Excellent Piece from the New York Times...

[Gadfly]

...on Thailand.. This may not be popular with everyone, but I think it's a good piece from America's 'paper of record'. It's not something you would see The Nation or the Bangkok Post publish (not yet anyway), but brings out a great many good points and, as you would expect from the NYT, it doesn't get caught up in a simplistic "reds vs. yellows" argument. It's much more complicated.

 

The country is divided between those who are seeking to preserve a traditional, relatively hierarchical system and those seeking to break up the dominance of an elite that includes senior military officers, bureaucrats, influential business families and the retinue of royal aides. This is only one of the multifarious rifts in Thai society, which is also divided along geographic lines and by loyalties to political clans and specific politicians. The country’s divisions were deepened by a violent military crackdown last year on anti-government demonstrators in Bangkok that left about 90 people dead.

 

I think it's a sign of the divide that this piece was even published and available in Thailand. Times are changing. I am not sure if the outcome will be good or bad, but I just don't see how things can stay the same.

 

Incidentally, Tom Fuller was the New York Times writer who was interviewing Seh Daeng when Seh Daeng was shot. The bullet came from behind Tom Fuller (whose back was to the Dusit Thani) and hit Seh Daeng in the head as he faced Tom. Had Tom moved his head a few inches in the wrong direction...

[ozpharlap]

A good read indeed

[Flashermac]

For those who aren't aware, it should be stated that the military has traditionally been the way to success and power for lower class and rural Thais. The Chinese control business, and are also prominent in the civil service. What remains of the real ammart - the old families who formed sort of a peerage - also usually opted for the civil service. The military was the only choice left to the poor boys. Rural and working class ethnic Thais would study extremely hard and hope to enter a military academy. Once commissioned, they could slowly begin their rise through the ranks.

 

Thus the generals are very jealous of the success they have achieved, especially when they see it threatened by wealthy Chinese-Thai politicians. Like it or not, the generals' influence is bound to lessen with time - and it worries them.

 

 

 

 

[Gadfly]

What you say is true. From what I have seen doing business in Thailand, however, many of the Thai-Chinese who control business and are prominent in the civil service look at themselves as forming an elite. And many of them have and rely on strong alliances with the military while also having tremendous disdain for rural Thais.

[Flashermac]

A Thai colleague once explained to me that he was half-Chinese - and was proud of it. Real Thais are lazy and stupid, he insisted. Talk to businessmen and you'll hear the same thing. Just look at Thaksin and the way he treats his red shirt masses. They are "ignorant peasants" to be thrown a bone now and then while he racks up all of the real money. Thailand was taken over by the Chinese about the time of the 1932 Coup. So how many Chinese families is it who are supposed to run the country, 14 or so?