Posted on 11/29/2008 8:08:46 AM PST by DTogo
BANGKOK, Thailand — Riot police fled a checkpoint near Bangkok's international airport Saturday after coming under attack by several hundred anti-government protesters who have been occupying the main terminal.
About 150 police at the checkpoint jumped into their vehicles and sped off when they saw a convoy of protesters — many armed with metal rods and some carrying guns — speeding toward them. Video footage of the attack appeared to show a protester firing a handgun toward a police van filled with officers. It was not immediately clear if there were any injuries.
The attack effectively broke a massive police cordon that officials had formed earlier in the day around the protesters occupying Thailand's main airport, raising fears of an imminent confrontation in a standoff that has disrupted the country's economy and the travel industry worldwide.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Looks like the people in Thailand want "change," and are arming themselves to effect it.
Is this in any way connected to the violent Muslim uprisings in the south of Thailand? The country certainly seems to be falling apart, since that and the tsunami. They’re a major rice producer, too. Not good.
Nope...PAD are the good guys, military, bad guys in this case
I don’t see the connection with Thailand and the second ammendment. They DO NOT have a second ammendment. They do have protests that are now turning violent. The do apparently have protesters with guns.
The protests are by a faction of the population that disagrees with the outcome of the election. No one is really disputing that the guy who is in power got the most votes. However the protesters feel he used so much money to get elected, and the voters are so stupid (many Thais are poor illiterate villagers still) that the result is really horrible.
They want the popular vote system replaced with a group vote system where certain groups are guaranteed a certain percentage of the parliment. These might include professional groups as well as religious and ethnic groups.
Their design in the protests is to force the Army onto the field, and encourage them once involved to dissolve the government. In other words force a coup-d’etat.
The Royal family is well loved in Thailand. The Royal family has quietly sided with the protesters.
I really don’t see any connection with the USA whatsoever: We don’t have a king. We don’t have a parliamentary system. Few Americans would be so mad about an election that they supported a military coup. They don’t have a second ammendment, so in so far as the people having guns it is probably illegal. (Though a friend who lived there said it was easy to buy AK-47s)
It's not that simple. Also, the people breaking up the riot were riot police, not the military. The military are not yet involved. The so called "good guys" are trying to get the military involved in support of them. Will the military be 'the good guys' when they do what PAD wants and overthrow the elected government? I don't have a dog in this fight, but I don't think it fits into a nice black and white narrative of "good guys - bad guys".
>>>>>They don’t have a second ammendment, so in so far as the people having guns it is probably illegal. <<<<<<
I’ve spent some time in Thailand and pretty sure I saw some info there about gun clubs and shooting ranges, along with photos. Never had the impulse to visit one and not sure of the laws, but we’re talking full-on semi-auto handguns. By permit only? Dunno.
Why, then, are these protestors so violently opposed to the election results? Who has seemingly bought their way into power in their Parliament, that this group you call PAD has felt the need to take up arms? A reply below yours states that the royal family supports the protestors. Can you describe the competing factions at work in this?
>The protests are by a faction of the population that disagrees with the outcome of the
>election. No one is really disputing that the guy who is in power got the most votes. However
>the protesters feel he used so much money to get elected, and the voters are so stupid (many
>Thais are poor illiterate villagers still) that the result is really horrible.
Wait... are we talking about their election or ours?
Once The One brings the troops home, the only remaining effective weapon in the War on Terror will be the 2nd Amendment, and its successful implementation by all concerned parties. Change...bring the War on Terror back to the USA, where Obama can keep his eyes on his enemies (us).
When the People can't arm themselves, protesting with placards or bullhorns doesn't always capture the attention of politicians/governments.
Good guys? You meant that the PAD bent on destroying the Thai economy and installing a military puppet regime are actually good? It is not that simple as you think it is.
Bingo!
“They do have protests that are now turning violent. The do apparently have protesters with guns.”
Which is about how the Brits looked upon us colonial rif-raff circa 1774.
This story illustrate for everyone the power that the Second Amendment gives each and every citizen of the United States.
Whne the Thailand police saw people with guns show up to oppose them they wisely ran away.
“When the People can’t arm themselves, protesting with placards or bullhorns doesn’t always capture the attention of politicians/governments.”
Sure it captures their attention. Just long enough for them to send in troops to “deal with” said people. Tianamen square, for example.
Are you certain?
Wait... are we talking about their election or ours?Or are we talking about the gays in California?
A king is simply a formality in distinguishing the boss in an aristocracy. If you don't see an aristocracy in the United States, you need to remove your blinders. Bush vs Kerry, heirs of the wealthy. Bush vs Gore, heirs of the wealthy. Kennedy, the equivalent of a duke. Look at you congress and show me how representative they are of the wealthy, the aristocracy. The poor in the congress start at the top of the middle-class.
Exactly!
The son of a church friend of ours is on a year long mission trip and is currently stuck in Bangkok. He was supposed to be in South Africa the day before Thanksgiving, but it doesn’t look like he’ll be able to leave Thailand for another week or so.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.