17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash

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John
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17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash

Post by John »

17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash damages ancient Hindu temple

Both Thailand and Cambodia claim the Preah Vihear Hindu temple

** 17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash damages ancient Hindu temple
** http://www.generationaldynamics.com/cgi ... 17#e110217

Guest

Re: 17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash

Post by Guest »

Reminds me of the axe murder incident on the NK/SK DMZ.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axe_murder_incident

John
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Joined: Sat Sep 20, 2008 12:10 pm
Location: Cambridge, MA USA
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Re: 17-Feb-11 News -- Thailand vs Cambodia border clash

Post by John »

The following comments were posted on my BigPeace version of this article:
I'm a fan of Mr. Xenakis and of the GD theory. But I sometimes differ
on specifics.

For example, I live in SE Asia. And I'll offer a few of my
observations.

1. Cambodia is a large, resource rich country with a population of
between 15-20 million.

2. It is sandwiched between Thailand (60-70 million) & land-starved
Vietnam (80-90 million).

3. Cambodia has an 'undocumented' immigration issue with Vietnam. Many
Vietnamese are moving to Cambodia illegally to work & live;. They set
up businesses in the city or they harvest & sell timber.

4. It is natural that there would be border conflicts between Cambodia
and its neighbors. Cambodia is large but weak. Its neighbors are
strong.

5. Also in the past, parts of the Khmer Empire were in what we call
Thailand today.

6. If you go back to the early 1950's and examine the deal Prince
Sihanouk made with the French government for independence, Thailand's
claims were ignored because Thailand was not a party to those
negotiations.

7. Generationally, most of the population of Vietnam was born after
1975.

8. Most of the population of Cambodia is 5-10 years younger than the
Vietnamese population, because of post-1975 events with the Khmer
Rouge.

9. Thailand has an older population than either Vietnam or Cambodia.

***

My point here is that GD is not needed to explain this border
conflict. I agree this will not turn into a full-scale war. But border
conflicts between the ancient Khmer territory and what we call
Thailand have occurred regularly over centuries. There is no doubt
that part of Thailand used to be in Khmer jurisdiction. And the
reverse is true as well.

I agree with Dr. Xenakis that there will not be a major war between
Thailand & Cambodia. But I disagree about the prospect of civil war
in Thailand. I think it could happen.

And watch the ball. The interesting game in this part of the world
involves China. China & Vietnam are ancient enemies. Cambodians view
Vietnamese as having stolen their land (much as Native Americans
viewed white people in the 19th Century).

China is more or less buying up Cambodia. But its leaders are still
more or less pro-Vietnamese, who fought the Khmer Rouge.

There is no real antipathy between Cambodia & China. They are
completely different. But Cambodians do have a hostility to both
Thais & Vietnamese.

I fully expect that issue to grow much larger in the near term. And I
expect China to exploit it.

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