Now that’s an easy one Jarrett. The many most urgent tasks have been mentioned again and again. There’s hardly any magic to Thailand’s problems as the problems are so obvious.

Stop back room dealings and shadow plays, respect the constitution (don’t blame the constitution!), assure the courts’ independence, imprison lawbreakers whatever their names, get rid of ridiculously easily available bail for more serious offenses, find a transparent PM who’s not instinctively covering the army (Rohingya) and who walks the talk, prosecute the airport occupiers and the red mob, and have elections; elections that we all know won’t be clean on either side but will be a referendum on the state of the nation.

From what I furthermore hear from business and diplomatic circles is that institutionalized corruption has reached new levels since 9/19. Five percent cuts were the norm pre-coup, now it’s twenty percent upwards because of a complete lack of checks and balances.

The abuses are obvious, but so are the solutions.

As a foreigner you’re powerless. Take good care of your family, that’s it. In more matured societies foreigners could run for public office.

Imagine that here.

Even though outside advice could be utterly needed, that’s a neoimperialistic and arrogant stance.

Still, make people accountable. Everyone. And half of the problems are solved.

BangkokDan

It’s not complaining. It’s the helplessness of these many “friends of Thailand” to witness the slow fall of the kingdom and there’s so much you want to do about but at the same time there is nothing you can do about.

Rather than assuming the mantle of helplessness, nay, victimhood, perhaps its more mature to ACCEPT what is and devote our precious energies to areas that we can have a positive impact.

It would be nice to offer some substantive ideas about how to improve the situation in Thailand, rather than simply bickering about all the problems that exist here. The opposing parties and political shapeshifters have that under control already.

It’s clear that there are fundamental problems within the Thai polity – everyone knows that. But there’s far too little discussion directed at how people might fix them.

Friends of Thailand is the only lifeline for most of us here. You are mirrors that reveal hidden truth that some of us stubbornly refuse to see.

The thing that is so hard for outsiders to see is that we Thais live in Neverland and are never allowed to grow up.

If you publish such thoughts in Thai media those “friends of Thailand” would most probably be denounced as traitors and enemies of the state.

Truth though is people who care about the issues voice the issues.

Your kind words disarm those readers who recommend to better leave the place if one’s depressed and complaining.

It’s not complaining. It’s the helplessness of these many “friends of Thailand” to witness the slow fall of the kingdom and there’s so much you want to do about but at the same time there is nothing you can do about.

Again, the bliss of ignorance is one way out.

BangkokDan

Everything that is said here is important, true to the point, and should be said by Thai politicians, civil servants and educators, university students and it would be nice to include businessmen but that would be asking for too much!

What really depresses me is that I need to find this source of information in an English language blog by friends of Thailand and not in the workplace, at parties, in the toilets, and more importantly on the official media channels.

Jaded: rationalism and enlightenment is only something we read about and hunger for or tastes in a foreign language or another country!

Thailand was a safer, stronger, happier place in the late 90s. A more open society, an engine of the region, a respected society.

Today, wherever you travel, people ask you first about the situation in Thailand. Now even in peaceful times, ahead of the Asean summit in Hua Hin, we’ll have the ISA again in Bangkok starting October 15th.

The ISA is meant to be a last resort.

Previously a most harsh tool the ISA has become daily routine. That is serious Jarrett.

Again, being sad and angered by the current state of affairs is no reason to leave the place. If I wouldn’t care I’d leave.

BangkokDan

There is nothing better than a little perspective. Perhaps a few years in China, Vietnam, Cambodia or Indonesia might change your mind about Thailand’s place in Asia. Is it really so grim?

One thing that has become obvious to me is that to survive and thrive in Thai society at any level requires a total lack of trust and a willingness to accept feudal status and serve a patron. To establish even a modest degree of financial independence the necessary supplement to some kind of skill or education is the willingness to lie, cheat and steal. Without these abilities no Thai person has any possibility of upward mobility. The culture of subservience demands that those of lower status deceive, maneuver and manipulate their way to the next level. The ambitious must accept that high social position is a function of the ability to instill fear. Depending on the power structure involved this may mean that status is a function of the person’s known propensity for violence and the fear it inspires. Unscrupulous people succeed in Thailand. If these people successfully network with those of a similar inclination then their own positions become more secure, albeit only temporarily. The shifting alliances of Thai politics reflect that reality. Of course the higher up you go the more blood will have to be spilled. This process creates a senior leadership that normally depends on intimidation to assert its authority.

Despite the rhetoric of recent reformers and self professed moderates there is no evidence that this pattern has changed. And given the primitive levels of political consciousness amongst the supporters of the various political groups its not surprising that the modern movements unconsciously model their organizational structures on this feudal pattern. Unfortunately this seems to mean that the politicized masses on all sides of the current struggles are at the mercy of their leaders. If a history of violence and the ability to instill terror is a key characteristic of Thai leadership then their followers hopes of a better future are doomed from the start by a social system that raises only those who have little or no scruple. Paradoxically, if as I have suggested, the Thais themselves are aware that the key to a modest level of social success is to accept feudal status and trust none but yourself, then I suspect, and many Thais I know assume, that the active supporters of the various groupings are looking for personal advantage also. A movement will not succeed in garnering serious support if it doesn’t offer at least the possibility that its followers will benefit as individuals.

I’ve always thought that the enlightenment and rise of rationalism provided the foundation of the major progressive social changes that we now enjoy in the West. But the rational and open discussion of ideas is not something that Thai people show much interest in. Whatever their personal feelings or views, the social and economic risks of being different are too high to risk open discussion without trust and there is very little trust in Thai society at any level I think. Thainess, unity and that old favorite nationalism are all ways to smother any kind of open discussion of ideas. The rote learning education system, the adoption of Thai Buddhist beliefs as a national standard for loyalty, and the creation of a thriving consumer culture which values conspicuous consumption seem to produce a similar effect. How many times have Thai people told you not to think? I know this is a very familiar phrase to me. In Thailand thought crime isn’t just a matter of committing lèse majesté. It’s disagreeing with your teacher, boss or social superior no matter how ridiculous their views are.

If you have a Thai society bereft of ideas, rewarding barbarous behavior and demanding unconditional subservience then the pattern of robber barons in perpetual struggles for power is likely to continue for some time to come …