Angry young men in Sydney, Paris and Birmingham highlight need to give more thought to new era’s losers. Sydney’s beaches are its pride and joy. Few other large cities in the world can boast such a sublime coastline of long, sandy beaches and rugged headlands. But a week after one of Australia’s worst outbreaks of racial violence, in which a mob of 5,000 white youths, many of them drunk, gathered at the city’s southern Cronulla Beach and attacked people who appeared to be of Arab descent, the idea that Sydney is somehow heaven-blessed has been sullied, along with its reputation as a town of relaxed, ethnic diversity.

SIDELINES: Fast-track plan for mega-kickbacks unveiled

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was at his wit’s end last week, or so it seemed. With much fanfare, he presided over the dawn of an era deserving a wide range of titles, in introducing a much-heralded plan to invite multinational corporations to invest in several mega-projects in Thailand. Call it Thailand Grand Sale, Wholesale Thailand, a grand auction, new economic colonisation, or whatever. It was the day Thaksin told the world that he needed investment capital, know-how and something else not suitable for public knowledge.

SUNDAY BRUNCH: Web of enterprise

Once a computer scientist, Indian Raj Shekhar Joshi is more comfortable now as a Thailand-based e-entrepreneur. For Indian computer scientist Raj Shekhar Joshi, Bangkok proved the right choice.

WATCHDOG: Thailand’s grand sale: PM hits many birds with one stone

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s grand show at Government House last Wednesday for around 100 ambassadors and international agency officials based in Thailand seems to have served a number of political objectives at a time when his administration needs to reverse the decline of its popularity in the eyes of Thais as well as foreigners.

Cautiously optimistic

With its economy buoyant and its people looking forward to a brighter future, Hong Kong is hoping for more and more visitors.