The 2007 Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand begins with a tawdry, obscene fabricaton. With Orwellian audacity, its preamble states: โดยที่การปกครองของประเทศไทยในระบอบประชาธิปไตยอันมีพระมหากษัตริย์ทรงเป็นประมุขได้ดําเนินวัฒนามากว่าเจ็ดสิบห้าปี. The official English translation is still more unequivocal, removing any language referring to the “development” of democratic institutions: “Thailand has been under the rule of democratic government with the King as head of the state for more than 75 years.” There you have it. No mention is made of aborted transitions and military takeovers. No significance is granted to the decades of repression Thailand experienced under the thumb of ghastly military dictators …