Party on the Eve of Disaster
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on July 16, 2018.
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on July 16, 2018.
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on May 3, 2018.
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on March 31, 2018.
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported on February 13, 2018.
I received the news in a telephone call from Japan, which is two hours ahead of Thailand: “There’s been a coup!” my wife exclaimed after answering the phone. “Where”? I asked stupidly. “Here in Thailand.” We turned on the television to get more news, but every channel was just showing file footage of the King.
Bangkok in 2014 is looking more and more like Madrid in 1936 every day. That was the year that the bloody Spanish Civil War began, which lasted until 1939 and killed hundreds of thousands. Could such a bloody event engulf the Land of Smiles?
Perhaps the law is a subject better left to lawyers and courts, but the reality is that the law often collides with international politics as well, so it can never be completely ignored. We couldn’t help but notice that there were two court cases this month in which a judge in a foreign nation made some claim upon Japan, but that the domestic reaction was entirely different.
Thailand has had a pretty good year since the demonstrations of April-May 2010 that culminated in a bloody crackdown in which at least 91 people died. The country is largely peaceful, the economy is thriving, unemployment is low, and the currency is strong. All these things are usually good omens for ruling party success at the ballot box, but the national election, which will be held on Sunday is more likely to muddy than clarify the long-running political drama that has divided the country for more than a decade.