return of coup season in thailand

October is around the corner, and coup season has returned to Thailand. So far so good as it is a bloodless coup. Whether Thaksin is be able to regroup a force to counter this coup and cause bloodshed we will have to wait and see. Thaksin has been controversial and is taking the blame for the uprising in the south. But the muslim resurgence there is not his doing. It will happen no matter who becomes the Prime Minister and the violence will continue to accelerate given the revival of Islam and the secessionist intent of the southern muslim rebels. On the other hand the latest bombings may not be the job of the muslims. Who knows who is the real mastermind behind it. The recent coup has two implications. Internally it seems that the king is involved. Traditionally the king is above politics. But this time if he gets his hands into politics, it might lead to a dramatic change in the political development of Thailand that will affect the role and fate of the palace. For Singapore, looks like we have betted on the wrong horse and a swarm of problems are coming our way if Thaksin is ousted.

myth 65

'The income gap will only get wider' What do you understand when people say that the income gap will only get wider and nothing can be done about it?

new features in redbeanforum

hi, i have added two topics in redbeanforum. one is on scam stories that i replied to. this is more for educational purposes. the other is a photo gallery on some of the scenes i took. there are two albums at the moment. album 1, the durians, contains pics of the theatre at the bay. album 2 are colourful shots of chinatown architecture. just for your viewing pleasure.

return public transport as a public service

The noise is getting louder. More and more are shouting for a reform of the public transport system. Not just about how the different transport services should be run. But to return public transport as a public service run by the govt. The myth that it has to be privatised to be efficient and effective should be grounded. No one believes in such myths anymore. Anyone running a public service and found to be incapable and inefficient should be sacked. Period. And make sure his replacement do a better job or else sack as well. Then we will see whether there is a need to privatise for efficiency. That is only one part of the myth. The second part of the myth is that public and essential services must be run for profits. This thinking needs to be revised. We need to go back to look after the interest of the people, especially the lower income group. Ok, please, no silly comments like running at a loss. Sack the CEO if he cannot run it as a going concern. And no lowering in the quality of service just because it is run to make lesser profits. This is another big bull. Many letters have been written to the press. What more feedback is needed? Or because these letters did not send to the official feedback unit, so not counted as feedback? Or maybe should ask Wei Ling to write another letter on this issue.

drums, gongs and kompangs for Remy

Perhaps, perhaps, if he was a foreign talent, he might deserve something better, more attention, more accolades, more fundings and more praising. Isn't home grown talents not worthy to be groomed? Or their achievements not to be trumpeted? Someone should ask him to sleep in the void deck with his bowling balls for one week and donate $500k for his effort. That would surely raise his presence and the interest in Remy. Come on sports reporters, do something good for our home grown heroes. Make up some interesting stories like what they did for Tiger Woods. Analyse and compare his achievements with other great bowlers, see what kind of records he has broken. The first Singaporean to win how many world titles, how many titles he has won so far? How many perfect games etc. Create a website for him. Popularise bowling through his achievements. Make every child wants to be a Remy ong like every Brazilian wanting to be Pele. Make bowling a national craze. Forget about football or sprinting, sports that we are physically disadvantage. Keep the Singapore League for commercial reasons to keep the footballers employed. Pay them and not foreigners. We will never be there in the world cup. Just treat it as a sweet dream. Be real. Better to promote things like bowling, yacthing, billiards, ok, badminton, table tennis etc where we really have a chance to be world champions. Oh, golf is possible too.