A Measure (perhaps) of Progress

This will make a lot more sense to any of you who have been to Cambodia than it will to those of you who have never visited the SE Asian country. Cambodia: the country that avoided the United States involvement (except for getting bombed) in the Viet Nam war which meant that it wouldn't get anything modern until the late 20th century. Cambodia: a country in which between one and two million people were executed in a "cleansing" action during the 1980's; and it took until this year for the world to officially put the perpetrators of this holocaust on trial. Cambodia: a country with one of the highest incidences of AIDS and poverty in the world. Cambodia: halfway around the world and even futher apart from us that that.
Cambodia celebrated its first professional golf tournament this week. Siem Reap was the host city to The Cambodia Open, won by Bryan Saltus who got $47,550 for his efforts. Tiger woods gets that just for considering to play an event! Golf in Cambodia? You know the Japanes businessmen cannot be far behind since all the tee times are so booked in Japan that they had to buy Pebble Beach a few years ago.
Actually, I suspect that this is part of a mission to attract people other than Gary Glitter to Cambodia. He, of course, is languishing in a Thai jail after being conviced of having sex with children...a popular pasttime, it would seem. Anyway, he was kicked out of the U.S., Britain, and Cambodia before that escapade.
So, now we're expected to see Cambopdia in a new light. Tourism is flourishing, and the place I visited is not the same...or is it?
Check out this link, if it's still up when you read this:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/offbeat/2007/11/28/vo.boy.cambodia.snake.ap

This little kid in in a village in Cambodia has a snake for a pet...not just ANY snake: a 20-ft python! The video shows the kid literally riding the huge snake, grabbing it by the head and looking it in the "face" like one would a puppy. The adults all stand around bemused while the kid plays, and the snake wanders in and out of the house. It might be a Cambodian joke: "Where does a 20-ft python live? Anywhere it wants to!"
Personally, I think it's sizing the kid up for breakfast. I know it's not there to squeeze oranges for juice.
Cambodia: golf tournaments and deadly monster snakes for pets. Imagine the alligators lying in wait around the water hazards on the golf course!