Dear Readers of Selecting Stones,
Results returned yesterday from Bhutan’s 2013 parliamentary elections, revealing a surprise upset victory by the opposition People’s Democratic Party over the ruling Peace and Prosperity Party. The implications of this political upset for the small Himalayan kingdom remain to be seen, but for now it seems that the main contested issues concerned foreign relations with India and the rising cost of kerosene.
Back in February of this year, the scientific editors of Selecting Stones released a story on the uncertain future facing the Bhutanese monarchy, noting in particular the growing intensification of irreconcilable contradictions stemming from the fourth Dragon King’s opposing commitments to “gross national happiness” on the one hand and democratic progress on the other. In the eyes of many outside observers, Bhutan has indeed been a much more harmonious place to live and a much more enticing destination for Western tourists to visit in the aftermath of the harsh but politically popular decision to expel a fifth of its population back in the early 1990s, namely the unenlightened Nepalese, which the government claimed was a necessary move in order for the dragon monarchy to avoid the same fate that befell the Kingdom of Sikkim in 1975.
The Fifth Dragon King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk
Whether or not the scientific editors themselves have played an important hand in directly influencing the outcome of these recent parliamentary elections in Bhutan is perhaps something of an open question. But just in case you haven’t noticed, a number of our latest world-historical investigations into the dialectical unfolding of the Cunning of Reason on the Indian subcontinent have in recent months been mysteriously reappearing on the front pages of various subsections of the New York Times, a few mere weeks after they were initially released on Selecting Stones. We cite these two examples:
- February 24, 2013, on Selecting Stones: “Fuck Happiness, Fuck Shangri La, and If You’re Down with the King of Bhutan, Then Fuck You Too”
- June 29, 2013, in the New York Times: “Bhutan Is No Shangri-La”
- March 29, 2013, on Selecting Stones: “The World’s Richest Hindu Gurus: 2013”
- May 26, 2013, in the New York Times: “Amma’s Multifaceted Empire, Built on Hugs”
Are the decidedly non-scientific editors of the New York Times directly stealing material from the scientific editors of Selecting Stones? It could be the case, though as of this hour, we unfortunately lack any proof that would hold up in a courtroom battle over so-called intellectual property rights. Nevertheless, these findings of course speak once again to both the high quality and to the world-historical timeliness of our Work – if there is a more fearless champion of the free press, we would love to know about it.
The interesting thing about the outcome of Bhutan’s elections, of course, is that for the last several years the People’s King, Jigme Khesar Namgyel, has already been claiming credit for accomplishing the successful transformation of the Kingdom of Bhutan into a meaningful democracy. So how will he respond now to losing power over the parliament (i.e., how will he feel about democratic elections now that they might actually mean something)? Our prediction is that the Kingdom of Bhutan is about to become decidedly less democratic, but more happy. This is naturally a perfect recipe for more tourism dollars, since Americans love to pay thousands of dollars to travel to the ends of the earth just in order to meet people who are even more confused and uncertain about things than they themselves are.
Sincerely,
Your Scientific Editors
