Thai Commander Takes Over After Coup

http://www.comcast.net/news/international ^ | 9 19 06 | GRANT PECK

[1COUNTER-MORTER-68]

TANKS for the thread,,The Thai folks treated me and the rest of the guys great when we were there in the 60's,,,
Prayers Up for the Thai's.

[night reader]

So, of the five principals (The Prime Minister, The Deputy Prime Minister, The Army Commander, The Police Commander, and the King) who are the most pro-American? Who are the most rabidly anti-American? If they're all about the same, why should I care what they do out in the middle of nowhere? Does Thailand export anything we need?

[be4everfree]

It's like they had a coup an nobody cares, right, new gov't installed by the military while the PM is out of town, mind your own business, back to work.

[LadyPilgrim]

Thanks for posting and welcome to you.
God bless you and yours. Stay safe.

[sean327]

"Thailand has a military?... Who knew.."

Thailand has a very good military. The Officer and NCO corps are professionals. We do an excercise with them every year called Cobra Gold. With the exception of the South Korean Military, they are the best in Asia.

[<1/1,000,000th%]

The coup went largely unnoticed in Thailand's popular tourist districts, where foreigners packed bars and cabarets, oblivious to the activity about two miles away.

Apparently, nothing short of a terrorist attack can stop the sex trade.

[shield]

Wonder if this group will OUTLAW the children sex tourism?

[Steve Van Doorn]

I would really like to know your opinion of what is going on there.

Thank you

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

So who's the new Thaimaster? The King?

[Killborn]

Just like how America should outlaw murder because people keep getting killed.

Oh, wait...

[Steve Van Doorn]

thailandistan has a lot of interesting things to say:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/user-posts?id=228405

[Republican Party Reptile]

The PM, the one getting tossed out, is the most pro-American.


But this coup has nothing to do with being pro or anti American, it's Thai internal politics and power struggle.

[mom4kittys]

Did you get an answer to this? Is it a Muslim takeover?

[1COUNTER-MORTER-68]

Think they could fix Baton Rouge ?,,;0)

[Steve Van Doorn]

This is my take on it so far:

This seems is a power grab by their media mostly headed by Sondhi Limthongkul. The bases of this power grab is two things first the prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was extremely corrupt. Then there were attacks on Buddhist shrines by Muslims and there has been of thousands murdered by Muslim extremist.

To give you an idea of Sondhi’s mentality which he is a graduate of UCLA said after one of the attacks of a shrine said that Thaksin (the prime minister) hired the attacker through dark force and Black-Magic shamans.

Anyway Sondhi boonyaratkalin seems to be a good General (even know he is Muslim) and did this because of the inaction by the prime minister to deal with the extremist Muslims at least that is what he says.

I guess time will only tell.

[Republican Party Reptile]

General Sonthi (one of the coup leader) is a Muslim, *BUT*, that really has nothing to do with anything relating to the coup. The coup is about Thai internal factional politics and power struggle, something that has been very ingrained in the Thai social and political fabric for most of this century.

Muslims are a tiny minority in both population and geographical concentration in Thailand (5% of the population and only in the very southern provinces boarding Malaysia). The Muslim insurgency in the south is a bloody nuisance, but it's simply not a factor on the national stage in Thailand.

[GretchenM]

Kind of reminds me of Waco.

[pGfwabf]

My son got to be a part of Cobra Gold this summer. Being disappointed that he has not yet been deployed to Iraq he at least had a good time in Thailand and can't wait to go back. He agrees with you that the Thai Marines are awesome and said the locals love our Marines.

[right-wingin_It]

So is this a coup by Muslims?

[mom4kittys]

Naaahhh, too many Katricians there now lol!