Tae has given a lengthy interview to the Manager newspaper, which is owned by a PAD co-founder.
Tae, who divides his time between acting in Thailand and Taiwan, says he has been a fan of PAD for two years.
Initially, he thought politics was not for him: it all seemed too remote from his everyday life.
Initially, he thought politics was not for him: it all seemed too remote from his everyday life.
Then people started doing bad things to the country, and he realised there was actually something in politics, even for the 'teenage generation'.
Teenage? Surely you are not talking about yourself, Tae. Judging by these pictures of you wearing your protest headband, you have seen better days. Let's hope you brush up better when you go back to Taiwan, where you can't join PAD protests - just read about them longingly on the net.
These days, he is proud to be counted among PAD supporters. 'I don't mind telling you that that at my first rally at Chon Buri the other day, it poured with rain. I did not do military training, and I have not been a soldier...even today, I still feel ill.'
Tae says he is just another member of the public when he joins PAD rallies. As an actor he can help raise Thailand's profile abroad, but believes he can still do more. Nothing is as important as coming out to defend and protect the nation, which soldiers do every day - and which, as a PAD protester, he can do, too.
The Manager says tears welled in Tae's eyes as he talked about his love for King and country. He would be prepared to die for the King, he said, and he can't understand Thais who would show disrepect for the Monarch by refusing to stand when the anthem is played in cinemas.
'I would like to meet them. I don't want to do them harm, I just want to ask: Are you Thai? Were you raised on Thai soil? If so, how can you not love our father?'
Tae asks: 'If someone spoke ill of the King, and I went over and hurt that person, would I be doing wrong?
'I am not some bad guy, but it's like someone has just done harm to our father.'
Many Manager readers praise Tae for his views. No surprise there, as many will be PAD supporters themselves. However, one strikes a different note.
'I saw you in the audience at Academy Fantasia concerts. AF is over now, so maybe you are craving attention. Are you sure you are not turning up at PAD rallies just to get more publicity?'
I doubt it. Tae sounds way too intense for that. Does he get enough attention from his parents? He sounds in need of a father's shoulder to cry on.
Many Manager readers praise Tae for his views. No surprise there, as many will be PAD supporters themselves. However, one strikes a different note.
'I saw you in the audience at Academy Fantasia concerts. AF is over now, so maybe you are craving attention. Are you sure you are not turning up at PAD rallies just to get more publicity?'
I doubt it. Tae sounds way too intense for that. Does he get enough attention from his parents? He sounds in need of a father's shoulder to cry on.
"If someone spoke ill of the King, and Tae rushed over and did harm to that person, would he be doing wrong? "
ReplyDeleteIf that someone spoke ill of the King with no grounds then Tae can beat him up.
If the King did something wrong, then we have the right to speak ill of him. --I don't think it works like that in Thailand though.
The King said himself once that he doesn't mind criticism, as long as it comes with an explanation of why, in that person's view, he has done wrong.
ReplyDeleteI think that's a fair position to take. I wonder if Tae would be willing to listen to that explanation, or whether he would just rush in and beat up the person, to satisy his own immature longings or unsatisfied desires.
He sounds to me like a troubled young man. The answer to his problems probably lies within himself, not at some PAD rally.
Tae doesn't look so bad for his age I think...
ReplyDeleteInfaliability.
I heard the reason why Thailand blocked Youtube is because someone made a mocking video of the King. Actually several people made mocking videos of him.
ReplyDeleteI have seen some of the videos. Though they are untastefully done, it's still a freedom of speech.
I really don't know who to blame: the radical/overprotective followers of the monarch or the monarch itself.
"
I think that's a fair position to take. I wonder if Tae would be willing to listen to that explanation, or whether he would just rush in and beat up the person, to satisy his own immature longings or unsatisfied desires."
He's not the only one, so I don't think it's about satisfying his own immature longings or unsatisfied desires. It could be but not completely the whole answer.
Of course, tae is reasonable, as most ppl in Thailand who love the King! if the King did something wrong - which he's only done good so far - there is a HUGE difference between blatant slander and CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. I'm sure you would only beat up or get mad at the person if they did the previous. What these ppl are doing right now, those pro-government people, are distastefully and unreasonably slandering the King.
ReplyDeleteBtw, you need to realize that the King is considered "the father of Thailand." That is the only reason why Tae is referring him as that, and NOT bc he has some sort of father complex!
And btw, ppl DONT risk their lives for publicity.
God bless to Tae and the good movement for the future of Thailand.
I am aware that Thais refer to the King as their Father. And I stand by what I said: Tae behaves as if he has a father complex.
ReplyDeleteCountries under the old British Commonwealth permit much more criticism of their monarch. People enjoy joking about the Queen and her children.
Some are proud of the British monarch, while others argue that the monarchy is a waste of taxpayer money.
But the difference is that they are allowed to take part in such debates, whereas in this country, Thais - despite encouragement from the King himself - are not willing to discuss the achievements of his reign.