First of all, let me assure all our family and friends that we are safe. As we live in eastern Bangkok about 10+K away from the disturbances, we are not in the thick of things. However, we won't be able to go to mass since the church is very close to the protests.
Fresh violence erupted after the Red Shirt general was shot in the head on Thursday night. He's in hospital but is not expected to live. The government had reportedly planned to isolate the protesters by cutting water, power, transportation, and communications in the Rajaprasong area. However, because residents of luxury condominiums there were not told to evacuate, those plans were shelved. Fighting Friday resulted in 10 more deaths and many injuries.
Many Thai are waiting and hoping for the King to speak to the protesters. Many believe that a word from him will end the standoff. He has intervened in past crises but he has avoided any intervention this time. I was thinking about that literary trope the deus ex machina, the unexpected intervention that saves the day. In a world where retribution is complicated and power or lack of power is often contested, it's natural to wish for someone to end the predicament in which one finds oneself. Perhaps it's naive to expect to be saved from situations we ourselves created. If that is so, would Thailand return to the way it was before?
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