[lbo-talk] While you are pontificating about traveling circuses inthe US...

Somebody Somebody philos_case at yahoo.com
Wed May 19 13:42:41 PDT 2010


Chuck: As for Thailand, it sounds like it's a complicated battle between two power elite...

Somebody: This is the kind of clumsy class analysis which embarrasses Marxists. It doesn't really matter if Thaksin was "corrupt" or if you disagree with his drug policies or whatever.

The fact remains that the bulk of the traditional ruling class in Thailand, the military, the monarchy, and most of the Bangkok bourgeoisie, supports an unelected form of government. Specifically, they seek to deny the right of the poor to vote for their own representatives.

In Thailand, the system in place is called Ammatayathipatai, a modern day aristocratic form of government dominated by unelected officials and the monarchy. The worst insult that pro-regime supporters hurl at the "red-shirts" is that they're republicans.

That's right, that they might actually be in favor of a democratic republic! Of course, most of those fighting on the streets simply support a constitutional monarchy with free elections, but even that's too much to ask apparently.

So, no, it's not that complicated, unless of course you're willing to countenance dictatorship because the "red-shirts" aren't followers of Noam Chomsky or Evo Morales. Guess what? Maybe somebody like that would eventually come to power if there were actually free elections.



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list