Tomorrow is National Children's Day and, instead of telling you where to take your children/nieces/nephews to climb tanks and watch a fighter jet show, I decided to flip the script. You see, a little one can say something out-of-left-field and humorous. The same can be said for adults who sometimes give damnedest responses, comments or excuses despite their years of wisdom. Here are a few examples of when adults say the darnedest things, Thailand edition.
[1]
"The government can't possibly do everything for you. We're doing as much as we can. The people have to help themselves sometimes like digging a pond [presumably until you find groundwater] for personal use. Or else we won't have enough water for waterworks or the industrial sector." -- PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, about the ongoing drought at the Government House on January 6.
So why do we pay tax?
[2]
"Seven Dangerous Days [a period around big Thai holidays when accidents are more prone to happen as people go home or travel] sound counterproductive. I would like to change it to Seven Days of Happiness Festival. Can we? [The new wording] Reminds people of happiness and safety which affects themselves, their children and medical bills. Therefore, it is necessary to create this type of motivation." -- PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, after a Cabinet meeting on January 2.
Uncle Tu meant well with the rewording, I'm sure. But, if his idea comes true, it would be so insensitive and insultingly ironic to those who lose their loved ones during the "Seven Days of Happiness Festival", wouldn't you agree?
[3]
"I would like to always assert that, if we want Thailand to thrive, every Thai man must be conscripted into military service like how they do it in South Korea. That's when we will have no more coups whatsoever. Everyone will be friends and won't fight like this. If we fight like this, we have to have a 20-year coup. Thank you." -- Senator Gen Thawatchai Samutsakhon, during a parliament meeting on July 25, 2019.
Wait, are we living in a solider-run state? Well, kinda. Also, who picked dear sir to be a senator?! Oh, wait.
[4]
"I think the clip is made-up like how they do it in a cartoon where anything can be created. Those cartoons are a 100 times much harder to create [than this clip]. This clip is so easy to make. The person who made it is a scum. People on social media who spread it are scums. I've been victimised and this has damaged my reputation greatly. They should have just killed me." -- former-Ratchaburi MP Thawee Kraikupt said on December 27 in a response to a video clip showing his Mercedes-Benz crashing into a motorcycle, which sent the latter flying across the street.
Sir, we all make oopies from time to time and there's no shame in admitting that you were wrong or reckless. Also, being involved in two reported road accidents within seven days doesn't lend any credibility to this puzzling statement of yours. Maybe, for your own safety and that of others, you sir, shouldn't be behind the wheel anymore?
P.S. Should we all be worried because these quotes are from our leaders?