Can I Still Get the Tom Ka Gai Soup?

I have followed the news of the recent military coup in Thailand waiting to hear the Bush Administration weigh in on this issue. They have yet to say anything of substance, though it is technically a coup against a democratically-elected government . The post-coup stability in Bangkok (especially the stability of the markets and their currency), the bloodless nature of the coup, and the world's mostly ho-hum attitude, suggest that most observers think this coup was okay; even desirable.

In fact, the deposed Prime Minister, who is now in London, was generally regarded as a corrupt and unsuitable leader. But he was democratically elected, a fact that the Bush Administration often suggests is the solution to political troubles elsewhere. I am a big fan of democratic elections, but I also understand the limits of that system. Some nations make bad choices (Iran in 1982....when the people democratically elected to give all their power to religious authorities) and some people aren't especially prepared to make good choices (the Philippines, Kenya, Russia, Bulgaria....this list goes on and on). Democratic cultures take time to develop and sustain and it won't just happen because the American president says it's a good thing.

But we haven't yet learned this lesson and countless Iraqi civilians and American soldiers serving in Iraq are paying the price for the Administration's ignorance. Honestly, there is just no excuse for it.