The Death toll has reached 65. Protesters loyal to former PM Thaksin have created the closest thing to a civil war Thailand has had in the modern era. Tonight, I sit typing this about a 30 minutes drive from the Red fortifications. On Vipawadee road outside my neighborhood soldiers with machine guns and shot guns patrol check points marked with swirls of barbed wire. As theatrical a scene I have never experienced first hand.
Still, most of us are going on about our day. I sat on my roof which looks out over the north side of Bangkok and other than the occasional sound of chirping birds I felt as if the city was sleeping. It is not, of course, in a state of rest. Truly the nation is a state of rebellion. Bangkok is the thrust of this movements attention, but cities outside the capital are also experiencing bombings, protests, and bloodshed.
I have always believed Thai people are the most peaceful on the planet. Their very nature is one of acceptance and tolerance, and yet the current stand off and escalating violence has proven to me that humans by nature are incapable of true peace.
I am not going to talk about what side did what. The sins of the many sides involved in this are mounting daily. What needs to be done is mediation and a serious look at the causes of protesters and government leaders. Most of us trapped in this ugly situation are scratching our heads as to the true requests and desires of all sides. When I listen to the government accept demand after demand by the Reds they seem far too wimpy for my American upbringing. Let's face it no such rebellion against the rich would be tolerated in the USA, look at the LA riots. You can burn a ghetto but don't head to Beverly Hills or you'll be met with tanks.
I come from the farm land of the US and so I do feel a sad kinsmen-ship for these REDS as they are mostly rice farmers, but I can't get a grip on what it is that they want the government to do. And I am tired of the fighting and disruptions they have caused my city. Protest if you want to, but from what they have been saying they did not come here to protest, they came here to martyr themselves and create chaos. How will they sway the people of Bangkok with this mindset. This only spreads fear and we are seeing now what fear brings -- 65 dead.
The photos I'm putting on here are AMAZING and I am taking them from the AP folks. These make me sad and I hope will let everyone who checks in on me through this blog see this tragedy unfolding in my adopted home.
We are currently excepting all prayers by all faiths!
