[Thai economy in a bumpy ride]

I wonder why.

It could be because they are facing similar economic conditions to the other countries facing deflation this year, 8 in Europe alone.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-06/the-eight-unlucky-countries-facing-deflation-this-year

Push the baht down.

Let's see, a weaker baht would stimulate tourism, stimulate exports, make outside investment in Thailand cheaper, and stave off deflation while stimulating consumption of Thai products by making imported items more expensive.

On the down side, it means a weaker baht, which the economically ignorant would interpret as making the government lose face.

I guess it all depends on if economic ignorance or rationality prevails in government.

Avoid losing face at home is more important than salvaging any economic prospects for the future..AND a devaluation means more expensive Prada bags, Lamburginis and overseas luxury vacations for the rich elite. They will never devalue the baht.

[Time to banish plastic bags in Thailand?]

Only the rich and middle class can launch stupid ideas to ban plastic bags or start banning the use if plastic. Plastic is gods gift to mankind. It's the perfect product. It is extremely durable, readily available, can be used for numerous purposes and is extremely cheap. It has literally elevated the lives of billions of poor people across the globe.

There should never be ANY ban on this fantastic product, but initiatives to recycle would be most welcome.

[2 teens stopped at Sydney Airport from joining Islamic State]

Let them go. They won't be back alive.

[Indonesia's executions of drug convicts likely postponed as officials leave]

Why has Indonesia turned so blood thirsty? Drug crimes just DO NOT deserve the death penalty.

Yes, they DO!

[Thailand's first debt collection law now announced in Royal Gazette]

Well done! Hopefully it will be a law that is not just for show, but used to protect ordinary Thais against the ruthless criminals in the illegal money lending industry.

[Murder suspect shot dead in presumed revenge attack]

Yes, the wild west. Next you will be getting someone abducting, murdering and dismembering their stepsister, or pushing a policewoman on to a railway track or even stabbing an innocent pedal cyclist to death.Just three of the stories I heave read from the UK in the last couple of days.Lets just hope it doesn't get that bad here.

A week in Thailand is equivalent of a year in UK, so stop being an apologist for the bad state Thailand is in.

[Thai editorial: Good Muslims, bad Muslims and the lies the govt tells you]

It's not the Thai state's fault, but the Muslims themselves. The writer is a classic Muslim apologist. He probably went to uni in UK.

[Art, fine wine: Thai auction puts police corruption on view]

I guess the assets at the corruption auction are largely bought up with corrupt money as to continue the cycle...

[Rolling back the crimes of 'Thai-ness']

I don't think local dialect's should be banned but for the sake of unity in one country there should be one language otherwise there will be discord at every level.

LKY of Singapore foresaw this 50 years ago, or else, Singapore would have followed Sri Lanka.

LKY did his best to eradicate the chinese dialects already spoken, and he introduced (forced) mandarin upon them. Hokkien, Hakka, teochew, Cantonese etc were banned in school, radio, tv etc.

[British citizen fighting with Kurds killed in Syria]

Brave man. RIP.

[Three European tourists beaten by Pattaya bouncers]

If only could shut down the girlie bars and get rid of most of the prostitution targeting foreigners, and had a police that deported forego criminals, we would not have this foreign trash entering Thailand in the first place. Not even on a tourist visa. In Malaysia and Singapore, the locals respect people, because the tourists visiting or the expats are educated and well behaved. In Thailand, Thais dealing with tourists think they are better and more intelligent than the farangs, and rightly so, because of all this foreign garbage entering Thailand and pulling the average Farang IQ down into the low 90's.

[Girlfriend of American on missing MH370 becomes vocal critic of M'sian authorities]

Airplane had a package of anthrax misappropriated. USA wanted it back and Wood's job was to do that by taking over the airplane, forcing up so high to to, sorry, kill off all passengers, leaving cockpit crew and him. Forced to fly to Diego Garcia where the plane and the dead were sheep dipped, Wood put into detention, and a CDC contingent of poison experts flown to Diego Garcia. Some days later, media reported big, unusual anthrax potential exposure of CDC personnel; story just ends with that.

The package was stolen from the MV Maersk Alabama, USA flag, in the Seychelles when it was stolen via murder of its two ex SEALs guards, employed by Trident Group (Mark Daniel Kennedy, 43, and Jeffrey Keith Reynolds, 44).

P.s. Same ship Somali took over and movie made about captain rescue.

Thanks for sharing your fantasies.

[Phuket Town to see more cables buried]

Finally! The rest of Thailand should follow.

[Envoy rejects US paper's attack on Thai government]

If the current Thai government can prove that they are doing they are doing the very best to reform and improve the lives if all Thais, nobody will care about elections or democracy. A good example is singapore which, under Lee Kuan Yew, was never very democratic, but were doing a fantastic job to lift the country and the WHOLE population. Nobody ever truly questioned singapore for their democratic track record, because the Lee Kuan Yew fovernment's incredible successful and honest job for the people of singapore. If Gen Prayuth can show the same progress and results, he will have the support of ALL Thais, and nobody in the west will care about he being elected or not.

[US appeals court: Marathon bombing trial can stay in Boston]

I bet that little worm regrets his actions now, but too late.

[Malaysia: Royal pardon sought for Anwar]

Well, at least it forces the Malaysian king to show his real colors. Is he a man of the people or a UMNO puppet? Remember the opposition got 52% of the votes in the last election, despite the widespread election fraud in the government's favor. The king can improve his popularity immensely, but does he have the courage?

[Meal of puffer fish kills 2 men]

I have eaten pufferfish before, but prepared in a Japanese restaurant. I survived, so they probably knew how to cut the fish without spilling the toxins.

[Thailand 'disappointed' with British NGO for not seeing anti-human trafficking progress]

From what I have seem Thailand has improved on this issue. I'm not going to say they are anywhere close to perfect but they do seem to be really trying to move in the direction that the west wants them to move.

Some people call window drawing and lip service progress, but they are looking for REAL progress like shutting down the big corporations that uses slave labour and arresting big fish,not just a single lorry driver or brothel manager. I have not read about any big "fish" being caught AND punished.

[Thai industry lacks skilled workforce]

Why work as a plant manager earning 1 million a year, when you can be a local police chief earning 100 million a year. Talent management in Thailand is truly a joke.

[Two confess to killing Turkish tourist in Samui]

At least and last RTP did take a stand and arrested the curlprits. Job well done . Ensuring proper justice will for sure make thailand a safer place, that's what I believe.

as already mentioned this guy was obviously a thug

In my books walking into the bar making demands with a gun in his belt and showing it (probably not the first time) is as good as taking it out and pointing it - although that part of the story is somewhat unclear as to whether they new he was carrying or not

what sort of place would Thailand be if every falang or wannabe falang thug was walking around with a gun hanging out of their waist band - I for one would not be living here

In saying that - the bar manager should have called the police and let them deal with it

Come on Einstein! The gun was planted and it wasn't his. Why plant a gun if he already had one. It was cold blooded murder, whether the Turk was a scum or not.

[1 dead in shooting at Copenhagen free speech event]

The only solution is to ban Islam as an illegal cult, just like the Germans banned nazism. It has been proven again and again, that this cult has an undeniable negative effect on its followers and should thereby be banned in Europe. It's followers could of course continue to practice in states outside Europe where the religion is still allowed.

[Baby elephant dies after being rescued from a pond]

Where are the Chang beer guys from the Chang commercial?

[Cooperatives boss linked to big investment in Laos]

If they can't pay back every penny of what they have stolen, they should be forced to hard labour for the rest of their lives. Stealing from the poor should be a capital crime.

[Suspect in shooting of 3 students had 13 guns, stash of ammo]

Relatives say all were shot in the head. Authorities haven't disclosed exactly how the victims died.

-- (c) Associated Press 2015-02-14

Perhaps they drowned or died in a car accident?

[Reform on Police commander's agenda: Phuket]

The reform process has to be lead from OUTSIDE the police. The Thai police cannot under any circumstances be trusted to carry out the reforms themselves. It will never work and the people will lose confidence in the new government. The police needs to undergo a total change, including the personnel. The Thai police is a failure and should be reformed from top to bottom.