Showing 1 - 10 of 2,009
'Paris of the East' turns 'Concrete Oven'
Oped, Drew B Mallory, Published on 29/04/2026
» If you stand on the banks of the Khlong Saen Saep today, near the glossy high-rises of Wireless Road, you are witnessing a battle for the soul of Bangkok. On one hand, you see the future: concrete embankments and new walkways, part of a government push to connect the city in the vein of European capitals or our neighbour, Singapore. On the other hand, you see the ghosts of the past: fresh stumps of rain trees that stood for decades, severed to make way for the very cement intended to "beautify" the city. It is a paradox that defines modern Bangkok. We are a city desperate to be green, yet addicted to grey.
Donald Trump and his tragedy of errors
Oped, Joseph E. Stiglitz, Published on 29/04/2026
» It is true, as Alexander Pope once said, that to err is human. But while everyone is fallible, some humans are more prone to error than others. The history of authoritarian and absolutist political rule is rife with figures whose mistakes proved calamitous not just for themselves but for the societies they ruled.
A bridge too far
Oped, Postbag, Published on 29/04/2026
» Re: "Singapore eyes bridge potential", (BP, April 28) & Land Bridge plan due for cabinet", (BP, April 26). PM Anutin Charnvirakul says the proposed southern Land Bridge project is suddenly vital due to a temporary shift in global trade routes. Of course, such a quickly grabbed upon straw is put forth by politicians in their blind adoration of public–private partnerships, the mother of all graft mechanisms. What else have they got?
Land Bridge not viable
Oped, Editorial, Published on 28/04/2026
» The Southern Land Bridge project -- the Thai government's long-standing plan to build a logistics corridor linking the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea -- is back on the agenda.
The deafening silence about offshore wealth
Oped, Frederik Obermaier & Bastian Obermayer, Published on 28/04/2026
» When John Doe, the anonymous whistleblower behind the Panama Papers, approached us, he handed us an opportunity. When the resulting investigation into the offshore finance industry was published on April 3, 2016, the world was handed a test. As investigative journalists, we seized the opportunity. Sadly, the world has failed the test.
The art of speaking English badly in Africa
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 28/04/2026
» It is a matter of chronic surprise that politicians, otherwise well-trained in saying just the right thing for the audience they are addressing, forget that whatever they say can be heard everywhere. Right away. By anybody who cares to listen, including journalists always hungry for the next story.
The global AI threat has arrived
Oped, S Alex Yang and Angela Huyue Zhang, Published on 24/04/2026
» Anthropic's new artificial intelligence (AI) model, Claude Mythos Preview, has alarmed business leaders and policymakers around the world because of its extraordinary ability to find and exploit vulnerabilities in major operating systems and web browsers. Even the Trump administration, which has feuded with Anthropic in recent months over certain military uses of its models, now seems keen to work with the company to protect critical government infrastructure from cyberattacks.
Trump's pressure campaign fails to break Iran
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 24/04/2026
» TACO! Of course. US President Donald Trump always chickens out, but it's a feature, not a bug. If his threats aren't working, he will generally drop them and try something else.
Myanmar's robbery of a democracy
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 24/04/2026
» Five long years after Myanmar's military seized power on 1 Feb 2021, what has taken place in recent weeks amounts to a delayed fait accompli. Led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, then commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the coup diverged from its traditional playbook seen in 1962 and 1988, when tanks rolled and the military ruled by brute force. This time, the takeover nearly unravelled amid a nationwide uprising that evolved into a civil war, waged by an armed and determined resistance comprising the civilian-led National Unity Government (NUG), the People's Defence Forces (PDFs), and a constellation of Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs).
Bangkok gets better
Oped, Postbag, Published on 24/04/2026
» Re: "What's up, governor?", (Editorial, April 23). The editorial presents a cautious view of Chadchart Sittipunt's tenure, but risks overlooking the scale of everyday improvements across the city.