As a staunch supporter of democracy and as a writer, I now face what I shall call the "democrat's dilemma".
I believe that I have two clear choices.
My first option is to be critical of the junta in my opinion pieces and delegitimise its position from the outside through the power of democratic reasoning. A long shot at best.
Or, I could try and work from within and through gentle persuasion attempt to steer this military regime toward a more liberal democratic and open society that I think best suits a diverse country of 67 million individuals.
For now at least, I have decided to try the second option, because there is no point trying to diffuse a bomb that has already gone off.
Regrettably, yet another military coup has transpired, but in my opinion all is not lost. However, much will depend on what junta leader and prime minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha decides to do with his unprecedented powers.
Gen Prayut will rightly be credited with any victories. But he must also be aware that with total control, he will be the sole author of any embarrassing defeats.
Let me be clear, I'm just as happy as anyone that peace has returned to our streets. For that, many Bangkokians, including my family, owe the prime minister a debt of gratitude.
But as a retired military officer, Gen Prayut should realise that the absence of war is not peace. Unless Thailand's decade-long "Cold War" is permanently resolved, we will surely see more division and further uprisings in the near future.
So I urge the prime minister to ensure that whatever the new election system the National Reform Council decides to adopt, it should be abundantly clear that it will be for the people to decide who represents them in government.
Therefore, I would vehemently advise against any form of appointed "military bloc votes" in parliament, because this would embolden the junta's opponents and it will sow the seeds of discontent which Thailand must avoid at all costs.
Whether Thailand adopts a proportional representation system, or whether we decide to experiment with a semi-presidential system, in which prime ministers are directly chosen, or even a combination of both, is not the crux of the issue.
The heart of the matter is for Thailand to have an election system that is consistently able to produce governments that the public deems to be legitimate.
Contrary to perceived wisdom, in my opinion, a democracy doesn't promise us an efficient, effective and honest government. It only promises us a government that we can vote out of office every five years. The rest is up to us.
The prime minster won't like it when I say this, but I feel it's my duty to say it anyway. Almost every institution has been the target for reform by the junta, from political parties, the electoral system, the civil service, the police, to even the Constitutional Court. However, I do not see the military anywhere on this list.
The general has a great opportunity here. The mark of a great statesman is not the ability to appeal to his base. Any run-of-the-mill politician like Thaksin Shinawatra or Abhisit Vejjajiva can do that.
A truly great statesman possesses the courage and the unique ability to convince his most radicalised and staunchest supporters to accept tough compromises when the national interest is at stake.
Therefore, insisting on implementing "victor's justice", is a temptation the prime minister must have the strength of character and moral fortitude to resist.
If the prime minister is to go down in Thai history as a unifying, rather than a dividing force, he must rise to the challenge of reforming the military, along with it the "old establishment", preventing the politicisation of our institutions.
He must accept the principle of the supremacy of civilian rule.
Guiding the old elites and the established middle class to accept genuine democracy and a shared power structure that gives more power to the grassroots, while still maintaining mechanisms that protect the old elites against the abuse of majority rule, is the enlightened path toward Thailand's peaceful democratic transition.
The odds of Thailand making this transition peacefully are not encouraging. Throughout history only a few countries have managed this non-violently.
Moreover, military coups in the past eight decades have often been a cure worse than the disease itself.
As for politicians, well, they have consistently failed us. Both Thaksin and all his Thai Rak Thai reincarnations have been a huge disappointment, and the Democrat Party has nefariously led the old establishment into a class war against the majority of Thais in the North and Northeast.
I implore Gen Prayut not to repeat these mistakes. He must avoid surrounding himself with yes men, and give himself a chance to succeed by also appealing to those who oppose him.
As Nelson Mandela once said: "If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner."
Songkran Grachangnetara is an entrepreneur. He graduated from The London School of Economics and Columbia University. He can be reached at Twitter: @SongkranTalk