Tents, barrier removed from famous Phetchabun cliff
Tents, barrier removed from famous Phetchabun cliffSeven permanent tents on Pha Hua Sing on Phu Thap Boek in Lom Kao district of Phetchabun have been removed after a dispute between the landowners and the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry. Kuaneng Thor dismantled seven permanent tents erected near the highest point of the cliff on the mountain on Saturday night. He and other landowners also removed a barrier after a warning by security authorities that the landlords were defying a state order. Security and forestry authorities on Thursday inspect seven tents and other structures seen spoiling the scenic Pha Hua Sing on the mountain. So far only the seven tents have been removed.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 10:41 UTC
Three arrested with 1,199kg 'ice'
Three arrested with 1,199kg 'ice'A truck with almost 1,200 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine hidden under sacks of cow dung was towed to the Provincial Police Region 8 office in Muang district of Surat Thani. (Photo by Supapong Chaolan)SURAT THANI: Three men were arrested and 1,199 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine, or ice, in their possession seized by police in Phun Phin district of this southern province Saturday, police said. The plastic bags contained a total of 1,199kg of crystal meth or ice with a street value of about 600 million baht. The three men - Suvit Nungsong, 43, Somsak Sunthornnon, 56, and Somporn Chaipakdee, 50, all from Trang province - were arrested. From Thailand, it would be moved to a neighbouring country and then to other countries, particularly in Europe, where ice is in high demand, he added.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 10:18 UTC
Majority against opening country to foreigners: Poll
Majority against opening country to foreigners: PollA traveller walks away from a panel displaying outbound flight information at Suvarnabhumi airport on Wednesday. The poll was conducted on July 6-8 on 1,251 people aged 18 and over of various levels of education and occupations throughout the country. A proposed "medical and wellness" programme would open the country to foreigners who test negative for Covid-19 to receive medical treatment. A second proposed programme would allow those foreigners admitted for medical treatment to travel around Thailand after undergoing a 14-day quarantine. Asked about the travel bubble programme that would allow foreigners from countries free of Covid-19 to visit the country, a majority - 54.36% - supported it.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 06:00 UTC
Start-up city: Vietnam's young invest ideas in Ho Chi Minh
Start-up city: Vietnam's young invest ideas in Ho Chi MinhVietnam-based start-ups made up nearly 20% of the capital invested in Southeast Asia last year. HO CHI MINH CITY: A tech-savvy population, a fast-growing economy, and the perks of being first in an emerging market -- Vietnamese entrepreneur Le Thanh saw the potential in booming Ho Chi Minh City for his start-up transforming coffee grounds into masks. "But now I see there are more openings in a place where things are a bit murky," Thanh told AFP from his buzzing Ho Chi Minh City co-working space. Vietnamese e-commerce and e-payment companies have been "flooded" with private equity in the past couple of years, said Eddie Thai, a Ho Chi Minh City-based partner at venture capital firm 500 Startups. Back in his Ho Chi Minh City office space, packed with young professionals, Thanh fizzes with enthusiasm for Vietnam's start-up culture.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 04:07 UTC
Aussie skipper Paine's mental demons
'Crying on the couch' - Aussie skipper Paine's mental demons"I would rather be anywhere else in the world because I was convinced I was going to fail." - 'Weird and painful' -He said while he never lost his love of watching cricket "when it came to my part in the game I just hated it". "I would rather be anywhere else in the world because I was convinced I was going to fail. Paine finally won his place back in the Test team during the 2017-18 Ashes series, but the inner turmoil returned. "I'm going to have to bat in front of people and there are going to be millions of people watching.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 03:22 UTC
Majority want to see cabinet reshuffle: Poll
Majority want to see cabinet reshuffle: PollPrime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha chairs a meeting about economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic at Government House on Friday. (Government House photo)A majority of people think it is now time for a cabinet reshuffle, reasoning that the government has been unable to solve economic problems even as it successfully handled the Covid-19 situation, according an opinion survey by the Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, or Suan Dusit Poll. The poll was conducted on July 8-11 on 1,269 people throughout the country after a cabinet reshuffle became a hot topic for discussion among the public after the government under Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha completed its first year in office on July 10. Asked how satisfied they were with the government's handling of the Covid-19 situation, 43.58% were moderately satisfied and 23.80% very satisfied. Another 23.40% were ambivalent about a reshuffle, saying it was up to the prime minister, and 8.75% said it was not yet time for a reshuffle as there are still other important issues to be resolved.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 03:14 UTC
Chicken delight
Hainanese rice chicken. But it seems that Hainanese chicken rice (khao man gai) is an unrivalled all-time favourite among Thai people. Hainanese rice chicken. Thus, a lot of Hainanese people opened chicken rice shops, with a pioneering dish called Hainanese capon chicken rice (khao man gai tawn hailam). Excellent Hainanese chicken rice should have four qualities: the chicken is poached properly; khao man is aromatic and slightly salty; the dipping sauce has an intense flavour obtained from a balanced mixing of salted soybean, ginger, fermented bean sauce, and chopped chilli; and a delicious clear chicken soup prepared from chicken carcasses and gourd.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 12, 2020 00:00 UTC
Bow before the snake, ex-cop kills thug, cat lover stung
The spirit of the snake, he said, had occupied the young woman's body out of anger at being killed. He also asks Duangjai her name, so locals could make merit for her correctly as she contorted on the ground. "No, that was the snake talking to the locals in human language they could understand," a male co-presenter assures them. This throws Duangjai into convulsions and she starts screaming, obviously unhappy to come into contact with the snake. "Bun started begging, and said he had just 1,000 baht with him.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 23:37 UTC
Life coaches run the gauntlet
Eventually, Win found a life coach he thought might be suitable -- "an older man who had a career in the same field and plenty of life experience" -- and hired him. INTERNATIONAL AGENCIESAn ICF-certified business coach, who asked not to be named due to the contract with her company and clients, said life coaches and business coaches are often ranked alongside motivational speakers, influencers and consultants. "However, life coaches and business coaches will not tell their clients what to do but ask powerful questions that will help the clients find the answers by themselves," she said, adding that therefore, unlike a consultant, a life coach or business coach will not need specific knowledge about the business the client is in. Moreover, life coaches are trained in helping others reach their potential in their professional and personal lives. "Many self-help gurus and self-made life coaches now use a technique called neuro-linguistic programming to motivate their clients to achieve their goals.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 23:15 UTC
Democrats in the dark over likely reshuffle
Democrats in the dark over likely reshuffleJurin: Dems do not know PM's plan. The Democrat Party has not been told about a cabinet reshuffle which might decide its fate in the government, said the party leader Jurin Laksanawisit. Mr Jurin said if the prime minister makes no indication of a cabinet post reallocation, the Democrats will retain their present quota of seven ministers. On Friday, Mr Somkid said he was prepared to accept his fate if Prime Minister Prayut decides to reshuffle the cabinet. Mr Jurin said the seven ministerial posts were demanded by the Democrats as a condition of joining the coalition government.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC
Govt railroading Chana complex
Govt railroading Chana complexIt's a big relief that yesterday's forum on the Chana industrial complex in the province of Songkhla passed without confrontation or incident. The organiser, the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre (SBPAC), blocked project opponents from attending the forum, which took place at Chana Witthaya School. The opponents -- mostly small-scale fisherfolk or farmers -- worry the Chana industrial complex will ruin an area abundant with marine resources and affect food security and affect local livelihoods. If the Chana industrial scheme is good, the authorities must not taint it with irregularities. This means yesterday's forum must not be used in any way to promote the scheme.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC
Human trials set for jab candidate
Suvit: 'Very good' levels of antibodyA local Covid-19 vaccine candidate will enter clinical trials in October after it was shown to have produced high antibody levels among primates. Mr Suvit said monkeys at the National Primate Research Centre of Thailand (NPRCT) in Saraburi's Kaeng Khoi district were given a second shot of the research team's Covid-19 vaccine candidate on June 22. The researchers found the candidate produced "very good" levels of antibody, which led to the decision to begin human trials in October. The vaccine research team has transferred technology to its foreign research partners in preparation for producing doses of the vaccine for the upcoming human trials, he said. Kiat Ruxrungtham, director of Chulalongkorn's vaccine research centre and NPRCT director Suchinda Malaivijitnond confirmed the good news relayed to the media by Mr Suvit.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC
Locals divided over Chana plan
Many held placards with messages supporting the Chana industrial city prototype project. Khairiya Ramanya, a representative of a movement calling itself Chana Rak Thin (Love Chana) network, read out a statement in protest against both the project and yesterday's hearings. And although the Chana industrial project is a large-scale project, only people in the three tambons where the estate will be built were allowed to air their opinions. The group also raised concerns over the possible environmental impact the industrial estate project will have on Chana district's rich marine resources, beaches and fresh air. He urged those disappointed at yesterday's hearings to take the matter to court.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC
Spaghetti westerns lose musical icon
Spaghetti westerns lose musical iconThe death of Italian composer Ennio Morricone last week inevitably sparked memories of those old spaghetti westerns, including the so-called "Dollars Trilogy", in which his creative music was a crucial element. Eastwood loved Morricone's music with its eclectic mix of whistling, flutes, guitars, trumpets, cracking whips and gunshots. As he once commented: "What actor wouldn't want to ride into town with that kind of music playing behind them?" The spaghetti cowboys were mean, nasty, dirty and looked like they hadn't had a bath in months ... and they ate beans in bordellos. The spaghetti westerns were hugely popular in Thailand and Morricone's music, particularly the distinctive Good, Bad, Ugly theme, could be heard on jukeboxes throughout the kingdom, even in Nakhon Nowhere.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC
Prepare For Takeoff
As their name implies, Khruangbin ("airplane" in Thai) primarily drew inspiration from the musical heritage of Thailand, particularly during the glorious 60s-70s. The group's vibrant sonic eclecticism continues to expand on their latest studio album, Mordechai. Clearly, the focus here is still very much on the "mood" rather than what's being sung and its meaning. After sharing their first collab Lotto back in January, the pair return with another infectious jam Hoodie. Cut Copy / Cold WaterThe evolution of Australian synth-pop ensemble Cut Copy has been a fascinating one to witness.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 21:45 UTC