The week that was in Thailand news: Thais have a long fuse - but be careful when it's lit.

 

 

What the hell does 'safe' mean?

 

I don't mean those things that hold money and jewels - having four children has meant that I've never needed one of those. 

 

No 'safe' as in free from danger. My online dictionary tried to pin it down: "Protected from or not exposed to danger or risk; not likely to be harmed or lost". 

 

That sounded like a recipe for the most boring life imaginable. Of course, the perception of risk and danger is in the eye of the beholder. Or to mix my metaphors, one man's meat is another man's mad cow disease. 

 

Some people wouldn't be seen dead doing what another considers just part of living a normal and adventurous life. 

 

Most people who know me well would probably consider Rooster to be a risk taker. I read the Sporting Life in my early teens and bet on horses far in excess of  weekly pocket money and later my monthly salary. 

 

I quit a promising job as a journalist to fly one way to Afghanistan when the country was gripped by war. I put all my eggs in one basket and decided to make my life in Thailand completely bankrupting myself to learn the Thai language, gambling that it would pay off one day. That was a bet I won.

 

I "retired" from a lucrative job in Bangkok with a second family on the way while in my fifties. It was a retirement well before I had enough money to be comfortable. I have ridden half a million kilometers on motorbikes in Thailand wearing 99 baht Tesco Lotus helmets and flip flops for protection. 

 

I bought and sold property in Bangkok and up-country, sometimes making a wedge like on those horses of my youth. Sometimes coming the idiotic cropper. I eschewed insurance unless it was absolutely vital to avoid the attentions of the constabulary. It seemed like a gamble I wouldn't want to win. 

 

I once even bought a shiny but very expensive and dodgy old Jaguar. When a mate called me Arthur Daley and the exhaust fell off at the lights in Sathupradit, I knew I'd overdone it.

 

But I still chastise myself that I have been too safe. Too conservative.....what might life have been like had I taken a few more risks! What few regrets I have are mostly based on decisions I now see as too safe. Like not taking advantage of financial crashes when I was in a position to do so. Like not investing in friends when they seemed on a winner in business in Thailand. 

 

How much richer and perhaps happier I could have been!

 

Once again on the hallowed pages of Thaivisa this week posters debated the question: Is Thailand safe? The comments of RTP spokesman Krissana Patanacharoen were akin to a red rag to a Red Bull. Without even a flicker to give away his own feelings in the matter, the Pol Col advised tourists, what with Xmas and New Year coming up almost as an afterthought, that Thailand was as safe as houses. 

 

This came barely 24 hours after one of his colleagues blew away a Frenchman at the Trendy Building in Bangkok after he'd got in a tizzy losing a fight outside a nearby bar. 

 

"Thailand is safe," he opined. "Tourists can have confidence in the RTP". Krissana would have a future at the TAT if he ever decided to leave the RTP (Rozzers That Pinch). I mean in another era he could have increased tourism to Chernobyl with claims it was now "warmer". 

 

Or he could try being the press officer for MbS (Murderer Bin Salman) opening doors for investment in new markets in the M.E. (misery and exploitation). Mrs May is probably the only person he simply couldn't help as the pound steadily falls to what Richard Branson scarily termed "parity with the dollar" this week. 

 

Posters fell into two camps on the question of is Thailand safe. One camp basically said of course not and anyone who suggests otherwise is a disgraceful "apologist" and us apologists who see danger everywhere and who, if push comes to shove anywhere except on low balconies, feel that Thailand is probably spiced up and made more interesting by a bit of relative uncertainty. 

 

Us apologists know that the only real "relative certainty" in Thailand is that one's father-in-law wants beer when we visit at Songkran. The rest of the imponderables that make up Thailand is up for grabs. 

 

I stayed out of the safety debate though I read it with interest mindful that much of Thaivisa's honorable clientele are aging pensioners whose risky days may be in the past. In the end it is all dependent on the individual's character and life experiences as to what is safe and what is not. 

 

Many saw Thailand as a safe bet for retirement oblivious to the fact they have virtually no rights here and when changes come in, like confirmation of the Embassy letters' debacle this week, they are just thrown under the bus. 

 

Apropos, I would concede that the utmost care should be taken on Thailand's roads especially when crossing them. Furthermore, altercations with the locals should be avoided at all costs as turning a blind eye and losing some face is much better than going home in a box. I have never been under any illusions about the number of weapons out there. 

 

Learning Thai by reading about the horrors depicted in "191" magazine and seeing the "Weapons Free Zone" signage go up in the late '80s brought that home as much as the few occasions when I saw guns drawn or heard of friends robbed in the street or made to apologize at the end of a barrel after showing a finger while driving. An acquaintance of mine was obliged to do just that after being followed to his front gate by an armed driver. 

 

Despite these experiences I'll still compare Thailand favorably to elsewhere. It's a place where I was glad to raise my first two kids and where now I am equally happy to raise my second batch of chicks. 

 

That said, many other stories in the past week gave grist to the mill for those who see danger lurking everywhere in Thailand. In Chiang Mai a noodle seller had a pot lid to thank for not taking a piece of bullet casing in the chest after the fuzz opened fire on a vehicle fleeing an alcohol checkpoint. 

 

Two men in a furniture delivery van had to wait for help by the side of an elevated road after their vehicle broke down. Sadly along came the stuff that true nightmares are made of - a Thai granny in a Mercedes-Benz completely unaware of how wide she was and what was ahead. 

 

The men were sent plummeting to the ground below with CCTV and dash cams catching the perils inherent on the roads from every possible and gruesome angle. 

 

Further horror emerged when a Thai lady out on a charity cycle in Ratchaburi was catapulted into the back of a pick-up after the driver fell asleep. Fortunately he woke up in time to help save the lady's life with a bit of timely CPR but her condition was critical. 

 

Proving that it is not always safe to go into the water in Thailand was a 42 year old Dutch woman who was not attacked by a shark but an infinitely nastier creature - a jetski rider. Pattaya's top brass turned out in force to hand her 20,000 baht and arrested the rider for not having a captain's license.

 

While the inherent dangers of marriage were to the fore in Phuket as local news there revealed the continuing case against a Chinese man who took his wife to the island after taking out millions in life insurance policies. Prosecutors claim he then murdered her in the pool at a resort to collect on the policies.

 

I remembered once when Mrs Rooster suggested - under the guise of concern for my future ending abruptly due to motorbike riding - that a hefty life insurance policy would make us all live happily ever after. A bit incongruous that.

 

I smiled and said I'd get onto it right away - thirteen years later I still haven't quite got round to it, must be pressure of work at Thaivisa.

 

Though this week I was using the excuse of illness for all inactivity at Rooster Central. I consider myself lucky to be rarely ill but following an international Scrabble event in Penang last weekend I brought back the very worst that Malaysia has to offer in exports.  At least the fever and pain seemed worth it after I managed my best international finish in 20 years.

 

I managed to secure second place after I risked that HASTENER might be a word! A gamble that paid off for once.

 

Finally my only direct advice on the subject of being safe in Thailand refers to Thais and their fuses. Firstly make sure that the wiring and electrical systems where you live and visit have been installed properly and are maintained. If you're not sure ask an expert, not the guy they call the engineer at the condominium.....

 

And secondly, while I reckon that most Thais actually have a very long fuse when it comes to anger, once it has been ignited and starts to smolder it may already be too late. You need to read the warning signs. An accompanying smile may hide malicious intentions and you might be the last to know that they were even peeved. 

 

You may in fact be in mortal peril. 

 

Rooster

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2018-12-15

I have lived in several developing countries, including Brasil and Mexico during my lifetime, only in ???????? have I seen a constant nagative to horrific flow and bomardmend in the press about dangers, assaults and worse... And it seems to get increase daily... Doesn't this have a negative impact on tourism? Sometimes I am surprised all these news have not yet been censored and eliminated... MS>

Here in LOS we just blame everything on ''Brake Failure''....

I now live in Central Thailand, but when I first came here in 1887  I lived in the south. I think that the Southern Thais have a much shorter fuse and it lights very easily.  It also seems that they are either extremely happy or killer mad and there is not much between.

39 minutes ago, wayned said:

I first came here in 1887

You've had a good life here then!  How did you manage to live this long without encountering any of the dangers mentioned in the post above.

Edited December 16, 20187 yr by scottiejohn

17 hours ago, rooster59 said:

It was a retirement well before I had enough money to be comfortable. I have ridden half a million kilometers on motorbikes in Thailand wearing 99 baht Tesco Lotus helmets and flip flops for protection. 

Have we got the same mother?

17 hours ago, rooster59 said:

the RTP (Rozzers That Pinch)

 

I think thailand is a safe dangerouse place.

I guess most people would consider safe place to live by how much crime there is. In addition how much confidence you have in the authorities (police) to respond fairly and impartially to a situation when you need them.

 

For these 2 points I think it is pretty fair to say that Thailand is not a safe place at all. It is not secret that Thai's see everyone as second class to themselves in their own country, not unique in that respect, if we are honest most people feel a sense of this about themselves and their own countries.

 

In relation to Thai fuses I don't think Thais have much of a fuse at all. By that I mean that they won't deal with confrontation in any meaningful way to try and resolve a disagreement, they just shy away from it. If you push them they can very easily go from calm and indifferent to horribly violent which can result in terrible consequences.

 

For the police, well how many people here really have confidence that the police will help you if you call them? Also, when thy arrive what is their primary concern? Are they going to seek justice and/or safety for you when wronged or are they more likely to cover it up as they are under instruction to preserve the tourist numbers by avoiding bad press? I think the later is more likely and i would be surprised if many disagree on this particular point. No country is 100% free of corruption and problems of course but the degrees of such are far less where I come from. You cannot for example ever bribe the police, absolutely never. If you call them they come and i am confident that they will protect from crime as is their job. I cannot imagine how people would feel at home if this ever changed but it would very seriously effect the desirability of the country as a place to settle down for sure so I see no reason why it is not a consideration here.

 

So, in a short summary Thailand is not the place to come if safety is your number 1 concern. 

Rooster bangs on about adventure,well i can tell you as a veteran of five long gold prospecting trips to New Guinea,sure they were adventures,but most of the time,i was covered in mud and filth,coated in sweat,pin cushioned with insect bites,caught Malaria,was in a constant state of anxiety and down right fear,and terror a few times,mostly left out of pocket[until my last and final trip where we hit the proverbial motherload] ,and bloody glad to get out alive and intact. It was in no way fun and i certainly do not miss it.

The only regrets people have on their death beds are the things they didn't do.

hmmm..... you still need to have powder in your fuse for it to burn properly, I suggest

Thailand is a safe place, provided one drives defensively and doesn't behave like an idiot in bars, or with a Thai significant other. IMHO the falangs that do behave like idiots get self-inflicted wounds.

I have been here since mid 1981, and would never describe Thais as having a short fuse, BUT I still think it is the safest place I have ever lived, far surpassing U.S.A. and U.K., where senseless violence prevails. Not once have I had any altercation with a Thai, but on several occasions have had problems with drunken farangs. Treat everyone with respect and one will probably never have  a problem ????

On 12/15/2018 at 4:29 PM, rooster59 said:

The week that was in Thailand news: Thais have a long fuse

...except when they get in their vehicle with dark window and then the real Thai person comes to the surface.

Age is kicking in with the author. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but dwelling on what could have been does not improve the present.  Misgivings about poor investments, or not not investing when the chance presented itself, aren't going to improve one's current situation, so let it stay where it is - in the past. The OP has had his adventures, more than most people, so he should be happy with that. Experiences he can share with his children (well some of them).  Far superior to anything I can share with my son. 

 

In my 36 years here, apart from disagreements with girlfriends/wife (one of whom did not have a fuse at all - she instantly exploded), I have only been involved in one really untoward event and that was when I had been here for less than a year. I was bottled by a drunk while eating fried rice in a food shop. I hadn't said anything to him and was minding my own business, but I later learned he thought I had pinched his seat when he went to the toilet. He had been watching a boxing match on tv and was getting drunk. After hitting me, he ran out of the shop, only to be chased down and beaten up by some other locals who knew me and saw what had happened.     

2 hours ago, GarryP said:

Age is kicking in with the author. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but dwelling on what could have been does not improve the present.  Misgivings about poor investments, or not not investing when the chance presented itself, aren't going to improve one's current situation, so let it stay where it is - in the past. The OP has had his adventures, more than most people, so he should be happy with that. Experiences he can share with his children (well some of them).  Far superior to anything I can share with my son. 

 

In my 36 years here, apart from disagreements with girlfriends/wife (one of whom did not have a fuse at all - she instantly exploded), I have only been involved in one really untoward event and that was when I had been here for less than a year. I was bottled by a drunk while eating fried rice in a food shop. I hadn't said anything to him and was minding my own business, but I later learned he thought I had pinched his seat when he went to the toilet. He had been watching a boxing match on tv and was getting drunk. After hitting me, he ran out of the shop, only to be chased down and beaten up by some other locals who knew me and saw what had happened.     

I shall remember your words, and thank you for them.

 

Rooster

On 12/16/2018 at 8:54 AM, wayned said:

when I first came here in 1887 

Got your PR yet or is it still in the queue?

Thailand is no more dangerous than any other excitable race of Asians. Or drugged out ice users. Face is huge.

So, the trick is to roll with the flow, so to speak.

 Never confront. Try to be calm, yes it is frustrating but try to be calm.

Smile. Show that you are reaching out for a compromise.

This will often allow the people looking on to take your side.

Try to exit stage left if things start to get out of hand

Unless you are reincarnated Bruce Lee. 

Thailand is no more dangerous than any other excitable race of Asians. Or drugged out ice users. Face is huge.

So, the trick is to roll with the flow, so to speak.

 Never confront. Try to be calm, yes it is frustrating but try to be calm.

Smile. Show that you are reaching out for a compromise.

This will often allow the people looking on to take your side.

Try to exit stage left if things start to get out of hand

Unless you are reincarnated Bruce Lee.