billybobthedog

I remember once driving along the road and seeing this man sitting at the roadside with a rope or perhaps it was a chain attached to him, my friend beside me in the car explained that the man I guess he was 30-40 years old was a mental health sufferer and that the alternative would be for him to be locked in a room, as the family probably had no idea what else to do with him. Basically he reminded me of a young kid on one of these retractable child harnesses. He was allowed enough free rope/chain to go out from the house and garden and sit in the middle of the pavement, but he couldn't reach the road and go in front of road traffic thereby avoiding him being hit by a car.

Not ideal, but I did think it was a lot better to be able to sit out watching the world go by (albeit with a restricting rope/chain) and have people stopping to talk to him, rather than the alternative of being locked in a room that could probably better called a cell.

It's very easy for us to moralise and pass judgment,whilst each case has it's own merits and issues and should be dealt with accordingly. But the bottom line is in this day and age people should be given better support to deal with these issues and for sure in no way is it acceptable that people feel that they have no alternative but to chain people up.

I know what you are saying, but I have never ever came across a country where people have their emotions restricted by this so called "Kreng Jai". They spend their lives repressed, cannot express distaste or anger in everyday life - it must be like living in a pressure cooker!

Then, probably one day it just gets too much - then they EXPLODE - and commit terrible devastation.

We farangs don't get this kind of presssure, if we did I suspect we too would boil over. We seem in our society to be able to have a <Snip> big bust up, get over it and patch things up - These Thais will hold a grudge for a thousand years!

It is all down to education, I truly believe if they were given a chance they would actually behave like everyone in an educated society. Yes nothing is perfect, there are nutcases everywhere, but the Thais cannot even protest against a simple mistake if the person that made the mistake "assumes" a higher pecking order - they simply walk away with their tails between their legs rather than sort things out. They probably go home and cast some sort of "Voodoo" on the offender rather than have a confrontaition. It seems crazy, maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but for me I like to clear the air and give a second chance.

Look at Columbine! They were Westerners -and that was pretty dam_n mad! So we are all capable of doing it - look at every war in the west! Look at the stupidity that is brewing now in Israel and the UK and USA against Iran!

Look at the crazy behaviour of elected politicians a few years back in Iraq! They lynched the very guy they sold the weapons too, they flogged Saddam poisons, Anthrax (The USA) used spy satellites to pinpoint positions (They - the Isrtaelis - fed co-ordinates to both sides as to where the troops were positioned - They had already put a hack in their software that they sold them) in Iran and Iraq, fed both sides the information until they killed as many of both armies as they could!

Look at that disgusting piece of FILTH Henry Kissinger - that antichrisht should have been put to death at birth, he was the one who advised America to support both Iran and Iraq at the same time during their war! What a piece of dirt that is barely human!

Wrong forum thread....sorry

I thought they'd already released them and given them all bus driver's licences...

Yeah, and appointed them government officials, Pu Yai Baans and Kamnans!

Here is a example -

http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&biw=1680&bih=899&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=0X_tZDmqrVqp6M:&imgrefurl=http://www.coconutsbangkok.com/news-1/poll-77-percent-approve-of-chuwits-casino-revelations&docid=OsJ8hMiFsXM-sM&imgurl=http://www.coconutsbangkok.com/images/NEWS/ChuwitRESIZE.jpg&w=667&h=401&ei=z0g-T_3hL9GIrAfm393OBw&zoom=1

"The most common type of mental illness suffered by 70 percent of Thais with a mental disorder is Schizophrenia." Is that 70% of the poulation? If so it seems a bit on the low side!

The money laundering laws that are already in place by the UK/US are really only lip service anyway as far as the average person is concerned (They require a statement of what the money is for if you transfer over 10K USD out of the country)

Basically, you transfer the cash from say UK to Thailand, you go to the bank, the money is on hold - the bank telephones the head office in Bangkok, they ask you what the money is for, as long as you say "new car" and not make the mistake of saying "Ya Ba" the money is released there and then - waste of time really. Just bureacracy and arse covering. (The UK/US is probably paying a load of civil servants to file pages of documents from the banks stating "new car".

It is not just DHL, the majority of the international transport brigade are in on this tax rip off! They probably split it 50/50 with the ever vigilant Thai customs.\

I received a few boxes of free T-shirts to give to a local school (They were from a friend in China) FEDEX/Thai customs wanted 17000 Baht duty - the declared value was 110 USD!

And they were going to be given away to the poorer kids where we live as a gift! SHITS!

That's like saying only France makes wine. You have much to learn, and it's all delicious.

I beg to differ - have you ever eaten American bread- it is more like a sweet cake- how revolting for a sandwich.

• Thai Social Protocol
  

Use every opportuinity possible in between playing on a smart phone to pick ones nose...

and sqeeze those spots!

Glad to know they have a decent cop up there now - the last one used to murder tourists and his wife.

The majority of the time if I hold a door open I get a smile and or a thank you so find the experiences of others posting here rather at odds with mine. Location, attitude, dress ... other reasons why different?

Just stand there with my shopping trolly parked in the centre of the aisle pretending no one else is around.

Ok, that sometimes does get on my nerves.

Have to agree with you there. Often I have had a smile and a nod of the head when holding a door open or letting someone into the traffic, it is pot luck however, as I would say on the road you are less likely to get a thank you. But it does happen, and in many cases it seems to be the ones in the "shoddier" vehicles who thank you - I think the obnoxious self important Thai in his fancy new car sort of expects the peasnats to make way for him/her.

Keeping jingkos at bay is akin to to attempting the same with ants.

They just are.

Eaxactly - you simply cannot - I had them completely ruin a printer I had - they laid eggs in the mechanism, and once they are hatched - they are smaller than your little finger and can easily get under the smallest crack under any door - cut off the food supply is you only hope, we have three cars that hang around here, but they will never sort these little guys out, they are far too quick.

Despite the lighthearted responses, and assuming you mean the small jinjok geckos, you're really not going to keep the little chaps out. They don't make that much mess unless you have millions. If you do have millions you need to remove their food source (mostly mozzies and small insects) and they will move on.

If you have the big tukgae (sp.) beasties you do need to remove them, carefully, they bite. Once again removing the food supply (bigger bugs) will discourage them from returning.

Depends on where you live Crossy, where I am I have quite a few of the large Toktaws - they don't go in the kitchen, they mainly stay outside, but these things can take care of a heck of a lot of pests!

Some of ours are pretty large - I am talking more than the length of my forearm - they don't come near me and I don't go near them - but I have seen one of these things eat one of those Jakep (the poisonous centipedes) like a piece of spaghetti - and the ceintipede was more than 8 inches long.

The little Jingjooks like you say will generally only go into the kitchen if there are insects and their shit can be a problem - (not as much as the toktaw - looks like a huge cat shit).

Best thing I have found is to make sure you have no little insects flying around inside your house, then at night, make sure you have a bright outside light and make sure you switch it on first - you can watch the action - they are fascinating things - I wouldn't be without them.

I have one Toktaw that is about 18" long - it has been around here for ages - it comes into my room where I have the computer - it watches me, I watch it - neither of has a problem, and it has never shit here once.

Why oh why did the dumb idiot not simply put it in the bank!

If you are into jigsaw puzzles and some time on your hands, maybe you could tape it all back together and get it exchanged at the bank! (If he hadn't torched it first though)

So, if you are a beggar or a homeless person - take St. Valentines as a holiday, then back to work on the 15th!

Good of the police to warn everyone!

There are no shortage of these 'blind' beggars in Patong, they usually drive to work, adopt their blind camoflauge and mislead people who are being charitable. It is not illegal so the police pick them up, drive then 3-5 Km's into the hills and drop them off. I am sure they have a network where other 'blind' beggars pick them up.

Not to mention the vast numbers of Thais pretending to work for some "Boy Scout" charity.

I was in Pattaya once, on the beach when one of these creatures approached - It assumed I neither spoke nor understood any Thai. The creature spoke to my Thai friend warning her not to say anything and that he was after 500 Baht - After his rehersed spiel and him showing me his "boy scout" charity badge - he was rather taken aback when I answered him in Thai - needless to say, face was lost and he scuttled away like a rat to fleece someone else.

There really are some morally devoid creatures on this earth.

"In The Land Of The Blind The One.............

Which James Bond movie was it with the "Tree blind mice"....you see them over in the markets over my way, I wouldn't give them 1 Satang!

Dr No ?

We have a winner. http://en.wikipedia....chmen_in_Dr._No

Thats the one!

Thanks - I thought it was The Man With The Golden Gun

The extreme is displayed in the movie "Slumdog Millionaire" - abducting kids, crippling them, then forcing them to work as beggars. This has happened in Thailand too and every time I see a cripple begging, I am thinking the only way I can stop others from the same predicament is to not give.

No one is crippling people to make beggars in Thailand. Those crippled beggars you see are Cambodian land mine victims. There is a limitless supply of cripples next door and new ones are being made all the time. Hundreds of people are killed or crippled by land mines every year in Cambodia. You are not contributing to making more crippled by giving so don't stop because of that. There aren't a whole lot of ways for them to make a living except by moving to Thailand to beg.

It is almost a monthly occurence up in Chiang Mai that kids are abducted. It used to be a lot more frequent a few years ago, (In my village many parents wouldn't even let there kids out on the street - They were terrified of those minibuses with the blacked out windows, as there was so much fear of them stealing kids) and it is well known that a lot of these kids end up maimed and put out to beg! (and admittedly - some were even sold by their own parents!) By the way, I have a ten year old for sale at the moment - he is a PITA, and eats me out of house and home plus the electric bills for his computer and PS3 are busting the bank - going cheap! Any offers?

MiG16

I totally agree with what you are saying, but most people will make a judgement on their experiences.

Like I said in the first place rightly or wrongly - if you met ten people from any country and the majority of the ones you met were no good, then it would give you an opinion based on that in itself.

I am not for one minute saying that Thais are bad people - On the contrary, in my experience of the Thais I have met they are pretty much OK.(yes they can be a bit "odd" at times - e.g. threatening to kill yourself if you can't have your own way)

But going by my own standards, of the number of French people I have met, I judge them as arrogant dislikeable people - it doesn't mean the entire country is bad (but I suspect it could be) Same with Americans - they are generally overweight obnoxious loudmouthed fools - but that is an opinion based on the ones I have met - thankfully I haven't had the opportunity to meet all of them.

It is simply the way people arrive at an opinion. Doesn't mean it is right.

If you were a tourist that had only been to Pattaya, you may well go home with an opinion that Thailand is a filthy sleazy prostitute ridden country, but if you went to Mae Hong Son, you would probably have a very different opinion.

Which James Bond movie was it with the "Tree blind mice"....you see them over in the markets over my way, I wouldn't give them 1 Satang!

And to those claiming majority of thai women are gold diggers - question: how many of the millions of thai women do you know?

If your answer is anything less than 30 million, or even close to 15 million? Discounting the kids and the old. I suggest you need to study and understand the word majority a lot better

And until you have had personal experience of anything close to 15 million thai women have tried to scam men, then I suggest you also stop posting such false negative allegations against the entire population.

Maybe it is just "The Majority" that they have experienced! How many million Thai women or other women have you experienced?

So unless you have experienced 30 million or 15 million excluding kids - then you too cannot provide an accurate statistical picture.

If I had been with 10 Thai women (which I haven't) and found 6 to be gold diggers then the assumption is correct.

http://www.stickmanbangkok.com/reader/reader291.html

I think we should follow her direction - we should all line up at Thai immigration and threaten to kill ourselves when we cannot remain with our families unless we have so much in the bank or so much income every month!

At least she now knows what it feels like to be treat like dirt!

Funny how they don't seem to like it when it applies to them! No problem for Farang...farang BIG MONEY...Ha Ha! Taste of your own country's medecine, and a spoon full of sugar won't make that any easier to swallow!