I am afraid if you are not siding you should only be listening to CNN and BBC. I am in Bangkok and have been here for more than 3 years and seen lots. Local press here is highly bias and very yellow. So when I say I heard from my Thai friends I am afraid they themselves are listening to very bias information.
If anyone wish to comment about Thai politics and accusing so and so is guilty he should spend some time on the countryside. No need to be in Isaan or north. So to the south too and then you can comment who is right and who is wrong.
Not dispersing from a protest site and asking for unreasonable demands do not deserve the army shooting at you. Army is use for war. Police is use for quelling riots.
And anyway what makes anyone think the poor is making unreasonable demand? If you voted in a government 3 times and it won three times overwhelmingly but 3 times it was taken away from you are you making unreasonable demand for the current government to be dissolve?
To say that "I believe Thaksin is the main culprit" is itself very bias.
As my friend had said, the Police is not doing anything because they are on Thaksin side, you can ask around and verify it for me, i'm not there, if i'm wrong, i apologise for my friend
As you said, yes, the poor doesnt mean unreasonable, but what is the purpose of the protesters? the government to step down? or they want Thaksin cronies to be in charge again?
Thailand is a developing country, the gap between the rich and the poor is wide. I'm sure every Thais wants to narrow it, but getting Thaksin back will solve the problem? I seriously dun think so, Thaksin is not a saint, nor he's a good PM at all, corruption, treason, muzzling the reporters, selling national assets to foreign buyers etc etc...
One thing i praise about Thaksin is that he uses the money to upgrade the rural area, that, everyone can see, any nobody is denying that. But where did that money came from? Yes, he's a billionaire, maybe he uses his own money? i dunno. But 1 thing i know once you are a PM of a country, you'll get greedy and wants to be more powerful. Look at Singapore, perfect example
And i do watch CNN lah, my friend told me not to watch only, if dun watch CNN, where i can see the news? LOL :p:p