Thailand's 'gilded age', the 'robber barons' and the 'what's next?' question

[webfact]

TELL IT AS IT IS
Thailand's 'gilded age', the 'robber barons' and the 'what's next?' question
Pornpimol Kanchanalak

BANGKOK: -- The no-confidence debates in Parliament came and went without a bang. The perfunctory session ended with a clear win for the government, confirming the public perception that the laws have no claws when it comes to politicians and their corrupt ways.

We have to thank the opposition for doing their homework well, both for the just-concluded censure session and the one before. Their well-documented research has raised the public's awareness and wariness of the many and various crooked ways our tax money is being wasted. The opposition has also taken several cases to the National Anti-Corruption Commission, which could eventually see the axe fall on this government.

As in the United States during the so-called Gilded Age (1877-1897), Thailand is undergoing a period of rapid growth, rampant corruption, crooked politicians and rising inequality in wealth and its distribution. More notably, we have our very own "robber barons", characterised by their sense of invincibility and total impunity. We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

The street demonstrations are growing and gaining more momentum, but no government has ever been overthrown, nor wholesale and systemic corruption ended, without violence. And most of us would agree that we should not go there.

America's Gilded Age is being repeated today in emerging economies such as China, Brazil and Russia, where unregulated capitalism has brought rapid growth and spiralling inequality both in wealth and in people's standing under the law. At the same time, legal channels to challenge policy are either inadequate or absent. The US Gilded Age finally brought a strong response of genuine reform. Americans realised that the corrosive political process had to be halted before progress and more equitable distribution of wealth could take place.

But it took the US more than a decade of political reform under president Teddy Roosevelt's Progressivism to root out "robber barons" such as Andrew Carnegie, JP Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt, John D Rockefeller, Andrew W Mellon, Leland Stanford, Henry Flagler and the Astor family. And it was not accomplished before the gargantuan project of building the Transcontinental Railroad.

It is worth noting that several of these American "robber barons" went on to become renowned philanthropists. Andrew Carnegie gave away more than 90 per cent of his wealth, saying philanthropy was the "Gospel of Wealth". These private monies were donated to thousands of universities and colleges, hospitals, museums, opera houses and public libraries, and were an important factor in the US's blossoming as an industrial economy.

This is perhaps where the Thai "robber barons" part ways with their American predecessors. Our "robber barons" are true believers in the modus operandi of "OPM" - using Other People's Money to increase their wealth, and keeping it all to themselves. Thai banks' wealth-management departments for "high net-worth" individuals are growing by leaps and bounds, along with the number of overseas bank accounts, and cash "investments" in construction projects for 5-6 star hotels, property developments, luxury-car dealerships, etc. Dirty money thus becomes clean.

The Progressive movement helped spawn an era of social and political reform in the US. The question now for us Thais is, who will be our Teddy Roosevelt?

Roosevelt was one of the youngest presidents in American history, but he also proved to be a "bully" both at home and abroad. However, he was influenced by the so-called Muckrakers - journalists who uncovered corruption in politics and business while shining light on social hardship, prompting him to draft a package of reforms known as the Square Deal. It was meant to protect consumers, tame big business, support the legitimate labour movement and conserve the country's natural resources. His eagerness to tackle massive cartels and monopolies with the Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890) earned him the moniker "trust buster" - a mantel taken on by his handpicked successor William Howard Taft. Another progressive president - Woodrow Wilson (in office 1913-21) - ushered America into a new era of aggressive reforms called the New Reform deal and further regulated big business. He passed the Clayton Anti-Trust Act to replace the weaker Sherman Act.

We Thais can take inspiration from the US's experience, where corrupt practices under "robber barons" grew out of control before being tamed by successive leaders who cared and dare to act against them. We should continue to express our discontent and retain the hope that there will be light at the end of our dark tunnel. Real peaceful change has to come from the top down, otherwise we get revolution.

We don't know what's coming next, and our Roosevelt has to emerge, but history has shown us that the hand of time eventually tips everything into equilibrium.

As to the future of our very own Ozymandias, the poet Shelley offered a prediction:

" I met a traveller from an antique land

Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,

Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed:

And on the pedestal these words appear:

"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:

Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away."

-- The Nation 2013-11-30

[plachon]

Wow! Kudos to Pornpimol for a very brave, insightful and avant garde piece of writing. A rare gem in the lone and level sands of the land.

[JRSoul]

Any resemblance between the Square Deal and Thailand's Square Face Deal is wholly in the name. In fact, they are almost exact opposites.

[Thai at Heart]

Well, if he can see the comparison so can others.

[ramrod711]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

[BillyBobThai]

This person is a prime example of what is needed more than anything here in Thailand. Education. World history and the sciences and math. With these three, they will have the skills and hopefully a map of what not to do.

Forget about most of these grand infastructure plans. Thailand will flood like it has for millions of years. Take that 2.2 trillion baht and spend the next 20 years getting the education system up to par. With this done, start to take on others.

[arthurboy]

''...Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,...'' Percy Bysshe Shelly, Ozymandias, 1818

Robber barons, read influential families, have been running Thailand for a very, very long time. Nepotism, cronyism and dishonest and fraudulent behaviour have been a constant feature of successive governments and is deep rooted within those very institutions designed to serve the Thai people.

Thailand and her people deserve and need ideologically driven politicians and sincere, hard working public servants to serve the country.

What they don't need are those rotten individuals and their hangers on who continue to subject them to a lifetime of sneering corruption.

[noitom]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

You're right of course, this has no place in journalism.

[WitawatWatawit]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

You're right of course, this has no place in journalism.

It's an opinion piece. It has a place in journalism. Well done the writer for making me exercise the brain cells.

[jdinasia]

Fairly well written piece, even took a few risks with the anti-trust act parts ... but it lacked any bite itself. Lauding muckrakers is not the same as being one.

[Bakseeda]

This person is a prime example of what is needed more than anything here in Thailand. Education. World history and the sciences and math. With these three, they will have the skills and hopefully a map of what not to do.

Forget about most of these grand infastructure plans. Thailand will flood like it has for millions of years. Take that 2.2 trillion baht and spend the next 20 years getting the education system up to par. With this done, start to take on others.

Sorry BillyBob, peoples need to "want" to be educated. TiT......

[Bakseeda]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

ramrod.. better to keep your mouth closed and let peoples think you are a fool.. than..etc etc....

[Longtooth]

Fairly well written piece, even took a few risks with the anti-trust act parts ... but it lacked any bite itself. Lauding muckrakers is not the same as being one.

Muckraking, even if true, was not subject to civil complaint in the US, so we must give the author some slack.

[pee paub]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

You're right of course, this has no place in journalism.

It's an opinion piece. It has a place in journalism. Well done the writer for making me exercise the brain cells.

You've heard of "sarcasm"?

[squarethecircle]

That's right on target, and the Chinese blogosphere has drawn similar comparisons with modern China's rise, and the corresponding age in the US history. If you've ever read F. Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby" (or his shorter and more palatable works such as A Diamond as Big as the Ritz) there is a clear parallel between many of these Asian nouveaux riche and their American counterparts.

I wonder if the Asian nations can find their own inspiration in some of their native philosophies, such as Taoism and Confucianism, for a model of the ideal government. Friends in Laos said that, long before, the region was ruled by benevolent kings, but now is under the rule of corrupt governments. Who knows what shape future governments in the region will take?

http://www.tealeafnation.com/2013/10/what-chinese-young-men-see-in-the-great-gatsby/

[Ulic]

I was taught it was the "New Deal", but I guess "Square Deal" will work here in Thailand. Just hope it does not take a 50 years.

[Kondiao]

Khun Pornpimol is committing the offense that Thai's will not tolerate from farangs: he is talking about politics in America. He cites a few events in American history - some of which I myself was only vaguely familiar with, I admit - and then brings up the situation in Thailand. It does not apply. The two are not parallel or similar in many respects. Pornpimol; should consider that the culture in America 100 - 150 years ago praised the INDIVIDUAL. The strong man who stood alone, was confident and competent and rose above adversities to do what he believed was right, in spite of criticism. In Thailand - and I know that everyone in this country would tell me to mind my own business and that no one wants to hear my opinions about the LOS - but I will say it anyway: people here do not stand up for what is right; they do not offer solutions. They only criticize. America in its "Gilded Age," if there ever was such a thing, was very much like a Democracy. People felt responsible for their country and believed they had the right to fix things that were wrong and they supported the courageous men who rocked the boat and upset the status quo. Thailand? It is a feudal society, modernized to the extent that criminals have gained access to the old power structure. Criminal organizations have come here and moved in on the corrupt power brokers, dealing in real estate and slaves and mining with no regard for the destruction of water resources and the exploitation of the Burmese and Kmer workers who live in sub-human conditions.

Individual Thai's just want to pretend "Mai pen rai." They smile and be passive when decisive action is called for. They follow the trend - because it is easier than to resist. In this mess how do you see any good coming out of the current rioting, sponsored by the rich with vested interests in keeping the status quo and wrecking the work of the government elected by the majority of the people? How does this situation compare to America at the turn of the 20th century? It does not.

The only Thai leader who has done anything to alleviate the conditions of the poor in this country, who has stood for progress, is the man that the present rioters - supported by the rich power brokers - is so hated that they want to destroy the government structure to hurt his family - Thaksin Shinawatra.

[rexaco123]

Unfortunately, the article does not address the second era of income inequality in the US. Since the 1970's, inequality has risen dramatically and continues to this day, an example for the world that only reinforces the first era of inequality (Gilded Age) the author mentions.

[rexaco123]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_inequality_in_the_United_States

[tim armstrong]

This person is a prime example of what is needed more than anything here in Thailand. Education. World history and the sciences and math. With these three, they will have the skills and hopefully a map of what not to do.

Forget about most of these grand infastructure plans. Thailand will flood like it has for millions of years. Take that 2.2 trillion baht and spend the next 20 years getting the education system up to par. With this done, start to take on others.

Yes!! Billy Bob you are so right. Particularly education of women, its the one factor that determines the prosperity of developing countries.

[WitawatWatawit]

We also have to continue swallowing the gravel as we contend with our own Pharaoh Ramesses II - who appears as Ozymandias in the poem by Percy Shelley (1792-1822).

<deleted>???

You're right of course, this has no place in journalism.

It's an opinion piece. It has a place in journalism. Well done the writer for making me exercise the brain cells.

You've heard of "sarcasm"?

You're right. Went over my oh-too-serious head. An emoticon would have helped.

[aTomsLife]

That's right on target, and the Chinese blogosphere has drawn similar comparisons with modern China's rise, and the corresponding age in the US history. If you've ever read F. Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby" (or his shorter and more palatable works such as A Diamond as Big as the Ritz) there is a clear parallel between many of these Asian nouveaux riche and their American counterparts.

I wonder if the Asian nations can find their own inspiration in some of their native philosophies, such as Taoism and Confucianism, for a model of the ideal government. Friends in Laos said that, long before, the region was ruled by benevolent kings, but now is under the rule of corrupt governments. Who knows what shape future governments in the region will take?

http://www.tealeafnation.com/2013/10/what-chinese-young-men-see-in-the-great-gatsby/

"The Great Gatsby" is the perfect novel to describe the privileged classes in Thailand, or anywhere for that matter.

Those who've read it can no doubt draw parallels between the story's climax and the Red Bull hit and run. In the story, the speeding car is a metaphor for how the rich live their lives - advancing recklessly, running over anyone in their way, without a need to worry about consequences.

[laolover88]

It is indeed a great and brave piece. Of course the problem here in Thailand and elsewhere in SE Asia is that the 'robber barons' have become premiers, presidents and occupy a few other significant posts!!

[spidermike007]

Yes, a very good article indeed. And yes, unlike the Rockefellers, Kennedys, Vanderbilts, Morgans, and more recently Turner, Gates, and Buffett, to name just a few, the Thai robber barons seem to have little interest in giving anything back to the country that allowed them to become ridiculously rich. They appear to be men of tiny minds, with hearts of black coal. How many millions of dollars has the turd in Dubai spent on building libraries in Bangkok, or University endowments, or AIDS research, or Dengue research? What has he given back to society? Does he simply suck oxygen, or is he of any benefit to mankind? The Hindu sages say the more wealth you obtain, the greater your obligation is to mankind. Is this insect giving anything back, or is the whole purpose of his life at this point to cause grief? How about the Red Bull reptiles? What about the Singha empire? Do they build schools? Do they fund research? I am not saying the American robber barons were without fault. But, they did make up for it, to some extent with the work they did for society. And truly giant men like Bill Gates, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett, Leonard Lauder, Philip Knight, Paul Allen, George Clooney, Bono, and some others are setting a vey high bar indeed, either with their money, time, influence, or efforts. Will any of the Thai billionaires follow their lead, and develop some conscious awareness of their place in the world, or will they simply continue sucking oxygen?

[Krataiboy]

A courageous and timely contribution to a debate in which the whole world - not just Thailand -

to get actively involved.

Roosevelt would surely not believe what has become of his beloved country: millions homeless, jobless and living on food stamps, a puppet government controlled by private bankers and a military industrial complex so bloated that waging war has become an ongoing necessity rather than a last resort.

The New Deal gave US working people two decades of rising wages and living standards - followed by forty years of flat-

lining while the Rockerfellers the rest of the capitalist elite sucked an ever larger share from the economy.

The myth of the American dream was brutally exposed with collapse of the real estate bubble in 2007 - a classic example of market manipulation by the banking mafia with the connivance of their political foot soldiers in Washington.

Right now, with wage levels, working conditions and trade unions all in retreat and human rights and personal liberty under attack as never before, not just American but the entire West is moving dangerously ever closer to fulfilling the elite's dream of a new world order.

Imagine it: one over-weaning authority, answerable to no-one else, controlling all our lives and one army ready to enforce its wishes on a global scale.

In Roosevelt's time, this was little more than a pipe dream among the Rockerfellers, the Rothschilds and the rest of the banking cabal. His decision to take the US into the war created the conditions for the dream to become a reality.

Victory turned the US into the most powerful economic force in the world and created the military/industrial complex to impose whatever it saw as right with unstoppable might.

Eisenhower warned of the dangers in his retirement speech. But his words were largely ignored. Today, the US "defence" budget is larger than that for all other developed nations put together and plans for a global government are no longer a closely guarded secret - successive US Presidents, from George Bush Senior and Ronald Reagan to George Bush Junior,

have come out of the closet to do the cheer leading.

It is 2013, but it is starting to feel uncomfortably like 1984. Not only George Orwell, but Franklin D. Roosevelt must be spinning in his grave.

[Thai at Heart]

Yes, a very good article indeed. And yes, unlike the Rockefellers, Kennedys, Vanderbilts, Morgans, and more recently Turner, Gates, and Buffett, to name just a few, the Thai robber barons seem to have little interest in giving anything back to the country that allowed them to become ridiculously rich. They appear to be men of tiny minds, with hearts of black coal. How many millions of dollars has the turd in Dubai spent on building libraries in Bangkok, or University endowments, or AIDS research, or Dengue research? What has he given back to society? Does he simply suck oxygen, or is he of any benefit to mankind? The Hindu sages say the more wealth you obtain, the greater your obligation is to mankind. Is this insect giving anything back, or is the whole purpose of his life at this point to cause grief? How about the Red Bull reptiles? What about the Singha empire? Do they build schools? Do they fund research? I am not saying the American robber barons were without fault. But, they did make up for it, to some extent with the work they did for society. And truly giant men like Bill Gates, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett, Leonard Lauder, Philip Knight, Paul Allen, George Clooney, Bono, and some others are setting a vey high bar indeed, either with their money, time, influence, or efforts. Will any of the Thai billionaires follow their lead, and develop some conscious awareness of their place in the world, or will they simply continue sucking oxygen?

I have asked a similar question many times.

I believe it is their aloof/unconnected ancestry that they pride themselves on that is their problem. For some reason they will not give back.

It is almost like watching a colonising force who have a blind faith in the status quo. Hopefully one day it will change.

[Thai at Heart]

Khun Pornpimol is committing the offense that Thai's will not tolerate from farangs: he is talking about politics in America. He cites a few events in American history - some of which I myself was only vaguely familiar with, I admit - and then brings up the situation in Thailand. It does not apply. The two are not parallel or similar in many respects. Pornpimol; should consider that the culture in America 100 - 150 years ago praised the INDIVIDUAL. The strong man who stood alone, was confident and competent and rose above adversities to do what he believed was right, in spite of criticism. In Thailand - and I know that everyone in this country would tell me to mind my own business and that no one wants to hear my opinions about the LOS - but I will say it anyway: people here do not stand up for what is right; they do not offer solutions. They only criticize. America in its "Gilded Age," if there ever was such a thing, was very much like a Democracy. People felt responsible for their country and believed they had the right to fix things that were wrong and they supported the courageous men who rocked the boat and upset the status quo. Thailand? It is a feudal society, modernized to the extent that criminals have gained access to the old power structure. Criminal organizations have come here and moved in on the corrupt power brokers, dealing in real estate and slaves and mining with no regard for the destruction of water resources and the exploitation of the Burmese and Kmer workers who live in sub-human conditions.

Individual Thai's just want to pretend "Mai pen rai." They smile and be passive when decisive action is called for. They follow the trend - because it is easier than to resist. In this mess how do you see any good coming out of the current rioting, sponsored by the rich with vested interests in keeping the status quo and wrecking the work of the government elected by the majority of the people? How does this situation compare to America at the turn of the 20th century? It does not.

The only Thai leader who has done anything to alleviate the conditions of the poor in this country, who has stood for progress, is the man that the present rioters - supported by the rich power brokers - is so hated that they want to destroy the government structure to hurt his family - Thaksin Shinawatra.

Great great post.

The lack of civic contribution in thailand is truly horrible. I am now back in my hometown that is shaped forever by the donation of a man who was the richest in the world at a point a few hundred years ago. After London more green space than any other city in the uk.

I did look the other day at a beautiful old library and was told that it was built by the Carnegie foundation as a donation to the poor. Apparently his donation built hundreds a libraries across Britain.

Thailand has the billionaires, it just lacks a heart.

[winstonc]

yes a good piece....copied from (the untold history of the u.s. co written by oliver stone and peter kuznick).....but none the less enjoyable .also an excellent book to read,the next time they start having ago at us english im guna start quoting hahahahahaha..some americans may not like reading this but it is an eye opener...

[GAZZPA]

Khun Pornpimol is committing the offense that Thai's will not tolerate from farangs: he is talking about politics in America. He cites a few events in American history - some of which I myself was only vaguely familiar with, I admit - and then brings up the situation in Thailand. It does not apply. The two are not parallel or similar in many respects. Pornpimol; should consider that the culture in America 100 - 150 years ago praised the INDIVIDUAL. The strong man who stood alone, was confident and competent and rose above adversities to do what he believed was right, in spite of criticism. In Thailand - and I know that everyone in this country would tell me to mind my own business and that no one wants to hear my opinions about the LOS - but I will say it anyway: people here do not stand up for what is right; they do not offer solutions. They only criticize. America in its "Gilded Age," if there ever was such a thing, was very much like a Democracy. People felt responsible for their country and believed they had the right to fix things that were wrong and they supported the courageous men who rocked the boat and upset the status quo. Thailand? It is a feudal society, modernized to the extent that criminals have gained access to the old power structure. Criminal organizations have come here and moved in on the corrupt power brokers, dealing in real estate and slaves and mining with no regard for the destruction of water resources and the exploitation of the Burmese and Kmer workers who live in sub-human conditions.

Individual Thai's just want to pretend "Mai pen rai." They smile and be passive when decisive action is called for. They follow the trend - because it is easier than to resist. In this mess how do you see any good coming out of the current rioting, sponsored by the rich with vested interests in keeping the status quo and wrecking the work of the government elected by the majority of the people? How does this situation compare to America at the turn of the 20th century? It does not.

The only Thai leader who has done anything to alleviate the conditions of the poor in this country, who has stood for progress, is the man that the present rioters - supported by the rich power brokers - is so hated that they want to destroy the government structure to hurt his family - Thaksin Shinawatra.

I disagree, I can see real comparisons. Right now we have Suthep standing loud and proud and rallying huge numbers of people in protest to what they say is a corrupt Government. Yes Thai culture is different but to say that Thai people will not stand up and be heard when things have gone too far is insulting to Thai people.

There will always be individuals who are willing to stand up and shout. Whether they are credible or not is always a matter of opinion but History certainly teaches us that "eventually" societies collective consciousness does change when a Governments activities are unjust. To me the only debate is how long will it take the Thai people to sort things out.

[Emdog]

Enjoyed the article, but the biggest difference between USA then and Thailand now is what went before. America was founded on ideals of the age of reason, European ideas of equality, secularism, individualism, rule of law and representation from Britain, etc. You have to have some good soil to plant the tree of democracy in. It did not emerge full blown from nothing. We looked to our ideals "all men are created equal" and "no man is above the law" to steer us back on course during the excesses of the 19th centuary. USA seems to be slipping away from that, so don't start in on that, America bashers!

There is none of that sort of philosophical belief system in Thailand, which may explain why they do so poorly into trying to implement these foreign ideas. Perhaps someday democratic beliefs may create that soil, but for now they are casting seeds onto stone, imho.