Have Thais got it right, and we've got it wrong?

[RichardColeman]

13 minutes ago, jayboy said:

The your wife is an ignoramus and given her profession should be ashamed of herself.

 

 

Dik. Actually she worked during the time of 9/11 from 7 am to 7 pm as a kindergarten teacher, then went home to take care of two children - she had no time for news. Nobody said anything at her school about it, as none were interested in it. Now she is with me she watches the news daily to see what is going in OUTSIDE Thailand.My point  - which you see ignorant of - is that even educated people here don;t discus news events outside Thailand - especially when there is a good soap on the tv with someone waving a gun about !  

[Odysseus123]

21 minutes ago, jayboy said:

The your wife is an ignoramus and given her profession should be ashamed of herself.

 

 

Gee.

 

 

[Odysseus123]

3 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Dik. Actually she worked during the time of 9/11 from 7 am to 7 pm as a kindergarten teacher, then went home to take care of two children - she had no time for news. Nobody said anything at her school about it, as none were interested in it. Now she is with me she watches the news daily to see what is going in OUTSIDE Thailand.My point  - which you see ignorant of - is that even educated people here don;t discus news events outside Thailand - especially when there is a good soap on the tv with someone waving a gun about !  

Why would you need to apologize for your wife?

 

I would like to see the results in Australia if someone marched up to the local citizens and inquired-"In what year did the event  commonly called "9/11" take place?

[Hummin]

14 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Dik. Actually she worked during the time of 9/11 from 7 am to 7 pm as a kindergarten teacher, then went home to take care of two children - she had no time for news. Nobody said anything at her school about it, as none were interested in it. Now she is with me she watches the news daily to see what is going in OUTSIDE Thailand.My point  - which you see ignorant of - is that even educated people here don;t discus news events outside Thailand - especially when there is a good soap on the tv with someone waving a gun about !  

I guess most thais do not know about Pearl Habour either, and more surprising what went on in their neighbour countries during the 60’ies and 70’ies. 

 

Some they know, but what really do they know about it? Even their own student massacre? What do they really know?

Edited April 18, 2018 by Hummin

[wgdanson]

49 minutes ago, jayboy said:

seriously suggesting 9/11 was an inside job.

Wasn't it?

[jayboy]

23 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Dik. Actually she worked during the time of 9/11 from 7 am to 7 pm as a kindergarten teacher, then went home to take care of two children - she had no time for news. Nobody said anything at her school about it, as none were interested in it. Now she is with me she watches the news daily to see what is going in OUTSIDE Thailand.My point  - which you see ignorant of - is that even educated people here don;t discus news events outside Thailand - especially when there is a good soap on the tv with someone waving a gun about !  

Nonsense.Educated and non educated Thais - and certainly those of adult age at the time - know about 9/11.They may not understand all the details but the image seared into the eyes of the world will not have escaped sentient Thais.

 

I'm guessing incidentally your definition of "educated" is different from mine.

[Peterw42]

38 minutes ago, jayboy said:

Nonsense.Educated and non educated Thais - and certainly those of adult age at the time - know about 9/11.They may not understand all the details but the image seared into the eyes of the world will not have escaped sentient Thais.

 

I'm guessing incidentally your definition of "educated" is different from mine.

There are world disasters and tragedies that many westerners (educated) would be unaware of. I was just having the discussion with my wife about it and she bought up Cyclone Nargis, which I admit I had to google,  it was in 2008 and 130, 000 people died. I am a reasonably educated westerner and there is an event I was somewhat unaware of, or coudnt recall. Because it happend in the country next door, during my wifes life, its a major incident that she remembers.

 

Try a pop quiz today amongst western friends and see how many are aware of cyclone Nargis, where and when it happend , and the death toll.

[jayboy]

3 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

There are world disasters and tragedies that many westerners (educated) would be unaware of. I was just having the discussion with my wife about it and she bought up Cyclone Nargis, which I admit I had to google,  it was in 2008 and 130, 000 people died. I am a reasonably educated westerner and there is an event I was somewhat unaware of, or coudnt recall. Because it happend in the country next door, during my wifes life, its a major incident that she remembers.

 

Try a pop quiz today amongst western friends and see how many are aware of cyclone Nargis, where and when it happend , and the death toll.

Agreed but Cyclone Nargis is hardly comparable to 9/11.

[wgdanson]

1 hour ago, Peterw42 said:

Try a pop quiz today

Those are usually about pop MUSIC.

[gaff]

4 hours ago, Justfine said:

Thai people made the country. Completely stupid to post on a Thai forum or visit a country when you hate the people.

 

 

 

 

 

I hate stupid people but I love to use them as they are very cheap labor ! Of course, do not expect them to have any initiative or smart idea, but still, as I can make a lot of money on their a#s#s and the weather is hot, I really enjoy being here ! I just do not have s#h#i#t in my eyes as so many foreigners who are happy to know exactly nothing as the locals !

 

 

 

 

 

[gaff]

Your girlfriend spends hours on Facebook everyday ? Ask her what happened lately and why Zuckershit had to face the US senate ! Of course she will have no idea and will even wonder why she is supposed to know !!! This is called being a Thai.

 

 

 

[Bangkok Barry]

2 hours ago, jayboy said:

Agreed but Cyclone Nargis is hardly comparable to 9/11.

 

No. 130,000 weren't killed by 9/11. Not comparable at all.

[metisdead]

Some troll posts and the replies have been removed. 

[varun]

Pretty sure you've got it wrong.

If an intellectual heavyweight is what you desire as a wife, 

maybe Thailand is not the best place to be looking for your theerak.

 

And what is the point of choosing a 'Problem Of The Day' ?

Do you need a problem to feel normal?

 

[jayboy]

1 hour ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

No. 130,000 weren't killed by 9/11. Not comparable at all.

I was wondering whether some "genius" would make this point, but concluded there wouldn't be anyone so simple minded.Clearly I was wrong.

 

Anyway for bears of little brain, the key words for you to figure out are "significance" and "repercussions". Simply adding up deaths isn't enough.One may as well say annual road deaths in Thailand make that set of personal tragedies more significant than 9/11

[sanemax]

3 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

There are world disasters and tragedies that many westerners (educated) would be unaware of. I was just having the discussion with my wife about it and she bought up Cyclone Nargis, which I admit I had to google,  it was in 2008 and 130, 000 people died. I am a reasonably educated westerner and there is an event I was somewhat unaware of, or coudnt recall. Because it happend in the country next door, during my wifes life, its a major incident that she remembers.

That could very well be because of the Burmese control of the media and Burma's isolation from the world .

[richard_smith237]

9 minutes ago, sanemax said:

That could very well be because of the Burmese control of the media and Burma's isolation from the world .

.... Also, that a great deal of media we would read & watch is owned by the West... Significant events which have no significant effect on the 'West' tend to draw less media attention.

 

In short: We only read whats put in front of us, that the majority of us have never heard of Cyclone Nargis is an excellent example of this. 

 

 

Edited April 18, 2018 by richard_smith237

[sanemax]

4 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

.... Also, that a great deal of media we would read & watch is owned by the West... Significant events which have no significant effect on the 'West' tend to draw less media attention.

In short: We only read whats put in front of us, that the majority of us have never heard of Cyclone Nargis is an excellent example of this.

    The lack of media coverage of Cyclone Nargis was because the Burmese didnt let journalists into the Country to report on it .

   Other disasters in the region, like the Tsunami and Fukuoka were widely reported in the Western media , as was the Junta taking control in Thailand .

   These were reported on because journalists were able to report on it , which they couldnt do on the Cyclone

   

[JAZZDOG]

Not just Thailand but many countries where education is not a priority. Ask the majority of Thais a question about geography and they are clueless. Even a question about the bordering regions. Making it out to be more than that is a stretch. Not that Thais are less intelligent, just less educated for the most part.

[Odysseus123]

8 minutes ago, JAZZDOG said:

Not just Thailand but many countries where education is not a priority. Ask the majority of Thais a question about geography and they are clueless. Even a question about the bordering regions. Making it out to be more than that is a stretch. Not that Thais are less intelligent, just less educated for the most part.

5 hours ago, jayboy said:

Nonsense.Educated and non educated Thais - and certainly those of adult age at the time - know about 9/11.They may not understand all the details but the image seared into the eyes of the world will not have escaped sentient Thais.

 

I'm guessing incidentally your definition of "educated" is different from mine.

Offered without comment..

 

 

[impulse]

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

In short: We only read whats put in front of us, that the majority of us have never heard of Cyclone Nargis is an excellent example of this. 

 

That's why God invented Al Jazeera, RT and other media outlets.  Add those to CNN (pre-Trump, anyway), Reuters, Bloomberg, Asia Times, and add in a few of your own favorites and you can get a pretty good balance of views. 

 

With so many conflicting outlets, I rarely quite know which view is closest to the pure truth -as if there is one pure truth- but then it's up to me to weigh the different stories and make my own judgment.

 

I think the Thai's have it right for them.  But I still have connections outside of Thailand and plan to retire back into the real world, so I am willing to put up with the frustration, confusion -and sometimes the anger- as the price of knowing what's going on in the next land mass.  And I am well aware that there is an emotional price to pay for that curiosity.

 

Edited April 18, 2018 by impulse

[Bangkok Barry]

4 hours ago, jayboy said:

I was wondering whether some "genius" would make this point, but concluded there wouldn't be anyone so simple minded.Clearly I was wrong.

 

Anyway for bears of little brain, the key words for you to figure out are "significance" and "repercussions". Simply adding up deaths isn't enough.One may as well say annual road deaths in Thailand make that set of personal tragedies more significant than 9/11

 

I'm pretty sure that 130,000 deaths had significance and repercussions for the million+ family members, most of whom would have had no state-supported help or insurance payouts to rebuild their live and were left to suffer.

You aren't American are you?

[jayboy]

11 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

I'm pretty sure that 130,000 deaths had significance and repercussions for the million+ family members, most of whom would have had no state-supported help or insurance payouts to rebuild their live and were left to suffer.

 

The sad thing is you seem to be under the impression that is a persuasive debating point.

[Justfine]

4 hours ago, Odysseus123 said:

Offered without comment..

 

 

Classic. 

[Hardie]

On 4/14/2018 at 9:52 PM, The manic said:

Reality is 'Maya'..an illusion. It's a fundamental  precept of Buddhism.  As with all belief systems people are selective . The Thais are no different. There is a lot to be said for their fatalistic disengagement from issues about which they can have no influence. This makes them both agreeable but infuriating. The OP might consider he and his life are as utterly meaningless to his wife as Syria or Brexit.

'Maya' is not exactly a fundamental concept of Buddhism, but 'shunyata'--emptiness--is, in reference to intrinsic reality, a discussion of which leads tantalizingly close to quantum physics. But I don't think that's where the Thais' heads are, more like literal ignorance, ignoring that which has no direct bearing on them, just abstractions and yes, illusions, i.e. all things 'farang', the one word which explains everything 'out there'...

[Justfine]

9 minutes ago, Hardie said:

'Maya' is not exactly a fundamental concept of Buddhism, but 'shunyata'--emptiness--is, in reference to intrinsic reality, a discussion of which leads tantalizingly close to quantum physics. But I don't think that's where the Thais' heads are, more like literal ignorance, ignoring that which has no direct bearing on them, just abstractions and yes, illusions, i.e. all things 'farang', the one word which explains everything 'out there'...

Speaking 3 or 4 languages is not what ignorant people do.

[phetpeter]

Who's care as long as nobody educates them that wearing the shortest tightest shorts and tiny Tshirts isn't normal everyday or night wear in any other country. Lets just keep it like that!  Just make it illegal for those in the US who shop in Walwart!

Edited April 19, 2018 by phetpeter

[phetpeter]

[phetpeter]

USA

[sanemax]

16 hours ago, Justfine said:

Speaking 3 or 4 languages is not what ignorant people do.

But when what they say in three different languages mainly consists of :

"I'm hungry" , "No, you said..........I said blah blah blah" , "my phone was switched off, no credit" , "the remote control not working" , I'm hungry again" , "she said to me" '"shes crazy, dont talk to her" .