Never again: On the Thai fondness for swastikas

[tifino]

6 hours ago, Somtamnication said:

This seems to happen every 2 years or so. The Thais' lack of history knowledge is obscene.  Last year, while doing a WW1 history lesson and consequences **after** for many years, I showed a photo of holocaust victims looking over barbed wire; the year 9 students broke out in laughter.

 

I paused everything, I told them I will be back and walked out the classroom for 10 minutes to calm down. Then I taught them why they were in there. 

 

Surreal

in their ignorance; it would have seemed like they have had some sneak preview of a new xBox game...

... all the gory advertising images, to along with

 

 

the packaging:

 

 

[bkkgriz]

4 hours ago, HLover said:

The flag used by the Confederate south was clearly displayed and for sale last weekend.

Suppose the groups affected by that symbol do not have a strong enough media presence/control to warrant an editorial?

Right next to the Che t-shirts I'm sure. But hey, if you only murder women, children and gays and follow an ideology that has killed 100 million, you are cool.

[HalfLight]

21 minutes ago, Ahab said:

So because there was a war after another war ended there is nothing to be learned from the conflicts and how they came about. I do agree with you regarding people not learning from the past. The ineffective and mostly useless United Nations has yet to act to prevent genocide since world war II, and I have zero hope they will act in an effective way to prevent this into the foreseeable future (e.g. Cambodia, Serbia, Rwanda).

The UN is a waste of time. In that respect I agree with the USA but not for the same reasons.

 

 

[yogi100]

2 hours ago, Wallander4 said:

Thais don't even know who built Railway of Death in Kanchanaburi (bridge over river Kwai) but by all means continue your thai apologist nonsense

 

Very few British school children know any thing about it either.

 

Those that do are likely told it was just punishment for Western Imperialism.

 

Few kids in British schools are even told who William Wilberforce was let alone what his greatest achievement was.

[tifino]

6 minutes ago, yogi100 said:

 

Very few British school children know any thing about it either.

 

Those that do are likely told it was just punishment for Western Imperialism.

 

Few kids in British schools are even told who William Wilberforce was let alone what his greatest achievement was.

learning is done , over time...

at least eventually the UK kids will grow up to learn of it (the bridge...) at some time or another

 

 

It is not a forbidden subject of the British

 

 

[sanemax]

Just now, yogi100 said:

Only when they get to see the Alec Guinness film if it's still allowed to be aired. The BBC have not shown it for years.

 

It's not politically correct to criticise Japan any more for fear of offending it's people. It's now even frowned upon to call 'em Japs.

"Japs" has always been a derogatory word to describe Japanese 

(And do spare me the "British people dont mind being called Brits , Australians dont mind being called Aussies , blah blah blah ) 

[phutoie2]

10 minutes ago, yogi100 said:

Only when they get to see the Alec Guinness film if it's still allowed to be aired. The BBC have not shown it for years.

 

It's not politically correct to criticise Japan any more for fear of offending it's people. It's now even frowned upon to call 'em Japs.

Rubbish, my old Regiment celebrate Kohima every year.

 

'when you go home, tell them of us and say,

For your tomorrow we gave our today'

 

Kohima Epitaph.

Edited January 29, 2019 by phutoie2

[Rimmer]

Some more extreme off topic stuff that hijacked the thread removed

[Ozfatboy]

I am convinced that many That's are not educated in world history. Last night of was sitting in a local bar and there were four younger guys and girls sitting at the table next to me eating and drinking. They seemed like Uni students based on their age, so I asked did they speak English. Most noddled and said alittle. I asked them if they know what a Nazi is? They all looked at each other, spoke in thai with each other then one of them responded yes..it's a cocktail drink. He then went on to tell me there were lots of cocktails named after the Vietnam war like the Kamikaze and B52. They we're invented by the GI soldiers.

OMG...where do you even start to correct them.

[yogi100]

13 minutes ago, phutoie2 said:

Rubbish, my old Regiment celebrate Kohima every year.

 

'when you go home, tell them of us and say,

For your tomorrow we gave our today'

 

Kohima Epitaph.

 

How on earth is it even possibly 'rubbish'.

 

I was referring to the awareness of today's British school children and Thai school children in regard to events during WW2 in Asia rather than to adults such as yourself.

 

That's why I wrote the words in response to a claim that Thai children supposedly knowing nothing about the Railway of Death nor the Bridge on the River Kwai.

 

 "Very few British school children know any thing about it either."

 

How many British schoolchildren who might possibly attend these regimental reunions and celebrations of yours had ever heard of Kohima or Kanchanaburi. I'll bet there's very few or more likely none at all.

 

[DrTuner]

As long as people keep freaking out about WW2 regalia they will be giving legitimacy to the idea behind it. Put swastikas on toilet paper I say.

[Jingthing]

3 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

As long as people keep freaking out about WW2 regalia they will be giving legitimacy to the idea behind it. Put swastikas on toilet paper I say.

On the face of it putting Nazi stuff on t.p. sounds like a good final solution, but be careful what you wish for. T.P. is sometimes used here in open hanging rolls on tables at restaurants. Might give people the wrong idea.

[Ks45672]

6 hours ago, ChipButty said:

In 2011, during a sports day parade, students of a Catholic school in Thailand dressed and marched in SS uniforms. The school later apologized after international outrage

They get it alright

Didn't price harry do it as well?? ???? 

[Beechboy]

Slightly off topic re: the swastika nonsense, but I had an experience 2 weeks ago which underlines the general ignorance of Thais regarding the rest of the world.

 

I was talking to an older 'bar girl.' With no intent as I've done my share of that stuff. Just stopped for a quick Tiger beer.

 

She was clearly after a victim though and asked me where I came from.

 

I replied "UK"

"UK, where that?"

 

"England, Scotland, Wales and some of Ireland"

 

"Oh! Englishman? I like Englishmen. 

Where is Australia then, not UK also?"

 

I ask you. She spoke perfect English, was clearly quite sensible and bright, Bkk born and must have met many Aussies in her profession and she was not a youngster.

 

Her brains only bothered to function when money was involved.

 

"Want another Tiger?" "I come with you if you pay bar fine and me 2000bht"

I finished my beer, made my excuses and left.

 

Do they have maps/atlases in Thailand or are they forbidden?

 

 

Edited January 29, 2019 by Beechboy

[dcnx]

Who can spot the first Nazi shirt for sale at a local market?

[Jingthing]

7 hours ago, Emdog said:

...

"The Nazis, seeking to exterminate the Jewish race..." Not a race, a religion. I could convert to Judaism. I could not convert to African.

...

Foul.

You are propagating blatantly misleading information about Jews and the Nazi attitude towards Jews.

Jewish is basically an ETHNORELIGIOUS group.

They are not the only one in the world but other major religions are not.

So Jewish is different, perhaps a source of misunderstanding of Jews.

Jewish is indeed a religion. Jewish is also a people (meaning there are ETHNICITIES that tend to be Jewish people). There are multiple ethnicities associated with Jewish people so that does complicate things, including black Ethiopian Jews.

People can be Jewish and not be at all or much observant, which describes the majority of American Jews. 

You are correct, you could convert to Judaism with a long effort. It's hard and not done by any masses of people. Nobody is out there trying to convert people. Then assuming you aren't of a Jewish associated ethnicity, you would indeed be a Jew in the religious sense, but not the ethnic sense. 

Most famous example today is Ivanka, daughter of the U.S. president. 

Although technically I agree Jews are not a race (there are actually no races from an anthropological POV anyway) from the Nazi POV their persecution was motivated by seeing Jews in a racial way. So the Nazi movement was indeed a racist movement towards Jews. They were more than happy to exterminate non-observant Jews with the same enthusiasm as the black hatted rabbis. 

Edited January 29, 2019 by Jingthing

[LazySlipper]

6 hours ago, sykray said:

The swastika is an ancient Asian symbol of good luck, respect and blessing. 

It is a different swastika there the tops are turned the other way, if memory serves me well.

[DM07]

12 minutes ago, HLover said:

Credibility.

Aha!

????

Because with numbers in the thousands, accuracy is the main concern!

Edited January 29, 2019 by DM07

[BritManToo]

9 minutes ago, LazySlipper said:

It is a different swastika there the tops are turned the other way, if memory serves me well.

Wrong, they appear in all orientations and positions throughout history.

Edwardian dagger (1901-1910)

Edited January 29, 2019 by BritManToo

[utalkin2me]

I feel more sorry for the poor girl. Great job to all the people who unfairly judged her and made her feel terrible for wearing a symbol she, and those around her, obviously knew nothing about. 

 

Hate to break it to people but symbols mean different things to different cultures. Superimpose your belief of a symbol onto someone else's and that is when problems arise.

Edited January 29, 2019 by utalkin2me

[HalfLight]

4 hours ago, NanLaew said:

When it comes to Myanmar, the only things that seem to prick the average Thai's social consciousness is when a migrant Burmese worker is caught committing a crime in Thailand. The indifference a few years ago when the Thai army towed boats full of Burmese refugees out to sea so they didn't become a Thai issue didn't get a lot of local air time. Same goes for Burmese bodies found in the recently disused trafficking camps discovered in southern Thai provinces.

 

Very true. When a serious road accident happens and the media images are posted here, an overwhelming amount of long-time TV experts get upset when they see some of the Thai's smiling or laughing, even the rescue team workers pointing at the mangled bodies. Generally this is an Asian reaction when faced with something distasteful, traumatic or down right scary. An old friend of mine who fought with the British Army in Korea told me years ago how the hoards of Chinese, under-armed and not even properly dressed for battle in freezing weather were mostly always smiling when they charged into the face of superior allied firepower. US veterans undoubtedly saw similar in Vietnam.

 

Next time you see the motorbike with 3-up haring through a red light and the two pillion are smiling or even laughing, they're doing this to counteract the natural response of their anal sphincters... they are not at all happy about it.

 

Hmmm, might be true but I don't think it is. Whenever I'm driving on Thai roads and I see someone doing something mindlessly stupid (usually on a motorcycle), with a mindlessly stupid grin on their mindlessly stupid faces,, it's usually because they're having fun and enjoying the buzz of being daring doing something mindlessly stupid. I don't think it's any more complicated than that really.

 

Same as when you pass 2 motorcycles linked by the rider on the outside putting his foot on the bike of the inside rider to show they're BFF or lovers or whatever. They usually go about 20kph too, just so everyone has time to see and notice their BFF-dom. Mindlessly stupid grins on their faces  because they're feeling good that at least one other person doesn't think they'r mindlessly stupid.

 

Very strange people.

 

 

[HLover]

1 hour ago, marcusarelus said:

Are you saying they are not accurate or that no accurate numbers exist for deaths in WWII or Thai roads?  If so feel free to post better numbers.  The fact remains that Thailand lost almost no one during WWII compared to most all the countries in Asia.  Given these facts it's no wonder the kids don't know much about it.  WWII was not really noticed in Thailand.  Most of the population farming at that time with no travel or international communication. 

No, I say they are inaccurate and the true numbers for both statistics may never be known.

The fact swastikas are not widely displayed/worn here also gives way to the possibility of the original post was a fluffer to ruffle the wool of the public.

Mission accomplished, 106 posts already.

[BritManToo]

9 minutes ago, HalfLight said:

Same as when you pass 2 motorcycles linked by the rider on the outside putting his foot on the bike of the inside rider to show they're BFF or lovers or whatever. They usually go about 20kph too, just so everyone has time to see and notice

That's actually one rider giving the other a push because he's broken down or run out of petrol.

Which is why they are doing 20kph.

I can't believe you didn't know that!

Edited January 29, 2019 by BritManToo

[kickstart]

5 hours ago, ravip said:

...and about that war that went on in Vietnam? Iran, Iraq, Libya? Do they teach about all these wars? About the why, the how, the when?

And South Africa, when Nelson Mandela died, it was on Thai TV, the wife and Grandaughter, the aged 16 said"Who was he ".

[puukao]

i remember a guy from africa saying, 'never again.'  then the next year another genocide

 

pollution, never again.  farangs always say this

 

girls exploited in pattaya, never again say the vegans.  

 

terrorist bombings, never again.  every day

 

never is just as bad as always.   

[puukao]

What most of you geniuses fail to understand is some of your English words are not the same in Thai.  It's like asking someone Chinese about Mao but you say it in a way that comes off as the word "frog" and they get confused.  

 

Nobody here can speak fluent Thai.  So go learn Thai, get a map, find some Thais, and then ask them some questions.  Will I still be smarter than 99% of them?  of course, I will be.   

 

But if they started asking you questions in Thai and you didn't know, maybe they think you are as dumb as you think they are dumb.  lol

 

and why some jokers need to know exact death numbers......well, so if you can't tell me exactly how many stars in the sky, can i say you have no credibility?    

 

you post here...IQ drops.   now i'm at 70.  and dropping...

[lamyai3]

3 hours ago, yogi100 said:

Few kids in British schools are even told who William Wilberforce was let alone what his greatest achievement was.

For me it's a choice between Hamlet and The Merchant of Venice. 

[ravip]

2 hours ago, DrTuner said:

As long as people keep freaking out about WW2 regalia they will be giving legitimacy to the idea behind it. Put swastikas on toilet paper I say.

Absolutely!

Just because this involves Germany, all want to 'forget' it!

It happened. It is a reality. It will take a long time to 'forget' it.

Instead of trying to forget symbols of horror, why not start to stopping horror today?

Who spends most on defence? Is that expense made used to make love?

Humans are morons, who can deny that? Just try to give one example of an animal worse than a human.

The more developed they are, the more moronic they become.

Hypocrisy?

Just saying...

 

 

[DM07]

59 minutes ago, ravip said:

Absolutely!

Just because this involves Germany, all want to 'forget' it!

It happened. It is a reality. It will take a long time to 'forget' it.

Instead of trying to forget symbols of horror, why not start to stopping horror today?

Who spends most on defence? Is that expense made used to make love?

Humans are morons, who can deny that? Just try to give one example of an animal worse than a human.

The more developed they are, the more moronic they become.

Hypocrisy?

Just saying...

 

 

I am German!

No...let's not forget it!

Never forget it!

 

 

[Christophers200]

The swastika is an ancient religious icon and is used as a symbol of spirituality in Indian and other religions. It can easily be seen in India and other Asian countries. Just because the symbol was highjacked by a German madman is no reason for it to be wiped from the earth.

Edited January 29, 2019 by Christophers200
correct typo