The FARANG Speaks 2 Much (tfs2m)

11 Responses to “Realpolitik”

1. 1 bobonzo Dec 7th, 2008 at 1:06 pm

   wow…1975….i don’t even save paystubs that long
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2. 2 Dboy Dec 7th, 2008 at 3:06 pm

   Kissinger is the funniest war criminal I know. He must have done something illegal right before this meeting cuz he sounded like he was in a good mood.

   dboy
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3. 3 Old Asia Hand Dec 7th, 2008 at 3:17 pm

   Amazing stuff. Remember this conversation took place only about seven months after the fall of Saigon and the emptying of Phnom Penh by the KR. The US was thought to be largely blind as to what was happening in SE Asia then, but it’s appalling to see how blind they actually were. Good Lord, Henry the K was even trying to wheedle hard information out of the Thais. Now that’s desperation…..
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4. 4 PB Dec 7th, 2008 at 5:10 pm

   The “Politik” is going to get a lot more “real”…soon, IMHO.
   View all comments by PB

5. 5 nurseRon Dec 7th, 2008 at 6:27 pm

   notice the “too much democracy” statement late in the meeting?
   It would appear this tenant is, and has always been in Thai politics?
   View all comments by nurseRon

6. 6 Dboy Dec 8th, 2008 at 2:02 am

   “too much democracy” : I found that comment completely unsurprising, and was even more unsurprised that Kissinger had nothing to say there. That’s one of those American myths. Democracy (of a kind) is tolerable; real democracy is abhorrent…give the people the illusion of freedom/democracy, then get the real work done in meetings like this one. Note also the hatred of the press. They hate the press just like cockroaches hate daylight.

   dboy
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7. 7 nurseRon Dec 8th, 2008 at 3:00 am

   good point!
   View all comments by nurseRon

8. 8 Tim Reynolds Dec 8th, 2008 at 4:19 am

   Nice post. Thank you for the info. Keep it up.
   View all comments by Tim Reynolds

9. 9 Dboy Dec 8th, 2008 at 2:36 pm

   You guys read the hand-written notes on the last page?:

   “Dialog with the Thai’s Recommend it be” (classified as) “GSS Sensitive in view of references to Korean girls and characterizations of various foreign leaders”.

   then there’s a correction to the comment: “that was another memo”

   NODIS is enough (NODIS means “no distribution”).

   I’ll bet that Kissinger was discussing LT/ST fees for Korean bar girls:-)

   And note Kissinger comment “how many people did he kill? Tens of thousands?”

   …remember this is the same Kissinger who pressed Nixon to begin the secret (and illegal) bombing campaign in Laos, which is thought to have killed 600,000 civilians. The Laos campaign was ALL civilian targets.

   The U-2 comment was interesting:

   “I gather all issues have been resolved except for the U-2’s”

   ..the U-2’s were based at U-TAPAO (99 RS Squadron). U-TAPAO was also used for SR-71 flights.

   dboy
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10. 10 The Man Dec 8th, 2008 at 3:40 pm

    DBoy, Most of your comments are true and factual but there were many military targets in Laos like roads, ammo dumps, trucks, NVA, caves, staging parks and many others. Not for BUFF strikes but for specialized A/C. Not that I condone K’s…. he has always been a phony….. remarks and his lack of some but to these that are a little closer to us, you can tell then as now the leopards have never changed their spots
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11. 11 Dboy Dec 9th, 2008 at 5:47 am

    TheMan: Basically I’m offering the suggestion that power gives lip service to democracy while jealously guarding the real power. And that’s the case if your a GM factory worker or a tuk-tuk driver. “Real” people all over the world have much more in common with each other than they do with their own governments.

    Dboy
    View all comments by Dboy

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