By Jaimie Seaton

Yesterday, when Thailand’s Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej declared emergency rule, I took a break from reporting, ran to the store and grabbed batteries and candles. After all, anti-government demonstrators calling themselves the People’s Alliance for Democracy were threatening chaos. They said they’d cut water and power, halt rail and air traffic and organize sympathetic trade unions to stage a crippling general strike. I awoke the next morning expecting gridlock, blackouts and chaos on Bangkok’s streets. But the threats turned out to be empty. The biggest news: one Thai Airways flight was canceled because the crew said it wasn’t 'feeling ready' to fly. Otherwise, it was a perfectly normal day. As the Bangkok Post put it, “the strike fizzled.”