There is little evidence that the of of poorest peasants in Thailand has substantially improved over the past two decades, whereas economic indicators on a national scale show a steady, even impressive improvement over the same period. In looking around for somebody to blame for this quite remarkable non-improvement, I personallly would wish to disassociate myself from the chorus that commonly accuses the farmer. Blaming the victim rarely helps anybody. While it may be true that certain, peasants stubborn, or (from the eager development worker's point of view) lazy, and that communities say shy away from new technology in superstitious ignorance, you begin to happened periodically in Thailand, prices stump, the peasant is virtually no better off for his hard work and guess who gets the blame for that.