News Forum - Let’s try that again: US to attempt another donation of 1 million vaccine doses

[Thaiger]

Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Minister says the US government has offered to donate another 1 million vaccines doses to the kingdom. According to a Bangkok Post report, Don Pramudwinai says the doses are likely to be the Moderna mRNA vaccine and the Public Health Ministry is planning to propose the offer to Cabinet. The last US donation of a million Pfizer doses hit a series of hurdles and was seemingly hampered by government bureaucracy. At the time, the Thai-born US Senator Tammy Duckworth accused the Thai government of dragging its heels in completing the necessary paperwork. A similar fate hit a […]

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[Swissguy]

Sorry in Switzerland Astra Zeneca have not a permit to use. Only Pfizer and moderna

[PatrickSatoLee]

obviously the BROWN envelops was not done as part of the paperwork. 

[Shade_Wilder]

"The last US donation of a million Pfizer doses hit a series of hurdles and was seemingly hampered by government bureaucracy. "

This issue really demonstrates the value of an elected government that is accountable to its people.

In modern-day Thailand, the real power has been with the Military-Bureaucratic complex, and those people simply do not have 'skin in the game'. The people making decisions have had first access to all the best vaccines, have no real worry of missing a pay-cheque, have access to life-long health care and then pensions, have never met a payroll or faced bankruptcy, have never really faced the consequences of their actions, have never been hungry, and have never really been unemployed.

Yet, they make decisions for the people who have.

There are many faults of elected governments, but the one GIANT plus of them is that they usually consist of people who have lived outside of a system where everything is provided to them, and thus can guide/direct a bureaucracy away from acting in its own best interest to acting in the people's best interest.

I am reminded of a quote from Kafka;

"Every revolution evaporates and leaves behind only the slime of a new bureaucracy"

 

[ThomasG]

"Come and get your free poison here, don't miss the opportunity to participate in the lucky draw, blood clots, heart attack, bells palsy or guillain barre syndrome could all be yours, just grab the chance and trust the science." -

Yeah, let's do it, then we will be shown mercy, and kindly be allowed to travel by airplane to Southern Thailand by our masters, to experience ghost towns first hand and consume alcohol as late as 9pm, while enjoying the hot and humid climate from the safety of our surgical masks. 

Edited November 10, 2021 by ThomasG

[Grumpyoldman]

4 minutes ago, ThomasG said:

"Come and get your free poison here, don't miss the opportunity to participate in the lucky draw, blood clots, heart attack, bells palsy or guillain barre syndrome could all be yours, just grab the chance and trust the science." -

Yeah, let's do it, then we will be shown mercy, and kindly be allowed to travel by airplane to Southern Thailand by our masters, to experience ghost towns first hand and consume alcohol as late as 9pm, while enjoying the hot and humid climate from the safety of our surgical masks. 

Don't hold back son....

[Grumpyoldman]

No profit for those in power with donations......

[Pompies]

There can be no doubt that there is deliberate blocking of Moderna, but of course we will never know by whom or for what reason. However it is shameful that when the population are openly calling for this brand the government is ignoring this. The latest Chinese offer of 1,5 million doses of their near useless vaccine will no doubt be accepted with open arms and forced into the arms of unwilling people.

[AlexPTY]

i am sure third time will be a charm

[gummy]

39 minutes ago, Shade_Wilder said:

the real power has been with the Military-Bureaucratic complex

Really ? Many suggest differently 

[HolyCowCm]

Maybe it will happen since the fathead was just schmoozing with Biden and US Congress visitors the other day. The Moderna thing was probably a slap at Thamasat U since they both have always been at odds hating each other.

[Bob20]

It's admirable that other countries continue to look out for the people of Thailand.

They could easily abstain from a new attempt, after they have in my view been offended by the blunt Thai response to their previous generous offers.

I hope there will be some oversight if it makes its way here, so the population doesn't just get the leftover scraps after others have taken their bit.

[Poolie]

Hmmm must be near expiration date. Or surplus to requirements. Wonder what they're asking in return?

[Stonker]

1 hour ago, Shade_Wilder said:

This issue really demonstrates the value of an elected government that is accountable to its people.

Yet again, whether you like it or not (and FWIW I don't) Thailand HAS "an elected government that is accountable to its people" in just the same way as any Western democracy.

The government WERE elected in free and fair democratic elections - considerably more democratic than in many Western countries - and they ARE accountable at the next elections or if they lose a vote of no confidence in exactly the same way as any other democracy.

Whatever the faults of the present system, they don't lie with the electoral system.

[HolyCowCm]

I think it is all about relations and Tammy Duckworth wanting to help out the Thai people. I won't think any farther into it than that. Hopefully the big cheeze balls accept for the good of the Thai people.

[Pinetree]

5 minutes ago, Stonker said:

Yet again, whether you like it or not (and FWIW I don't) Thailand HAS "an elected government that is accountable to its people" in just the same way as any Western democracy.

The government WERE elected in free and fair democratic elections - considerably more democratic than in many Western countries - and they ARE accountable at the next elections or if they lose a vote of no confidence in exactly the same way as any other democracy.

Whatever the faults of the present system, they don't lie with the electoral system.

That Sir is disingenuous. Its not that you have 'free elections' its what you are voting for and whom. Its akin to saying that Russia is a democracy, clearly a joke.  There is no way that the Parliament and Senate in Thailand are truly democratic institutions that reflect the total will of the people, feely voted by the people.  They are  weighted and controlled by an élite of the  Military and their friends.  I am not critical of it, per see, as it works here, in a  manner of speaking, but to compare it to a western democratic process is delusional. 

[Poolie]

1 hour ago, PatrickSatoLee said:

obviously the BROWN envelops was not done as part of the paperwork. 

OOOh ha ha, I saw what you did there. Yes, brown envelopes, Very good. Squeeze 'em in when you can. Capitals too......

[Poolie]

Just now, Pinetree said:

But to compare it to a western democratic process is delusional. 

Why, what's so great about democracy? Great you get a chance to vote every four years. Makes all the difference does it?

[Pinetree]

Just now, Poolie said:

Why, what's so great about democracy? Great you get a chance to vote every four years. Makes all the difference does it?

I never said it was great, just the best of a bad set of alternatives.  I don't mind the situation here, suits me. 

[Haole.TH]

29 minutes ago, Stonker said:

Yet again, whether you like it or not (and FWIW I don't) Thailand HAS "an elected government that is accountable to its people" in just the same way as any Western democracy.

The government WERE elected in free and fair democratic elections - considerably more democratic than in many Western countries - and they ARE accountable at the next elections or if they lose a vote of no confidence in exactly the same way as any other democracy.

Whatever the faults of the present system, they don't lie with the electoral system.

Wrong!  This is not a fairly elected gov.

This gov won a coalition by changing the rules after the election happened.
The smaller political parties, by the new Thai Constitution) had to garner 70,000 votes before they could be allowed to join a coalition.  The change was to allow the smaller political parties to join a coalition regardless of the # of votes they received.  

Without this change this gov would not have been able to gather together a majority coalition to rule.

[ThaiEyes]

To paraphrase a line from The Three Amigos, “We don’t need no stinking donations!”

[Poolie]

3 minutes ago, ThaiEyes said:

To paraphrase a line from The Three Amigos, “We don’t need no stinking donations!”

I thought it was Blazing Saddles............

[Stonker]

43 minutes ago, Pinetree said:

That Sir is disingenuous. Its not that you have 'free elections' its what you are voting for and whom. Its akin to saying that Russia is a democracy, clearly a joke. 

Not "disingenuous" but simply fact - plenty of opposition stood for election, although a number were also barred, but they simply weren't elected.

45 minutes ago, Pinetree said:

There is no way that the Parliament and Senate in Thailand are truly democratic institutions that reflect the total will of the people, feely voted by the people.  They are  weighted and controlled by an élite of the  Military and their friends. 

Your comment, which I quoted, referred to "an elected government" - not the Senate, which is anything but.

You've moved the goalposts.

The problem isn't the "elected government", which was voted for as freely and fairly as any other, but the Constitution - which was voted for by referendum and passed by a 61% majority, with a 58% majority supporting the system to choose a PM. That referendum was anything but free and fair, as I've said repeatedly, but that's the issue and that's what needs to be changed otherwise all you're doing is re-arranging the furniture.

 

[EdwardV]

1 hour ago, Poolie said:

Hmmm must be near expiration date. Or surplus to requirements. Wonder what they're asking in return?

The first two points don’t matter. The last one I fully understand why you would think that. 

[Poolie]

4 minutes ago, EdwardV said:

The first two points don’t matter. The last one I fully understand why you would think that. 

They do  to the recipients.