, wonder whether all is as rosy as many here on FR seem to assume. But even if this coup ends up being for the better overall, this taxi driver clearly thinks otherwise and has put his beliefs into action, harming no one but himself. I think it is utterly cynical and arrogant to dismiss and mock this man.
Can the same be said of Code Pink? Not every idiot is a patriot. Some are just idiots.
Thailand went from an imperfect democracy to a dictatorship.
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Not really. The way power/authority works in Thailand is kind of like this:
First - Buddha/Buddhism
Very close second - The King
Incredibly distant third - Politicians
The Thai people actively encourage this state of affairs and believe that their King is the father of the nation.
The majority of Thaksin supporters will side with the wishes of the King over Thaksin.
Nationally this makes perfect sense, even to most foreign residents, but understandably internationally it makes no sense at all.
All in all things ain't that bad.
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And you, a guy who left his own country, know exactly what was in his mind and heart, don't you? You look sillier by the post.
Well, am sure I know more than you do since I have been following the story in the local press. Can you read Thai? Have you read the interviews with him? I don't think so.
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