"It [satire] has reduced Thaksin to an object of ridicule and caused him to lose his high stature," said Ari-shai Akraudom, a lecturer in mass communications at Bangkok University.

Ari-shai presented a paper on the topic at the university's

Faculty of Political Science as part of a two-day seminar on "Imagining Community and Nation Without (Cultural) Borders".

Ari-shai said that often, laughing out of enjoyment was a door to discovering the truth, which included the truth about the current political situation.

A number of effective examples employed by anti-Thaksin protesters earlier in the year includes a parody of a "The Lord of the Rings" film poster into "The Lord of the Chair" with the motto:

"One chair can rule them all", which is a reference to Thaksin's insistence on clinging on to the premiership.

"The chair represents the power instead of the ring," Ari-shai

said.

Another example is this song:

"The moon emerges from the sky.

"Women can bear bastards, and their winning lottery number must come out.

"But if you want me to get out - no way!

"The petrol has yet to run out, our cars have yet to be washed, so why do you want me to wash my hands [of politics]?

"No way!"

Ari-shai said the right timing and location of parody and satire were important for them to be effective.

He played down concerns that some people who did not

support Thaksin might find some of the parody and satire dehumanising.

He said people who were cooking up ways to ridicule and oppose Thaksin "are just joking".

"Thais can take pleasure in anything," he said.

Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation