Category Archives: politics

Odds and Ends for November, 2013

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The storm last weekend in Hua Hin was certainly an oddity, flooding parts of Hua Hin, Cha Am, and Pranburi, and roads in between. Trees were down in many areas and power, internet, and water were off for several hours and many schools closed. Cell coverage was intermittent and totally out in some cases. Most is pretty much back to normal now though as streets are cleared of trees and most water. More rain is forecast for this weekend though it shouldn’t be anything like last week, and this should pretty much be the end of the rains until next year. Continue reading →

You Are Being Monitored by MICT

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FBF uses a utility that allows JavaScript, Java, Flash, and other plugins and scripted content to be selectively executed. In other words, activities other than just cookies can be monitored before they have access to the browser or the computer while surfing the web. For example, whenever a web site tries to inject HTML or JavaScript code inside a different site, this utility filters the malicious request, neutralizing its dangerous load.

Yesterday, when accessing the Bo Fai Blog, a flag went up saying that our friends at mict.go.th were watching that website. This obviously was a bit of a surprise as had always assumed they were watching the bad guys like Youtube and welovetaksin.com and had better things to do than monitor nonpolitical sites like this one. It was quite a jolt to see that the Bo Fai Blog was now on their radar.

A little later, the same flag came up when going to Yahoo so will now assume that some engineer over at the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology isn’t putting enough cream in his coffee or that they are even more paranoid than we thought they were.

You might want to check your cookie folder to see how many cookies you have from mict.go.th.

Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t watching.  The question now is, why?

Who’s Been Sleeping in Thaksin’s Bed?

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FBF wondered the other day if Cambodian PM Hun Sen would be taking advantage of former PM Thaksin Shinawatra’s Cha Am – Hua Hin retreat during the ASEAN Summit after offering Thaksin a home in Cambodia.

Now, The Nation (no, not Not The Nation, the real one) quotes Pheu Thai MP Surapong Towijakchaikul as saying yesterday that Hassanal Bolkiah, the Sultan of Brunei, chose to be a guest at Thaksin’s seaside home, close to the summit venue, during the meeting. Bolkiah did not attend the opening ceremonies on Friday either.

The government has had no comment.

Me Casa Su Casa

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The local main stream press is making much of Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh’s claim that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen informed him during Chavalit’s recent trip to Cambodia that Hua Sen had presented former Thai Prime Minister (and, not forgetting, current fugitive) Thaksin Shinawatra with a beautiful home if Thaksin decided he wanted to stay in Cambodia.

Both the Post and Nation have had several stories on this issue and now report that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has said Thailand would seek Thaksin’s extradition under a treaty between the two countries should the former prime minister take Hun Sen up on his offer.
With all this huff and puff over the purported gift, it makes one wonder if Thaksin has responded in kind and offered Hun Sen the use of his Cha Am – Hua Hin summer home during the current ASEAN Summit. The fugitive’s former prime minister’s not-so-humble summer retreat is conveniently adjacent to the Dusit Polo Club and just a few hundred meters south of the Sheraton, the venue of the ASEAN Summit.
Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that Hun Sen will not be attending the opening of the Asean summit on Friday as he will be enjoying the privacy not possible at either the Dusit or Sheraton…

Hats Off To The People of Hua Hin

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It’s well known how the people of Thailand are able to tolerate irritations and brush things off with a smile and a Mai Ben Rai. The residents of Hua Hin are taking this to a new level.

It’s coming down to the stretch before the ASEAN Summiteers arrive. The traffic cones are in place, the streets swept and Men in Green already in attendance, posted every 50-100 meters along ASEAN Rd.

The No Parking signs are still being ignored but it’s pretty much a single lane each way through town but traffic was slow but steady on Tuesday morning. It wasn’t even stop and go, just go, though slow. It actually took less time to get from Soi 6 to Soi 88 and back than it does on an average weekend day. The authorities have taken down the ASEAN lanes between the two traffic lights and that helps folks making their last minute purchases at the market.

Bo Fai is doing its part by hosting a Disaster Prevention and Mitigation – Plan Exercise at Bo Fai School with dozens of fire trucks, ambulances and cherry pickers parked in the football field. It appears they will be there for the duration.

Life continues on and even Plearnwan still has its crowds of the lost from Bangkok.

Let’s hope that the ASEANs and the powers that be in Bangkok appreciate what Hua Hin has done for them.

Now if they can just figure out how to turn all those orange traffic cones into hand clappers…