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June 9th, 2016 
Awake Goy 
nsnbc : Thais celebrate the 70th year of the reign of King Bhumibol Adulyadej as most citizens grow increasingly concerned about his health. King Bhumibol Adulyadej is, think about constitutional monarchies what you will, by most Thais venerated as a unifying person who has kept the peace in the country.
People are carrying bespectacled photos of the King, monks hold ceremonies, and even bigger king-sized “larger than life” billboards of King Bhumibol Adulyadej flank Thailands urban and rural roads and highways.
During the seven decades of his reign, King Bhumibol has by most Thais been perceived as a solid pillar of stability and national unity.
A father of a nation that is as rich in languages, ethnicities and in fact religious communities, as it also has been plagued by bitter political and in part religious conflict.
King Bhumibol succeeded, among others, to rally nationwide support by infrastructure projects, development, an organic approach to farming, and other “soft-power” initiatives that helped Thailand maintain its relative independence from the geopolitical machinations of global and regional superpowers.
However much most Thais respect their King, and not merely because lessee majesté can cost citizens as well as journalists the privilege to be hosted behind bars, most Thais feel deeply concerned and anxious about King Bhumobol’s health. It is an anxiety that also is based on fear of the unknown, of what eventually, and inevitably will come when his reign comes to its natural end. What political junctures will it imply?
770 monks in Thailand’s capital Bangkok began the morning with prayers, only this time, they were more than “prayers as usual”. Festivities throughout the country serve as a reminder to Thais of their relationship to the king and his role as a father of the nation.
Less openly outspoken are anxious debates about the succession. King Bhumibol received heart treatment at the hospital on Tuesday. For the last year he has only rarely left the hospital. Many Thais speculate whether the now 63-year-old Crown prince Vajiralongkorn can or will be as devoted to the well-being of his people and the nation as his father.
Bhumibol and the monarchy have not always been held in equally high esteem in Thailand. Bhumibol inherited the throne at the age of 18. A throne that barely survived an uprising against the absolute monarchy in 1932.
And still, Bhumibol “earned” the respect and admiration of the people of Thailand through hard work in the development of the public health sector, rural development, infrastructure development, and not least, by always functioning as a national anchor, regardless whether the issues at hand were domestic or foreign relations. Some critics stress the close ties between the monarchy and the military, but then again, the vast majority of Thais consider the military as an important, independent national organization.
Thailand has seen 19 attempted or completed coups since the end of the absolute monarchy. Some, especially westerners, will criticize the military, while many Thais are relatively satisfied with the military’s “interventions” when internal political rivalries threaten the coherence and security of the State.
CH/L – nsnbc 09.06.2016
Source Article from http://nsnbc.me/2016/06/09/thailand-celebrates-70th-year-of-kings-reign-anxious-about-his-health/
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