Let me copy and paste a comment I wrote earlier today on a separate thread, with some minor edits:
Speaking as an Asian person who has lived for over 10 years in Southeast Asia, the mainstream Western view of that part of the world is stunningly simplistic and ignores the fact that the average Burmese citizen does not necessarily view the military as a bad thing. In fact, when the military junta first came to power in 1962, they were largely supported by the citizens who were dissatisfied with the elected government at the time, which they perceived to be weak, corrupt, and not prepared to solve the country’s problems. Even in 2014, a poll of Burmese citizens showed that 84% of them hold “very favorable” or “favorable” opinions of the military, ranking it ahead of the government and media.
This narrative of “military bad, democratically elected government good” really shows Westerners’ lack of knowledge of the real situation. I am not implying that the Burmese military is perfect, but they are definitely not as awful as the way they are portrayed in Western media. The most common opinion among the Burmese is that while they acknowledge that life was far from perfect under military rule, they also view their military as essential to maintaining law and order, and believe it plays an important role. The Burmese have a long and proud military history that dates back to the 9th century, when the Burmese imperial army was one of the major military forces in Southeast Asia, and they accordingly consider it an important part of their heritage.
Thanks so much. I have been trying to reassure people that the Myanmar military is very professional and very anti corruption but as an American, my words only carry so much weight. Btw, I have been following Southeast Asian politics for 30 years. US news coverage is worse than bad; no understanding what so ever.
Americans tend to think everyone thinks like them. And many Americans think militaries are evil because they have been conditioned to think that way. They are incapable of understanding the pride that soldiers have in serving with honor and professionalism. They don't get that many cultures have a proud and glorious military history.
Yes, there is often a lot of cultural and historical context that is completely missing from these overly simplistic Western narratives. Please feel free to save a copy of my comment and pass it on to others if you wish.
Thanks, I will do that. Btw, I've known not to believe the papers since 1972. I've always looked for alternate sources of information. I'm fortunate in that I have and have had friends and close coworkers from all over the world, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, etc. I like to learn so I have always asked a lot of questions. Btw, I'm also ex-military and generally have a great respect for all soldiers.
Thanks for that background. True, our besotted MSM covers only the surface matters and then spins their bias on that, such that we really don't know what's going on around the world unless we dig, dig, dig. Good summary!
Let me copy and paste a comment I wrote earlier today on a separate thread, with some minor edits:
Speaking as an Asian person who has lived for over 10 years in Southeast Asia, the mainstream Western view of that part of the world is stunningly simplistic and ignores the fact that the average Burmese citizen does not necessarily view the military as a bad thing. In fact, when the military junta first came to power in 1962, they were largely supported by the citizens who were dissatisfied with the elected government at the time, which they perceived to be weak, corrupt, and not prepared to solve the country’s problems. Even in 2014, a poll of Burmese citizens showed that 84% of them hold “very favorable” or “favorable” opinions of the military, ranking it ahead of the government and media.
This narrative of “military bad, democratically elected government good” really shows Westerners’ lack of knowledge of the real situation. I am not implying that the Burmese military is perfect, but they are definitely not as awful as the way they are portrayed in Western media. The most common opinion among the Burmese is that while they acknowledge that life was far from perfect under military rule, they also view their military as essential to maintaining law and order, and believe it plays an important role. The Burmese have a long and proud military history that dates back to the 9th century, when the Burmese imperial army was one of the major military forces in Southeast Asia, and they accordingly consider it an important part of their heritage.
Thanks so much. I have been trying to reassure people that the Myanmar military is very professional and very anti corruption but as an American, my words only carry so much weight. Btw, I have been following Southeast Asian politics for 30 years. US news coverage is worse than bad; no understanding what so ever.
Americans tend to think everyone thinks like them. And many Americans think militaries are evil because they have been conditioned to think that way. They are incapable of understanding the pride that soldiers have in serving with honor and professionalism. They don't get that many cultures have a proud and glorious military history.
Yes, there is often a lot of cultural and historical context that is completely missing from these overly simplistic Western narratives. Please feel free to save a copy of my comment and pass it on to others if you wish.
Thanks, I will do that. Btw, I've known not to believe the papers since 1972. I've always looked for alternate sources of information. I'm fortunate in that I have and have had friends and close coworkers from all over the world, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, etc. I like to learn so I have always asked a lot of questions. Btw, I'm also ex-military and generally have a great respect for all soldiers.
Thanks for that background. True, our besotted MSM covers only the surface matters and then spins their bias on that, such that we really don't know what's going on around the world unless we dig, dig, dig. Good summary!