Lèse Majesté, and Staggering Into the 21st Century

The Lemming posted "Lemming Tracks: 'Sexual Harassment' in the Information Age" about an hour ago. That was about an apparently-daft decision to slap a nine-year-old with a three-day suspension from school. For saying his teacher is "cute." What the kid did was, maybe, inappropriate. Maybe it warranted a three-day suspension.

But "sexual harassment?" Disco is dead, the '80s are long gone, and it's time to get a grip. In the Lemming's opinion, of course. Some folks never left Woodstock, and that's another topic.

Three Day Suspension, Two and a Half Year Prison Sentence, and a Lifetime of Memories

I'm not sure that throwing an adult in prison for insulting a king is 'more serious' than teaching a nine-year-old that people in authority are hypersensitive nitwits. Mr. Gordon's two and a half year prison sentence will last longer: but the nine-year-old will probably remember his experience for the rest of his life.

Anyway, here's what the Lemming saw in yesterday's news:

Don't Dis the King

"American Sentenced to Prison for Insulting Thai Monarchy"
Associated Press, via FoxNews.com (December 8, 2011)

"A court in Thailand sentenced a U.S. citizen to two and a half years in prison Thursday for defaming the country's royal family by translating excerpts of a locally banned biography of the king and posting them online.

"The verdict is the latest so-called lese majeste punishment handed down in the Southeast Asian kingdom, which has come under increasing pressure at home and abroad to reform harsh legislation that critics say is an affront to freedom of expression.

"The 55-year-old Thai-born American, Joe Gordon, stood calmly with his ankles shackled in an orange prison uniform as the sentence was read out at a Bangkok criminal court...."

"Lese majeste" isn't something you hear every day. Not in 21st-century America, at least. A Wikipedia article says it's French (lèse majesté), that came from the in-house brand of Latin the French used for legal stuff. It means "injured majesty," more or less.

Essentially, offending the king was treason in the 'good old days:' which the Lemming doesn't miss all that much.

Joe Gordon, Thailand, Family and Names

"Joe Gordon" sounds like an old-fashioned, solidly Anglo 'American' name. It's possible that Mr. Gordon did what many other Americans did, to make life easier for themselves: changed his name to something the locals could pronounce and remember easily. Let's face it: most Americans are going to remember "Joe Gordon" more easily than they would something like เจ้าพระยาบดินทรเดชา. Or even กอร์ดอนโจ.

Whether or not someone decides to take an 'American' name is up to the individual: Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar got along fine with his distinctly un-British name. Although the Lemming's noticed that it's reduced to "Chandra" fairly often. The Lemming opined about names and America in another blog:

• "'American' Names, the Diocese of Little Rock, and Father Agbakwuo"
  A Catholic Citizen in America (March 19, 2011)

Moving on.

Two and a Half Years: A Light Sentence?

Apparently, the Thai judge is letting Mr. Gordon off easy. Which was awfully nice, considering what a dastardly deed the American had done: dissing the king, and all:

"...Judge Tawan Rodcharoen said the punishment, initially set at five years, was reduced because Gordon pleaded guilty in October.

"The sentence was relatively light compared to other recent cases. In November, 61-year-old Amphon Tangnoppakul was sentenced to 20 years in jail for sending four text messages deemed offensive to the crown.

"Gordon posted links to the banned biography of King Bhumibol Adulyadej several years ago while living in Colorado, and his case has raised questions about the applicability of Thai law to acts committed by foreigners outside Thailand.

"Speaking after the verdict, Gordon said, 'I am an American citizen, and what happened was in America.'...
(Associated Press, via FoxNews.com)

The Lemming could rant about American arrogance, cultural imperialism, and the general ickiness of Yankee warmonger white racist male dominated authoritarian oppressors. But why bother? The Lemming doesn't have a position in American academia to maintain, and isn't trying to be considered 'intelligent' by America's 'better' sort.

Besides, the Lemming thinks that quite a few folks in America are tired of the post-disco 'establishment' in America. And that's yet another topic.

'There Oughtta be a Law?'

"...Thailand's lese majeste laws are the harshest in the world. They mandate that people found guilty of defaming the monarchy -- including the king, the queen and the heir to the throne -- face three to 15 years behind bars. The nation's 2007 Computer Crimes Act also contains provisions that have enabled prosecutors to increase lese majeste sentences.

"The U.S. Embassy's consul general, Elizabeth Pratt, told reporters in Bangkok after the ruling that Washington considered Gordon's punishment 'severe because he has been sentenced for his right to freedom of expression.'..."

The Lemming remembers the trailing edge of McCarthyism, endured political correctness, and doesn't think highly of what either ideological storm did to America. Freedom of expression is precious: even when the other guy says something you don't like. Sometimes, especially when the other guy doesn't agree. And that's yet more topics, that the Lemming's gone on about in this and other blogs.

Goodbye, 18th Century - - Hello, Information Age

Bottom line? The Lemming thinks that America has done well, in part because folks here don't get thrown in prison for criticizing Congress or the President. Not usually, anyway.

The American Revolution (the one in 1776) was an early step in working out ways to run a country without worrying about what some irritable nincompoop with a crown wanted to hear.

A remarkable number of countries discovered that criticizing incompetence, corruption, and unearned privilege didn't bring civilization to its knees. Some countries, like Thailand, don't seem to have read the memo yet.

Yet again more topics.

Related posts:

• Freedom of expression
  • "2009 Preakness Beating: Phones, Freedom, and a Ranting Lemming"
    (December 2, 2011)
  • "Lemming Tracks: Internet Freedom; or 'Be Careful What You Wish For' "
    (April 19, 2011)
  • "Zimbabwe, Where Watching the Wrong Videos is Treason"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (February 25, 2011)
  • "FCC, the Internet, Regulations, Freedom of Speech, and a Ranting Lemming"
    (December 23, 2010)
  • "William Felkner vs. College Conformity: Traditional Information Gatekeepers Face Another Challenge"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (December 16, 2008)
    Particularly
    • Traditional Information Gatekeepers and the Information Age
• 'Free - to agree with me?'
  • "Freedom, Even For 'Those People Over There' "
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (November 11, 2011)
  • "My Take on the News: 'There Oughtta be a Law?'"
    A Catholic Citizen in America (November 11, 2011)
    Particularly
    • 'Everybody Knows What Those People are Like'
    • Bias Made Easy
      • A sort of menu
    • Religious Freedom
    • Freedom: For Everyone
  • "Blogs, Freedom of Speech, and Threats to the Status Quo"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (July 31, 2010)
  • "School District Celebrates Religious Freedom Day: By Banning Bibles"
    A Catholic Citizen in America (July 1, 2010)
  • "More Academic Freedom, American Style?"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (September 22, 2008)
• Living in a big world
  • "Chauvinism Knows No Borders"
    A Catholic Citizen in America (July 23, 2011)
  • "Cultural Chaos, Divisiveness, and CNN"
    A Catholic Citizen in America (April 1, 2010)
  • " 'Criticism is Terrorism:' Chavez and Twitter 'Terrorists' "
    (February 1, 2010)
  • "What is an Information Gatekeeper?"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (August 14, 2009)
  • "Tolerance: Yes, it's a Good Idea"
    A Catholic Citizen in America (August 3, 2009)

Clouded Leopard Cubs at the National Zoo: Photos, Videos and High Cute Levels

"Clouded Leopard Cub Photos"
National Zoo, Virginia campus (March 12, 2010)

"Check out photos of clouded leopards born at the Zoo's Virginia campus in 2009 and 2010. Last updated March 12, 2010."

That's a photo of one of them. There's more on the page, and video. Those clouded leopard kittens are cute as - kittens. With very thin, high meows. More of a squeak.

More, from another page on the National Zoo's website:

"Clouded Leopards Born at Zoo's Virginia Campus on Valentine's Day
February 2010"
National Zoo

"A clouded leopard at the National Zoo's campus in Front Royal, Virginia, gave birth to a genetically valuable litter of two cubs on Valentine's Day—February 14. Staff had been on a pregnancy watch of three-and-a-half-year-old Jao Chu for four days. She gave birth to the first cub at 6:04 p.m. and the second cub at 6:20 p.m. At birth, the cubs weighed a little more than a half pound.

"The birth represents the third time Jao Chu and the cubs' father, three-and-a-half-year-old Hannibal, have produced offspring. On March 24, 2009, Jao Chu gave birth to two males—Sa Ming ('brave warrior') and Ta Moon ('mischievous child'). Nearly four months later, she gave birth to a female cub Baylie July 9, 2009. Jao Chu and Hannibal were born in Thailand in a collaborative breeding and research program with the Zoological Park Organization of Thailand...."

From the Smithsonian's National Zoological Park's YouTube account, another set of clouded leopard cubs:

"Clouded Leopard Cubs - June 2009"

SmithsonianNZP, YouTube (June 15, 2009)
video, 1:07 (no sound)

"The two boys are now three months old, mobile and rambunctious!..."

"Clouded Leopard Cubs at Two Weeks Old"

SmithsonianNZP, YouTube (April 9, 2009)
video, 1:54 (with sound)

"The clouded leopard cubs born at the Smithsonian's National Zoo's Conservation and Research Center (CRC) are both male as confirmed by the veterinary team. The cubs, born on March 24...."

That should take care of your 'cute' needs for a while.

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A tip of the hat to mstoneman, on Twitter, for the heads-up on the photos & videos page.

Curry to the Left of Us, Curry to the Right of Us!

"All About Curry"
Serious Eats (October 18, 2009)

"What Is Curry?

"Curry is an umbrella term for many dishes throughout the world, particularly Asia, that are simmered in or covered with a sauce full of spices and herbs. There is no one specific "curry." It's just a combination of flavors and textures, usually served with meat, chicken, fish, vegetables or even fruit.

"How Curries Vary By Region

"Indian

"These curries are made with a number of toasted and ground spices (called masala)...."

Okay, despite the title, the Serious Eats post probably doesn't convey all there is to know about curry.

On the other hand, it's got more about Indian, Thai, British, Chinese and Japanese curry than you may already know. Although somehow I wasn't surprised to learn that Chinese curry involved soy sauce.

The post includes links to seven recipes involving curry, and a photo of Vindaloo, a curry dish best served while wearing a hazmat suit. It's a tad spicy.

---

A tip of the hat to williamcooks, on Twitter, for the heads-up on this post.

Huge Model of Bangkok, Around 2020

"Shanghai in 2020: Shanghai Urban Planning Museum"
2Bangkok.com (August, 2005)

"Those stymied by the paucity of info available on Bangkok development will be astonished at these bold plans for Shanghai. In the heart of Shanghai stands the multistory Urban Planning Museum, the highlight of which is an extensive model promoting future Shanghai. Part propaganda and part history museum...."

The page has a great many photos of the Urban Planning Museum's display, but not a great deal of text. It's worth seeing, though: and is an example of how a picture can be worth a thousand words.


(from 2Bangkok.com, used without permission)
Scaled-down photo of a scaled-down model of Shanghai, about 2020.

You may have seen some of the photos on that page before: They've been, ah, borrowed by bloggers. Including myself. My excuse is that I'm providing a link back to 2Bangkok.com, and that displaying a reduced-size photo was the best way of showing what the page was about.

"2Bankgkok is daily Thai news you won't find anywhere else. Since 1999, 2Bangkok has featured background and perspective on local news with summaries of the Thai-language press....

Train Drives Through Bangkok Market - and it's No Accident

"Train Drives Through A Bangkok Market - Video"
Maniac World (undated)
video 0:40

"This is an amazing and efficient market place operation. This village in Bangkok operates like a MASH unit in how fast they can fold/unfold their business operations when the train passes through...."

This is quite a remarkable video. I'd like to know how this custom developed.