TotallyOz

My god! I was thinking the same damn thing!

I read the full article and I have to say that I am a bit surprised. I didn't think such "editing" occurred. I love what Jimmy Carter said recently, "contrary to popular belief, the Supreme Court runs the country."

Looks great. I think that young handsome lad you are talking about is Michael Cain. He is great and I love his accent.

I am here and not an expert either. But, where did you get your data that all the professors were in line with the yellow shirts? I am curious as I talked to a few today (teachers at local universities) and they are not all for the yellow shirts. There were 4 of them and 3 were for the Red Shirts but they said they would not be open about this to Thais as they fear arrest. They said they know other teachers who have been taken into custody for supporting the red shirts publicly. I have tried to find info about this but have not found this yet. However, if that is the case, I think I'd be quiet also.

I love the beebs and also love So You Think you Can Dance so I love this combo!

Last nights season finale was incredible. It was the bloodiest thing I have ever seen on TV. That is not why I liked it though as I normally don't like those kinds of things. But, the characters in this are really incredible and this season has been great. The ending was one we knew that was coming after seeing the first episode as it showed what happened in bits of this last episode. Truly, this show is bound for greatness.

I wonder if the professors are yellow shirts as most are middle class? In a society that really does not give those that grow up poor the ability to move into another class there must be a reason for this. The main reason is superiority. They believe they are superior to the other class. Even when a poor person has education and a lot of it, they are looked down on by the elite as they don't have the blood pedigree. Yes, the red shirts are often poor, but is there vote not the same as everyone else? It should be and I shudder to think that anyone would advocate that the poor can't vote or should have a say in their government. Paragon, you see Mr. Thaskin as corrupt. OK. The rest of the country may agree with you. But, the people put him in power knowing this. Why? He did things for them, subsidies, free health care, education, etc. that no one had ever done. I don't doubt he lined his pockets like every other politician in Thailand. But, that does not negate the good he did. When Bush was elected to the 2nd term after taking us into war, who do you think elected him? The same segments of society that votes for the yellow shirts in Thailand. The rich, who want to keep their money, and the poor idiots that follow what their preachers tell them. Can you see any similarities? Did Bush's friends line their pockets the same as Thaskin's friends? My two boys are not political. They see the bigger picture as both are intelligent and educated. Still who do they support? Not the yellow shirts. Why? The yellow shirts want to keep the country ignorant and uneducated and it be only those with big money that can afford university. Why? They want to have control and it is easier to control the uneducated than the ones with knowledge. I also wonder how many of your professors that support the yellow shirts are from Bangkok? I bet the vast majority. Lastly, you are right in that those were not my words but they were the words of Miss Thailand. That is how they really feel about the poor farmers. I can't support any system that discriminates so much and they do feel that way.

Coup leader Prayuth Chan-ocha dissolves the Senate to take full control of lawmaking authority and sacks national police chief, along with the head of the DSI and the defense permanent secretary. The Senate was dissolved on Saturday evening and more senior officials including the national police chief removed as coup leader Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha consolidated power. The dissolution of the Senate means that all parliamentary authority now rests with the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) headed by the army chief. Gen Prayuth announced that he had taken over the authority of the House and the Senate for the time being in case any actions required parliamentary approval. The NCPO also announced on Saturday evening that Pol Gen Adul Saengsingkaew had been moved to an inactive post in the Prime Minister's Office. Also moved to inactive posts were Tarit Pengdith, the head of the Department of Special Investigation, and Nipat Thonglek, the permanent secretary of the Defence Ministry. Both men had been seen as loyalists to the ousted government and former premier Thaksin Shinawatra. http://bangkokpost.com/news/local/411568/prayuth-takes-total-control

No, they did this in order to let everyone cool off. No one on streets. No one outside in groups of 5 or more. No TV. No Radio. Actually, there is both but only one photo with notice and patriotic music. Not sure how long this will last but I figure for a few days or a week. It was really eerie how quiet the streets were in Bangkok yesterday. I went to mall and back and there was zero traffic. We were in movie but the mall was dead. We ate in my favorite pizza place that is usually packed. We were only customers throughout the meal. On the way back, taxi stopped at only 2 lights. Usually a 40 min commute at rush hour took us 10 min. I gave him an extra 100 baht as I knew he has to finish his shift by 8PM and no more money to be made. It is interesting here but odd.

Military Coup Update: Thai Military is cutting off all media (Radio and TV) at 10PM each night. Even BBC, CNN and heaven forbid HBO. I guess the train of thought is that they are worried that HBO will be showing reruns of Game of Thrones and the people will be demanding Trial by Combat?

I would not support the yellow shirts as they believe the people do not deserve a vote. They do not want a democracy. They want to rule based on their god given right to rule and not by popular vote. I don't care what the reason is behind a victory, but in a democracy, when an election occurs you must let the winners rule. This is the opposite of what the yellow shirts wish to happen. Read some of the things these yellow shirts say about the red shirts: they are dogs, subhuman, ignorant.

Safety is not an issue. It is safe here. I would not let this deter a trip but I don't go out late at night. You can find boys on Grinder and Gay Romeo very easily. I don't think the curfew will be in effect for a month. I think just temporary. But, only time will tell.

Reading the story on how the General decided to take over from the Bangkok Post reporters was interesting. During the negotiations between the 2 parties the General asked the Prime Minister and all cabinet members to resign. There were armed guards the prohibited either party from leaving. When the government leaders refused, the General said, 'then, from now on, I will take control of the government." All parties were whisked away under armed guard and the general and his men took control. http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/learning-from-news/410724/army-declares-martial-law

Reading the story on how the General decided to take over from the Bangkok Post reporters was interesting. During the negotiations between the 2 parties the General asked the Prime Minister and all cabinet members to resign. There were armed guards the prohibited either party from leaving. When the government leaders refused, the General said, 'then, from now on, I will take control of the government." All parties were whisked away under armed guard and the general and his men took control. http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/learning-from-news/410724/army-declares-martial-law

The coup is in full force. The military has taken over all TV and radio stations in Thailand. The boys complained as they were not allowed to see TV tonight. There is a curfew in full force. I live in a very busy area and the streets are quite. They are never quiet this time of night. The military has suspended the constitution. (what the yellow shirts wanted all along) They have brought in buses for the protesters to take them north or south. Not sure if they will go or not. This is my 2nd full coup in Thailand and it is always interesting to see what goes on here.

http://www.voanews.com/content/crisis-talks-continue-in-thailand/1919959.html

I love the song. I have it in several of my playlists. This video was funny!

Shocking! Love it. But, shocking. You are right. Every day. I think we are near the end of these decisions. Penn would make 44 percent of Americans that live in states with legal gay marriage.

My hotel always asks if I want to pay in Thai Baht or US Dollar. Which is the better deal? They always say Thai Baht.

PS I am sorry for the incorrect information. Martial law was not just declared, it has been in existence for a while. The Thai Military had a misspelling. They thought Partial Law and Martial Law were the same.

I am curious, does this only void the things that happen as a RESULT of the riots or just anything that you need in the country while here? I ask as I also have Blue Cross / Blue Shield. Thanks.

Now listen guys. The military declared martial law but has assure the people this is not a coup. LOL No coup will happen as the tanks and guns are only here to protect the duly elected officials and have another election where the people's vote will lead to another insurrection and another coup. Democracy at work guys.

But, don't worry, the Generals say this is not a coup. http://bangkokpost.com/news/local/410719/army-invokes-martial-law Will be very interesting to see how this plays out.

In 10 years this issue has really taken off. I'll say I honestly never expected this. I honestly didn't expect to see it in my lifetime.

In an unusually personal opinion, Oregon District Judge Michael McShane today held that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Same-sex couples in Oregon, who expected the ruling and had already lined up at county clerks’ office, immediately began marrying. The state refused to defend the law, and the Ninth Circuit today rejected a last-ditch effort by the National Organization for Marriage to intervene, so it seems there will be no appeal. That makes Oregon the 18th state to recognize same-sex marriages. Counting both federal and state court decisions, it’s the seventeenth consecutive judicial win for same-sex marriage advocates since the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Windsor last summer. Most of the federal court wins are on hold while appeals are pending. Judge McShane held that Oregon’s state constitutional ban on same-sex marriage violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. In line with almost every court to review the issue, he rejected the argument that the ban was a form of sex discrimination. Instead he concluded that it constituted discrimination based on sexual orientation. Judge McShane avoided the question of heightened scrutiny and held that the law failed even rational-basis review, as several courts have now decided. What really distinguishes the decision from many others is the unusually personal terms in which Judge McShane, who has a son and is in a same-sex relationship, concluded the opinion: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/05/19/gay-marriage-in-oregon-no-appeal/