Thailand in red
Hi buddy,
When I got your message we were under curfew, we haven’t been able to be in the streets after 9pm for the last few days (such a drag for party animals like us). As I’m new to curfews, I didn’t know if it did apply to outgoing emails or not, so I decided to wait until the morning to reply. I want to keep in good terms with the Thai government.
Yes, we are in Thailand. We are totally fine, but surrounded by red shirts. Friendly people but a bit pissed off lately, they like to burn things, you know. Banks, the stock exchange, some shopping malls, the Governor’s house… They have a good understanding of where the money is, they just don’t know how to get it. I love it when the poor are trying to steal the wealth of the rich, but Thailand is a very special country:
Here the poor are led by a corrupt ex-president in exile who pays them to go to Bangkok to cause trouble, while he safely shops in Paris Champs Elysees, sweet life.
The current government, who came into power after a friendly coup, is not quite legitimate, but they don’t want to call elections as they know they’ll lose. And illegitimate governments don’t like losing power, you know.
But they have the King.
Yes, Thailand would be a total mess if it was not for the King. He is an almightly figure, worshiped by everyone (but me, I generally have an issue with monarchs), and anyone questioning his power goes directly to jail (oops!).
Whenever there has been a problem in Thailand, the King was there to help the people. Now the king is really old and in hospital, and he doesn’t say if he preffers red or yellow shirts (I’m sure he only wears hospital white).
His son is one of the most unpopular persons in Thailand, so Thai people have to choose between a hypercorrupt ex-president eluding justice, an illegitimate government, a king with more than 60 years in the job and a socially compromised king’s son. Tough.
It is a pity that the latest events in Bangkok have given such a bad image to an otherwise beautiful and safe country. Life in the north slowly goes back to normal, the season for yellow mangos and mangosteen has begun, and the rains next month will probably wash away some bitter memories from the last few weeks.
Regards from the land of the smiles
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