Mass Shooting ... In Thailand

The New York Post is reporting that a teen in Thailand killed his grandparents and then went to the Debsirin Nonthaburi School in Bangkok where he killed 6 more people, plus himself.  Fifteen people were injured. It appears that the teen used a semi-auto pistol, which is strange because in Thailand you have to be at least 20 years old to obtain a permit to possess a firearm; and you have to undergo a thorough background check in order to get a permit. It is also illegal to carry in public without a permit with heightened penalties for carrying at certain locations such as schools. 

    The Post goes on to relate: 

    It is the second school shooting in Thailand this year after a teacher died and a student was injured in the south of the country in February.

[snip]

    Gun ownership and gun violence are not uncommon in Thailand, which has seen a series of deadly shootings in the past six years, with children among the victims.

    Thailand’s worst mass killing by a single perpetrator in its recent history took place in 2022, when a former policeman ran amok in a three-hour gun-and-knife attack in the northeast that killed 36 people including 22 children stabbed as they slept at a daycare center.

    A gunman killed five people including security guards and a vendor at a Bangkok market in July 2025 before turning the gun on himself, while a teacher died in the southern city of Hat Yai in February this year when a shooter opened fire at a school where she worked.

    In 2020, a soldier killed 29 people in a shooting rampage in Nakhon Ratchasima. 

    And in 2023, a 14-year-old used a modified handgun to kill two people and wound five others at a luxury Bangkok shopping center.

    After the 2023 shooting, Anutin, who was then serving as interior minister, ordered a raft of gun control measures, including a short-term ban on new licenses, import restrictions, and banning of people under 20 years from shooting ranges.

    Longer-term measures also included a medical certificate assessing the mental health and psychological condition of gun owners as well as a specified validity period for some gun licenses.

And, of course, the knee-jerk response from politicians is to impose even more gun laws.  The thing here is that gun laws will not stop someone intent on killing others--they will obtain firearms through other means (avoiding the permitting process) or select a different means of killing (which is why we see more knife/machete attacks and vehicular attacks in Europe). Rather, all the laws do is disarm the victims. 

Earthquake Strikes Japan's Kyushu Island

From the Asahi Shimbun: "7.1 magnitude quake leads to casualties, fires in Kumamoto."

    A major earthquake that registered a maximum seismic intensity of 7 rocked Kumamoto Prefecture at 4:27 p.m. on July 28, causing casualties, damaging or destroying infrastructure and disrupting transportation.

    Tsunami warnings were issued for the Ariake and Yatsushiro Sea areas, but they were lifted at 6:10 p.m.

    The Japan Meteorological Agency reported the hypocenter of the quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.1, was at a shallow depth of about 10 kilometers.

    The main quake was followed by a series of aftershocks, including one with an intensity of lower 5 at 4:29 p.m., and two more with intensities of 4 at 4:39 p.m. and 4:59 p.m.

    The maximum intensity of 7 was recorded in Uki city and Hikawa town in Kumamoto Prefecture.

    An intensity of upper 6 was felt in Kumamoto city’s Minami Ward as well as in the cities of Yatsushiro and Uto, and the towns of Misato and Mashiki.   

 There was damage to some buildings, including a shopping mall that suffered a partial collapse, and roads and at least one bridge. The Daily Mail has more photographs of the damage. Several people died in the mall collapse, but I haven't seen any real estimates as to the number of dead or injured. My guess is that it will be a fairly small number due to the building codes which take into account the earthquake risk.  

Dozens Killed In Pakistani Strikes Against Afghanistan

 War is breaking out everywhere now that the U.S. is retreating. "Dozens of civilians killed in Pakistani air strikes on Afghanistan, officials say"--France24. 

U.S. Sub Sinks Iranian Warship

The New York Post reports that a U.S. submarine sunk a heavily armed Iranian warship with a torpedo--the first such torpedo attack since WWII. The video is quite impressive with how the explosion lifts half the ship out of the water. Sri Lanka dispatched ships to rescue survivors, recovering 32 survivors out of an estimated crew of 180. "The ship, which was listed as taking part in a naval drill held in the Bay of Bengal Feb. 18-25, was equipped to carry one helicopter and was armed with heavy guns, surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and torpedoes," the Post reports. The ship was sunk off the southern coast of Sri Lanka which would put it about 3-hours by air from the joint US-UK base on the island of Diego Garcia. 

NY Post: Rogue Elephant Kills Nearly Two Dozen People In India

From the New York Post: "Rogue elephant kills nearly two dozen people in 10-day rampage through eastern India." An additional 15 people have been injured. Per the article:

    The animal is believed to be in a state of musth — a natural but dangerous hormonal condition in male elephants marked by a surge in testosterone that can last weeks or even months.

    During musth, bulls become extremely aggressive, restless and unpredictable, often roaming long distances and attacking without warning.

Authorities have been unsuccessful in tranquilizing the animal, and "[l]ocal authorities say the elephant has yet to be captured as it continues to evade teams by moving swiftly through dense forest and slipping across remote villages under cover of darkness."

Bear Mauls Security Guard In Japan

"Bear Mauls Security Guard at Train Station Restroom in Japan amid Alarming Rise in Fatal Attacks"--People. 

    According to local media outlets Kyodo News and NHK, the 69-year-old, who is a security guard, was mauled by the bear just as he was about to exit the restroom near a train station north of Tokyo.

    Though he fell, the man managed to fight back and kick the bear, which caused it to flee, per Kyodo News. The incident happened in the early hours of Friday, Nov. 28, with the man running to a nearby police box at 1:20 a.m. local time to report the attack.   

Indian Fungus Among Us

 Yesterday I had posted about a fungal STD spreading in the U.K. where the origin of the disease was Southeast Asia. A reader, in the comments, asked if I had any information about the demographics of the people with the disease. I couldn't find that information, but I did come across the following from a paper entitled: "Trichophyton indotineae—An Emerging Pathogen Causing Recalcitrant Dermatophytoses in India and Worldwide—A Multidimensional Perspective."

Trichophyton (T.) indotineae is a newly identified dermatophyte species that has been found in a near-epidemic form on the Indian subcontinent. There is evidence of its spread from the Indian subcontinent to a number of countries worldwide. 

So while I don't have the demographics of those seeking treatment in the UK, it is clear that the disease comes from India. Another example of how diversity is a strength. 

October Was Deadliest Bear Attack Month In Japan

This is what happens to a disarmed population. From the New York Post: "Japan suffered deadliest month of bear attacks in history, with 7 deaths and 88 maulings in October." That was just October. The article goes on to report that for a six month period beginning in April, there were a total of 12 people killed and 196 mauled by bears. Moreover, "[t]he incidents have occurred in 21 of the country’s 47 prefectures and have spread from mostly rural areas to now plaguing urban centers."

Tit-for-Tat Bombings?

Just a couple points:

• On November 10, a car explosion in Delhi killed 8 and injured 20.  The article reports:

    A slow-moving vehicle was seen approaching the landmark attraction in India’s capital — with it exploding after coming to a stop at a red light.

    A former owner of the car has been arrested, authorities said without elaborating, according to NDTV. There were three people in the vehicle at the time of the blast, the BBC reported. 

* * * 

    The explosion has left the nation in shock, especially since it occurred near the iconic Red Fort landmark. 

    Located just five miles from Indian parliament, the 17th Century monument attracts thousands of visitors every day and is home to the Independence Day speeches given by India’s prime minister every year.  

• And then, on November 11,  a suicide bomber detonated a bomb in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, killing 12 and wounding 27. Pakistan is blaming the Taliban for the attack, but the article also notes that "Islamabad says that the Pakistani Taliban and other militants are based in Afghanistan, with the support of India." "'India unequivocally rejects the baseless and unfounded allegations being made by an obviously delirious Pakistani leadership,' said India's foreign ministry" according to the story. What makes this attack different from other attacks carried out by the Taliban in Pakistan is that "Pakistani Taliban militants have in recent years focused attacks on security forces. Civilians had not been hit in Islamabad for a decade, according to Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a group that tracks attacks."

Myanmar Uses Motorized Paragliders to Bomb Rebels

From the BBC: "At least 24 killed as army paraglider bombs Myanmar Buddhist festival." This is part of an ongoing civil war in Myanmar. The part that caught my attention is that the military led government used a paraglider to carry out the attack. The article very briefly explains:

     In a statement on Tuesday, Amnesty International said that the junta's use of motorised paragliders to attack communities was part of a "disturbing trend".

    BBC Burmese recently reported that the junta were increasingly opting for paramotors amid a lack of aircraft and helicopters, as well as jet fuel.

    International sanctions over the past few years have made it harder for Myanmar's rulers to procure military equipment - though the recent influx of technology from countries like China and Russia seems to have helped turned the tide. 

Japan: Going, Going, Go...

Japan continues its demographic decline with DW reporting: "Japan sees record drop in population in 2024". Per the article, Japan's population fell by 908,574 people in 2024. "This is the 16th straight year in which the Japanese population has shrunk, reducing it to 120.65 million people down from a peak of 126.6 million in 2009, according to the Internal Affairs Ministry." The article further states that Japan also saw births fall below 700,000 for the first time on record in 2024--the lowest number since records began to be kept in 1899. 

Video: Update on Thai-Cambodia Conflict

 This video has some updates on the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia which has seen Thailand capture some strategic territory and mobilize it air force and navy; while Cambodia apparently shelled Laos for reasons that are not clear. Outside of that the area, the video mentions fighting between Iranian forces and some sort of internal rebel group; and some notable updates from the Russian-Ukraine war.

 VIDEO: "BREAKING: Thailand MOBILIZES Full Military Force; Iran ATTACKED By Armed Insurgents | EnforcerNews" (21 min.) 

The Thai-Cambodian Conflict

 It seems that Thailand and Cambodia may be on the verge of war. The casus belli in this case are accusations by Thailand that Cambodia has been laying land mines along the border, but this appears to be a continuation of old disputes over the border. PBS News reports:

    The Southeast Asian neighbors have longstanding border disputes that periodically flare along their 800-kilometer (500-mile) frontier and usually result in brief confrontations, only sometimes involving the use of weapons. The last time a major armed confrontation over the issue took place was in 2011, causing 20 deaths.

    But relations have deteriorated sharply since a confrontation in May that killed a Cambodian soldier, and Thursday’s clashes were far bigger in scale and intensity than usual.

    The first clash Thursday morning happened in an area near the ancient Ta Muen Thom temple along the border of Thailand’s Surin province and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province. It caused villagers to scurry to shelter in concrete bunkers.

    The Thai army and Cambodia’s Defense Ministry each said the other side deployed drones before advancing on the other’s positions and opening fire. The two sides later used heavier weaponry such as artillery, causing greater damage and casualties, and Thailand said it responded to truck-mounted rockets launched by Cambodia with airstrikes.

    Thailand’s air force said it deployed F-16 jet fighters in two attacks on Cambodia. Nikorndej, the Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson, called it “an act of self-defense” in response to the Cambodian rockets.

    Cambodia’s Defense Ministry said the Thai jets dropped bombs on a road near the ancient P reah Vihear temple, which has been a site of past conflicts between the countries.

    Cambodian authorities distributed photos they claimed showed damage caused there, and the country’s Culture Ministry said it would pursue justice under international law, since the temple was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO, the U.N.’s cultural organization, and is a “historical legacy of the Cambodian people.”   

However, an article from Time Magazine suggests that it may be more than just territorial disputes at play here:

    For one, the Cambodian economy is not doing well, and Hun Sen may spy an opportunity for his unpopular son to demonstrate his leadership chops. Additionally, Hun Sen may want a diversion from recent scrutiny on Cambodia’s illicit businesses—including casinos, human trafficking, and scam centers—which according to some estimates account for up to 40% of GDP. Hun Manet’s failure to deal with the “scamdemic,” as the U.N. has dubbed it, has even led to calls for Cambodia to be added to a U.S. visa blacklist.

    Compounding matters, Paetongtarn’s government was making moves towards legalizing gambling in Thailand, which would undercut a key revenue stream for the Hun family and Cambodia more broadly. (Though such moves have been mooted for many years and never caused friction previously.)

 But Thailand has its issues:

The country only has an acting Prime Minister and acting defense minister, meaning authority over border matters has effectively been handed to an aggrieved and wounded armed forces. “This is a dangerous recipe,” says Thitinan. “On one hand, you have the Thai Army in charge. On the other hand, you have Hun Sen, who is going to keep provoking things.”

In the meantime, "[t]he Thai Health Ministry on Friday said more than 58,000 have fled from villages to temporary shelters in four affected border provinces, while Cambodian authorities said more than 23,000 people have evacuated from areas near the border."

Pakistan Decides to Take a Page From Israel's Playbook

The Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif purportedly stated: "If India attacks and Pakistan's existence is threatened, nobody will survive. We won't let any other country live on this planet either."

Pakistan Claims To Have Shot Down 5 Indian Jets

Pakistan claims to have shot down five Indian fighter jets, after India says it has struck 9 terrorist training camps overnight. "Both sides exchanged heavy artillery along their contested frontier into Wednesday. Pakistan reported 26 killed by Indian shelling, and India reported eight the other way." And although Pakistan denies that any of the sites targeted by India were terror camps, "[i]n a statement, Maulana Masood Azhar, a U.N.-listed terrorist in Pakistan, said today that 10 members in his family, including five children, have been killed in India’s strikes on Pakistan."

    The real fear is that the conflict could go nuclear. "Both possess roughly comparable nuclear stockpiles of around 170 warheads but while India maintains a 'no first use' doctrine, Pakistan harbours no such restraint - raising global alarm over where this latest exchange could lead." 

    In "Pakistan’s First-Use Nuclear Policy in Conflicts with India," Professor L. Ali Khan explains:

    There is a vast disparity between India and Pakistan regarding military assets and funding resources, as India has risen to be a top-10 economic power. India’s annual defense budget is USD $75 billion, whereas Pakistan’s is $7 billion. Per Global Firepower records, India has far more active personnel, total and fighter aircraft, helicopters, armored vehicles, fleet strength, and submarines. India has $627 billion in foreign reserves, and Pakistan has $13 billion. If a conventional war breaks out, India has significant resources to sustain a long war compared to Pakistan.

    In nuclear weaponry, however, according to the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, Pakistan commands a slight edge. Pakistan has over 200 nuclear warheads in 2025, which exceeds India’s nuclear warheads. Both nations have land-based, sea-based, and air-launched atomic payload capabilities. The production of Ababeel and Shaheen-III will empower Islamabad to have full-range coverage of India and its outlying territories. To fight India’s conventional might, Pakistan has developed “tactical” nuclear weapons to use on battlefields.

 He also predicts that "Pakistan will likely use a tactical nuclear weapon if India closes the rivers that supply water to Pakistan." He elaborates:

As a broad principle, Pakistan will likely use a nuclear weapon to survive as a nation-state. Pakistan will use the nuclear option, for example, if India, using its conventional forces, occupies a portion of Pakistan’s territory or threatens its economic survival by blocking its seaports, choking international trade. Pakistan will also likely use atomic weapons to deter India from jeopardizing Pakistan’s existential survival by withholding the waters of the Western Rivers.

A 2019 Rutgers study predicted that a nuclear war between India and Pakistan would lead to over 100 million deaths immediately, and mass starvation around the world as the soot and other material in the atmosphere would block out sunlight and cool the planet.   It would produce a famine for billions of people, according to the report. (Say, doesn't Bill Gates want to do the same thing to reverse global warming?)

    A war between Pakistan and India could be a boon for China (provided it doesn't go nuclear). China now supplies 81% of Pakistan's arms imports.  And since India is a major Chinese rival, both for control of key areas of the Himalayas and as an alternate manufacturing hub, a weakened India would only benefit China.

India Attacks Sites in Pakastan--Pakistan Vows Reprisals

Hot off the presses, the New York Post reports that India had attacked what it term terrorist sites in Pakistan. The article indicates that India hit "terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed." Multiple explosions were heard in those regions and "power was blacked out in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani Kashmir." India maintains that no Pakastani military sites were targeted. "A spokesman for Pakistan’s military told broadcaster ARY that India had attacked Pakistan with missiles in three places and that Pakistan would respond," the article related.

    The BBC also has coverage. Per these articles, Pakistan states that India fired missiles from inside its own territory which struck civilian areas inside Pakistan, and that claims that India struck terrorist camps are false. Pakistan has also fired artillery shells into India and India's forces are responding in "a calibrated manner".

Japan's Population Continues to Decline

The Daily Wire reports that Japan's birth rates have hit a new record low despite a $25 billion program to encourage women to have children. Per the article:

    Japan’s population plummeted for the 14th year in a row in 2024, declining by nearly 900,000 people despite massive government spending aimed at encouraging childbirth.

    New data released on Monday by Japan’s Internal Affairs Ministry shows the number of Japanese nationals declining by 898,000, marking the steepest annual decline since authorities began keeping records in the 1950s.

The article also notes:

The country’s fertility rate in 2023 stood at just 1.2 expected births per woman over her lifetime, far below the 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population, reflected in Japan’s child population declining to a record-low 11.2% of the population, 13.8 million, after a decline of 343,000 last year. 

Buy why aren't the Japanese having children? "Surveys show many younger Japanese are reluctant to marry or have families, discouraged by bleak job prospects, rising living costs outpacing salary growth, and corporate cultures incompatible with dual-income parenting." And:

Ryuichi Kaneko, demographer and professor at Meiji University, told the Asahi Shimbun newspaper: “I believe one of the reasons Japan’s declining birthrate has become especially severe is that, in the postwar period, the country built a society that prioritized economic activity to an extreme degree.”

I've noted before that the only populations in developed countries (and even many "third world" countries) that have fertility rates above replacement levels are those that are highly religious. Not just "kinda religious" but with high levels of religiosity. It may be a matter of hope in the future, feelings of duty, or just faith in a higher power, but whatever it is, religiosity is the key. And, in this regard, I would note that unadulterated capitalism does not care about God or religion anymore than does communism. What we need is a religious revival in the West. 

    But this is where the Devil is in the details, for what better way to ensnare men than for the Devil to drive us into a misery so great that people will beg for anyone to save them, even if it turns out to be the Anti-Christ. 

VIDEO: "Money Power is Destroying Everything"
Richard The Fourth (9 min.)

Huge Earthquake Hits Thailand and Myanmar

From the New York Post: "Thousands feared dead after powerful earthquake rocks Thailand and Myanmar — toppling buildings and leaving behind hundreds of miles of destruction." From the lede:

    Thousands are feared dead after a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocked Southeast Asia on Friday, bringing down a towering skyscraper in Thailand and toppling buildings, including a mosque, in neighboring Myanmar.

    Harrowing scenes emerged of bodies being lined up in the rubble as rescuers scoured for survivors from the midday quake, whose epicenter was detected near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city.

    Although the extent of death and destruction wasn’t immediately clear, the US Geological Survey (USGS) issued a red alert — estimating that deaths could range between 1,000 and 10,000.

Also:

The destruction spread hundreds of miles from the epicenter, including in neighboring Thailand, where an under-construction skyscraper crashed down in the capital Bangkok, killing at least eight people, Thai authorities said. 

[Update] The magnitude of the earthquake has been upgraded to 8.2.

Chinese Started Cultivating Rice In Order To Make Beer?

Study Finds reports on how a "10,000-year-old beer recipe reveals how alcohol shaped human civilization." The article indicates that researches have uncovered evidence of brewing in China’s Lower Yangzi River valley some 10,000 years ago. "These findings not only push back the timeline of alcohol production in the region," according to the article, "but also suggest that our ancient ancestors may have been motivated to cultivate rice not just for food but for brewing beer." 

    What they found [when studying the pottery recovered] was remarkable: evidence of an early beer-making process that used rice, various grains, acorns, and lily bulbs, along with something called a “qu starter” – a fermentation agent containing mold and yeast that’s still used in Chinese brewing today.

    This discovery is particularly significant because it coincides with the early stages of rice domestication. ...

Interesting Times: South Korean President Declares Martial Law

Update #2: Newsweek is reporting that the South Korean President has lifted martial law.

Update: "Chaos in South Korea: Civilians clash with military and choppers land on parliament as president stuns the world by declaring MARTIAL LAW, claiming lawmakers sympathetic to Kim Jong Un are subverting parliament"--Daily Mail. Main points:

• South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol's "popularity has also declined as of late amid various scandals in his inner circle, with the opposition seeking to impeach cabinet members over failure to investigate Yoon's wife on corruption and influence-peddling allegations."
• "... South Korea's military proclaimed that under martial law, parliament and other political gatherings that could cause 'social confusion' would be suspended and anyone found to violate the regulations could be arrested without a warrant."
• Although South Korean law requires martial law to lifted if a majority of the National Assembly vote to do so, the South Korean military is ignoring the law (and a majority vote in the Assembly), saying "it will maintain martial law until it is lifted by Yoon himself." 
• The military command has also banned any demonstrations and meetings of any political bodies.
• "Thousands of doctors who have been striking for months over government plans to expand the number of students at medical school have also been ordered to return to work within 48 hours."
  

Original Post:

From the New York Post: "South Korea President Yoon declares martial law in unannounced TV address." The article begins:

    South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday declared martial law in an unannounced late-night address broadcast live on YTN television, claiming he would eradicate “shameless pro-North Korean anti-state forces.”

    He did not cite any specific threat from the nuclear-armed North, instead focusing on his domestic political opponents.

    The surprise move sent shockwaves through the country, which had a series of authoritarian leaders early in its history but has been considered democratic since the 1980s. The Korean unit of currency, the won, was down sharply against the US dollar.

    The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    Yoon said he had no choice but to resort to such a measure in order to safeguard constitutional order, saying opposition parties have taken the parliamentary process hostage to throw the country into a crisis.

It appears to be a showdown over domestic political issues:

Yoon cited a motion by Lee’s Democratic Party [an opposition party] this week to impeach some of the country’s top prosecutors and its rejection of a government budget proposal.