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Reflections on a Wandering Life.....
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Thaksin Shinawat is out in Thailand. This morning, Yang Rui interviewed a Beijing based Thai journalist. She said that she didn't think the king had anything to do with this, although she acknowledged the friendship between the king and Sondi Boonyaratkalin, the Thai army general who led the coup. Do you believe this? Forgive me for being skeptical, but I don't buy it. I am not saying that the king ordered this coup, but I believe that it was a decision made by mutual agreement between the monarch and the army. In Thailand, it is not even polite to question whether the king might be involved in politics. When Thaksin Shinawat has said that a "mysterious figure" was trying to remove him from office. There is little doubt in my mind whom he was referring to. This kind of thing would definitely not set well with the king, even if it was true. Especially if it was true. I think the king and the general sat down and talked about how to implement the regime change.
This is not a crisis. Democrats (small "d") bemoan the coup as an assault on democracy, and perhaps it is. This is one of the problems with democracy. It does not do to champion the cause of democracy, and then refuse to accept the people's choice. If democracy is going to have any integrity at all, you do need to accept the leadership the people have chosen. So perhaps democracy is threatened, but Thailand is not. In Thailand, coups are sorta like elections. I don't think this is a good thing, but as long as the monarchy is intact, and the leadership is turned over to a civilian government as soon as possible, I don't see a big problem. China has in interest in this issue, because of the proximity of Thailand. It is of interest to me, because I think that Thailand is important to stability in Asia. Over the years, Thailand seems to have had an uncanny ability to maintain good relationships with both the Americans, and it's neighbors in Asia. If you want to read a good book about this, I recommend "A Dragon's Pearl," by Sirin Phathanothai (see May 15, 2006). But you will probably have to get it from England. I don't think it is available in America.
This is not a crisis. Democrats (small "d") bemoan the coup as an assault on democracy, and perhaps it is. This is one of the problems with democracy. It does not do to champion the cause of democracy, and then refuse to accept the people's choice. If democracy is going to have any integrity at all, you do need to accept the leadership the people have chosen. So perhaps democracy is threatened, but Thailand is not. In Thailand, coups are sorta like elections. I don't think this is a good thing, but as long as the monarchy is intact, and the leadership is turned over to a civilian government as soon as possible, I don't see a big problem. China has in interest in this issue, because of the proximity of Thailand. It is of interest to me, because I think that Thailand is important to stability in Asia. Over the years, Thailand seems to have had an uncanny ability to maintain good relationships with both the Americans, and it's neighbors in Asia. If you want to read a good book about this, I recommend "A Dragon's Pearl," by Sirin Phathanothai (see May 15, 2006). But you will probably have to get it from England. I don't think it is available in America.
