BANGKOK – The world’s sharpest brains converged in Thailand this week to hail the country’s post-centennial conformism as liberating its population from independent thought.
“Socrates once said, ‘The highest form of Human Excellence is to question oneself and others.’ But he was also a farang from Europe who was put to death,” Dr Julius Tupp, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at Sydney Community College in Australia, said in a keynote address at the annual Thai Studies Conference this week.
“A thorough deconstructive analysis of the cultural imposition of such values as freedom of thought finds that looks can be deceiving,” said the professor. “For instance, what thoughts are we really free from? Is freedom really free, or will we then simply become slaves of freedom?”
Attendees at the three-day conference were encouraged to wear the same clothes as an expression of the newfound freedom from freedom of thought. It encouraged participants to resist concepts learned from years of Western liberal indoctrination and embrace new ideas that go against the grain of rational thought.
“Some may laugh if everyone wears the same shirt every day. But I like it; one less thing to think about so I can free up my mind to think about the things I really want to think about,” said Dr Tupp, who recently finished the acclaimed piece “Playing on the beach in Hua Hin: A postmodern analysis of the evolution in the relationship between human beings and sand.”
The conference has attracted special attention this year due to several panels that focused on the taboo subject of evil politicians who buy votes from poor people in Isan. This controversial subject is frequently the topic of discussion on web boards, but most people are scared to speak about it publicly due to strict laws that prohibit speaking about the subject. It’s the first time this subject has come to light in an academic setting, and some are hoping the increased scrutiny of politicians will finally allow the common man to see just how these individuals attempt to hold on to power.
“We’re just proud to be speaking about bad politicians and vote buying in public for the first time,” said a professor, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. “Isan people need to know once and for all that they can’t just sell their votes to scummy politicians. I’m glad this message will finally get out there.”
