[Tlc] FW: The legendary Fred Riggs 1918 - 2008

[Charles Keyes]

I hope that someone will write a more extended intellectual biography about Fred. I want to note here that while Fred's contributions to political theory are perhaps not as significant as he would want to be remembered for, there is no question but that his contribution to the study of Thai government and politics remain seminal. I have found myself over the years constantly referring to Thailand: The Modernization of a Bureaucratic Polity (East-West Press, 1967) as a basic source work. The appendices alone remain very valuable and his analysis of the development of Thailand's bureaucratic polity remains fundamental for any scholar who wishes to understand why the Thai bureaucracy still retains a central role in Thai politics. Although his analysis was shaped by an older structural-functionalism, Fred was one of very social scientists writing about Thai politics in the 1960s who attempted to understand the historical processes that were at work in the Thai polity.

Biff (Charles Keyes)
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Michael Montesano 
  To: tlc at lists.ucr.edu ; Duncan McCargo ; jirawat saengthong ; patrick ; Yoshinori Nishizaki ; Erick White 
  Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2008 6:54 PM
  Subject: [Tlc] FW: The legendary Fred Riggs 1918 - 2008





   

  International Public Management Network Listserv 
  ---
  Dear IPMN Colleagues:

  We are deeply saddened to report that the distinguished and legendary comparative administration scholar Fred W. Riggs has passed away after a major stroke. Fred was 90 and died a week after the stroke in a hospital near his home in Honolulu, Hawaii, as reported to us by his daughter Wendy. A celebration of his life will be held in Hawaii (Oahu) on the 9th of March.

  There are no words to adequately express how much Fred Riggs contributed to the field of comparative public administration. He was the paterfamilias of CPA. And Fred Riggs was a giant not just in CPA but in PA, an amazing scholar whose quest for knowledge knew no bounds. Visit his website to gain some insight into his incredible curiosity, the vastness of his knowledge and the range of his accomplishments. 

  As a teacher, scholar and colleague Fred did so much for so many. Riggs was an intellectual colossus and personally, in every way, he was a gracious and great man. He lived a long and full life and was a productive thinker and scholar to the end of his days. Fred Riggs was one of a kind and although he has passed from this mortal coil he will not be forgotten. His legacy will live on.

  Respectfully,

  L. R. Jones
  for IPMN

  Lawrence R. Jones, Ph.D.
  George F. A. Wagner Professor of Public Management
  Graduate School of Business and Public Policy, NPS
  Monterey, CA 
  dukedmb at aol.com 



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