THAIVISION
  • REFLECTION
  • ON PLANET EARTH
    • EARTH
  • AND BEYOND
  • THAILAND
    • KING BHUMIBOL
    • NATIONAL PARKS OF THAILAND >
      • KHAO YAI NATIONAL PARK
      • PHA TAEM NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU WIANG NATIONAL PARK
      • NAM NAO NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU HIN RONG KLA NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU KRADUENG NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU RUEA NATIONAL PARK
      • MAE YOM NATIONAL PARK
      • DOI SUTHEP-PUI NATIONAL PARK
      • DOI INTHANON NATIONAL PARK
      • THONG PHA PHUM NATIONAL PARK
      • KAENG KRACHAN NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO ANG THONG NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO SURIN NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO SIMILAN NATIONAL PARK
      • HAT NOPPHARATA THARA - MU KO PHI PHI NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO LANTA NATIONAL PARK
      • TARUTAO NATIONAL PARK
  • THE LIBRARY
    • MORNING WORLD BOOKS >
      • CASINO ROYALE
      • 1984
      • A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME
      • A HISTORY OF THAILAND
      • CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES
    • DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA
    • FIRST DEMOCRACY
    • JOHN MUIR
    • MODELS OF DEMOCRACY
    • MULAN
    • THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE
    • ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES
    • PHOOLAN DEVI
    • THE REPUBLIC
    • UTOPIA
    • A Short History of the World [H.G.Wells]
    • WOMEN OF ARGENTINA
    • THE EARTH : A Very Short Introduction
    • THE ENGLISH GOVERNESS AT THE SIAMESE COURT
    • TIMAEUAS AND CRITIAS : THE ATLANTIS DIALOGUE
    • HARRY POTTER
    • DEMOCRACY / HAROLD PINTER
    • MAGNA CARTA
    • DEMOCRACY : A Very Short Introduction
    • DEMOCRACY / Anthony Arblaster]
    • DEMOCRACY / H.G. Wells
    • ON DEMOCRACY / Robert A. Dahl)
    • STRONG DEMOCRACY
    • THE CRUCIBLE
    • THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE
    • THE ELEMENTS OF JOURNALISM | JOURNALISM: A Very Short Introduction
    • LOVE
    • THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES
    • THE SOUND OF MUSIC
    • STRONGER TOGETHER
    • ANIMAL FARM
    • POLITICS AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
    • GEORGE ORWELL
    • HENRY DAVID THOREAU >
      • WALDEN
    • MAHATMA GANDHI
    • THE INTERNATIONAL ATLAS OF LUNAR EXPLORATION
    • พระมหาชนก
    • ติโต
    • นายอินทร์ผู้ปิดทองหลังพระ | A Man Called Intrepid
    • แม่เล่าให้ฟัง
    • SUFFICIENCY ECONOMY
    • พระเจ้าอยู่หัว กับ เศรษฐกิจพอเพียง
    • KING BHUMIBOL AND MICHAEL TODD
    • ... คือคึกฤทธิ์
    • KING BHUMIBOL ADULYADEJ: A Life's Work
    • THE KING OF THAILAND IN WORLD FOCUS
    • พระราชดำรัสเรื่องร่างรัฐธรรมนูญ
  • IN MY OPINION
  • THAIVISION
  • SOMKIAT ONWIMON
    • MY STORY
    • THE DISSERTATION
    • THE WORKS >
      • BROADCAST NEWS & DOCUMENTARIES
      • SPIRIT OF AMERICA
      • THE ASEAN STORY
      • NATIONAL PARKS OF THAILAND
      • HEARTLIGHT: HOPE FOR AUTISTIC CHILDREN IN THAILAND
    • KIAT&TAN >
      • TAN ONWIMON >
        • THE INTERVIEW

IN MY OPINION

SOCRATES:
"Haven't you noticed that opinions without knowledge are shameful and ugly things?
The best of them are blind - or do you think that
those who express a true opinion without understanding
​are any different from blind people who happen to travel the right road?" 


(PLATO's ​REPUBLIC, Book VI 506c)
PLATO COMPLETE WORKS
Translator: G.M.A. Grube, Revised by C.D.C. Reeve, John M. Cooper, Editor, D.S. Hutchison, Associated Editor,
Hackett Publishing Company, Indianapolis / Cambridge, 1997, p.1127

AMERICA NOW AIN'T SO GREAT

2/6/2020

0 Comments

 
It’s 06:30 Eastern DST, Monday evening June 1st, 2020 in Washington, D.C. or 05:30 Tuesday morning Bangkok time. CNN reports seeing a column of 8 or 9 military vehicles moving into the White House premises. The protesting crowd gathering at Lafayette Square Park just across the street from the White House appears peaceful. President Donald Trump prepares to speak at the White House lawn anytime soon after hiding underground in the basement bunker the previous day fearing the crowd attack into the White House. 

America has been under protests in major cities all around the countries since May 25th, the day one African American (black), George Floyd was killed at he hands of a Minneapolis police officer while other officers looking on in complicity. Protests by Americans of all colors and ethnicities have exploded all over the country like wildfires, many peaceful, but some turned violent with property burning and looting. Teargas and rubber bullets are used to control the crowds. In some places police-to-protesters calm reasoning have been attempted with praises. 

At 06:42, in an apparent attempt to disperse the protesters, rubber bullets and teargas are fired at the crowd outside the White House while some among the protesters shouts “ we’re doing nothing”. But the military police are doing something!

At 06:44 Donald Trump speaks. He accuses the protesters of violence, looting, and unlawful acts and demands law and order in the country. He told state governors to 'dominate' the crowd and to employ full security forces to quell the protesters or he himself will order the national guards and the military forces to take control of the situation. 

The White House Full Text:
⏬
Statement by the President
LAW & JUSTICE
Issued on: June 1, 2020


ALL NEWS
Rose Garden
6:43 P.M. EDT


THE PRESIDENT:  “Thank you very much.  My fellow Americans: My first and highest duty as President is to defend our great country and the American people.  I swore an oath to uphold the laws of our nation, and that is exactly what I will do.

All Americans were rightly sickened and revolted by the brutal death of George Floyd.  My administration is fully committed that, for George and his family, justice will be served.  He will not have died in vain.  But we cannot allow the righteous cries and peaceful protesters to be drowned out by an angry mob.  The biggest victims of the rioting are peace-loving citizens in our poorest communities, and as their President, I will fight to keep them safe.  I will fight to protect you.  I am your President of law and order, and an ally of all peaceful protesters.
But in recent days, our nation has been gripped by professional anarchists, violent mobs, arsonists, looters, criminals, rioters, Antifa, and others.  A number of state and local governments have failed to take necessary action to safeguard their residence.  Innocent people have been savagely beaten, like the young man in Dallas, Texas, who was left dying on the street, or the woman in Upstate New York viciously attacked by dangerous thugs.
Small-business owners have seen their dreams utterly destroyed.  New York’s Finest have been hit in the face with bricks.  Brave nurses, who have battled the virus, are afraid to leave their homes.  A police precinct station has been overrun.  Here in the nation’s capital, the Lincoln Memorial and the World War Two Memorial have been vandalized.  One of our most historic churches was set ablaze.  A federal officer in California, an African American enforcement hero, was shot and killed.
These are not acts of peaceful protest.  These are acts of domestic terror.  The destruction of innocent life and the spilling of innocent blood is an offense to humanity and a crime against God.
America needs creation, not destruction; cooperation, not contempt; security, not anarchy; healing, not hatred; justice, not chaos.  This is our mission, and we will succeed.  One hundred percent, we will succeed.  Our country always wins.
That is why I am taking immediate presidential action to stop the violence and restore security and safety in America.  I am mobilizing all available federal resources — civilian and military — to stop the rioting and looting, to end the destruction and arson, and to protect the rights of law-abiding Americans, including your Second Amendment rights.  Therefore, the following measures are going into effect immediately:
First, we are ending the riots and lawlessness that has spread throughout our country.  We will end it now.  Today, I have strongly recommended to every governor to deploy the National Guard in sufficient numbers that we dominate the streets.  Mayors and governors must establish an overwhelming law enforcement presence until the violence has been quelled.
If a city or a state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend the life and property of their residents, then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them.
I am also taking swift and decisive action to protect our great capital, Washington, D.C.  What happened in this city last night was a total disgrace.  As we speak, I am dispatching thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers, military personnel, and law enforcement officers to stop the rioting, looting, vandalism, assaults, and the wanton destruction of property.

We are putting everybody on warning: Our seven o’clock curfew will be strictly enforced.  Those who threaten innocent life and property will be arrested, detained, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
I want the organizers of this terror to be on notice that you will face severe criminal penalties and lengthy sentences in jail.  This includes Antifa and others who are leading instigators of this violence.
One law and order — and that is what it is: one law.  We have one beautiful law.  And once that is restored and fully restored, we will help you, we will help your business, and we will help your family.
America is founded upon the rule of law.  It is the foundation of our prosperity, our freedom, and our very way of life.  But where there is no law, there is no opportunity.  Where there is no justice, there is no liberty.  Where there is no safety, there is no future.
We must never give in to anger or hatred.  If malice or violence reigns, then none of us is free.
I take these actions today with firm resolve and with a true and passionate love for our country.  By far, our greatest days lie ahead.
Thank you very much.  And now I’m going to pay my respects to a very, very special place.  Thank you very much.”


END               6:50 P.M. EDT


Reference:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-by-the-president-39/
⏫

His short speech lasted 7 minutes.


After declaring his determination to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 to enable him to deploy the military force to suppress domestic insurrection, Trump had the military police cleared the crowd for him so that he can walk to St. John's Episcopal Church nearby for a photo opportunity.

07:09 Donald Trump was standing in front of the St. John's Episcopal Church holding up the bible he probably never read through, saying ‘we’ll not take long’ to bring the country back. Surrounding by security details, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, and other White House inner circle, Donald Trump then walked back to the White House without even entering the church, let alone saying a prayer! The last time he visited St.John’s Church was in June 2019*.

After less than four years of his presidency, “Make America Great Again” seems successful in its first phase. The greatest country in the world has to be made not great first before it can be made great again. Joe Biden who is likely to defeat Donald Trump at the presidential election this year can then start “Make America Great Again”.
​
For the time being America is not so great.


Somkiat Onwimon
Bangkok
2 June 2020



*Rev. Robert Fisher of St.John’s Episcopal Church told CNN’s Don Lemon in an interview at 10:30 PM ET.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    สมเกียรติ อ่อนวิมล
    Somkiat Onwimon
    (1948 - 20xx)
    ​lives in Thailand, studied political science and international relations from The University of Delhi (B.A. & M.A.) and The University of Pennsylvania (Ph.D.). He lectured at Chulalongkorn University, and later became a television news 'n documentary reporter-producer-anchorman. He was elected a member of Thailand's 1997 Constitution Drafting Assembly, elected a senator in 2000, and appointed member of the National  Legislative Assembly in 2007. Now at his Pak Chong home, he lives a quiet country life of reading, writing, and thinking.


    Archives

    November 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020

    Categories

    All
    Health
    Politics
    Thailand

    RSS Feed


THAIVISION® 
REFLECTION ON EVENTS ON PLANET EARTH AND BEYOND 
​©2021 All Rights Reserved  Thai Vitas Co.,Ltd.  Thailand  
✉️
  • REFLECTION
  • ON PLANET EARTH
    • EARTH
  • AND BEYOND
  • THAILAND
    • KING BHUMIBOL
    • NATIONAL PARKS OF THAILAND >
      • KHAO YAI NATIONAL PARK
      • PHA TAEM NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU WIANG NATIONAL PARK
      • NAM NAO NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU HIN RONG KLA NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU KRADUENG NATIONAL PARK
      • PHU RUEA NATIONAL PARK
      • MAE YOM NATIONAL PARK
      • DOI SUTHEP-PUI NATIONAL PARK
      • DOI INTHANON NATIONAL PARK
      • THONG PHA PHUM NATIONAL PARK
      • KAENG KRACHAN NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO ANG THONG NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO SURIN NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO SIMILAN NATIONAL PARK
      • HAT NOPPHARATA THARA - MU KO PHI PHI NATIONAL PARK
      • MU KO LANTA NATIONAL PARK
      • TARUTAO NATIONAL PARK
  • THE LIBRARY
    • MORNING WORLD BOOKS >
      • CASINO ROYALE
      • 1984
      • A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME
      • A HISTORY OF THAILAND
      • CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES
    • DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA
    • FIRST DEMOCRACY
    • JOHN MUIR
    • MODELS OF DEMOCRACY
    • MULAN
    • THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE
    • ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES
    • PHOOLAN DEVI
    • THE REPUBLIC
    • UTOPIA
    • A Short History of the World [H.G.Wells]
    • WOMEN OF ARGENTINA
    • THE EARTH : A Very Short Introduction
    • THE ENGLISH GOVERNESS AT THE SIAMESE COURT
    • TIMAEUAS AND CRITIAS : THE ATLANTIS DIALOGUE
    • HARRY POTTER
    • DEMOCRACY / HAROLD PINTER
    • MAGNA CARTA
    • DEMOCRACY : A Very Short Introduction
    • DEMOCRACY / Anthony Arblaster]
    • DEMOCRACY / H.G. Wells
    • ON DEMOCRACY / Robert A. Dahl)
    • STRONG DEMOCRACY
    • THE CRUCIBLE
    • THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE
    • THE ELEMENTS OF JOURNALISM | JOURNALISM: A Very Short Introduction
    • LOVE
    • THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES
    • THE SOUND OF MUSIC
    • STRONGER TOGETHER
    • ANIMAL FARM
    • POLITICS AND THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
    • GEORGE ORWELL
    • HENRY DAVID THOREAU >
      • WALDEN
    • MAHATMA GANDHI
    • THE INTERNATIONAL ATLAS OF LUNAR EXPLORATION
    • พระมหาชนก
    • ติโต
    • นายอินทร์ผู้ปิดทองหลังพระ | A Man Called Intrepid
    • แม่เล่าให้ฟัง
    • SUFFICIENCY ECONOMY
    • พระเจ้าอยู่หัว กับ เศรษฐกิจพอเพียง
    • KING BHUMIBOL AND MICHAEL TODD
    • ... คือคึกฤทธิ์
    • KING BHUMIBOL ADULYADEJ: A Life's Work
    • THE KING OF THAILAND IN WORLD FOCUS
    • พระราชดำรัสเรื่องร่างรัฐธรรมนูญ
  • IN MY OPINION
  • THAIVISION
  • SOMKIAT ONWIMON
    • MY STORY
    • THE DISSERTATION
    • THE WORKS >
      • BROADCAST NEWS & DOCUMENTARIES
      • SPIRIT OF AMERICA
      • THE ASEAN STORY
      • NATIONAL PARKS OF THAILAND
      • HEARTLIGHT: HOPE FOR AUTISTIC CHILDREN IN THAILAND
    • KIAT&TAN >
      • TAN ONWIMON >
        • THE INTERVIEW