Behind The Smile

All these soldiers around the Dusit Thani hotel and the streets and sois around Silom. It would be scary of they had weapons and guns, but thank god they only carry shields and smiles.

I guess it was to be expected. After the yellow shirts. the red shirts and the blue shirts, it is time for the white shirts to show up. They walked from Lumpini park to the Bangkok Bank offices. I guess that’s just about the distance an untrained office worker in white shirt and tie can cover, without breaking in to a sweat.

The head honchos of some monasteries in Thailand are worried about the behavior of gay monks. Good heavens. Some of them are wearing pink bags and fold their frocks in a "fashionable" manner. How dare they. I never had a clue there were fashions in folding one’s frock. And what’s with the pink? I can see plenty of guys in bright pink school uniforms in Bangkok. Are they all gay too?

This family man was recently jailed for 10 years for writing what was on his mind. He is a political prisoner, yet on the website of Amnesty International I can not find any reference to him. Is that what I pay my monthly dues to AI for? Why is Amnesty so quiet about Thai LM laws?

I read in the local rag today that queen Prem wishes ill fortune on those who don’t support the country. She must be talking about herself? Typical vicious queen behavior. I think she must be jealous or something.

There’s an excellent photo essay by Nick Nostitz at New Mandala. The crushing of the Red Shirts. Lots of very good imagery and factual storytelling about the recent red shirt protests in Bangkok.

Now we have yellow, red and blue shirts. I don’t know what to wear anymore for fear of showing allegiance to the wrong tribe. It’s all very silly and childish, if you ask me.

Thailand 2009. Well, in December we had the yellow master caste blocking the airport and government house. The servants in ed are not quite as audacious. They stick to blocking more pedestrian areas, such as the Victory monument. They still know their place, it seems.

In the land of hypocrisy, ie Thailand even the wall plugs have double standards. They fit both US and Euro plugs. I guess they could not make up their minds way back then? Nothing much has changed since then, really.

A Thai guy with a wife and 3 kids was sentenced to 20 years in prison today for a comment he made on some web forum about he whose name shall not be mentioned. Sometimes this whole charade about the land of the free makes me want to puke. I am a customer of this country (forget all that bullshit about being a guest) and the service I get is third rate at the moment.