Thai politics continue under ringmaster Thaksin, who remains firmly in control of the circus. He can shift the political agenda at will through his financial resources, his parliamentary majority and his control over the media. There are five current starring acts. When the ringmaster has difficulty with one, he snaps his whip and introduces another.
There's the usual political dogfight in the first ring. The government has accused Jurin Lakanavisit, the opposition's chief whip, of fraud in rubber sheet sales when serving as deputy commerce minister in 1993-94. Thai Rak Thai (TRT) has been counter-accused concerning its own involvement in rubber sales, while Thaksin has formed a rubber cartel with Indonesia and Malaysia. TRT wants to undermine the strength of the Democrats in the South, the main rubber producing area.
Ring two features the economy act. Thaksin says it's improving and that foreign investment is increasing. Residential property sales and the baht are stronger, but whether the 780 billion baht savings bond package will clean up debts or contribute to another collapse remains to be seen. After extensive public consultation, the Health Insurance Bill will shortly be considered in parliament. The fate of the 30 baht health scheme, however, remains unclear, especially in under-resourced rural areas. Concerns over the implementation of bureaucratic reforms to be passed in October are also widespread.
In the third ring is the struggle between TRT factions leading up to the October 2002 Cabinet reshuffle. Thaksin's chief adviser and leader of the Wang Nam Yen faction, Sanoh Thienthong, has attacked the director of the Highways Department, Jaruk Anupong, for misallocation of funds. This is directed at Jaruks's friend - the Transport and Communications Minister Wan Noor, who leads the southern Wadah faction. Others fighting for Cabinet posts are Thaksin's sister's Wang Bua group, Banharn's Chat Thai and Korn Dabansiri's Chat Pattana Sanuk!
The sideshow of the greedy foreign monopoly hypermarkets - Big C, Tesco, Lotus etc - battling with loyal small Thai retailers is the fourth act. The government's Allied Retail Trade Company will centralise orders from small traders, while the new retail bill will constrain the hypermarkets. Complaints from some foreign Chambers of Commerce about this have been condemned as interference in Thai affairs. But big is better if its Thai - Thaksin recently attended the launch of the Siam Paragon Development, the largest retail centre in Asia since the 1997 crisis.
The star attraction of the circus, however, has been controversy over Thaksin's dealings with the Army. The promotion of Army Chief, Surayud Chulanont, to be Supreme Commander has created concern over whether his replacement, General Somdhat Attanand, who has links with TRT, will waive Surayud's tough line on the Burmese Generals� border drug trade for the softer line preferred by Thaksin.
WATCHPOINT: Will Thai-Rak-Thai's growing record of nepotistic appointments help stabilise the economy and polity or turn out to be a destabilising factor?
My boys love watching American Ninja Warrior. They’re fascinated by the athletes and the seemingly impossible obstacles and adversity that are overcome each and every show. I am, too. They know the names of their favorite ninjas, and they spend an inordinate amount of time jumping off of stuff around our home after watching each episode.
As much as I don’t love some of the side effects (mostly how everything in my house has the tendency to end up pushed a few inches from where it previously rested as my boys jump from “obstacle” to “obstacle” imitating their favorite ninjas), there is a lot that I really like about my boys watching American Ninja Warrior.
On American Ninja Warrior, the courses always offer unique challenges. No two courses are exactly alike. One course might rely heavily on upper body challenges, while another forces athletes to overcome obstacles that require intense upper body strength. The obstacles are unique and provide a reasonable (even if they initially seem insurmountable) challenge to stretch the ninja warriors to do more than they thought they could before.
Nearly every successful ninja who shares his or her story includes the team that is vital to their success. The hours of preparation, the practice to develop the strength and skills that these athletes need to do the seemingly impossible is rooted in a community of folks who are dedicated to doing the little things to develop those qualities that will allow each ninja to perform under pressure.
Watching the event is unlike any other sporting event I’ve come across. In most instances, there is a clear cut winner and loser. That’s not the case here. Certainly it’s clear who accomplishes the most in the competition, but the camaraderie between the ninjas and the genuine excitement they share for each other with each passing obstacle is something unique to this show. The greatest excitement is in seeing who can conquer the most obstacles, who can do what’s never been done before.
This is probably my favorite part about American Ninja Warrior. The show not a contest where you can outlast your opponent. You can’t strategize and run out the clock. It’s just you, the obstacles, and all the people who want to want to see you succeed. Still, everyone ends up in the water. If you conquer all the challenges on one night, more await you. They’re welcomed. Even sought after. Because that’s the point. The show exists to help athletes push themselves to do what they thought impossible.
As we watched the show together, though, I began to realize that not only do I want these qualities developed in my kids, I also want a deeper understanding and a greater display of these qualities in myself.
Think about it: When have you not had a week that came without unforeseen obstacles? When have you not spent time watching other educators in their element and not come away better for it? How often have you heard a story of success in another classroom and been energized to go and do likewise in yours?
Maybe there’s a tiny bit of room for debate on the other qualities, I am sure about this. Every single last one of us has known failure. And the nature of our work means that those are not experiences that are had in private. They’re as public as watching an athlete falling into the water after an attempt at doing something amazing.
Be honest about the reality of setbacks faced, but use them as the springboard toward your next success story.
And don’t forget: When we’re pushing ourselves to do amazing things, everybody falls. Keep tackling those obstacles, no matter what they may look like.