It’s not a great time to be running Korea — either Korea. Kim Jong-Il reportedly had a stroke and then surgery. South Korea and the world watch anxiously.

And more from restive Thailand, which just ousted its Prime Minister:

More than an attack on the sitting government, the protests grow out of deep political and social divides that have hardened over the past three years and threaten the stability of Thailand.

The protesters who are now camped in the mud at Government House represent the latest turn in a long-running struggle between democratic ideals and a traditional, hierarchical society that feels disenfranchised by democratic change.

This time, whatever the outcome of the confrontation, analysts say democracy is likely to suffer.

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