For better or worse? Expats think Thailand is going down the pan, poll

[Respectthailand]

Old farangs ( whether in their own country or a new country) are hardly renowned for cheeriness and optimism.

Victor meldrew anybody?

They think the world owes them a living, expect deference and respect to be shown to them ( whether deserved or not ) and as they get older casual racism becomes de rigeur despite many of them being married ro a ' jonny foreigner'.

They couldny cope in their country of origin and made a move believing their new country would be shangri la. It never could or would be like that and they cant cope knowing they have failed...again.

Laughably they think countries like cambodia will be a panacea.

Hung sen has taken cronyism and corruption to a whole new level.

It is a country almost wholly dependent on foreign aid handouts ( a lot of which is skimmed off ).

Ripping off its own inhabitants and foreigners is a national sport.

You think BiB are bad here...you aint seen nothing yet.

Health care??? Give me a break.

Food from 'back home'..I don't think so.

But hey be my guest.

I'm sure the new 'home' will welcome the incessant droning on of its new 'guests'.

[stanleycoin]

10 minutes ago, Respectthailand said:

Old farangs ( whether in their own country or a new country) are hardly renowned for cheeriness and optimism.

Victor meldrew anybody?

They think the world owes them a living, expect deference and respect to be shown to them ( whether deserved or not ) and as they get older casual racism becomes de rigeur despite many of them being married ro a ' jonny foreigner'.

They couldny cope in their country of origin and made a move believing their new country would be shangri la. It never could or would be like that and they cant cope knowing they have failed...again.

Laughably they think countries like cambodia will be a panacea.

Hung sen has taken cronyism and corruption to a whole new level.

It is a country almost wholly dependent on foreign aid handouts ( a lot of which is skimmed off ).

Ripping off its own inhabitants and foreigners is a national sport.

You think BiB are bad here...you aint seen nothing yet.

Health care??? Give me a break.

Food from 'back home'..I don't think so.

But hey be my guest.

I'm sure the new 'home' will welcome the incessant droning on of its new 'guests'.

Well your a lot of fun. 

Were you looking in the mirror the whole time when writing all that. 

Edited January 26, 2019 by stanleycoin

[Respectthailand]

Just now, stanleycoin said:

Well your a lot of fun. 

Well if spelling out the truth means that well you have hit the nail on head.

Thanks

[spidermike007]

22 hours ago, Thaidream said:

Thailand is simply not as appealing as it once was to expats looking to relocate or long term expats and some of the reasons are-

-  Rising Baht and rising prices-  Products from the USA/Europe/Australia are 5 x the cost of the home country while Thai products sold abroad are sold at lower prices.  Not everyone can eat Thai food every day.

 

-While rents are low compared to home country- prices of Condominiums with space and land prices in the major urban areas have risen tremendously.  

 

-The quality of most Thai products are poor and the Chinese imports are worse- to get a good quality product one has to purchase Korean/Japanese or Western at much higher prices.

 

=The Immigration conundrum- After 40 years married to a Thai- I still have to get together all my yearly paperwork and head to Immigration in the hopes they will let me stay one more year.  My wife's US Permanent Residency took less than 60 days to obtain; gave her unlimited access to the US forever and no 90 day reporting.  No such reciprocity in Thailand. I can't even apply for PR in Thailand due to not working in Thailand for at least a decade and no current tax payments.

 

-The weather in Thailand is no longer appealing- it has gotten much hotter over the decades and with the increase in traffic- the pollution has made  many of the Thai cities unlivable and there is no plan to do anything about it.   Most of the beaches are filthy and the water unhealthy to swim in.

 

-The Police- completely untrustworthy and an industry in themselves-  

 

-Wealth disparity-  a situation that is  so serious that IMHO it is a national emergency- it is true the rich are getting vastly richer and the poor are remaining vastly poorer.  Many have lost hope- turning to  alcohol and drugs to relieve the pain. Working as a clerk in 7 or the big box producers for 9-10K a month is going to work much longer.

 

Yet- with all of the above stated- I am still going to remain because of family  and the fact that the majority of Thai people that I interact with are still polite; still resourceful and still basically honest. The majority of them live day by day toiling to stay alive and provide for their families. It is their country and only they can change it...

 

-

 

Everything you say is spot on. And the part about immigration is probably the most annoying. I too am married. There is no reason in the world why I should have to bring in the reams of paperwork each year. My file is probably 175 pages thick. Is that really necessary? Each year, duplicate everything? It is sheer nonsense, and massive xenophobia, in my opinion. And this administration, and Biggest Joke is leading Thailand in the wrong direction, on nearly every level. 

 

Renting is the way to go. Unless you build on reasonably priced land, and are willing to just give the house to the wife, should things go belly up. It is a renters market for sure. The prices of real estate here, and land, are completely disproportionate to the value. Things may change. There is alot of unsold inventory on the market right now. 

 

I too am going to stay. But, I hope the army is booted out of power with a vengeance. They are so far beyond useless, it defies the imagination. 

[wobalt]

The problem is that many expats know a “different” Thailand many years ago


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[Fex Bluse]

51 minutes ago, HuskerDo said:

No you shouldn't have to surrender your culture as long as you respect the culture of the country you are living in.

 

Hold off on the "stupid" comments tho as they probably look at you the same way. It's another country and not the one you grew up in. Accept that fact and be respectful of the people and culture and it will open many doors for you.

It may surprise you that while I don't care for most Thais I have encountered, I ALWAYS treat them with respect. That is a courtesy they almost universally do not extend to me. But, I offer mine because I am better. 

 

As for stupid, OK, let's use 'ignorant' instead. But, don't judge me for this view. Thais themselves seem to be aware: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30341300

Edited January 26, 2019 by Fex Bluse

[wobalt]

Thailand has never done anything for their expats, only trying to control and monitoring. Every long term expat is per se a criminal, they think


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[HuskerDo]

2 minutes ago, wobalt said:

Thailand has never done anything for their expats, only trying to control and monitoring. Every long term expat is per se a criminal, they think


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That's your opinion and not a fact.

[Wallander4]

23 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

Great!! No more queues at my local immigration office. 

No its only gonna be you they can fleece ...

[wobalt]

Sure, nearly 30 years in the country make me think like this


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[Wallander4]

23 hours ago, puchooay said:

Judging by this thread, I would say that Thailand will be a much better place to live. All the doomers and gloomers will be gone and will be whinging about there lives somewhere else.

and only the loosers will stay - I feel sorry for expats that have family and are stuck here tho

[les Dennis]

Its the lawlessness, and the attitude to road safety and driving that would chase me out.

[marcusarelus]

40 minutes ago, mok199 said:

Thailand has been accused in the past  and is now on a USA watch list...can you help me understand ..how this is possible

Take a look at the list and find Thailand.  I only see Germany, Switzerland, India, Japan and Korea.  To my knowledge Thailand is not a currency manipulator.  If you have knowledge of that please post a link.

 

https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/206/2018-10-17-(Fall-2018-FX Report).pdf

Edited January 26, 2019 by marcusarelus

[Wallander4]

23 hours ago, madmen said:

I doubt all 90% are married home owners or on business visas.

 

THE overwhelming number of posts on TV all say they don't own anything here and have a suitcase by the door ready to bolt. Problem is bolt where? All of Asia is tightening visa rules

 

You know very well that most are just having a bitch.

 

Try google Varna or Burgas, Bulgaria

[marcusarelus]

35 minutes ago, wobalt said:

The problem is that many expats know a “different” Thailand many years ago


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Yup.  A lot better now than it was in 1968.  Girls use a lot less hairspray to name one improvement.  Now police a lot less corrupt and a whole lot less Americans here now.

Edited January 26, 2019 by marcusarelus

[mommysboy]

On 1/25/2019 at 10:40 AM, villagefarang said:

I like living here and it is better than when I first arrived.

How so?

 

 

[mommysboy]

47 minutes ago, Respectthailand said:

Old farangs ( whether in their own country or a new country) are hardly renowned for cheeriness and optimism.

Victor meldrew anybody?

They think the world owes them a living, expect deference and respect to be shown to them ( whether deserved or not ) and as they get older casual racism becomes de rigeur despite many of them being married ro a ' jonny foreigner'.

They couldny cope in their country of origin and made a move believing their new country would be shangri la. It never could or would be like that and they cant cope knowing they have failed...again.

Laughably they think countries like cambodia will be a panacea.

Hung sen has taken cronyism and corruption to a whole new level.

It is a country almost wholly dependent on foreign aid handouts ( a lot of which is skimmed off ).

Ripping off its own inhabitants and foreigners is a national sport.

You think BiB are bad here...you aint seen nothing yet.

Health care??? Give me a break.

Food from 'back home'..I don't think so.

But hey be my guest.

I'm sure the new 'home' will welcome the incessant droning on of its new 'guests'.

This rant in itself displays remarkable similarities to those it criticizes.

[Respectthailand]

28 minutes ago, Fex Bluse said:

It may surprise you that while I don't care for most Thais I have encountered, I ALWAYS treat them with respect. That is a courtesy they almost universally do not extend to me. But, I offer mine because I am better. 

 

As for stupid, OK, let's use 'ignorant' instead. But, don't judge me for this view. Thais themselves seem to be aware: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30341300

'I am better'.

And ever so modest

[HuskerDo]

1 hour ago, Ahab said:

I wasn't asked but I don't think it is going down the "pan", whatever that means.

Are they referring to a bed pan maybe? I don't know what they mean either. :-) 

[Sheryl]

Going "down" or "up" depends more than a little on the circumstances of whom you ask. And it is quite different for expats than for Thais. Many of the same factors that made Thailand so attractive to expats in the past were not so good for the Thai people.

 

The country has seen unusually rapid economic growth over the past 20 years or so. With that, standards of living have risen significantly but so has the cost of living, such that it is no longer such a good choice for expats of very limited means.

 

Also in tandem with the unusually rapid economic growth has come pollution (mainly urban), worsening traffic and crowds (ditto) etc.

 

I've been here off and on for almost 40 years and permanently based here for the last 20. For Thais I would say things are certainly much, much better for the rural majority and those in small or medium sized towns. It has been really gratifying to see tbe improvements in living conditions for rural people.

 

In large urban areas (including the whole of greater Bangkok and its outskirts) I think the scales have tipped to the point where the various urban blights outweigh the advantages and people's quality of living has gone down in recent years and seems poised to continue declining.

 

For expats -- if on a very tight budget then pretty well no longer a good option to be here (and increasingly hard visa wise as well). If a bit better off then I would say it depends on where in the country you live as well as personal preferences (e.g. value of clean air vs western consumer goods etc; whether you need to live arounf other expats etc). In Bangkok and other cities, for most people I suspect it is overall worsening. For those of us living in the "boondocks" it's the opposite -- quality of life has improved in terms of infrastructure and availability of goods etc, the various urban blights have not yet arrived, and while it is more expensive than it used to be, it still compares favorably to our home countries. The balance may, of course, shift in the future but for now I'd say it's pretty good.

 

 

 

Sent from my SM-J701F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[marcusarelus]

8 minutes ago, mommysboy said:

How so?

Now they have color TV's and Refrigerators, AC and indoor plumbing and hot water showers and telephones.  

[villagefarang]

28 minutes ago, mommysboy said:

How so?

 

 

There were 3 TV channels which went off at midnight.  No cellphones, no internet, fewer roads, no expressway, no satellite, no skytrain, no gyms or health clubs, several coups and midnight curfews, very little air conditioning, little in the way of western food or products, 20 baht to the dollar, tax clearances to leave the country.   Believe me life is a lot more comfortable, convenient and all round better than when I first arrived.

Edited January 26, 2019 by villagefarang

[HuskerDo]

23 minutes ago, Wallander4 said:

and only the loosers will stay - I feel sorry for expats that have family and are stuck here tho

"and only the losers will stay"..... you might have said that backwards.

[xylophone]

14 hours ago, Lacessit said:

After eating said mangos and pineapple for the last ten years, my libido does not seem to have suffered. Just ask my Thai GF.

I'd suggest your friend has simply grown man boobs, which can happen to guys that don't exercise everything regularly.

The bit about growing breasts was joke!! (maybe I should have said.....and he is now working in Pattaya!)

 

However whenever he went out spraying them with hormones he was completely covered from head to toe in protective gear........so not keen on getting that stuff on his skin, or breathing it in.

 

Getting off track......but give me the pristine fruit, veg and meat on display in Oz or NZ over any rubbish I have seen here. Rats, cockroaches, flies and stinking meat all present in many places......even in my local large supermarket.

[marcusarelus]

22 minutes ago, les Dennis said:

Its the lawlessness, and the attitude to road safety and driving that would chase me out.

Lawlessness?  Ha ha.  This lady worked for the Yanks in Northern Thailand and around.  She was lawless personified.  Much safer now. 

[HuskerDo]

2 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

Lawlessness?  Ha ha.  This lady worked for the Yanks in Northern Thailand and around.  She was lawless personified.  Much safer now. 

Mom? 

[HalfLight]

13 hours ago, 348GTS said:

 

What you have "running" the country in Thailand is way worse than anything the delusional left wing media make up about Donald Trump, but hey, please don't let facts get in the way of your Trump Derangement Syndrome.

No, I'd say they're pretty much on a par. However, one of them knows he's dishonest and the other one thinks people believe him when he says it's everyone else.

 

 

.

Edited January 26, 2019 by HalfLight

[Chippy151]

8 minutes ago, HuskerDo said:

"and only the losers will stay"..... you might have said that backwards.

"Stay will losers the only and"

That makes even less sense.

[roo860]

"Stay will losers the only and"
That makes even less sense.

[emoji23]

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[HuskerDo]

4 minutes ago, Chippy151 said:

"Stay will losers the only and"

That makes even less sense.

Uuuuugh! Only the losers will leave. Uuuuuugh!!