Special Circumstances

21 Oct 2016
This column was first published as a lead op ed on October 14, then was overtaken by events. It asks the key question about Rama IX’s legacy, the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy. Unlike Bhutan’s Buddhist-economic-based theory of Gross National Happiness, the PSE has made no progress internationally. The Prayut Administration controls the message regarding the PSE domestically. Whether it actually cares about the PSE can therefore only be measured by whether it makes the PSE work internationally. Gentile or Jew
13 Oct 2016
In the past months, dozens of multilingual signs have been installed across Khon Kaen province in Northeast Thailand. Part of an innovative cultural maintenance and revitalisation project, the signs bear messages in three languages - Thai, Isaan (Thai Lao) and English.
26 Sep 2016
The finding guilty of human rights activist Andy Hall for defamation and violation of the Computer Crimes Act was lauded by the plaintiff, the president of Natural Fruit. After hearing the verdict, the president stated to the press that "No foreigner should think they have power above Thai sovereignty". Because Natural Fruit’s president has invoked Thai values, it is worthwhile examining the case through official normative Thai values, the Twelve Core Values of Thai People.
15 Sep 2016
In Thailand, there is a long and distinguished tradition of citizens and non-citizens being able to petition the reigning monarch. This tradition leads dates back at least to the time of the King Ram Khamhaeng stele. Given the circumstances, this open letter to General Prem Tinsulanonda, Head of the Privy Council, is an exercising of that right.   CC HRH the Heir Apparent Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn   General,
5 Sep 2016
This analysis of the recently released Project for a Social Democracy’s Statement of Purpose, available in full below, attempts to put Social Democracy in context in the Thai Situation. As can be seen, there is a significant emphasis on philosophy, or political ideology, as well as on human solidarity, worker’s rights, internationalism, and economic, social, and cultural rights as well as civil and political ones. This is new for Thailand and should be welcomed.
25 Aug 2016
The recent August 8 statement by Emperor Akihito of Japan stating the desire for an alternative to a decline in both duties and the wish for the activities of the Japanese monarchy to be sustained have been seen as indicating a wish to abdicate. As an expression of the human condition, the statement has parallels with the resignation of Pope Benedict XI in 2013 and with the birthday speech of his Majesty the King of December 4, 2005.
10 Aug 2016
Fusion, a more environmentally friendly form of energy that operates at the nuclear level, but by combining atoms -- typically forms of hydrogen -- is a potential new answer not only for Thailand's quest for clean energy but for the requirements of the entire planet, and especially economies in transition.
2 Aug 2016
The largest environmental story to break this month has been The New York Times' exposé of the Mississippi-based Kemper Project's mismanagement, delays, inflated costs, and alleged fraud, making a mockery of the NCPO's plans to convert Thailand from natural gas to 'clean coal'.
20 Jul 2016
This impartial 2016 Constitution referendum voting guide, specifically designed for ultranationalists and ethnic minorities or friends or relatives of ethnic minorities, is brought to you by Special Circumstances. Ethnic Minority-Related Issues in the Constitution
11 Jul 2016
Thailand, a dictatorship with fading human rights, lost the June 28, 2016 UN Security Council vote for a temporary seat to Kazakhstan, a corrupt, authoritarian, single-party post-Soviet hellhole for human rights where electoral pluralism is practically unknown. ‘Team Thailand’ failed to leverage either its Chairmanship of the G77 or the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy to provide a workable vision for sustainable development and global North-South co-operation. Read why.  
29 Jun 2016
One of the first social consequences of the UK vote to exit the EU has been an increase in race-based hate crimes perpetrated by sympathizers of Britain’s far-right movements. These reflect a discourse of polarization and hate of the ‘Other’ which underpins extremist organizations like the radical Islamic group ISIS, as well as the Trump Campaign in the US – which can only win in the event of a terrorist attack on US soil, now more likely than ever.
17 Jun 2016
On June 13, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights welcomed Thailand’s decision to enact the Prevention and Suppression of Torture Act. However, the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) is currently suing three authors of a report published earlier this year on alleged military torture practices in the Deep South. Ignoring the 12 Core Values of Thai People is how to lose Thailand’s 4GW in the Deep South. Thailand’s Fourth Generation War

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