Going against the trend

[rooster59]

Going against the trend

By Karnjana Lao 
Nation Graphics

 

Nation Graphics/Karnjana Lao

 

Going AGAINST THE TREND Educated citizens are more likely to believe that living in a democracy is important. In most countries, people with higher education hold stronger beliefs about the importance of democracy. But the opposite is true in Thailand and some other nations.

 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30359628

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-12-01

[YetAnother]

13 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

people with higher education hold stronger beliefs about the importance of democracy. But the opposite is true in Thailand

thailand only has it's own version of democracy half the time due to coups; and in that half, poor leadership and political parties , interested in only there own ends , dilute the belief generally that democracy is an end-all

[neeray]

My direct input from base-level Thais is that they aren't really concerned whether they have a democratic government or an army controlled 'government'. Their prime concern is economic growth so that they can improve their lot.

They do not see economic improvements under the current leadership.

[Enoon]

 

Just one of the factors showing why Thailand exists on the edge of a volcano.

 

 

[madmen]

My direct input from base-level Thais is that they aren't really concerned whether they have a democratic government or an army controlled 'government'. Their prime concern is economic growth so that they can improve their lot.
They do not see economic improvements under the current leadership.

"They do not see economic improvements under the current leadership"

Proof?

[neeray]

1 minute ago, madmen said:

 

 

 

"They do not see economic improvements under the current leadership"

Proof?

 

Read my post again. It says, "they do not see". That is self explanatory. This is anecdotal. What would you like as proof, the contact information for my many Thai friends?

Sorry, not available to you.

[madmen]

Read my post again. It says, "they do not see". That is self explanatory. This is anecdotal. What would you like as proof, the contact information for my many Thai friends?
Sorry, not available to you.

It's easy to pluck the stats of a down turn in the economy right from the web. Why not add credibility to your statement?

Your friend porn the beer bar girl saying " no boom boom hab no customer" is hardly the big picture

[OneMoreFarang]

“Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.” George Carlin

 

I think there is a lot of truth about this. It's a fact that 50% of the people (anywhere) are less intelligent than the average.

Managing a country, or town, or village is not easy and straightforward. Often there are difficult decisions which don't have a correct or incorrect answer. People with low intelligence (is it still allowed to call them stupid people?) are not able to understand complex problems. And because they can't understand complex problems they can't possibly understand how to solve complex problems.

 

There is another wonderful quote:

"For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong." H. L. Mencken

Politicians are able to get away with easy answers because that is what many people want. And that is what many people understand. How to fight drugs? Easy answer: Jail or kill all the drug dealers. Does it work? No. So what do some people suggest: More of the same easy solution like: you didn't jail them long enough or you didn't kill them all.

People who understand complex problems know that i.e. with drugs there is no easy solution.

And there are many many complex problems with no easy solutions.

 

So the question is: Should lots of uneducated and lots of stupid people be allowed to make complex decisions which they are not capable to even understand?

Should we allow these stupid and uneducated people to vote for politicians who present easy solutions to complex problems?

 

Personally I think it would be good if only smart and educated people would be allowed to make important decisions. Including important decisions who should manage villages, cities and countries.

But that obviously brings up the question who is smart enough and educated enough? And that is the big crux. Which brings us to my final quote for this post:

 

“Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” Winston S. Churchill

Edited December 1, 2018 by OneMoreFarang
spelling

[neeray]

Just now, madmen said:

It's easy to pluck the stats of a down turn in the economy right from the web. Why not add credibility to your statement?

Your friend porn the beer bar girl saying " no boom boom hab no customer" is hardly the big picture

Have never been to a beer bar. Have never been to Pattaya. Don't know no 'porn". Have never met or associated with a bar girl.

But do know many hard working Thais from various walks in life.

And do know by now that you are an opinionated, xxxxxxx.

Have a great day in your own 'little' world.

[zzaa09]

7 hours ago, YetAnother said:

[sic] poor leadership and political parties , interested in only there own ends....

Rather real and universal the world over, is it not?

[madmen]

Have never been to a beer bar. Have never been to Pattaya. Don't know no 'porn". Have never met or associated with a bar girl.
But do know many hard working Thais from various walks in life.
And do know by now that you are an opinionated, xxxxxxx.
Have a great day in your own 'little' world.

I'm not the one plucking a circle of "thai friends" out of thin air to win a debate. Either put up a link regarding the downturn in the economy or move on.. Your new extended family are neither knowledgeable or your "friends"

Link thanks [emoji4]

[yellowboat]

8 hours ago, madmen said:

 

 

"They do not see economic improvements under the current leadership"

Proof?

The junta in a knee jerk reaction went visa free for many countries to boost tourism.  The junta lifted that dumb rule of just two border crossings per year for visa exempt to boost tourism.  Free dinners for Chinese to boost tourism.   The economy is bad on all the lips of the Thais I know.  Show us how the average Thai is thriving under junta mania. The average Thai does not benefit from the export form IC chips, auto or agricultural exports.

[madmen]

The junta in a knee jerk reaction went visa free for many countries to boost tourism.  The junta lifted that dumb rule of just two border crossings per year for visa exempt to boost tourism.  Free dinners for Chinese to boost tourism.   The economy is bad on all the lips of the Thais I know.  Show us how the average Thai is thriving under junta mania. The average Thai does not benefit from the export form IC chips, auto or agricultural exports.

You must be kidding.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Thailand

 

Educate yourself!!

 

Show one link where the economy is going backward under the junta. I can give you 100 links that your wrong but your quoting sticky rice for the Chinese. Sorry no offense but you have no idea [emoji362]

[timendres]

1 hour ago, madmen said:

You must be kidding.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Thailand

 

Educate yourself!!

 

Show one link where the economy is going backward under the junta. I can give you 100 links that your wrong but your quoting sticky rice for the Chinese. Sorry no offense but you have no idea

I can show you dozens of official links clearly stating that the inflation rate in the USA is effectively zero. Yet, the prices of many things seems to magically be 50% to 100% higher than what they were when I left almost 10 years ago. Talk to the average US citizen, and despite the "strong economy", many are struggling to make ends meet.

 

The point being that statistics and government reports are often very misleading, or outright lies. And strong economies and economic prosperity are not always felt equally across society.

 

Which brings me to your Wiki link above. Out of the entire page, I think the most relevant line is this one:

Quote

 

 Thailand was ranked as the world's third most unequal nation,

 

 

That is #3 in the world. Quite a statistic, would you not agree? And, thus, you might understand why, despite a growing economy, many Thai people will claim that the current regime has done very little to improve their lives. And many have said precisely this to me.

 

Anyone who believes that the economic growth of Thailand is distributed evenly is grossly naive. And anyone who believes this government has been genuinely concerned with improving that distribution is not paying attention.

 

Feel free to site your websites and government reports and cheer on the Junta. But when my business accountant, who has been in business for over 50 years, tells me that she is doing the accounting to close one business every single day including weekends, and that she has not seen anything like this since the TomYumKung crisis, I suspect that she knows a wee bit more than a foreigner citing web pages. Sorry, she has not had time to devote a WikiPedia page to document her experience, so I cannot cite that for your gratification.

 

As for educating oneself, sometimes getting out from in front of a computer helps.

[Fex Bluse]

Rubbish article and questionable study. Usually based on poorly done surveys of Thai people, who are world renowned for their ability to say whatever they think is the right answer (but not their true feelings). 

 

Thais generally have no idea what actual democracy is. 

[yellowboat]

8 hours ago, madmen said:

You must be kidding.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Thailand

 

Educate yourself!!

 

Show one link where the economy is going backward under the junta. I can give you 100 links that your wrong but your quoting sticky rice for the Chinese. Sorry no offense but you have no idea

 How about reading your own link?

 

"Thailand's one of countries with the lowest unemployment rate in the world, reported as 1 percent for the first quarter of 2014. This is due to a large proportion of the population working in subsistence agriculture or on other vulnerable employment (own-account work and unpaid family work)"   Does this sound like the average Thai is doing well ?

 

Most of the fortunes for the economy goes to the Thai elite, not to the average Thai.

 

From a well known Thai news outlet:

 

"Thailand third most unequal country in world. Russia is the world's most unequal country, with 74.5 per cent of the country's wealth controlled by 1 per cent of the people. India is next at 58.4% and then Thailand is the third most unequal country in the world at 58%.Nov 29, 2016"

 

Everyone who reads the Nation is aware of two things:  The elites of Thailand enjoy an endless shower of cash and the average Thai gets crumbs. 

[neeray]

12 hours ago, madmen said:

I'm not the one plucking a circle of "thai friends" out of thin air to win a debate. Either put up a link regarding the downturn in the economy or move on.. Your new extended family are neither knowledgeable or your "friends"

Link thanks

I see that you are just a beginner on here. Keep reading, there's lots for you to learn from the old pros on TVF.

BTW .... The only "LINK" my friends have is their boots on the ground, grass roots knowledge of the real world. And their LINK with people like me. Even if they had a LINK, I'm quite sure that they would have no interest in sharing it with you. (they are selective)

Have a nice day xxxxxxx.