Michael's Dispatches

ความวุ่นวายในไทย: ข้อสังเกตและความคิดบางประการ

Details: Published: Sunday, 23 March 2014 14:40

ตอนที่1 จากประมาณ10 ตอน

นำแสดงโดย:อภิสิทธิ์, ท่านพุทธอิสระ, หมอทำนายชาวพม่า, ประชาธิปัตย์, นักข่าวที่ดีและที่ไม่ดี, คปท., ชายชุดดำ, กปปส., พรรคเพื่อไทย, สันติอโศก, สาธิตเซกัล, สุเทพ, กองทัพบกไทย, ตำรวจไทย, เอกอัครราชทูตอเมริกาคริสตี้เคนนี่, เสื้อเหลือง, ยิ่งลักษณ์, คุณ

อภิสิทธิ์ ปฏิเสธการนิรโทษกรรม ในขณะที่ต้องหาคดีฆ่า 12 ศพ

อภิสิทธิ์ เวชชาชีวะอดีตนายกรัฐมนตรีของไทย

มีความเข้าใจผิดว่าคุณอภิสิทธิ์กับผมเป็นเพื่อนที่เล่นกอล์ฟด้วยกันเพื่อนเก่าที่สนิทกันมานานสิ่งนี้ยังผลให้เกิดข่าวลือความจริงเกี่ยวกับความสัมพันธ์ของเราคือผมใช้เวลาเดินทางกับเขาหนึ่งครั้งจากหาดใหญ่ในปี2553 หลังจากที่การต่อสู้อย่างรุนแรงในกรุงเทพฯเพิ่งเกิดขึ้นหลังจากนั้นเมื่อหนังสือของเขา "The Simple Truth" ได้ตีพิมพ์สองหน้าหลังได้เขียนเกี่ยวกับผมผมได้อนุญาตให้ใช้งานในเฟซบุ๊คผมในหน้าเหล่านั้นเป็นการกล่าวแบบปกติว่าข้อหาฆ่าผู้อื่นที่คุณอภิสิทธิ์และรองนายกฯในขณะนั้น,คุณสุุเทพเทือกสุบรรณ, โดนกล่าวหานั้นไม่เป็นธรรมและไม่ยุติธรรม

ในช่วงสองสามสัปดาห์นี้เราได้คุยกันแบบส่วนตัวเป็นเวลารวมประมาณ3 ชั่วโมง

Thai Turmoil: Some observations and thoughts

12 Comments

Details: Published: Thursday, 20 March 2014 14:46

Part 1 of about 10

20 March 2014

Starring: Abhisit, Buddha Issara, Burmese Fortune Teller, Democrats, Farmers, Journalists good and bad, KPT, Men in Black, PDRC, Puea Thai Party, Santi Asoke, Satish Sehgal Suthep, Thai Army, Thai Police, US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, Yellow Shirts, Yingluck, You

Abhisit refused amnesty on 12 murder charges

Abhisit Vejjajiva is a former Prime Minister of Thailand.

There is a misconception that Abhisit and I are golf buddies, old pals who go way back. This is the result of propaganda. The truth of our relationship is that I took one trip with him to Hat Yai in 2010, just after the intense fighting in Bangkok. Later when his book The Simple Truth was published, the final two pages were written by me. Those pages were taken with my permission from Facebook, simply stating that the murder charges against him and his Deputy Prime Minister at the time, Suthep Thaugsuban, are bogus and unjust.

What’s So Civil About War Anyway

2 Comments

Details: Published: Sunday, 23 February 2014 16:07

Published: 23 February 2014

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A Simple Man scores a Major Win

12 Comments

Details: Published: Saturday, 22 February 2014 16:46

22 February 2014

photo-1-1000

(It has been a long day, and tomorrow comes early. I rush to write these words with a single pass and no edit. Please forgive me.)

We begin:

This is a difficult struggle to overthrow an enormously corrupt Thai government. The struggle is marked by a series of independent victories.

This afternoon I spent more than two hours with a well-known retired general discussing the matter, and then I spent more than three hours with farmers. All agree that Yingluck's days are growing shorter.

One farmer is Ravee Roongraung. Khun Ravee is a rice farmer from Petchaburi. Khun Ravee has risen to the occasion to lead farmers from seven provinces to demand payment for their stolen rice.

General Menard in Jail for "Gun Running"

9 Comments

Details: Published: Thursday, 30 January 2014 14:38

30 January 2014

This is the Canadian Brigadier General that I wrote should be fired for incompetence in Afghanistan. This caused me no end of troubles but was worth it. My work directly resulted in Menard's firing and he departed the Army.

And now he is in jail in Afghanistan. Maybe he has been set up -- I have no idea. But I do hope that he is released from the Afghan jail and sent home in good sorts.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/01/29/former_canadian_brigadiergeneral_daniel_menard_in_afghan_jail.html

US Embassy Bangkok: US Soldier Running Rogue Operation?

12 Comments

Details: Published: Wednesday, 18 December 2013 14:06

CJ Grisham was arrested in Texas a second time this past November for criminal trespass.

18 December 2013

A troubled US Army Soldier claimed to be assigned to the US Embassy in Bangkok for an unknown purpose.

The active duty counterintelligence soldier, who has a Top Secret clearance, is stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. Until recently, when I alerted the Army of a possible rogue operation, the counterintelligence sergeant listed his duty station as the US Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand.

The soldier has never been stationed in Thailand. There is no evidence that he has ever visited Thailand.

Not a Crosswalk

12 Comments

Details: Published: Monday, 09 December 2013 15:09

Aleppo, Syria

09 December 2013

The Syrian war is growing. Growing in size and complexity.

Yet the more one learns about this conflict, the less accurate it becomes to call it “The Syrian War.” Thousands of foreigners have flooded in. Some are moving through southern Turkey today. Just this weekend Jihadist hardliners seized yet another town on the Turkish border, ten minutes drive from a Turkish town. Barbarians are at the gate, and the gate is wide open.

As these words are written, foreigners are fighting inside and creating international contacts that will transcend this place and time.

Afghanistan: Talking Points US Troops

16 Comments

Details: Published: Sunday, 08 December 2013 16:36

08 December 2013

Many of our Soldiers in Afghanistan are required to carry this paper in a pocket at all times. Troops are expected to memorize the talking points and cough them up to any journalists coming through.

We decided to help headquarters spread their message.

Many complaints about poor morale are coming from Afghanistan. Most troops are kept on base, where they undergo mindless inspections and even small ‘parades’, and of course rocket and mortar strikes.

Thailand: Pause on Fighting for King's Birthday

20 Comments

Details: Published: Wednesday, 04 December 2013 15:14

04 December 2013

I am in Turkey to study the Syrian civil war. Yet this is also a crucial moment in Thailand. A few words on the Kingdom are due.

December 5 is His Majesty's birthday. As an American, I was raised since birth to reject all kings. That is our upbringing and what we are taught in school, and with good reason.

The King of Thailand is a rare exception.

Al Qaeda in Syria: A Snapshot

14 Comments

Details: Published: Monday, 02 December 2013 00:41

1 December 2013

Given by Kawa Khalil, annotated by Michael Yon

The Syrian rebel Kawa Khalil told me the recent story of the Holy Cross church.

Before the war, the church doubled as a school, attended by Muslims and Christians. After the destruction of Syria began, classrooms became homes for refugees.

On 27 October, the Holy Cross Armenian Orthodox Church was burned in Tal Abyad, Raqqa, Syria.

Daily Thailand and Syria Updates on my Facebook

1 Comment

Details: Published: Saturday, 30 November 2013 15:28

30 November 2013

Please "friend" my daily updates:

https://www.facebook.com/MichaelYonFanPage

From the Hearts of Thai People

6 Comments

Details: Published: Friday, 29 November 2013 00:35

28 November 2013

Government opposition has grown in Thailand to historical proportions. Millions of Thai people from all walks of life, and from across the political and economic spectrum, are uniting to overthrow the current government, which is corrupted to the core.

So far, the massive anti-government rally has been peaceful. Many government buildings have been peacefully seized and are being occupied.

How you Got Hit

4 Comments

Details: Published: Monday, 25 November 2013 16:03

25 November 2013

Some people love war. For most others, the disease is difficult to live with.

Parents have it bad. They are challenged to safeguard children while showing strength when schools close, food runs out, and fetching water can end with a sniper’s bullet.

An oft-repeated parental worry is that they will be killed and nobody will care for their children. Some orphans fall into the safety net of a large family, while for others the loss of a father can leave the mother begging for a lifetime along the roadways, the children spread to the winds as prostitutes, beggars, thieves, or in rare cases, suicide bombers.

Syria: Darkly Hilarious

9 Comments

Details: Published: Wednesday, 13 November 2013 22:30

13 November 2013

This video was made in the middle of the war, by Syrians in the thick of it.

Guncotton in Syria

15 Comments

Details: Published: Monday, 11 November 2013 17:35

11 November 2013

Guncotton used to launch homemade artillery.

War has shattered Syria. Heavily armed government forces will stop at nothing to destroy opposition to retain power. The government uses airstrikes, artillery barrages, and tanks against its own people.

Assad’s army is literally scorching the earth under the feet of women and children. If Assad’s Air Force has a single rule of engagement, the rule seems to be never to waste a bomb. This abject cruelty has led to a brutal war that eclipses Iraq and Afghanistan combined.

While the Syrian government uses heavy weapons, many opposition fighters scramble for ammunition and to invent homemade cannons, large catapults, and giant slingshots that launch grapefruit-sized grenades.

Syria Coverage

2 Comments

Details: Published: Saturday, 09 November 2013 14:34

Published: 09 November 2013

More than 100,000 people are estimated to have died already in the Syrian Civil War with no end in sight.

Myriad outsiders have become involved with foreign fighters from around the world, including from the United States and Europe. More recently, President Obama threatened to go to war with Syria.

image001-1000 US Patriot Missiles at Gazianthep, Turkey. (US Army photo.)

Estimates of refugees vary from 2.5 million to 9 million. Many have fled to Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Africa, and to Europe.

Though I publicly opposed US military intervention for various reasons, the refugee issue cannot be ignored forever.

Warning to Judge and Jurors in Grisham Trial

1 Comment

Details: Published: Sunday, 20 October 2013 18:51

20 October 2013

Mouse mutilated and published by US soldier on trial: CJ Grisham

This week, the trial of CJ Grisham ended in a hung jury. A source in the courtroom told me that the jury was 5:1 in favor of conviction.

A retrial has been set for 18 November 2013.

The judge and jury are warned: Grisham is not to be trifled with. Jurors should ask to shield their personal information if possible. After the trial, if Grisham is found guilty, jurors likely will meet the fate of others who have dared to cross CJ Grisham. This person is a professional victim and victimizer.

Afghanistan: A Bigger Monster

28 Comments

Details: Published: Thursday, 10 October 2013 14:11

10 October 2013

Just months ago Pentagon officials dismissed the idea of a total pullout from Afghanistan. Today we are on the verge of ending negotiations on our future there, leading to the “zero option.” Total withdrawal.

If we execute a zero option, this is my basic worst-case prediction, which is not far from my most likely scenario prediction:

President Karzai and his government seem to believe we need Afghanistan and will not abandon him, or that we will cave to ridiculous demands. We will not. Remember Iraq. Look at our own current shutdown. The US is in serial crisis mode and Afghanistan is overplaying its hand.

Tips for Happy Holiday in Thailand

1 Comment

Details: Published: Tuesday, 08 October 2013 13:36

08 October 2013

tat-dos-and-donts-1

Marine Statement on Bastion Attack

10 Comments

Details: Published: Tuesday, 01 October 2013 11:10

01 October 2013

Commandant Announces Decision in Afghanistan Attack Investigation

HEADQUARTERS MARINE CORPS, Washington, D.C. - The Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen James F. Amos, has concluded that two high-ranking Marine commanders must be held accountable for the consequences of last year's insurgent attack on Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.

After reviewing the findings of a four-month investigation conducted by U.S. Central Command at the Commandant's request, Gen Amos agreed that MajGen Charles M. Gurganus and MajGen Gregg A. Sturdevant "did not take adequate force protection measures within the range of responses proportionate to the threat."