Bananaman

It's their system, Bananaman. It works for them and they all know the parameters. We have alot of guff in the West and the PC people do the same "idiotic" things with lazy, unproductive workers -- let's not upset their feelings, etc. That's face, too, they just don't know the Asian concept of it. And bad things? How about mormons with many wives, muslim women forbidden from working, driving or talking but expected to produce sons and then die from stoning if another man rapes them? List is too long. Asia's system may be weird, but it works. And they look after family and close friends. Grans, gramps, aunties, nieces, nephews. My neighbours always have a new member. Pretty rare in the West.

You say it works for them but does it really? Might this not be one of the main reasons why Thailand isn't successful in the global marketplace?

Whenever you start a topic with an inflammatory title and the potential for a spot of 'thaibashing' you always get the posters who'll do anything to defend their adopted homeland jumping in feet first with their rose-tinted attitudes.

As one poster pointed out, you can understand a culture without accepting it. I've been here long enough to understand how things work and I've seen first hand the negative effect of the saving face thing. I used to work in an office here where much of the quality of the work was substandard. When I quietly asked my boss one day why she didn't pull up Mr. X and Miss Y for their poor performance, she told me it was because she didn't want them to lose face. So the company as a whole has to suffer because you gotta avoid stepping on the feelings of the individual? What utter tosh.

Complaining loudly and aggressively benefits no one, I wholeheartedly agree, however not saying anything just preserves the already questionable status quo. Surely people want to improve in whatever they do in life? If nobody ever tells you that you're doing something incorrectly then they're doing you an injustice by not allowing you the opportunity to do it better.

"The Thai (& most Asian) culture(s) has/have been around thousands of years longer than the Farang so...deal with them on their own terms"

Sorry Boon Mee but just cos sthgs been around a long time, it don't mean it's either right or better than something else. The tradition of burning everything in this country has been around a long time, don't make it right, the mia noi culture is as old as time, don't make it right, women's inequality to men has been a feature of human existence for as long as we've been writing history....don't make it right. Need I go on?

I love everything about Thailand except see-a naa. The whole losing/saving face thing is a cultural idiosyncrasy that this country could do without. From my Thai GF telling me I can't complain about the ridiculously poor service in a restaurant because the waitress might lose face, to the government not being prepared to walk away from a policy that is obviously messed up because they'll suffer the same fate, is just plain f**cked up. Saving face is an entirely selfish action that benefits only the person or establishment who does it. If you mess up you admit it, accept the consequences and get over it, period. If you're hindered from taking an action which could potentially have a positive outcome for the majority because you either risk losing face yourself or causing someone else to lose theirs, then how can you ever expect anything to improve or progress?

Came in 3 or years ago so its very seriously forgotten about by most.

3 years ago? Uh-uh, get with the news, these are NEW laws.

3 years ago (or so) a law did come into effect banning smoking in enclosed eateries. I did see some no smoking signs go up in enclosed places but never saw anything in outside eateries.

I believe Dupont was probably referring to those laws.

Thanks tucky I was.

Had it all before mate, many times and I only replied to save him from death by Thai smoker which is what would happen if you start sounding off in bars and restaurants.

Jai yen yen Bananaman if its meant to happen it will happen. Prostitution, gambling, speeding, drink driving, over-charging are also illegal!

Hey man, i'm jai yen, apologies if I came across otherwise. I appreciate your sentiment and have been here long enough to know that telling Mr. Thai Marboro he can't enjoy a puff while he chugs away on his bottle of Singh, ain't the most sensible behaviour in the world. The kids polluting the air in my fave eatery were in fact farang and far from wanting to single them out as recipients of any militant anti-smoking views, I guess I was simply curious to know whether local business owners were in fact prepared to observe the new law.

If what Strap says about restaurants selling booze being excluded from the ban is true, then this really is just another worthless Thai law as pretty much every restaurant in LOS has grog on the menu.

As I was sat downwind of a table full of smokers yesterday in a restaurant in Chiang Mai, I thought I'd politely point out to the restaurant owner that new smoking regulations were now in operation in the country. He was equally polite in informing me that these laws have yet to come into force in Chiang Mai and that he'd already made no smoking signs in preparation for the official announcement but confessed to having no idea when it would be made. I was under the impression that these laws covered the entire country from the date on which they were introduced ie. at the end of last year. Anybody able to shed any light on the matter?

Came in 3 or years ago so its very seriously forgotten about by most.

BTW, this really is the wrong country to be scolding folk on their habits in bars (for the record I am a non smoker and don't like it at all).

It is rare to annoy anybody here and get into trouble, but when trouble brews it is very big and very very nasty and FC UK expensive paeng maak maak djang loi to get out of.

Bite the bullet mate! Read the papers, people here die every day for much less than asking somebody to put out a fag!

One bar guy last week held the bottle the wrong way when pouring, pissed off a Thai guy who shot him dead at the wedding party they were all at.

3 years ago? Uh-uh, get with the news, these are NEW laws.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/12/29...es_30022827.php

I'm no fascist but i believe in my right to eat at my favourite restaurant without having my meal ruined by the stench of tobacco smoke and if laws are being passed that are intended to preserve my rights then I don't think it's going over the top to ask that they might be upheld. I'll take my chances that the guy with the ciggy is packing a 45, ya can't go thru your life never speaking up for anything because you might just pick on the one person likely to put a bullet in your head.

As I was sat downwind of a table full of smokers yesterday in a restaurant in Chiang Mai, I thought I'd politely point out to the restaurant owner that new smoking regulations were now in operation in the country. He was equally polite in informing me that these laws have yet to come into force in Chiang Mai and that he'd already made no smoking signs in preparation for the official announcement but confessed to having no idea when it would be made. I was under the impression that these laws covered the entire country from the date on which they were introduced ie. at the end of last year. Anybody able to shed any light on the matter?

However, children can still play with cool fires only if they are being closely supervised by their guardians.

Well y'know what they say about if you play with fire....

and since when was a fire ever "cool"?.....bizarre!

Given the marked reluctance by Thai Embassies to even issue a one year Multiple entry Non-Immigrant B now, one would have to be somewhat optimistic in thinking that these 3 year visa's will be very easy to obtain.

But the criteria for application would appear to be the same as for a one year application. Maybe after having been seen to do something proactive towards reducing the number of 'less desirable' characters via the new VOA regulations; this is the government's way of ensuring that it doesn't shoot itself in both feet and still manages to keep a steady level of foreign money coming into the country. Here's hoping it's within easy reach and not the Holy Grail of visas!

I also have been wondering what is considered to be "working":

If I own a restaurant, I realize I cannot be cooking the food or waiting tables. But, what if I decide the restaurant needs a new coat of paint. Am I "working" if I decide to repaint the place myself?

If I own a condo, and do renovations myself (e.g. rip up the existing flooring, put down new tile) and I "working" in that I am preventing a Thai from doing it and receiving compensation?

I'm certainly hoping the second scenario is "NOT working" but, with the intent of law being that you cannot do anything (volunteer work after the tsunami, comes to mind) that could prevent a Thai from earning money....

It's exactly this kind of thing that I feel creates some kind of a grey area. Surely in owning a restaurant you are forced to make some kind of decisions with regards to its management and this could be construed as work? Where do you draw the line?

What exactly constitutes working according to Thai immigration rules? Suppose you have a company back in your home country for which you oversee the operation via the internet and are paid in your home currency. Or suppose you are a consultant providing information for your overseas clients across the net while residing here in Thailand. I can think of dozens of other similar scenarios and I guess what I'm wondering is what exactly is the factor that determines whether what you do here contravenes Thai law if you aren't in possession of a work permit. Is it whether or not you are paid in Thai baht or by a Thai company?

So how does all this affect an application supported by a letter from a company inviting you to Thailand to "seek business opportunities"? If you're coming to Thailand with the hope of doing business with another company or establishing your own business with another company's assistance then you have no reason to apply for a work permit.

You can do it by mail also and they're super fast and efficient. I've had 3 non-im B's from there without any hassle at all....passport back with you within 2 days of them receiving it.

Anybody know what the current state of affairs is? ie. Are borders still closed? I need to do a 90 day renewal on a non-im B next week and Mae Sai is my usual option. If it's still closed I'd welcome any suggested alternatives.

Last visit home I asked at a large seed company for flax seed. They insisted that linseed was infact flax seed. When I returned here I put a few in good soil mix and nothing has ever come up. I still have about 1kg of the stuff and would like to germinate some. Any clues as to a) is linseed flax seed and how to grow it. If I do have the right stuff I can post you some as I have plenty.

Yeah Flax and Linseed are the same things. You can read more at wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flax

Not sure why you would want to plant them unless you just like the look of the plant or are planning to harvest it for fibre.

If it's just flax seed sprouts for eating that you want then you don't put them in soil, you sprout them the same way as you would soy or mung beans ie. in an upturned jar with some cheesecloth over the end. Keep in a warm, dark place and rinse regularly.

I have been trying to find flax seeds in thailand but havent been able to. i live in jomtien but will go to wherever i can find them. checked a few internet sites but they didnt deliver to thailand. anyone know where or how i can get them?

thanks

jimmy

We got 'em here in Chiang Mai. You can buy them from either of the Aden Health Food shops, either of the Rimping Supermarkets or either of the branches of Kasem store.