The CCTV footage of a nine-year-old boy chasing his teacher with a machete through a primary school in Sakon Nakhon should ring serious alarm bells for the whole nation.
Terrified children screamed and ran for safety, with some bursting into tears. Fortunately, nobody was physically injured during the June 12 explosive tantrum. A janitor managed to calm the seething child and persuade him to put down the weapon. The teacher suffered a panic attack while recounting the incident.
Yet amid the shock, one uncomfortable truth risks being overlooked. This was not simply the story of a violent child. It was the story of a system that failed long before the boy picked up the lethal blade.
