Thailand rejoices. General Prayut Chan-o-cha is happy, according to Government Spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, who proudly told the kingdom last week of an important step towards Thailand 4.0. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) released its Global Innovation Index 2021. Thailand is number 43 out of 132 economies and number three in ASEAN. This fantastic news came just before General Prayut toured Thailand’s flooded areas. A trip that saw him view the flood from the plane, speak to a cow, perform a cooking demonstration, take a boat ride pushed by at least a dozen people, tell citizens, “water comes and water goes, it’s normal,” ask them to “pray” that there won’t be another storm, and, of course, pass a few mini hearts. Number 43 in the world and three in ASEAN. Our aspiration for mediocrity. Our goal of being average. We are number three behind Singapore and Malaysia. We have been behind them for decades; nothing changes. We are number 43 in the world, with Vietnam breathing down our neck at number 44. Meanwhile, former Soviet bloc countries that have only begun developing in earnest for the past 30 years since the Cold War, such as Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, and others, rank ahead of us. Is mediocrity anything to be proud of?No, it isn’t. Only the mediocre are proud of mediocrity. Thailand is a reflection of its leader. Thailand’s leader has the vision of a warlord stuck in the Cold War era.
2021-09-27