Jon Whitman
- Entertainment
Universal acclaim? Jakapong’s pageant purchase dismays rights campaigners
Thai businesswoman Jakapong “Anne” Jakrajutatip recently purchased the Miss Universe Organization once owned by fellow reality TV star Donald Trump, something described in prehistoric quarters (US broadcaster NBC) as a “phenomenal milestone.” The deal cost an estimated US$20 million (750 million baht), but who is Jakapong, and what does she want? With million followers on Instagram, the 43 year old…
- World News
Ask nicely! Offended Myanmar junta refuses to stop slaughter
Myanmar’s military government says it will not yield to pressure from its Southeast Asia neighbours to transform the country from a violent and corrupt methamphetamine factory into a sane and reasonable member of the international community. The junta seized power last year, after a short period of slightly reduced genocide during civilian rule by a semi-elected government, comprised in part…
- World News
Thai police hunt foreign fugitives ahead of APEC summit
There’s to be no respite for foreign fugitives hiding in Thailand, as immigration police refuse to rest in the run up to next month’s APEC Summit. Their mission? To guarantee absolute safety and security to world leaders set to gather in Bangkok for an epoch-making meeting. Three Chinese nationals and a Taiwanese man are the latest to feel the force of…
- Cannabis News
Higher than us all – Germany’s toke on the weed issue
Germany wants adults to be able to buy as much as 30 grammes of weed for recreational use and will allow everyone to grow three marijuana plants, setting a precedent that the whole of Europe may soon follow. German health minister Karl Lauterbach said… “If this law comes to pass, it would be the most liberal project to legalise cannabis in…
- Environment News
Burmese escapees rounded up in annual Florida snake wrangle
In stark contrast to the activities of a single reticulated python that recently swallowed a woman in Indonesia, a 19-year-old south Florida man has captured 28 Burmese pythons in an annual 10-day competition to rid the state of invasive species. Matthew Concepcion was among the 1,000 people who participated in the annual snake hunt, which this year “removed” 231 of…
- Politics News
Anti-corruption cop sets new standards – How rich is ‘unusually rich’?
Prayat Puangjumpa, a former deputy secretary-general of the National Counter-Corruption Commission (NACC), has been charged by the commission with being unusually rich. Unusually rich for whom? An ordinary Thai citizen? Unusually rich for someone on his salary? Unusually rich for a senior Thai law enforcer? Prayat, who was fired in August, is accused of making a false declaration to conceal…
- World News
How can Thailand win its war on drugs?
As Thailand begins the latest round of its war on drugs, Thai PBS paints a pretty bleak picture of the prospects for a quick victory. This is no metaphorical war. This is an armed struggle, with well-drilled militaries on every side. According to the news provider, the production of methamphetamine by organised crime syndicates has resulted in a sharp drop…
- World News
Thai golf superstar Atthaya goes close in S Korea
Perhaps the hottest property in women’s golf today is rising Thai star Atthaya Thitikul, one of the game’s brightest prospects. Not yet 20 years old and she has already claimed multiple victories on the Ladies European Tour. Atthaya hit a 9-under 63 on Thursday to set a tournament record at the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club in…
- Bangkok News
No chance of parole for Bangkok’s imprisoned gorilla
After the latest round of public outcry, authorities claim for the umpteenth time that little can be done about gorilla Bua Noi, 33 years old, confined to a small cell in a Bangkok shopping mall. According to Natural Resources and Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa, the owners are free to continue doing as they please with the beast they have kept…
- Phuket News
Phuket floods – pedestrians, field hospital, royal donations
Phuket is expediting provisional repairs to the road over Patong Hill, technically Phrabarami Road (Route 4029). The route was closed to traffic after last Wednesday’s landslide. The plan includes allowing pedestrians to use the road as soon as it is safe. There will be staff on hand to help and people must walk on the shoulder only. Parking areas and…
- Bangkok News
Local artists revive Bangkok’s historical waterside
Along Klong Bang Luang – once a busy canal in Bangkok – people are often drawn to a pagoda in the middle of an old teak house, its battered surface is covered in moss and creepers, along with some obvious traces of a bygone era. Formerly part of Kamphaeng Bangchak temple, the pagoda has been the centrepiece of “The Artist’s…
- World News
‘A Million Thanks to the Malaysians’ – for tolerating Thai trains
The “Amazing Thailand, A Million Thanks to the Malaysians” event in Kuala Lumpur thanked the Malaysian travel industry for promoting Thailand as a preferred destination. Tourism Authority of Thailand deputy governor Tanes Petsuwan said… “Malaysia has been the number one visitor source market to Thailand so far this year accounting for over 1 million arrivals from January to mid-October. This…
- Northern Thailand News
Grand scam – Beware of fake banknotes circulating in Udon Thani
Police are warning the public against counterfeit 1,000-baht banknotes that have been found circulating in the sweaty expat paradise of Udon Thani province. Police spokesman Pol Maj Gen Archayon Kraithong said there had been several reports of counterfeit bills in the province. Two cases were posted to social media, the first involving a barbecue restaurant and another at a grocery…
- News
Now he has wings – Red Bull boss Mateschitz passes after long illness
Red Bull co-owner Dietrich Mateschitz has died aged 78. The Austrian billionaire, a hero in Thailand and patriarch of Red Bull’s Formula One team, had been battling a long-term illness. Mateschitz was the driving force behind the transformation of Red Bull from a sketchy Thai energy drink to the global market leader in a sector which he created more or…
- World News
But is it art? Thailand’s NFT makers turn pixels into profit
Visitors to Than Bok Khorani National Park stand at one end of a 3,000-year continuum of creative endeavour that extends from the dusty dank caves of Krabi to the high-class sale rooms of Bangkok. When Pablo Picasso died in 1973 at 91, he is estimated to have completed 13,500 paintings (not sketches and cartoons, actual paintings) and around 100,000 prints…
- Entertainment
1-billion-baht tourism stimulus back on track
While debate continues around Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s return to office, one thing has become clear: the Tourism and Sports Ministry is moving ahead with a package of measures delayed while General Prayut was suspended pending the Constitutional Court’s ruling. One proposal will allow entertainment venues to remain open until 4am. It’s estimated that Thailand loses roughly 70 million baht (US$2…
- Thailand Weather Updates
Forever flooded – how do we break the disastrous cycle?
As part of the south braces for expected seasonal floods, a vast area of the lower north, including Nakhon Sawan, Ang Thong, and Isaan, remains inundated. An editorial in this morning’s Bangkok Post asks what we can do to prevent ourselves from being washed away in the tide. Many people have drowned over the past two months, and yesterday, an…
- World News
Netizens divided over two-faced cat
A kitten born with a rare, two-toned face has taken the Internet by storm with his own social media page. Split down the middle, one side black and the other grey, Narnia’s face shocked his owner, pedigree cat breeder Stephanie Jimenez, as soon as she saw him. She said… “I was very surprised; he is exceptional. It’s possible he’s a…
- Thailand Weather Updates
Burmese man drowns in Phuket drain
Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers have retrieved the body of an unnamed Burmese man who fell into a canal and drowned in Chalong. The 47 year old man from Myanmar fell into the canal while watching the flooding, Phuket Info Center reported. The body was found near the floodgate, far from where he fell. According to local media, several people saw the…
- Thailand Weather Updates
In it together – Floods around the world
Hardly a day goes by without more news of death and destruction in Thailand as the monsoon season resolutely refuses to end. We are not alone. It seems like the whole world is underwater, with people washed out of their homes from Australia to Zambia. Here are some images of different people facing similar problems around the world. Australia…
- World News
Malaysians plan ‘Cannaverse’ on Sukhumvit Road
Malaysian investors want to build a cannabis entertainment centre in Bangkok to open next year. “Cannaverse” will be a private, members-only club with a hotel, swimming pool, weed dispensary, spa, restaurant, and karaoke room on Soi Sukhumvit 33, according to Coconuts. Cannaverse director Aric Ng said that food and beverages will be sold, including both cannabis-infused and weed-free beer. Ng said……
- Entertainment
Legendary Carabao rocker begs forgiveness over Elephant Duel “misunderstanding”
Rock star Yuenyong Opakul must report to the police to answer a charge of insulting Natthapat Suwanprateep, governor of Suphan Buri province, during an offensive rant last week. Pol Maj Gen Uthai Kawindechathorn, deputy commissioner of Provincial Police Region 7, yesterday said the frontman of celebrated rock group Carabao must visit Song Phi Nong police station in the southernmost district…
- Politics News
Race to be UK’s next vegetable – ineligible lettuce paves way for Boris return
The surprises just keep on coming in British politics. Yesterday, the people of the United Kingdom were shocked when Liz Truss crossed the Rubicon, though not the one you might think. Around 1.35pm UK time, yesterday, the world’s worst-ever prime minister tottered up to the microphone outside No.10 Downing Street and offered her resignation. The announcement came just a few…
- World News
Border cop accused of drug, weapon offences transferred to non-job
The police chief of Narathiwat province has been reportedly transferred to an inactive position at Royal Thai Police (RTP) Headquarters, pending a disciplinary probe into his alleged connections to drug networks operating in the deep south and Malaysia. Pol Maj-General Waesamae Salae is under suspicion of aiding suspects in drug and weapons cases, a news source said on Wednesday. Narathiwat…
- World News
It’s in the jeans – Iconic pants mined from rich seam of racism
When a pair of filthy old Levi’s blue jeans dating back to the 1880s was found in an abandoned mine in the former Wild West by self-described “denim archaeologist” Michael Harris, he knew immediately they were something special. The vintage pants were sold at Durango Vintage Festivus, a four-day celebration of denim on the outskirts of Aztec, N.M. for $87,400…
- Hot News
Thai teen, 19, gets engaged to 56 year old woman
Wuthichai Chantaraj, now aged 19, met his fiancée 56 year old Janla Namuangrak, when he was only 10. According to The Mirror, Wuthichai was Janla’s neighbour in Sakhon Nakhon province of northeast Thailand. Janla had asked for Wuthichai’s help with cleaning her home and both got to know each other. The couple later got into a relationship, and have now…
- Covid-19 News
India issues licenses for nasal Covid-19 vaccine
With Covid-19 under control to some extent, preventing transmission is the aim of next-generation vaccines. Many believe those vaccines will be delivered through a nasal inhaler. The mode of delivery could stop transmission by creating immunity where the virus enters the body. India already has a nasal vaccine, though its effectiveness is unknown, and it was designed in the US.…
- Politics News
Out of the shadow – India’s Congress Party appoints non-Gandhi president
India’s Congress Party has appointed its first president in 24 years who is not from the Gandhi dynasty, to reverse its collapse in popularity and take on the apparently unassailable BJP. Octogenarian Mallikarjun Kharge, a flunky at the decadent court of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty which rules the party, defeated rival Shashi Tharo, a stripling at a mere 66 years of…
- World News
My bitch’s slave – Are you in your pet’s power?
Japanese researchers have found that female dogs can recognise different types of humans and naturally seek out the more competent when they’re in trouble. According to scientists at Kyoto University, dogs make their views known through facial expressions and body language. Dog owners are said to let themselves go in front of their pets, according to the UK’s Mirror newspaper.…
- Thailand News
Brand Shinawatra – choice of a new generation?
In today’s Bangkok Post, former senator and member of the National Reform Council Prasarn Marukpitak looks forward to the forthcoming election with still more than six months to go. According to Prasarn, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, youngest daughter of Thaksin, is increasingly popular, far more so than ageing veterans such as Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. Pheu Thai is now loudly protesting that…
