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Despite the sudden change in government after last month's coup, there has been little obvious difference in Thailand's troubled south. The litany of bombings and shootings has continued, with more than 12 people reported dead in the past week. But local Thais have mostly welcomed the coup, seeing it as a glimmer of hope on an otherwise bleak horizon. "People are mostly happy about what happened - they are optimistic that things will now get better," said Srisompob Jitpiromsri, a political scientist in the southern province of Pattani. Even foreign analysts, many of whom have misgivings about last month's...

Thought I would try setting up a thread for the posting of pics and videos of the killer tital waves and the aftermath. Add them here and we may end up with a pic/video collection in one place.http://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/2004/12/27/418679.html Click on these words when you get to the link (site not in English). Dermed kan du selv se hvor sterke vannmassene var da den andre bølgen kom.

20TH WORLD SCOUT JAMBOREE Sexual shenanigans spice up camp life It's nothing unusual, say teenage visitors Anucha Charoenpo Young love birds share an intimate moment yesterday during a party for participants in the World Scout Jamboree at Haad Yao beach in Sattahip. _ JETJARAS NA RANONG Scouts from Western countries say having sex and forming relationships is common practice among participants at the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Sattahip. They say they are well aware of the risk of sexually transmitted disease and take the necessary precautions. Rob Rolfe, 17, from Britain, said he believed some couples were having sex...

20TH WORLD SCOUT JAMBOREE Sexual shenanigans spice up camp life It's nothing unusual, say teenage visitors Anucha Charoenpo Young love birds share an intimate moment yesterday during a party for participants in the World Scout Jamboree at Haad Yao beach in Sattahip. _ JETJARAS NA RANONG Scouts from Western countries say having sex and forming relationships is common practice among participants at the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Sattahip. They say they are well aware of the risk of sexually transmitted disease and take the necessary precautions. Rob Rolfe, 17, from Britain, said he believed some couples were having sex...

Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - Thousands of boy and girl scouts from around the world will have access to free condoms during an international gathering beginning Saturday in Thailand, a country known for its thriving sex industry. Bangkok's public health ministry announced this week that condoms would be handed out to participants in the 20th World Scout Jamboree on request. Around 20,000 scouts aged between 14 and 17, from some 80 countries, are expected to attend the 11-day event starting Saturday, together with another 6,000 adult and youth volunteers. A ministry spokesman was quoted as saying the aim was to...

BANGKOK, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Health officials will give free condoms to boy scouts as young as 14 at the scouting movement's four-yearly world jamboree in Thailand this week. Thailand's health ministry said it would hand out thousands of contraceptives on demand to 30,000 scouts between the ages of 14 and 18 attending the 11-day gathering in Sattahip, 170 km (106 miles) southeast of Bangkok. Sattahip is just a short drive from the seaside town of Pattaya, which is notorious for its thousands of go-go bars, massage parlours and brothels. "We want to promote safe sex," ministry spokesman Pipat Yingseri...