The Cambodian border ado

Watching the unfolding Thai-Cambodian border conflict is like watching a surrealist comedy: Monty Python could not have come up with anything more absurd. In one statement, for instance, the PM promised to solve the land-title problems of those Thais who live in the disputed areas. I read it at breakfast and nearly choked to death on my egg: if he does that, then Thais living in the disputed areas will be better off than the rest of the nation -- 95% of Thais don't have a clear title to their land because the state has failed to build the necessary legal infrastructure where it is perfectly free to do so. Clearly, it's in their favor, then, if Cambodia should dispute not just 4.5 square kilometers but the whole of the country. But seeing my gym assistant this morning shake his fist at the pictures of Cambodian army on TV I realize that he at least has not stopped to think about it.