Archive for April, 2009
Thai Govt Welcomes Global Killer Flu
It’s flabbergasting how fervently the Thai government embraces the swine flu, ehm, the Mexican human flu – in a globally acclaimed attempt to show that a) Thailand is clean; b) Thailand is very safe to travel to (to fill those emptied tourism coffers again; c) Thailand will host a regional swine flu summit (to reenter
Read more…
Bangkok Poetization
Everyone’s a writer or an artist in a way. Everyone, at some point, kept a diary or dared a few strokes of the brush. But over time, busy with one’s own life of daily routine and obligations, the artist within dies. Arriving in Bangkok, many again feel that long gone artist in themselves. To “materialize”
Read more…
Yellow & Red As Political Weapons
We received an exclusive paper by renowned Thailand historian B. J. Terwiel on the current Thai strife of colors. The original is a small book in size. So here’s an abstract with Terwiel’s four main points: 1) Background on Thailand’s Tangled Political Situation; 2) Parallels in the Past (does Sarit ring a bell?); the 3)
Read more…
Expat Women’s Voice
Most expat publications and websites covering Bangkok and Thailand are focused on men – even though that’s not an explicitly stated policy. There’s a ton of purely male-oriented sites out here. As a woman, looking for like-minded information, you quickly find yourself in the desert. Local women’s magazines are with practically no exception published in
Read more…
Kraisak Choonhavan & The Wrath Of Vasan Sitthiket
// They’re close friends since decades. Former senator Kraisak Choonhavan, one of the most ferocious critics of Thaksin, who needs no introduction. As shouldn’t Vasan Sitthiket, artist, activist and enfant terrible – one of the few Thai artists who’s collected. They met at the opening of Vasan’s exhibit Capitalism is Dying! at Thavibu Gallery. absolutely
Read more…
Near Maximum: How To Beat The Heat
The absolute maximum temperature on record for Bangkok is 40.8 °C (105.4 °F). While writing this on April 24th, 2009, at noon, the thermometer climbed to 38 °C, but the day’s maximum temperature will reach nearly 39 °C. The 30 year average maximum temperature for Bangkok in April stands at 34.9 °C according to the
Read more…
Jesse Jackson On Thailand
Actually, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson didn’t mention Thailand with a single word when the FCCT recently had the honor of welcoming the twice U.S. presidential candidate to a keynote speech and Q&A. Still, indirectly he gave some advice to a Thailand whose current strifes are moderate compared to America’s former – and still ongoing –
Read more…
Tidbits: Read & Write Thai + Thailand Sports
The probably best Thai language course out there Learn Thai Podcast LTP just added a Reading & Writing Course. Thumbs up to Jay and his team. Another innovative add-on. LTP’s approach based on repetitive memorization works. It’s money most well spent if you finally want to master that beauty of a language after years of
Read more…
Will’s Zen Of The Electric Guitar Elephant Dream
This is neither Kafka nor glorious Not The Nation, but proof that embattled Thailand may still fulfill anyone’s dream: Phuket Wan brings us the lovely story of a Melbourne man who … You’ll have to read the whole thing. And there’s a message in Will’s dream of a jumbo solo. Kind of like irresistible Zooey
Read more…
Those Annoying Torture Memos
It’s a mystery to me how indifferent Thai media are about the U.S. torture memos that cause quite a stir over in Washington. A mystery, because “in Thailand”, somewhat at the center of it all, those torture sessions “apparently occurred,” as we’re told by Fox News‘ senior judicial analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano. Many other sources
Read more…