http://news.yahoo.com/crackdown-bangkok-street-stalls-pedestrians-vie-space-062705060.html

live-hood of too many people depends on hawking food and goods on streets  to this campaign to be successful in the long run IMHO

Nonsense. IF they are indeed good at selling, then any place can do. Now its mostly the battle of whom has the \biggest mouth and can play best friends with the BiBs. Thats the source of the prob: in the years of red the police thought they could do anything-they rented out streetspace, and those pesky vendors ''thought'' they had it for the month or the year. Now soldiers, or rather the BMA, shows off their strength with their thessakit and of course those pesky BiBs do not return money paid advance.

And that klong Thom market is a big mafia-run cheating joint, though it does offer ''jobs'' to a few hundred likely illegal migrants (not the least from mainland China).

Vendors with a bit more clout do not sell-rather they sub-rent their space to another one, and after a while on a good spot s/he does the same-some spaces at Siam, owned by Chula-uni, are subrented well over 20 times. Ditto for the now cleared out Bo_bae market. You do not make much money with standing all day in the sun with T-shirts that another few million places also sell. You make money that way. Same prob at the weekend market.

Oh-and if you read Thai: about ANY shop, bisnis, HTL or whatever here in BKK has open places for new workers. Sometimes up to 20 in a midsized HTL. Choice enough for those pushed out. Fixed income, fixed hours too.

Cheating-both in bisnis, in selling and in creating pitiful looking newsppr, reports is a major Thai way to pass time.

Street vendors are a minor irritant for me and frankly Bangkok wouldn't be Bangkok without them. I say let the authorities look elsewhere for problems to solve.

Oh my goodness....

Removing temp hawkers from the street is their follow-up action to what they did to the beach-chair renters?

Aint the poor being fleeced further?

 

Oh come on...

What is the charm of Thailand.. where is it now if it is spruced up and look like Singapore?

Why do I need to travel there if I get the same CLEANliness...

It is that chaos..that traffic jam that I like ...

Street food is the Thai way to live. imagine no more chicken rice/pig offals at Silom?

Where has the charm gone?

Give me back that OLD, DIRTY Bangkok..

Even old Bangkok I wouldn't call particularly dirty, still my most favorite city in the whole wide world although with crappy climate 

Crappy climate from a guy who is currently Freezing his Ass off?  hehehhehehee

I just have a vacation in Taiwan and just yesterday, a 2-days in Kuala Lumpur.

I think one of the charms of Asian cities is the street hawkers..

 

There are always "cleaned-up" food centres/food courts in shopping malls but the appeal in street food is unanimously 

Yes the inconvenience caused by hawkers in the streets can be unbearable but as a visitor myself, it is an escapade from my own life/world.  Going to Bangkok without eating street food is like (to many forummers here) not having sex there.

 

So, give me my ka-mu (braised pig trotters)...and the first stall I always go upon landing at Sumi is that stall at Magic.. all air-conditioned but taste as good.. another stall to recommend (I am sure none of you would want to try it) is that pig offals stall at Silom....very tasty and very UNHEALTHY.. I like...

Crappy climate from a guy who is currently Freezing his Ass off?  hehehhehehee

yes, today is first day THIS YEAR with temperature just above zero Celcius but I still hate Bangkok's heat and humidity sapping all energy from me

 

I think one of the charms of Asian cities is the street hawkers..

 

 

125 % agreed, specially if hawkers are well built  cuties in singlets and shorts

I think one of the charms of Asian cities is the street hawkers..

totally agree, too. One of the many reasons to live here.

 

...but I still hate Bangkok's heat and humidity sapping all energy from me

I don't believe the "sapping all energy" part, judging from your recent travel report, seemed to have PLENTY of energy for certain activities ;-)

 

Personally, I love hot climates and don't suffer at all, to the contrary. Yet another of the many reasons to live here  

But obviously everyone is different.

I don't believe the "sapping all energy" part, judging from your recent travel report, seemed to have PLENTY of energy for certain activities ;-)

 

 

Don't forget I was there in second half of Dec blessed with very pleasant weather. 

You are right , boy hunting is very energizing.

My goodness, what I lament in my earlier post were past memory of Singapore... now seen in Kuala Lumpur, Thailand and probably still in Taiwan.  

I never had food poisoning in the streets in Bangkok but suffer a serious case of gastroenteritis in China.  

Perhaps the hygiene condition is less favourable but at the very least, the food is prepared right before your eye!

 

 

A quick look into my schedule for the coming months..sigh, no Thai trip because some silly women decided to get pregnant together and hopefully deliver their precious enfante terrible in the next few months..

Blame it on the Singapore's government incentive to promote child birth... Why cant gay men gets parenting leave? 

 

 

Now please serve me a plate of Khao pat Thai and a bottle of Chardonnay.... 

Get that cute hawker.. denim shorts and singlet with a dirty apron..

Whet my appetite...

Sounds too much like soft porn ... 

I have never eaten street food in Thailand in some 14 visits. I keep thinking it isn't clean, but them if that were the case, wouldn't more people avoid them? They seem busy enough!