The End of the World?

Maybe the Government House seizure and stubborn PM Samak Sundaravej are blessings in disguise.

Normally, a country obsessed with superstition and doomsday predictions, Thailand is going through a period of global "end-of-the-world" anxiety without a care.

A controversial experiment in Switzerland is just three days away. Alarmists warn it can suck the whole world into extinction in a heartbeat. But, people here are more worried about what's happening in politics in a future that, hypothetically, might never come.

In fact, many here are unaware of the Large Hadron Collider - a gigantic scientific instrument near Geneva, where it spans the border between Switzerland and France about 100 metres underground - or what it will do this Wednesday.

To be fair, you need to be brilliant to really understand the undertaking. There's no laymen's explanation for it but here's how it goes: Two beams of subatomic particles called hadrons - either protons or lead ions - will travel in oppo¬site directions inside the circular accelerator, gaining energy with every lap. Physicists will use the LHC to recreate the conditions just after the Big Bang, by colliding the two beams headon at very high energy.

It has been dubbed one of the greatest scientific experiments, one that means "our understanding about the universe is about to change…"

But a longstanding controversy - that the project could create black holes that could expand beyond control and suck our planet into oblivion - was refuelled last week and made frontpage headlines.

Most, if not all, top scientists in the world dismiss these fears, saying even if a black hole were to be created it will be so small it will evaporate in no time.

People here have been spared the debate and fear. The most significant newsmedia contribution was a mention on television news, drowned out by Samak and the PAD.

Television host Kitti Songhapat brought the matter to our attention. He says the world is safe.

The Khao Sam Miti says there was a "small incident" with the machine two years ago.

"I'm quite sure experts from US and Europe must have evaluated everything and would never go for it if they thought it wasn't safe," he says.

But what if it wasn't? In theory, there'll be nothing left to worry about.

Bangkok governor hopeful Leena Jangjanja says speculation of the end of the world won't stop her chasing her dream. "I was imprisoned and there's nothing worse than that. Saying that the earth will be swallowed is a joke. I don't care," she adds.

Chuwit Kamolvisit says people should be worried about things closer like traffic congestion and floods.