Tulsathit in an op-ed in The Nation:

All I’m asking for is a bit of a perspective. It’s not the end of the world when the Thai Culture Ministry threatens to ban SIMSIMI. Idiotic, yes, but of battling King Edward I proportions? No. The same goes for Thammasat University’s decision to keep anti-Article 112 campaigners off of its campus. You still have Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for crying out loud. If you want to be a “freedom fighter”, be one, not a whiner.

Thailand is being unfairly attacked, I have to say. It happens when people get confused between a power struggle (two camps that are more or less equally equipped, throwing everything at each other) and underprivileged people clamouring for less duty, a place to make a stand and the right to worship without fear. I concur that things are far from perfect, but the imbalance between the sticks Thailand is getting and the praise Burma is receiving is driving me up the wall.

And while we are at it, look around. Would you rather fight for me in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia or Singapore even? If you truly cherish me, search your hearts and tell me if you are horribly unfortunate or damned lucky to be a “freedom fighter” in Thailand. I’m not saying there are “slaves” in those countries, but I dare you to set up anti-government villages in any of them, or open an online account, using your real name, to ridicule the powers-that-be.

You may think I’m trying to talk myself into extinction, but the truth is that an over-hyped “freedom” awareness is not helping, either. Of course, I want to stay relevant, but I also want to be relevant with substance, if you know what that means. My name used to be about the birth of nations, about the fall of regimes that took everything from their people, or about, yes, Sir William Wallace. Now, I have to be content with an “uprising” against a ban on profanity on a Korean-born app.

Granted, I have to evolve like all of you. If your tweets are to be banned in your country, it affects me, too. However, I’m begging you to develop a sense of proportion. Imagine a world where people can say anything to anyone, anywhere, any time. The line between anarchy and me must be very thin indeed. That’s why a lot people believe that I am my own worst enemy. Hope you can help me prove them wrong.

BP: Be a freedom fighter, but don’t complain or speak up. What would happen if the government shut down The Nation? Could we answer, they still have Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube so stop whining…..

Is the choice only Thailand vs Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, or Singapore? None of the latter four has ever had a good record on freedom of speech. What about Indonesia? It was continually a long way behind Thailand, but has been making impressive strides on freedom of speech in the last decade – although things are far from perfect . The same for Burma. While things are moving very slowly in Burma, there is at least some progress forward now. Can one argue the same for Thailand? Is it moving forward? Thailand has fallen down the rankings on press freedom over recent years…….