kmart

The youth don't need "saving", they need only educating. Instill a few ethics; principles; and teach them how to think for themselves, for a change.

Raising the price of buying alcohol to 25yo is utterly ridiculous. Stupid, typical "top-down" authoritarian approach to everything.

Labour isn't cheap here anymore, if this country wants to start being competitive; productive; and stop being a dysfunctional laughing stock, then its about time the education system in this country was dragged out of the prehistoric tar pit it blundered into ages ago.

It is indeed an individual thing, but as a general rule Thais treat th their enviroment like a rubbish tip.

No, I'll correct that.

They do not treat "Their Enviroment" as a rubbish tip, they look after that very nicely.

They treat anything which is not 'Their Environment' as a tip.

The boudary between 'Theirs' and 'Not Theirs' is exactly at the fence/wall/door of their property.

So Thais will quite happily dump their trash over their own back fence - out of sight, out of their world and oout of thought.

Take a stroll around the back of Thai estates to see the evidence with your own eyes.

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I'm in Rome, and I don't necesseraly do as the Romans do.

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Good observation. Outside their own little world / garden / moo bahn seems to be outside their perception, Thai's seem to blank that off. And chuck their crap into it. Their personal space is very small maybe due to all the family normally living together, and may explain why they're such bloody awful, selfish drivers too.

I've seen rubbish bags flying out of cars; kids chucking their drinks cans from taxis; ###### teens smashing beer bottles on the beach; etc.

I remember my parents coming over for a holiday and being appalled at the <deleted> lying all over the local beach and environs; I had to tell them that they were just in time to catch Rayong's famous "Festival Of Litter"

I've said it on another thread, but I think that if some tv time was devoted to a few short public awareness notices instead of the garish, crass talk shows; game shows; blanket advertising for crap that flood the airwaves, improvements might happen?

If that is 100% true it is utterly dispicable.

But I'd forego any fisticuffs, as its not really your job.

Doubtless karma will catch up with this guy, maybe before or after his wife's male relatives have caught up with him.

Some of the more adventurous and cosmopolitan girls from Bangkok enjoy going out "on the pull".

I once met a lovely professional woman who was in Rayong to do an audit at a local petrochem factory. She approached me at a nightclub, and took me back to her hotel. A great evening with no strings attached......... I felt so cheap, and ..... used.

Who cares? They will all look a bit stupid now that the big cheese is in exile. Like a bunch of schoolchildren who got caught stealing cookies.

What are you waiting for? In like Flynn, m8!

^^I remember Rolf Harris' swimming ad; "frightened the loife outta me mum an dad!"

I'll start going to temples; national parks; zoological gardens; etc, when I don't get charged 400% more than the locals. If you want "quality tourists", start behaving like quality hosts for a change.

Most smokers if you asked them truthfully would also like to quit the habit. If it wasn't so difficult....

Always reassuring to hear that some non smoker knows exactly what i would like to achieve if i would just have the discipline to do so. Thanks, mum, i feel so taken care of.

By chance, do you have any more insights into my life of which i am not aware of yet?

Not really interested in your life, pal. Thanks.

I predict nothing will actually happen regarding any of this. The will to implement any new law, or to shore up existing laws seems to lose momentum the farther away from Bangkok it tries to get...

To radically change anything here you have to radically change Thai culture which looks increasingly dysfunctional and obsolete in a lot of aspects. To really change things here might screw up everything you actually love about the place. Drink driving notwithstanding, obviously.

I was addicted to patches and gum for years, until a friend suggested a completely natural and herbal substitute for these disgusting habits.

They're called "cigarettes" and using them has completely diminished my urge to stick nicotine patches all over myself.

Seriously, I quit last year after many unsuccessful previous attempts by reading a book; "Easy Way To Stop Smoking", by Allen Carr. Its all you need.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) does not work.

Should be careful about antibio's too. Over-prescription of these will render your immune (white blood cells) system incapable of handling routine viral problems by itself; making you dependant on the ###### things.

Doctors know this, of course.

Never ever seen an advert for "Lao Khao" (white rice whiskey) in any media but around here (Isaan) it is the "locals drink of choice". Available in various sized bottles from about 18 baht up to about 80 baht, this 40% alcohol is responsible for more deaths and illness than just about anything else. Will the advertising ban be effective in improving Thai peoples health? I suspect that it will not in Isaan.

Spot on. It is pure poisonous, liver-wasting, junkies piss. Responsible for at least 5 deaths in my workforce here so far, and countless sick days; ongoing health problems, etc.

And they don't need to advertise this <deleted>. Just like they don't need to advertise crack cocaine.

If anyone was serious about alcohol control here they might educate the public about this, or maybe try to persuade Beer Chang Co. to reduce the 7% alcohol content? Nah! Its only the upcountry hillbilly oiks dying, so nevermind.

Typical style-over-substance; window dressing; knee-jerk; status quo served up as fresh fruit, bullsheizen.

In Thai society doctors seem to be afforded too much respect. I say "too much", because there seems to be a lot of them who always put profit first over their patient's health.

How many times have you been to the doc's with something relatively trivial, and emerged carrying three Tesco's bags full of "drug of the month" smarties? They are given commission from the drugs companies to dispense these goodies; effective; habit-forming; do they care?

Stoppit already!

"The Rack" Used in the Spanish Inquisition, I believe?

That shows the social intelligence of the smokers- they don't want to disturb the group majority even though they want to smoke. Good on them!

This is already more or less official policy in most schools, of course. Some schools will not even hire teachers if they find out they are smokers.

I agree. Most smokers are aware of the health risks to other people from their habit. Most smokers if you asked them truthfully would also like to quit the habit. If it wasn't so difficult....

Smokers have seen the writing on the wall already. Besides there are much more interesting ways to die in the LOS anyway.

Laws designed to protect people from themselves are doomed to fail

So are laws designed to pixellate people from themselves.

Well,

The first thing that really stood out in my mind about my wife when we first started to get to know each other....

We were in America out in the dense forest "mudding" which is a term used when driving a ATV through the mud for "fun."

Well we got stuck, water was up to our knees.... She jumped off the ATV, now with mud/water up to her shoulders, trudged to the front of the ATV and got a hold of the winch cable. She then pulled the cable off, and wraped it around a distant tree.

I just sat on the ATV in AWE. I think that was when the seed of love was planted.

She had grown up harvesting turtles from a drained pond.... mud was nothing new to her. I knew at that instant she was "different" from any of the other girls I have ever met.

Now, that is not to say you can not find a western girl that is not squemish, but I will say the odds of finding a Thai girl that can get wet, dirty, muddy, and down right filthy, and still be beautiful and charming at the same time are higher.

Awesome story. "Mudding"???? Sounds like some sort of fetish?

In Europe traveling I am usually just waved through as soon as they see its a UK passport. Walked into Spain off a flight 2 weeks ago, they didn't even ask me to open the passport. Only the most recent ones have chips in...a fake one could be made that was issued 5 years ago.

Usually only the desperate would use these to travel on, more likely they are used as ID to get bank loans etc.

Correct. Identity theft and other high-tech crimes are endemic now. People in the UK are buying paper / document shredders to safely dispose of bank statements / credit card data; etc.

Coming here soon. Rife in Malaysia already.

Could we have not more laws; Thailand has enough laws already thanks. Selectively enforced at best.

How about public awareness programmes on tv (funded by alcohol producers?) that make people aware of irresponsible / dangerous driving habits?

How about similar programmes imparting knowledge on the use and abuse of alcohol, that are not all negative ("alcohol=bad; alcohol drinker=bad person", ad nauseum).

In other words, maybe if you stop treating people like children they may actually start behaving like adults? Maybe a bit radical? ....I'll get me coat....

This guy has the answers.

Check out the "Children are overrated" page.

I did;-

I think most people end up having kids because 1) They're too stupid to know how to use birth control properly and/or 2) They have an idealistic, completely unrealistic vision of what parenthood entails.

lolz

Concerning social problems in Thailand. Most are caused by uneducated; undisciplined; irresponsible Thai males, using alcohol as a convenient excuse. *Broad brushstrokes here*. (See how many bites I get....)

Its just another style-over-substance edict from the Ministry Of Surreal Jingoism. These people go on extensive "fact-finding" missions overseas (on taxpayer's money, natch) to go shopping and gamb,... Ooops! ... Go finding out about how developed countries manage sustainable tourism and develop system to control the worse excesses of tourism. Probably.

The same people own prawn farms; illegal factories; encroach on public land / protected forests; and generally see "development" as something surrounded by concrete. Nevermind, blame it all on the tourists, eh?

At the end of the day they are banning the advertising of a dangerous and addictive drug, there's no reason to complain really.

Its dangerous and addictive to a minority of people who have a low tolerance or no discipline. Guess what?

Doesn't change the fact that it's a dangerous and addictive drug, and in a country which has a large alchohol problem then I think it's a good 'first step'. Heroins only dangerous for those that have no discipline as well, like most drugs. Would you suggest we have that available so we can make free choice whether to use it or not?

Advertsing pays for things that I take for granted as free, like what exactly?

Aside from your own personal disdain for alcohol, you are assuming that other people are not informed enough to make personal choices regarding the consumption of said alcohol. Rather presumtuous of you, no?

Advertising pays for the world around you. And the forum we're posting on. Hope this helps...