The lese majeste laws are simply the work of an autocratic leader and institution that positions itself above the law. Any ordinary Thai who might have been okay with these laws[1] during the reign of the last king (who did genuinely serve as a kind of emotional anchor for Thais, despite the self-enrichment of his family) certainly sees them for what they are: The frantic efforts of a demented, bizarre, spoiled boy-child to deflect criticism and cement power.

[1] Also remember, during the time of the last king, the laws were not really enforced. We all remember stories of black-out drunk Aussies pissing on a portrait of the king by a busy road getting arrested for it, but beyond those theatrical and scandalous episodes, the laws did not really affect many people until the new king took over.

But I believe it's very important that in Thai schools there are practices, even starting at kindergarten, to teach children to kneel or bow in front of the picture of the king daily. From what I understand children also sing the Thai national anthem at the start of the school day. Every day at 2 moments (09:00 and 17:00) many people stop what they're doing and stand in attention for a second while the national anthem plays on TV, radio in cinemas, etc... So you might understand that reference for the king is a big part of the education system here.

Also, most Thais just don't have the money to travel abroad. And likely also don't see much of other countries on television. News channels on TV might spend 95% of the news on happenings inside the country (e.g. visits of royal family to villages, etc...). As such, many Thais might not be aware that some countries operate very different from the Thai system.

Secondly you are not taught to question, and rather criticized for questioning. Not sure if any of you have been in a class with a Thai student, but I bet they all are quiet. In a family, you must never question your parents or you will be punished. These royal families (plural because there are many) have a pronoun like your royal father mother etc, so know your place.

3rd, they are very coupled to religious institutions and it's like a heresy to even talk about them. Any bad happened to those anti monarchy people are believed to have conducted bad karmas. It's stupid, but there are many stations that would revere them as the reincarnation of the Buddha.

Last for now but there are more, they have high influence on the military and Thai conglomerates. The king even has his own unit, brainwashed to just serve him. Thai conglomerates will marry their children with the royal families just to gain more power and respect.

There are more but gotta get back to work now.

The French, for example, were united by the King and the Church, until they were not. After the revolution they became very united by their nationalism, in the original sense of the word - shared language, values, traditions, symbols, customs, as well as by the ideals of republican democratic governance.

Historically most nations were united in Monarchy and/or Religion. Over time some switched over to either nationalism or an ideology like communism, and some even switched back to Monarchy later on.

A country that lost its uniting force can easily disappear into a fiery flash of a civil war or sink into a suffocating simmering of gradual societal disintegration. One might conclude that any attack on the Uniting Symbol is a heinous crime and needs to be stamped out as quickly as possible.

This is questionable from the modern western perspective, but I can see how one could make this argument in good faith from the other parts of the world. Especially from the countries where they do not (yet) have a different Uniting Symbol.