Today, Thais are to blame.
After years of growth, even with hiccups such as the year when our main gateway airport was closed, Thais saw no risk in spending - either through populist policies or under their own aspirational desires to become middle class.
After 17 years, that year of reckoning is apparently revisiting Thailand. Investment could slow for some time, as domestic demand and export outlook remains weak. It should serve as a lesson to all: nothing lasts, be it good or bad.