The Laughing Enemy

THE TRUTH CHRONICLES: PART 4 of 5 ← PREVIOUS: THE MAP THAT DOES NOT LIE The Laughing Enemy The Psychology of Hate and the Theft of Identity When the news broke that schools in Battambang were under fire, thousands of users on social media reacted not with shock, not with sadness, but with a "Laughing Emoji." 😆 😆 😆 How does a human being laugh at a child fleeing an airstrike? This reaction is not an accident. It is the result of decades of programmed nationalism. To understand the war on the border, we must understand the war in the mind. I. THE "LOST TERRITORIES" LIE The hate begins in the classroom. For nearly a century, Thai school textbooks have taught a myth known as "Siamese Irredentism." They teach their children that Cambodia, Laos, and parts of Malaysia were "stolen" from Thailand by European powers. They portray Thailand not as a conqueror, but as a victim. The Toxic Narrative: "Preah Vihear is ours. The French stole it. The Camb…