I remember a joke I used to find funny when I was a child:

• Why did the monkey fall out of the tree?
• Because he was shot.
• Why did the ostrich fall out of the tree?
• Because he was stapled to the monkey.
• Why did the elephant fall out of the tree?
• Because he thought it was a game.

I spent considerable time laughing every time that joke was told. Today it doesn’t seem quite so funny. After the bombings on New Year’s Eve, which we are still in the dark about, Bangkok has now descended into chaos, with bombs threats and suspicious packages sending waves of alarm across the public sector.

A soldier has his weapon, a reporter has hers at Victory Monument on New Year's Eve.
Paranoia is becoming the norm and little has been done to quell people’s fright. What’s most scary is that public uncertainty is being exploited by disgusting, ruthless individuals. Three bomb hoaxes were made against schools in Bangkok today. Children were sent home in flurries of confusion. This is fuelling the situation and making Bangkok feel even more tense than it should, given the circumstances.Bomb-like objects are popping up everywhere. There was one found inside Major Cineplex Rajoyothin. Bomb disposal officers are working around the clock. Central World was another place where there was a false alarm today when a bag was left inside a phone box. A further suspicious package was found near Chinatown and The Nation newspaper became the victim of the afternoon’s most notable hoax. From The Nation website:

“Listen carefully,” said an unknown caller. “I've planted three bombs inside buildings of Nation Group. I don't want to hurt people. I want to only to inflict damages to property. So, evacuate all people now. I did this because I was dissatisfied that Nation Group published reports damaging to Thaksin without verifying information whether Thaksin was behind the bomb attacks. Nation Group presented one-sided reports to frame Thaksin and always publish biased reports. I've timed the bomb to explode in three hours. So, evacuate people now.”

I was left shaking my head in disbelief when I read this from the Bangkok Post today:

According to National Police Office, more than 1,000 people have reported that they found suspicious objects that they were afraid could be an explosive on Wednesday alone, but none of them have proved real so far.

1,000 people? If you needed more evidence of the mindset of the general public in Thailand right now, this is it. People are walking around in this mess, unsure if they are about to be blown up or not.

It’s unclear whether or not any of the hoaxes today are related. If they are not then we are in the middle of something that seems to be escalating out of control. Nobody has stepped up to take responsibility for the bombings on Sunday. Surely somebody has to at some point. Something that elaborate has meaning behind it. Sky News reported that one man had been arrested on Sunday, but no further information has been given on this.

Techno' tags: Terrorism in Thailand, Bangkok bombings