TigerTone

Regarding driving in the outside lane, I always try hard to fathom Thai logic and I’m pretty sure this is because for the most part trucks stay in the inside lane, which cuts up the road pretty badly, so the outside lane is usually less pot-holed or damaged. Undertaking is at the driver’s risk of tyre damage but constant ‘weavers’ are a nightmare and so dangerous.

I’m taking a contrarian view and am quite serious in my reasoning, favourably comparing the Thai policing system to the UK’s where I’m currently holidaying. OK so the Thai system may be stated as the mafia: they enforce any transgression against their domain, that’s why there is relatively so little drug crime seller on seller; also why thousands of bars and nightclubs, etc can operate with so few problems. In the UK drug turf wars lead to knife crime which spreads to be of epidemic proportions; town centres are like war zones at night with drunkenness, fighting and muggings rampant - the British police do nothing. They don’t come out of their station for burglaries or car thefts and the Met currently are solving 4% of crimes and thousands of officers have not made any arrests is the past 12 months. Furthermore the Council mafia in the UK charge me £3,000 (120,000+ baht) pa in part for funding this ‘policing’, road maintenance full of potholes, and emptying the bins now once every 3 weeks! Of course CEOs and senior staff are on six figure salaries and gold-plated pensions. I enjoy freedom from persecution in Thailand by jobsworths and enjoy the laissez-faire attitude to life, live and let live. My UK road fund tax £240 (10,000 baht) a year for what? Surveillance society £60 (2,500 baht) for driving at 35 in a 30 zone; in LOS an occasional falang fine for say running an amber traffic light 400 baht, pay and go with a nod and happy to buy the officers their tea. So it’s easy to be cynical but when you leave you certainly appreciate the easy-going lifestyle a whole lot more.