As poor Thais learn more about their rights, demand greater transparency and exhibit less tolerance for privilege-based behavior and extraconstitutional interference in government by the army and other quarters in the elite, the pressure to reconcile the needs of different sections of Thai society will increase.

That tipping point may yet be some years off. Yet the elite would do well to acknowledge its imminent arrival and prepare itself. If it faces up to this reality, there is still time to shape the outcome and secure a role — albeit a diminished one — for itself.

– Extracted from Colum Murphy, “Populism Erodes Thailand’s Old Order”, The Wall Street Journal, 5 June 2009.