JK-Trilly

Again??? How many of nearly the same topics do we need?

Over a billion people worshipping one man. You've got the same in China and India. How can any of it be a good idea?

Again, I don't really know, but all of my closest expat friends in Thailand have been here at least 20 years and none of them post on this site at all. They might read something if somebody sends them a link to a specific news article, but that's about the extent of their interaction on this site. Even if they're looking for some answers about changes to visa laws or something like that, they wouldn't post a question on this site. What they typically do is speak to other expat friends or do an online search for news articles, maybe go onto the Bangkok Post or The Examiner. And nowadays, many people are posting questions to AI models for answers rather than even searching using engines anymore. And why do they do this, because they don't really put any stock in crowdsourced information or opinions from people whom they don't know. Most of them also don't have a very positive opinion of other foreigners in Thailand in general so that may have a big something to do with it as well. I'm not trying to discredit what you're saying, but this is just based on the knowledge of my core group of long-term expat friends in Thailand.

I would think it's a pretty low number if you are referring to "active expat members". None of my long time expat friends come on here AFAIK. I think there are quite a few that may come for an occasional news article, question or answer, but that's probably about it. If I had to take a guess and, to finally answer your question, I would guess it's less than 5%.

Thank you to everyone, who took the time to cast their vote in the poll and to add something to this topic.

This is just a short follow-up to my previous topic (linked below). Based on all the responses everyone gave, I’ve put together a list of the 10 most common reasons people spend time on the forum (trolling, flaming and bickering not included). To get a clearer picture of the most significant driving factors, I’ve now created a simple poll where you can quickly vote for the reasons that resonate with you the most without having to restate what you already posted in detail earlier. I’m curious to see what really motivates others and whether the reasons people keep coming back are much different from my own. Personally, I’d say it’s mostly boredom and habit in my case. Occasionally, I find it entertaining and somewhat interesting to hear other people’s opinions, but if I could keep myself fully occupied with other activities, that would probably take care of the boredom factor and might help to break the habit. However, based on some of the responses to my previous post, it seems that my reasons are not necessarily the same for others. I’d appreciate it if you could take a moment to quickly and kindly cast your vote (you can select multiple reasons in the poll if you want to). I'm interested to get a better sense of what drives other people’s interests and see what percentage of other people's reasons might align with my own. Thank you.

That does sound like a generally positive approach and a good way to avoid the bickering and toxicity. My only caveat is that I find many of the news headlines pretty negative and disturbing, especially the ones highlighted in the daily newsletters. Do you agree? A lot of the newsletter highlights seem to focus on drug or other criminal-related arrests of foreigners, and there are often stories about foreigners causing problems and ending up in trouble in Thailand. To me, this creates a pattern of negative and toxic topics that I really don’t want to start my day reading. It seems like this type of content attracts attention, which might be why it dominates the newsletters. Honestly, if there weren't so many links to drug busts or foreigner arrests, I think I’d find the newsletters more positive. There’s nothing wrong with including those news stories on the site for those who want to read them, but I don't need them to be the primary focus in my inbox.

Lots of good feedback here. It seems like many people are simply on the site because of boredom, and some are like me, hoping to break the habit completely, rather than looking for happiness or fulfillment, which is something I don't seem to get from the site as I mentioned in my OP. That got me thinking, if we’re not here to find personal happiness or emotional fulfillment, then what is it that we’re actually hoping to get out of the site when we come here? That is a good question. Is it just about passing the time, learning something new, or maybe finding some interesting conversations? Or is it just about being heard, sharing your thoughts with others and offering advice? Perhaps if we shifted our focus a little and thought about ways we can still get something useful from the site, without expecting emotional satisfaction from it, then maybe that would work better. For example, do you think there are parts of the site that offer more intellectual or thought-provoking discussions, rather than pure toxicity, that might be more enriching, even if they don’t provide happiness or fulfillment? Or perhaps some people could find it useful for personal growth, even if the site isn’t a place to seek happiness. I also wonder if there’s a way to engage in a more positive way without getting drawn into reading all the heavy negativity that can sometimes take over. So I wonder how does one manage to avoid the temptation of following negative threads or posts that don’t contribute to anything productive? Is there a way to focus on just the good parts without getting caught up in the drama or angry and intense bickering matches?

I’m actually finding some positives in that though. The fact that the most toxic posters on the site don't have any limitations on their posting abilities has led me to spend less time on the site reading, simply because I don’t want to be in their presence. So in a way, it’s helping me pull away at times. Honestly, I worry that if there were a lot more quality posters on the site to begin with, it would be even harder to stop reading as much. Do you agree?

In fact, just the thought of that might be enough to break the habit. 👍🏼

+1 😂

Ignore is a very useful tool, but if you rely on it too much, you might end up only seeing posts from a small handful of members. To some extent, I think you have to take the bad with the good, otherwise, you’re not really getting the full experience, and it can start to feel a bit limiting. On the other hand, you could also say that choosing who you engage with carefully is just a smart way to navigate any situation.

I completely agree. For nearly 30 years in Thailand, I never really looked at this site. Though to be fair, I don’t think it was even around for the first 15 years that I was here. Over time, I would occasionally glance at it for bits of information, but I never visited regularly. It’s really only in the last year or two that I started reading more, and mainly for the reasons you just mentioned: boredom and age. When I was younger, I wouldn’t have had any interest in something like this. So I guess I have two choices: either somehow become younger again or find better ways to spend my time. I also used to work a lot more, especially on personal projects, and that’s something I plan to start doing more of again. Hopefully, that will help fill my time in a more rewarding way. As I said before, stepping back from spending too much time reading here is a work in progress, but I’m actively working on it.

Maybe so, but interacting with them in an online discussion is still Ok with you?

By definition, an online messaging platform is an online community. An online community is simply a group of people interacting through digital platforms, typically on the internet. But to save us from another 12 posts debating use of the term “online community,” here are some alternative phrases you can use if it makes you feel better: Forum Message Board Comment Section Chat Room