Front Page, The Bangkok Post, June 9, 2006

Today, millions of Thais turned all of Thailand into a sea of gold and yellow, wearing the colors of the widely loved Thai king, His Royal Highness Bhumibol Adulyadej on the 60th anniversary of his reign.

Fishermen vowed to give up fishing endangered fishes in honor of the king. Prisoners were freed. Golden barges made rare sailings. Buddhist monks made blessings. The king addressed his subjects for the first time in 20 years, for he doesn’t say much. And he exhorted them to be kind to one another, a most divine and kingly command. All kinds of tributes poured in from everywhere to honor the good king who has served his nation for all of 60 years.

It might seem unusual to us Americans, and for any democratic revolutionaries, to find honor in something so archaic as a monarchy. But Thailand’s monarchy works. The king has maintained the kind of referent power and respect that is required to bring order when political turmoil has taken over. No one has ever challenged him – indeed, it is a prison offense to insult the king, as any Lonely Planet guide would tell you. But no one I met in Thailand would ever want to anyway.

The king, for Thailand, represents continuity. He also represents Thailand in its essence and Thailand as itself. Thailand is a unique nation that has never been colonized, and that’s probably a blessing. But he also represents good things, like liberty, freedom, humility and democracy. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, home of the American Revolution.

It’s significant that the word Thailand means “Land Of The Free.”

With leaders like good King Bhumibol, one can get a glimpse of understanding as to why.