Political Conversation in Khamkuenkaew police box

Sitting at the police box on the corner watching the traffic on a late Friday afternoon in Khamkuenkaew— School kids in blue shirts gather at the corner for drinks and chatter, then board buses, climbing on top and inside. Cars and motorcycles buzz by; more trucks than anything else—large trucks, small trucks, 4 door trucks, covered and open, loaded to the hilt and empty, trucks with several passengers, trucks with only one person. No bikes. What happened to bikes? Ah, there’s one—an old woman with two kids, one on front and one on back.

We are waiting for Supijit, our host. She called to say she’d be late, then called again, “still later.” (Jim and Martina gave us a cell phone to use--it comes in handy.) The police box is on the coolest corner, shaded by a grove of trees and shrubs out back. We asked if we could wait there and the policemen pointed to a picnic-like table and benches on the shady side. A toilet and sink near by. Great place to rest.

One of the policemen comes and sits with us. He speaks a little English. He asks the usual questions of where are you from, etc. We explain we are waiting for a teacher from the school. He is stripped down to his undershirt. Others wander in and out, at first I think out of curiosity and then realize they are going out back behind the shrubs for a purpose. Then they return to watch boxing on TV.

When the undershirted policeman feels comfortable with us, he asks, “You like Bush?” I'm not sure if he's referring to the bushes out back . . . then he says, “You like McCain or Obama?”

When we answer Obama, he says, “Hillary.”

“Are you for Hillary?” I ask.

“Yes,” he says, “a woman. Good to have woman.” That's a surprise, but there is great reverence here for the queen. I wasn’t sure it held over to American elections, however. Katie and I assure him we'd like a woman too, just not Hillary. Then he says, “Jimmy Carter, my favorite.” That’s not something we hear at home much. It makes you realize we don’t always see the world the way others do.

Supijit pulls up and the brief political conversation at the police box in Khamkuenkaew comes to an end.