Thailand ranks 63 out of 167 countries for "democracy index."

I've lived here for years now and don't really pay attention to things like this but this information recently popped up in an article on a popular English-language website about Thailand on thethaiger.com . Even in this article they likely had to be very careful with how they worded their post because one of the reasons why Thailand scores so imperfectly is because of the government's near complete control of the media. I know it is something people say around the world about how the press is controlled by a small group of people but in Thailand, writing an article that is more than just mildly critical of how the government is doing their job can get your office raided and shut down. This would be especially true if the site or publication is run by foreigners.

Freedom of the press is something that is spoken of all over the world I realize that. In Thailand though, this is the only country that I am aware of about how the government isn't even covert about the fact that they are controlling the media. They are quite open about the fact that they monitor the news outlets and they will even interrupt international broadcasts with a logo for the National Council for Peace and Order.

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While I can't say for certain, I believe this council was formed right around the time that a coup happened and an unelected government was installed by the military including having a general assume control of the country as the Prime Minister. At that same time, media outlets were raided and the government assumed control of all newspapers and television. The only way that you could find out any information during that time about Thailand was to look at international news outlets and if these were at all inflammatory about Thailand's government, the entire website would be blocked for anyone inside the country. Of course simply using a VPN would get you past this, but while you and I might think that VPN's are extremely common and easy, I think most people don't ever use them.

A while ago, there was a single YouTube video that was critical of the monarchy in Thailand and the country's response was to block the entirety of YouTube. Thailand had the gall to demand that YouTube remove the video or the block would remain in place. I was kind of proud of YouTube for refusing to capitulate to this demand. It was years before YouTube could be accessed without a VPN in Thailand.

So the restriction of information is definitely a thing in Thailand. That is for sure. While I would never post something negative about the government on my own Facebook page a lot of people did and in many of those instances these people were found and arrested. For the most part these people were Thai students and some of them remained in jail for a long time. I don't know if you have heard about the prisons in Thailand, but they make the ones in USA look luxurious by comparison.

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There are books and even a couple of films that have been made about the absolutely terrible conditions that exist in Thai prisons and the place being crowded, food being limited and inedible, and regular beatings for minor offenses are extremely common things. If you are a foreigner the conditions can be made slightly better but only if you or a family member are willing to "pony up" some bribe money for the warden. Thankfully, I don't even know anyone that has been imprisoned here but the terrible conditions do strike fear in the hearts of potential political dissidents.

Police also are left unchecked and get to do whatever they want. There are no body cams or trials for police abusing their power here outside of highly publicized events where one captain was flaunting his wealth including many exotic vehicles in his collection despite the fact that he had a salary of around $1800 a month. He unabashedly bragged about this to many people and the only reason why he was "brought to justice" was because the BBC did a story about him. While the police headquarters in Bangkok claimed to be shocked by this happening and did a trial for him, I am quite certain they were very aware of what he was doing and were in on the action as well. The police in this country are somewhat interested in the law but for the most part they are interested in enriching themselves.

Now with what I have said already you might be thinking that I believe Thailand is a terrible place and that it should be avoided right? Well actually no. I think the opposite.

While Thailand has the appearance of an oppressive government that doesn't allow any opposition and they also have a very corrupt police force, this place is actually a lot more "free" than where I lived in the United States. Sure you might have to pay $10 or so to the police for some bullshit charges on your motorbike every now and then, but it is nowhere near the amount that you would have to pay on vehicle taxes, inspection stickers, sales taxes, and the absurd price that is put on minor offenses in the United States. Basically, if you adhere to the laws somewhat and don't cause any problems for anyone, the authorities here will leave you alone. The USA seems much more like a police state than here does. In USA I am afraid of police... when I see them here I know that the worst thing that could possibly happen is that they are going to shake me, and everyone else, down for a few bucks.

In an ideal world the police wouldn't do either one of these things but unfortunately that is not the kind of world that we live in.

Also, while most of the government here is indeed unelected and even when elections do happen they appear to be rigged, I don't think that life is really affected for the average Joe all that much by whoever is in power. These guys seem to be doing favors for other competing wealthy families and in the meantime they mostly just leave the masses alone. This isn't ideal but I think that in many western countries the government does the same thing but they also pick on poor or middle-class people as well.

I don't believe that true "freedom" exists in the countries that claim superiority as far as this is concerned. Go ahead and tell me that some country is truly free and then lets talk about how many thousands of dollars a month it will cost you to live there. For me, I would rather deal with a bit of corruption here and there and not be bothered with needing to renew 127 licenses every year - and pay for them - just to live my life.

All you have to do in Thailand to experience the closest thing to freedom that exists in this world is stay in your lane and not hurt other people. Is that really so hard to do?