"Recently, Sondhi urged negotiations with the separatists in contrast to Thaksin's hard-fisted approach." Yeah, those origami were pretty tough.
"Thai Military Launches Coup, Takes Power From Prime Minister Thaksin," from AP, with thanks to all who sent this in:
Across the capital, Thais who trickled out onto barren streets welcomed the surprise turn of events as a necessary climax to months of demands for Thaksin to resign amid allegations of corruption, electoral skullduggery and a worsening Muslim insurgency in the south. Many people were surprised, but few in Bangkok seemed disappointed.A few dozen people raced over to the prime minister's office to take pictures of tanks surrounding the area. "This is exciting. Someone had to do this. It's the right thing," said Somboon Sukheviriya, 45, software developer snapping pictures of the armored vehicles with his cell phone.
Thaksin recently alienated a segment of the military by claiming senior officers had tried to assassinate him in a failed bombing attempt. He also attempted to remove officers loyal to Sondhi from key positions.
Sondhi, who is known to be close to Thailand's revered constitutional monarch, will serve as acting prime minister, army spokesman Col. Akarat Chitroj said. Sondhi, well-regarded within the military, is a Muslim in this Buddhist-dominated nation.
Sondhi, 59, was selected last year to head the army partly because it was felt he could better deal with a Muslim insurgency in southern Thailand, where 1,700 people have been killed since 2004. Recently, Sondhi urged negotiations with the separatists in contrast to Thaksin's hard-fisted approach. Many analysts have said that with Thaksin in power, peace in the south was unlikely.
I was watching the stories on Thailand, and did not see any mention of "Islam" in them, though we know that Muslims in Thailand have been, uhh, "restive", as Muslims often are. The only motivation suggested for the coup was "corruption". True, we infidels are corrupt in the jihadists' eyes.
The headlines today read "Peaceful Coup". Yes, more "peace", more power, more control, for the Religion of Peace (tm). I don't know if I can stand any more of this growing "peace".
How long will Sondhi keep King Bhumibol Adulyadej around? I guess it all depends on the good King's religious affiliation.
The islamization of Thailand is now secured and Allah is about to reign supreme in this country. This is jihad at work: remove democratic elements through force.
Jan
I'm very concerned. Until he proves otherwise, I'll just assume that he plans to slowly turn Thailand into an Islamic theocracy. I think everyone knows what usually happens when Muslims run governments or advice them.
Great-another nation about to be mentally enslaved. It's almost like the late 1940's as one nation after another fell the enslavement of communism.
Breaking news: Off topic--
VENEZUELA'S CHAVEZ CALLS BUSH 'THE DEVIL' DURING INSULT-FILLED SPEECH TO U.N. GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Thailand welcome to hell!
Outrageous! I thought Thailand would always defend itself against Muslims, but the Muslims found a way to take it over. UNBELIEVABLE!!!
The Thias should fight with everything they have to regain power, so they can save what is left of their rights, no matter how few they are.
Unfortunately countries like Thailand, France and Sweden will have to fall before the rest of the free world will be motivated to do what is necessary.
People never learn from the mistakes of the past. We will have to pay the price yet again.
Didn't we save Thailand once before? I thought that was what the Viet Nam war was all about...... Color me perplexed.
I guess Thailands opium output will surge to new levels. Muslims are good at the dope trade.
I'm not up on the Thai separatist thing (too many effin' Islamic insurgencies to keep up with).
Isn't Thailand only 4% Muslim?
Looks like another "2-state solution" is in the offing. Happy negotiating!
Well there goes the beautiful temples. The muslims will have them destroyed in no time.
citycat said
Make that 4.6% Muslim. Which means that the Muslims in Thailand believe that they make up 78% of the population, therefore they are justified in taking over the nation.
OT
British home secretary Jonh Reid heckled by hostile Muslims.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/5362052.stm
Early in the year the family of Prime Minister Thaksin sold their interests in a communications company. Reportedly they paid no taxes on this. Since that time there has been a great deal of conflict of interests surrounding the PM and family.
This coup is not a bad thing. Taksin Shinawatra's government was so corrupt that everyone in Bangkok wanted him out. Remember Taksin is the man, who'se "hard-fisted approach" was to listen to the US Embassy's idiot advice to drop origami on Islamic insurgents in the south.
While General Sondhi is from an old Muslim family, he is definitely not an Islamist. He has shown himself to be completely loyal to the Buddhist monarch and is close to former PM Pridi, known as "Thailand's Reagan". General Sondhi does not even have a Muslim name and is less a threat as a "Muslim" than the current US Muslim satrap in Iraq, Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad.
I emphatically declare that today's world, more than ever before, longs for just and righteous people with love for all humanity; and above all longs for the perfect righteous human being and the real savior who has been promised to all peoples and who will establish justice, peace and brotherhood on the planet.
O, Almighty God, all men and women are your creatures and you have ordained their guidance and salvation. Bestow upon humanity that thirsts for justice, the perfect human being promised to all by you, and make us among his followers and among those who strive for his return and his cause. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Rush gets it...Just read this over the air and said the World doesnt understand Mahmoud is waiting for the 12th Imam..Bless you Rush
4.6% Muslim. Which means that the Muslims in Thailand believe that they make up 78% of the population, therefore they are justified in taking over the nation.
hmmmmmm
That shows 78% of the population were completely unable to put responsible people in office.
What has Thailand done lately?
Thailand may just be a country of dhimmis who are blind to Muslim law.
Fictive Reality
n
1. A belief among a population that a fantastic or otherwise unreal thing is real. 2. The case where an unreal fact is generally accepted as fact, and the widespread belief in the fake fact in fact constitutes a reality unto itself that must be dealt with no matter how false its basis.
* 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 ** 33:21 *
A fully functioning Fictive Reality can be created and maintained by way of a one-sided discourse. In other words, if one side of an argument is constrained from stating its position and the other is not so constrained, gradually the unconstrained side will win out.
In the particular case of the Islam Fictive Reality, the most dangerous Fictive Reality in the history of the world, it is accepted that Islam is a religion, is a good thing, is a religion of peace, and is not a criminal enterprise. In Koran 33:21 Allah enjoins Moslems everywhere to take as sacraments hate, theft, pedophilia, rape, extortion, slavery, threat of murder, and murder (i.e., the Sunnah).
Islam is a relgion of peace.
--- President George W. Bush
Islam is a religion of peace.
--- Prime Minister Tony Blair
Islam is progressive.
--- Prime Minister Tony Blair
Islam is a religion with heart.
Now, is that unreal or what?
Provoslavni said
But remember Sondhi is the man who thought that that was too harsh of a strategy in dealing with the Islamic insurgency.
Within a few months we'll see where Sondhi's loyalty lies.
BTW, I've read that Muslims in Thailand are predominately in the south; does anyone know how far south is "south"? Is Bangkok (located roughly in the middle) considered to be Muslim dominated?
Encouraging words, Provoslavni. Hope you are right. The Thais a beautiful people...and they love their king. Hope the MSM is telling the truth for once, and that Sondhi really is loyal to the monarch.
In other words, the 4.6% Moslems in Thailand are totally dominating that country's politic.
It is hard to believe that a 4.6% dose of the deeply offended Moslem could cause a civilization to collapse, but these people are pushy. Real pushy. And relentless to boot.
I hope Provoslavni is right, and special_guest is wrong. Sondhi may well be as Muslim as India's president is - we shall see. Besides, the King is a devout Buddhist, and so are the Thai - I doubt that they will Islamize easily, and I even doubt that the military will force it. Even if Sondhi is a Muslim, the majority of the Thai army isn't. Question: is he Malay?
special_guest, Bangkok is in Central Thailand. It's not a Muslim city. As to how far south is south, it's mainly the southern half of the strip between the Bay of Bengal and the Gulf of Siam.
(How long will Sondhi keep King Bhumibol Adulyadej around? I guess it all depends on the good King's religious affiliation.)
Sigh....some people need to do research on Thailand or have been there such as myself with the U.S. military over the years.
The Thai military oath puts King and Country before Prime Minister and government. Despite what many have heard, the Thais are extremely nationalistic and pluralistic regardless of their religious affiliation. Military coups against overly corrupt officials is common in Siam history but I don't see this General being so insane as to force Islamic rule on a majority Buddist state. He'd be starting hell.
Thanks, Infidel Pride.
Nice post, Provoslavni.
Wow. Welcome to Hell, Thailand. Your Islamization is now secured. You shall now become mentally enslaved.
Give me a break people! This "sky-is-falling" mentality is quite rediculous. Those who make such comments....y'all sound like a bunch of automotons.
Everytime anything happens involving a Muslim whether it's good or bad, the world is going to hell? C'mon.
As someone pointed out, the President of India, which is the largest Democracy in the world, is a Muslim. I don't think India is headed down the path of Islamization, but I could be wrong.
What ever happened to a wait and see approach? Nations which have a strong religious footing, such as America, India...and who knows, maybe even Thailand seem to be a bit more resistant to succumbing to dhimmi status than others which are atheist or otherwise culturally weak.
But if it was just about corruption, isn't that what the legal system is for? I admit I'm not a Thai Constitutional scholar, but don't they have ways of dealing with corrupt officials, such as impeachment?
For the record, I hope special_guest is wrong, too. I hope that Sondhi places loyalty to man (King Bhumibol Adulyadej) over loyalty to Allah. I hope he's a Muslim for identification purposes only. I hope that he finds a way to end the jihad in the south, whether by gun or by origami. I hope that this coup by a Muslim general is unrelated to Islam, and that Thailand continues as a pluralstic society.
Military coups in Thailand were a staple food for years before the last one 15 years ago. I think we should wait out on this one a little bit... While Thaksin became Prime Minister on a very popular vote (his base were the farmers, despite his being a very rich businessman), he has been accused of a lot of corruption during his tenue, so much so that people were protesting in the streets for months. The unrest and uncertainty in the country has been weighing hard on the psyche of the Thais. If, as he promised, that a new PM is appointed in two weeks and Sondhi steps down, hopefully this will lead to a peaceful transition. The really bad thing about this is that now the country has gone back to its old military coup now and then kind of thing. Can this Sondhi be trusted? No idea. He had good reputations, but only a few weeks ago, he was saying definitively that a military coup is out of the question. This kind of thing don't happen overnight, so this has to be in the planning for a long time. Will the Muslims in the South (who are mainly Malays) get a lot of concessions from the Thai govt? Very possibly.
special_guest:
I believe the three provinces closest to the Malaysian border are the predominately Muslim ones. I believe the trouble there is actually promoted by outsider extremists and local Muslims are as likely to be beheaded for opposing them as non-muslims. Not really my area of expertise, but I know Malaysi is POed about the extremists trying to cross the border and use its territory as safe haven.
And I strongly suspect the King gave his tacit support for this coup, but that's just from what I know about the cultural reverence for royalty.
yaqub said
That's the sort of thing I meant, not that Sondhi would snap his fingers and tomorrow Thailand would be living under sharia. Things move much slower than that, much more subtly.
Whatever military pressures were working in the south, end them. Open up dialogue with the jihadists. Offer financial incentives, lots of them. Float the idea that the Muslims in the south just want a homeland of their own; is that so unreasonable? Pass a law here and there, for example outlawing the "defaming" of a religion or its founder, in the name of protecting "tolerance". Fund and encourage programs that celebrate diversity, that is to say, that explain to the non-Muslims how peaceful and innocuous Islam is. Promote Muslim military officers, pass up the promotions of non-Muslim officers. Relax immigration quotas, especially with Malaysia.
We won't hear about any of these on CNN, or maybe even on JW/DW. It would take decades to reach the turning point.
It surely would not be the first time that a fanatical religious minority controlled a passive majority.
The nightmare is starting to be real.
Ir resembles me times of Cold War, where Soviet Union was attempting to overthrown various non-communists government, in order to spread its sphere of influence.
Is islam making the same way?
Those who make such comments....y'all sound like a bunch of automotons.
Everytime anything happens involving a Muslim whether it's good or bad, the world is going to hell? C'mon......................................
by above poster
It's happened time and again. The muslims get in control and the country goes to hell. As always, they destroy anything that doesn't have anything to do with them, save a few mosques, markets, muslim homes, schools. That's just the destroying part. Then there is the imposing burkas, hijabs, banning girls from school, driving, voting, speaking and the insane sharia law. OH, and I forgot, the clitorectomies.
No, we're not jumping to conclusions, just look around the world that has a large muslim population.
After Bush tried to have him assassinated and sponsored two failed coups against him. Of course he did, you would to...but even a broken clock is correct twice a day.. and Dubya and the proto fascists who have taken over and destroyed the Republican Party, and honest to goodness real conservativism.. are indeed the biggest threat to America.. they are destroying our constitution, the middle class, and all in the name of some paroxysm fit of self righteousness.. and thanks to them, the divisiveness, and ill will they have generated. the west will lose the war Islam has waged on it, and my great granchildren (one of whom is now born) will grow up to be dhimmi's, or slaves without a future.
Ugh. I just stepped in troll droppings.
Nariz - if Chavez called Bush 'the great shaytan' he is correct. Shaytan comes from the Hebrew root word meaning 'adversary'.
Bush is the great adversary of Iran and its agenda.
Sondhi is just the front man for this coup. The real power behind it was Prem Tinsulanonda, an elderly member of the Royal Council who was PM in the 1980s. Everyone in the new government other than Sondhi is a Buddhist. The outrage against Taksin was based on his corruption and his alleged disrespect to the king. This coup is not Muslim, it is monarchist! If anything, the palace has taken control of the government. I would post some news links on Sondhi but they are all in Thai, which my wife reads perfectly.
As for Sondhi's "urged negotiations with the separatists" this is not exactly accurate. Sondhi rightly criticized the Origami bombing as absurd in the face of Muslim mentality and urged the government either to negotiate with the separatists or turn the army loose on them.
Sondhi is a career military man who has served his king all his life. Besides, any move against the monarchy would be met by the absolute opposition of the entire Buddhist, Hindu, and Catholic population, all of whom adore this monarch. I can assure you, the sky is not falling here. Taksin had to go!
The msm reported the coup, didn't say anything about the general being a muslim.
People!
Sondhi is not the head of the snake. The head of the snake is in the Arab world. You can bet the head will use this opportunity to benefit the Mohammad monarchy in a big way. They spent trillions trying to promote Islam, and you think they're going to let this free opportunity pass by? I don't think so.
For the sake of all, I wish you optimists are right, but I doubt it.
Sonthi just announced that he is only serving as caretaker PM until a civilian government is installed. He said that that will take about two weeks and they hope to hold elections next year. As I wrote above, this coup is a positive development and has the support of the entire Thai middle class.
As I wrote above, this coup is a positive development and has the support of the entire Thai middle class. Posted by: Provoslavni
Getting Toxic Thaksin out was the most popular thing that could happen.
He was proposing to nationlize all foreign bussiness,s.Make more restrictive visa laws.Raising the age for drinking alcohol,and being more restrive on the night life.
His so called NEW SOCIAL ORDER was enforced in during his term.
Social Hygiene, Nationalism, Censure and Propaganda where being applied without any resistance.
Thialand where to have elections within the next few months,and with the political climate,he would have been voted out.Now that the military have taken power,there willnot be any elections for at least a year.This not good as the military can keep on putting the elections off.
Boonyarataglin,has no choice,as nobody in Thialand can over-ride the king,and this is crucial,as in Thialand it is the King who calls the shots.
On 2nd March 1934 King Rama VII abdicated after a dispute over a piece of legislation to be enacted in the parliament. At that time he was in England for treatment to his eye and died their in 1941.
Parliament and the Government then elected Prince Ananda Mahidol, son of Prince Songkhal, a boy nine years old as the eighth monarch of the Chakri dynasty. During that time the young king was still a student at Lausanne in Switzerland. He came home to visit the country in 1946. When the young monarch was about to return to Europe, he was found shot dead in his bed on 9th June 1946.
The mystery of his death was never satisfactorily solved. Still suspicion continues to loom about a role played by many, even by those in the royal family.
However, his brother Bhumibol Adulyadej succeeded him as Rama IX and is still ruling the country.
The reign of current King Bhumibol Adulyadej, which began in 1946 and has been the longest in the royal history, ushered in an era of unprecedented political turmoil and unrest from the very day of becoming the King of Thailand.
Under his rule alone 18 coups including the one of 19 September have so far being staged in the country since 1946.
So Thailand continues to be held hostage by the power hungry military generals, who time and again toppled the elected governments with impunity. Almost always the generals played the "King’s card" skillfully after staging the coup and seizing power. King Bhumibol Adulyadej: On numerous of occasion has endorsed the coup, thus giving a legitimacy to the treasonable acts of the Army Generals. It was always the Army Generals’ way – Power derived from the barrel of the gun – on many occasions without a shot being fired.
AS long as the King lives then the status quo will remain.Was he is gone there is nobody in the royal family,who can take over and demand the same respect as he does.
So basically the Thias are sitting somewhere between a rock and a hard place.
What I do see is Boonyarataglin giving more conscessions to muslims,and strengthening the muslim foot-hold,thus creating fuure problems
Thais are going on a trip: a one-way journey to Hell.
God help these people. They are going to need it.
"AS long as the King lives then the status quo will remain.Was he is gone there is nobody in the royal family,who can take over and demand the same respect as he does."
from a post above...
Dead Wrong! Crown Princess Sirindhorn (born 1955)is the one person in Thailand whose popularity rivals that of her adored father.
The Crown Princess holds earned degrees in History and a doctorate in Educational Development. As well as Thai, she speaks fluent English, French, and Chinese, and some German. She also literate in Latin, Sanskrit, and Pali. I assure you that she is both loved and respected and her picture is in almost every Buddhist owned house and business in Thailand where she is affectionately known as Phra Thep (Thai: พระเทพ), a thep being a celestial maiden (apsara in Pali). She has never married, instead spending much of her life helping her royal father with his projects.
When her 78 year old father dies, she will succeed to the throne as co-monarch with her brother Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn. Thailand is a monarchist country and the King has the overwhelming support of the people.
And this just in from Thailand....A second non-Buddhist after Sondhi joins the government and it is a devoutly Catholic woman!
The junta empowered Auditor-General Jaruvan Maintaka to investigative government corruption, which could lead to the confiscation of Thaksin's assets. Jaruvan, dubbed "The Iron Lady" was one of the few government officials who tried to expose corruption during Thaksin's regime and would have lost her job if it had not been for backing from the palace. A devout Roman Catholic in this predominantly Buddhist country, Jaruvan, a mother of three children, says she also gains strength and protection from her faith and God.
Present events in Thailand have nothing to do with Islam.
Former PM Taksin was buying votes in the provinces and that is how he won 2 elections.
Life in Thailand under his rule became difficult for many people and the business community was very frustrated.
Those, who think Thailand will give power to Moslems, do not know the situation on the ground.
The coup to succeed had to have support not only from The King, but also from the top Buddhist Monks in the country.
This military coup wasn’t only supported by the people, it was expected to happen. Rumors have been circulating for many weeks.
It was not just a military coup, it was a popular (and as such a democratic) revolution. That aspect of events in Thailand has been completely missed by MSM and political figures in the west.
pong,
Well Said! When this is over, everyone will see that this coup was a good thing and that both Thailand and democracy will be better off. As for the Muslim terror war in the south, anyone should be able to see that Taksin's government has been completely ineffective at best and at worst, played both sides.
"She has never married, instead spending much of her life helping her royal father with his projects.
When her 78 year old father dies, she will succeed to the throne as co-monarch with her brother Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn. Thailand is a monarchist country and the King has the overwhelming support of the people. "
Greetings. Now that the truth is out there, the automatons aren't saying too much! Anyways, I love the Thai food, and am very interested in learning about all the different cultures on Earth, so I have enjoyed this discussion. My question is: You say she never married. As Thailand is a monarchist country, have either Crown Princess Sirindhorn or her brother, Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn have any children that would follow...curious am I.
Thank You. :)
ThinkForYourself,
Thanks for the kind words.
Yes the Crown Prince's new wife (a commoner) just gave birth to a baby boy who is in line to succed to the throne one day. When the king made Vajiralongkorn and Sirindhorn co-heirs to the throne, it was a brilliant and popular move. Both siblings are very close. Most likely Sirindhorn will assume a cultural role while her brother assumes a political and military role. In fact, they are already doing this as the 78-year-old king's health is in decline.
By the way, General Sondhi knelt before a high Buddhist monk today to recieve his blessing. That shows that he is definitely not an Islamist.
Best regards
Provoslavni,
Yeah Right! You can't be serious! No Muslim would EVER bow down before an infidel. That just does not happen! (I'm kidding, being sarcastic of course)
"When the king made Vajiralongkorn and Sirindhorn co-heirs to the throne, it was a brilliant and popular move. Both siblings are very close."
You're right that would seem to be a very brilliant move. No bickering and in fighting that has been the ruin of many a monarchy. Bonus points to the crown prince for marrying a "commoner" Incest, and keeping the royal blood royal has also been a problem for the sanity of monarchies of days gone bye.