The week that was in Thailand news: Don't expect schools to educate your kids - in Thailand or anywhere else!

[rooster59]

The week that was in Thailand news: Don't expect schools to educate your kids - in Thailand or anywhere else!

 

 

It was past my bedtime in March 1974. It was a school day next day and I expected that my mother would have already shooed me upstairs. She didn't. It was a bit mysterious but there was something that she wanted me to stay up and watch. 

 

What I saw has stayed with me to this day. It was the celebrated ITV series The World at War and this was the episode on "Genocide" - specifically Hitler's plans for the Jews and other people he didn't like. I watched in silence as the Allies bulldozed the pitiful bodies at Auschwitz into pits. Stared in stunned disbelief as personal testimony of survivors recounted the horrors of the concentration camps with their ovens and forced labor. 

 

When it was over I said I was going to bed - I was aged 12 and I wanted to appear manly and adult. I pulled the covers over me and started thinking. And thinking. There was very little sleep that night. I kept wondering about many things but one of them was:

 

Why had nobody at school mentioned this before?

 

Over the years I developed a fascination with the Holocaust. We tuned in to the made for TV dramatization with Meryl Streep. That summer in 1974 my mum and dad took me and my younger brother to Oradour-sur-Glane where the Nazis murdered more than 600 French men, women and children burning many in one building. The village was effectively annihilated but kept as a memorial just as it was during World War II.

 

This time my brother and I had many questions. We were getting the fullest picture imaginable of this part of our parents lives and we would never look back.

 

As an adult I discovered from the internet that my French Great Uncle and his wife were imprisoned in Auschwitz for their work with the Resistance in Le Mans. I never met my Great Aunt for obvious reasons. Great Uncle Arsene survived despite coming back to Le Mans as a virtual skeleton after the war. 

 

Today my bookshelves are stacked with everything about the second world war but particularly the genocide and the role that the Nazis played. Only this last week I sat through "The Eichmann Show" with Martin Freeman, formerly of "The Office" fame. Superb.

 

I have tried - with my parents' help initially - to educate myself about the genocide. Yes, there is some morbid fascination. But principally I wanted to know how people could do this and how people could allow it to happen. I also wanted to have plenty of knowledge so I could pass on information to my own children when the time was right. I saw it - and I still see it - as a duty. I am not a Jew, or a homosexual or a gispy come to that - I saw it as my duty to the next generation. To look for the signs when it might happen again and stop it from doing so. 

 

It has also led me to an understanding to forgive the German people for what happened and to pass onto my own offspring the reasons for this. This in itself is something of an achievement after the propaganda inculcated in Britons along the lines of "two World Wars and one World Cup - doo dah". 

 

This week on Thaivisa the news was overshadowed early Monday not by the smog enveloping the country but by the story that a teen idol - a singer with the popular band BNK48 called Namsai - had appeared in a Nazi t-shirt on stage. It was the latest disgrace following several cases at schools and universities over the years. Even a Nazi-themed short time room caused serious and understandable offence last year.

 

Apart from reps from the Jewish and German communities, the loudest voices were those that condemned the Thai education system for doing nothing to inform children about world history. Critics slammed the country's teachers and schools for being insular - not caring a jot for what happens outside Thailand. Even the children themselves were castigated along with Namsai and her guilty looking managers. 

 

(I'll put aside the unfortunate fact that the teaching of INTERNAL Thai history - especially modern Thai history - is just as bad as the teaching of external history).

 

I was a teacher for 30 years but my style was not to tell children very much. I believed in inspiring people to learn and find out for themselves. Rather than tell teenagers that "six million Jews died" (that would mean little to the average Thai and might even cause them to grin) I'd give them the links and tell them to go away and find out some details. Then I asked them to report back with findings. Then we could reflect and talk. I was a Thai culture teacher, not a history teacher. When I touched on Thai history I adopted a similar approach - though resources were scant. 

 

I believe that primarily it is the responsibility of parents to educate their children. In my career I saw far too many parents - especially Thai - who didn't really grasp this notion. They were shelling out top dollar for an international education for their children and they wanted it delivered. Sadly, far too few realized the full responsibility that goes along with raising - and educating - children.  

 

They paid through the nose but saw the world through their noses, too.

 

We see countless stories in the news in which ignorance - not just of the world outside Thailand but everyday life within the kingdom's borders - prevails among young people who should and could have been given better guidance by those very people they are honor bound and culturally required to respect. Their parents. 

 

For me it is time more Thai parents stepped up to the plate and realized - like the great departed King - that they are the role models, they are the teachers - and they should stop paying lip service to this ideal. 

 

The Namsai t-shirt case begged many questions and caused much hand wringing. One woman from the Basic Education Commission called Nitsuda Apinuntaporn said that education was not to blame. It was in the curriculum and the children just don't remember. This "academic" should go back to school. I wonder what this "Nit" tells her own offspring. I fervently hope she doesn't have any....

 

While no one would hold the Thai education system up as an example for the world there are also problems elsewhere. Even a country like the UK, renowned for some of its educational institutions, is in dire straights especially from a lack of funding. I suggest the six part BBC documentary "School" that aired in the autumn if you have any doubts about that. 

 

More and more stories on Thaivisa this week showed the poor level of education was at the root of many problems and the equally poor responsibility of parents was at the forefront. Following the previous week's case where a father claimed that he didn't think he was doing anything wrong in allowing his three year old to be on a motorcycle without a helmet came news that only one in 14 parents bother to give their kids head protection. 

 

The parents - one would like to say setting the right example but that would be a stretch - wear helmets nearly half the time. Whoopydo!

 

Some posters said carrying young children on motorbikes is irresponsible even if they do have helmets and many suggested the helmets available in Thailand make eggshells look sturdy. I accept these points but I am someone who carries his young daughters on a motorcycle. They are taught about the danger. To sit still and hold on. They wear the best helmets I can buy. And journeys are very local and short and I pride myself on being a good and responsible rider. 

 

Being a farang with cute kids I get many looks. Hopefully some of them come from parents who might think twice in the future about brazenly risking the lives of their children when they could afford them some viable protection. 

 

Down in Pattaya another needless tragedy occurred. A maid left her six year old daughter alone in a strange room with access to a balcony while she went cleaning elsewhere. The little girl's plunge from the 32nd floor was in my mind as I hugged my own six year old when meeting her at school and teaching her - yet again - to look right and left and right again when crossing the road on the walk back to the condo with dad. 

 

If the Pattaya maid had been trained to think a bit more she may have enjoyed a lifetime of happiness rather than the misery of regret that will dog her to the crematorium.

 

I have less blame for the parents of the seven year old child that was attacked by a pack of dogs on a Pangnga beach. This was a local child and kids must be free to be out and discover their environment for themselves. I roamed in the woods of England at that age and my parents were not negligent. Of course there are limits but in this case I don't even blame the dogs. I blame the society that places dogs above humans (and children) and I blame the habits of a population that hides behind some handy tenets of Buddhism when it comes to matters of life and death. 

 

Mrs Rooster keeps a small amulet in the car which I try to ignore as looking at the road ahead seems more beneficial. It would do no good to say what is gnawing away at my mind when I see amulets and superstition in Thailand; I've learnt that much in nearly four decades. But when my kids are of the right age, again, they'll be told about the foolishness of putting their faith in magic and mumbo jumbo.

 

How I remember when the first Mrs Rooster - after our separation - called me to say: "Come and pick up the children - I don't want them anymore".

 

Calm down I said, it can't be that bad. It was...... they had renounced Buddhism and, horror of horrors, told her so to her face!! 

 

I gave them a strict talking to. Now you're in your teens, I said, you have to understand about being two faced. You must appreciate the value of lying through your set of Thai/Farang "luuk khreung" front teeth. Tell your mother you are Buddhist, it'll please her. Only then do the opposite. 

 

They did - peace prevailed - and we high-fived in private. 

 

This week I decided to keep my ample gob shut when it came to the closure of my daughters' school as the smog, apparently, got worse and worse. I had hoped that the school could have come to their own decision as to whether to stay open on Thursday and Friday rather than kowtow to the Education Ministry. I was wrong as usual.

 

The sign in Thai at the gates burbled on about 2.5 microns. I wanted to ask what would happen on Monday when it was just as bad and add facetiously that the pupils should be given an extended holiday until mid-May - after all they'd learn more at home with me! I kept my counsel and took them home with a smile, resisting the churlish urge to tell the teacher that now I would have to stop them breathing the same air at home just yards from the school. 

 

Now was responsible for the child minding AND the education! Geez I was grumpy!

 

Also blaming education was the story that 2,559 Thai children aged between 10 and 14 had got pregnant in the last year. Better sex education was called for this time. Those doing so omitted to note the irony that children who have sex probably know exactly what they are doing. The real problem is the parents and their laissez-faire "let the kids look at YouTube while I do my own thing" attitude. As well as the disgraceful incidences of rape of young teens that takes place in families in Thailand.  

 

It's a situation far too many people, parents included, like to sweep under that thickest of shag pile - the Thai carpet interwoven with ready made threads of excuse. 

 

Shortly I shall be taking my kids for a McDonald's. But they know it's an occasional treat and that they shouldn't always eat burgers and fries. As a parent I am acutely aware of the obesity epidemic and its damaging potential. Teen pregnancy, dog attacks and bike accidents are horrendous but I am appalled by the irresponsibility of Thai parents who perpetually feed their kids sugary, fat laden trash and smile at ingratiating neighbors when they are praised for having "a nice fat kid". 

 

Enough! Regular readers of this column will know that I am not a habitual Thai basher. But I will say it like it is and have always believed in that. Perhaps my praise last week of Bangkok and Thai men - that hit a chord with many especially when it came to recounting some of my history in the capital - has induced more of a rant this week. 

 

Or it might be having the kids at home midweek.....

 

Fortunately, the pages of Thaivisa were again full of the more light-hearted and fun stories that make following the Thai news as much an entertainment as an information source.

 

Not that all stories that produced titter-fests on the forum were without their very unpleasant sides, of course. A case in point was the appeal, then arrest of a Pattaya prostitute for drugging and robbing tourists. A say "appeal" in the sense of "appeal for her arrest" for her looks were anything but arresting. 

 

The forum curmudgeons wondered how "that could go back to his room with that" but who knows what man will do when the irremovable object (sex drive) hits the irresistible force (Chang or Leo). 

 

"Aunty Pa the Terrible" will get her comeuppance while the hapless Brit named in the story can at least boast that he was with a woman, of sorts, rather than a lady boy. 

 

Also connected to Pattaya was the beer survey initiated by my esteemed colleague "Dan about Thailand". Expats in Pattaya could drink everyone else under the table we were told though the 31% of Pattayans who had a beer every day compared to the 27% elsewhere in Thailand hardly seemed conclusive proof. 

 

What I found more interesting was that 7% of people had 50 bottles a week; didn't their parents teach them about the perils of drink or is it just the best way to forget that you are on a bar stool in Pattaya? I'll stop digging myself into a hole there....

 

Thai Rath informed us that there was a "new" idea sweeping the nation. In order to maintain face and keep up with the Somchais, Thais were now renting dowries as well as wedding cars for the big day. You could get a Benz and a million baht to display for just 60,000 baht. 

 

The forum faithful were quick to point out that this made loan sharks look like small fry. 

 

My favorite dowry story, that I repeat here, was when I was invited to be the guest of honor at one of my staff's very fancy wedding at the Hyatt Erawan and  Oriental hotels. The bride was marrying a Phuket millionaire who was a lovely guy even if he did support Liverpool. 

 

It is one of the traditions at Thai weddings that the mother of the bride should pretend that the dowry is very heavy even when it is only a few thousand baht and the odd ring. She should make a big show of hauling the bundle in cloth onto her shoulders. 

 

On this occasion there was a mountain of money, and so much gold and jewelry that everyone present thought the mum was going to fall over. A man was called to help her as she staggered about, much to the amusement - and envy - of all present. 

 

In smoggy Bangkok the authorities went from the sublime to the ridiculous when it was suggested that molasses would be added to water sprayed from drones to bring down the alien PM 2.5 particles. 

 

Perhaps mindful that they were already the laughing stock of the world for a host of other "too little too late" measures the BMA abandoned the plan and just made do with plain water. I just hope they didn't get that out of the klongs. 

 

Finally, its a common belief that Thais are like some other Asian cultures that are unable to distinguish their "Rs" from their "Ls" - a habit called lalling. The truth is that Thais have distinct letters for the R and L sounds and it is only laziness - or lack of education - that might cause one to be replaced by the other. It is certainly not an inability to pronounce or recognize the difference. 

 

Thus I had to chuckle when translating the story about "Aunty Pa the Terrible" and the drugging and robbing of the tourist. It was the spelling in Thai of the watch that she stole.

 

The Brit was apparently relieved of his LOREX. 

 

Looster

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2019-02-02

 

[mok199]

That's 6 minutes of my life I wont get back...

Edited February 2, 2019 by mok199

[Puchaiyank]

Education in America went from rewarding excellence...to shaming those who would dare strive for a quality education while making other kids "feel" bad because they were underachievers.  The fruits of this type of forcing everyone to become equally mediocre is being seen now...mediocre educated people becoming elected officials and acting like uneducated priviledged ignorant children.  America's future is bleak indeed.  Don't get me started!

[Samui Bodoh]

I don't think anyone who lives and/or spends a long time in the kingdom would ever praise the Thai education system; my personal view is that the top 100 people at the national level and the top 10 people at the provincial level of the Ministry of Education should be fired, today. And, I mean literally 'today'. Then, after the above have cleaned out their desks, the rest of the Ministry should be reformed with a chain saw and/or a blowtorch. Okay, that is a personal view and a wee bit harsh, but I have yet to meet anyone who disagrees.

 

Thailand has achieved a certain success with what I call the 1/50 method; one person is well-educated and gives orders to 50, lesser educated people as a 'brains-multiplier'. And, one has to say that they have achieved some success with this method; downtown Bangkok is not all that different from downtown Berlin or Paris or London or New York or Seoul, etc. However, things are changing and the 1/50 method simply will not work anymore; the future of countries/societies will depend on how well individuals can adapt to ever-changing circumstances, and the Thai education system isn't pumping out adaptable graduates who can meet modern challenges.

 

There is a correlation between the adaptability of a country's graduates and its future prosperity and success, and Thailand isn't going to do great on that...

 

Finally, I will tell a story that I have told several times on Thai Visa, but it is still as relevant today as it was the first time. Many years ago, I saw an interview with the late Lee Kwan Yew (spelling) where he was asked if he feared for Singapore's future in relation to her larger, resource-rich neighbours. Mr Lee simply smiled, looked directly into the camera and asked "what are their Education systems like?".

 

Says it all...

 

[mikebell]

He used to be funny.

[bowerboy]

14 hours ago, mok199 said:

That's 6 minutes of my life I wont get back...

 

Impressive...I gave up after 30 seconds.

[wreckingcountry]

Op needed to get something off his chest ! Stick to the day job


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[yankee99]

Did anyone actually read this

[TheFishman1]

Most Thai only taught history of Thailand TIT

[Soi Dog]

Probably the best movie on the holocaust that I have seen was Schindler’s List.  To me the most striking part was that the participants in the atrocities seemed like normal people who had gotten caught up in something that they did not have the moral fortitude to fight.  We have more recently seen the same sort of phenomenon in Myanmar with the Rohyngya.  The lesson to me is and has been that we should not consider the holocaust as a bizarre one off as much as it was a manifestation of the human condition that could easily crop up again. I would like to think that if I was a German back then I could have figured out the right thing to so but I fear not.  

 

A good book on the aftermath is Bill O’Reilly’s Killing the SS.  Very sobering.

[ChipButty]

Teach them how to hot wire a Ferrari and cut up a 9 bar they might find that more interesting

[roobaa01]

and what about the turkish muslim genocide on 2 million christian armenians during ww i , who is educating the kids ???

 

wbr

roobaa01

[ChipButty]

2 minutes ago, roobaa01 said:

and what about the turkish muslim genocide on 2 million christian armenians during ww i , who is educating the kids ???

 

wbr

roobaa01

What about that guy from Belgium he must be in the top 10

[thaiguzzi]

17 hours ago, rooster59 said:

I am not a Jew, or a homosexual or a gispy come to that

Nor dyslexic...

"gispy" or gypsy?....

Just joshin' - good read as always.

[roo860]

Myself and 10 friends will be visiting Auswitz in October, it's our last trip together, we've visited WW1 and WW2 sites, quite sobering.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[brain150]

18 hours ago, rooster59 said:

I watched in silence as the Allies bulldozed the pitiful bodies at Auschwitz into pits

That's when I stopped reading this piece of propaganda shit !

 

The "Allies" never were in Auschwitz ! The red army "liberated" Auschwitz and raped every woman they could get their hands on. That's historical fact !!!

 

If you see any photo with GIs in Auschwitz you know it's fake ... unless the photo was taken AFTER 1989 !!!

There was NEVER an Investigation about the Holocaust unless you want to talk about the Holocaust done to the German people in Dresden in 1945 - women, children and old people - no soldiers were in Dresden at that time !!!

 

Get your history straight !

 

BTW:

The swastika is a very ancient symbol - you will find it all over the world in many temples.

The brainwashing sits so deep it's unbelievable - and the teachers are the most brainwashed of all !!!

 

 

 

[Classic Ray]

No mention of the refugee Bahraini footballer still facing deportation? Bit more important than some of the topics (not Nazism) that you mentioned.

[ozmeldo]

This again...

 

Opinion at best, fake news at worst.

 

 

Simply not fair that TV use it's position to launch pablum.

 

Tripe

 

[baansgr]

2 hours ago, TheFishman1 said:

Most Thai only taught history of Thailand TIT

And even that is dubious as they ommit anything regarding the invasion of Siam and the French colonizing One of their islands.... Not to mention the tens of thousands  that died at the hands of the nips in ww2

[bojo]

I am replying to the title of this thread and not to the content as a whole as after the first paragraph it was just too much.. sorry OP.

But, 'yes', I would expect schools to educate my kids in Thailand or anywhere else, but there is only so much that can be taught in such a small timeframe together with everything else (including other historical atrocicities) that kids need to learn... So some may not learn about the holocaust in detail, but thay most certainly should know about it in general terms

[Jadam]

Quote

The parents - one would like to say setting the right example but that would be a stretch - wear helmets nearly half the time. Whoopydo!

They SHOULD set a good example, but they are adults so up to them if they want to wear a helmet.  What really disappoints me (almost daily) is when I see the adult with a helmet on but small children, who don't have a choice whether they even get on the bike, do not have helmets. 

 

I don't make a habit of hitting children (or grownups) but I smacked my 6 year old daughter in the back of the head when I saw her on a motorbike without a helmet after I had warned her against it.  I considered smacking the driver in the head, but I decided there are too many ignorant people out there for me to smack them all and she is old enough that she can say "No, I won't go without my helmet."  Afterward I told her that I felt bad about hurting her but it will likely hurt more if she falls off the bike without a helmet. 

 

I'm far from a perfect parent, but I like to think I'm better than average.  I'm also a teacher and I realize that there's only so much a school can do in any country, let alone Thailand where most children accept everything their parents (and grandparents) tell them as gospel when they are young and swallow everything the government gives them hook, line and sinker when they grow up. 

 

I've often said it's ridiculous that you need a license to legally operate an automobile (and also to be a teacher in most countries) but they'll let anyone have kids.

Edited February 3, 2019 by Jadam

[HappyinNE]

Rooster:  For you.

 

It is hard to imagine what it took to commit to and fulfill his quest….and there were others…..Although I’m not Jewish, I have enormous respect and admiration for those who helped save those countless souls from their pending fate.

 

 

 

 

 

Take a look at this courageous man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Tony125]

1 hour ago, brain150 said:

That's when I stopped reading this piece of propaganda shit !

 

The "Allies" never were in Auschwitz ! The red army "liberated" Auschwitz and raped every woman they could get their hands on. That's historical fact !!!

 

If you see any photo with GIs in Auschwitz you know it's fake ... unless the photo was taken AFTER 1989 !!!

There was NEVER an Investigation about the Holocaust unless you want to talk about the Holocaust done to the German people in Dresden in 1945 - women, children and old people - no soldiers were in Dresden at that time !!!

 

Get your history straight !

 

BTW:

The swastika is a very ancient symbol - you will find it all over the world in many temples.

The brainwashing sits so deep it's unbelievable - and the teachers are the most brainwashed of all !!!

 

 

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/01/27/what-a-soviet-soldier-saw-when-his-unit-liberated-auschwitz-70-years-ago/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.2c059e823748

1. Although the Soviets liberated Auschwitz the other allies liberated other camps in their areas. 

2. yes the Swastica is an ancient symbol  (even used by Native -Americans) but it has become a symbol of tyranny and is banned in some countries.

3.To the OP the schools are obligated to teach the students, you have to remember the Thai parents were not taught history like your mom and therefore expect the schools to provide the knowledge /skills the students need to become educated and worldly.

[Brunolem]

3 hours ago, roobaa01 said:

and what about the turkish muslim genocide on 2 million christian armenians during ww i , who is educating the kids ???

 

wbr

roobaa01

Or, much closer in space and time, the mass slaughter of roughly 20% of the Cambodian population... 

[PaDavid]

Sorry Rooster but Thailand comprises more than just Bangkok and Pataya - the only places to get a mention this week again!!!

 

As you are English, as you often tell us, the correct spelling is 'gypsy' (as previously mentioned) and 'honour.' I thought that you being a Scrabble expert would know this. 

[AlbionBob]

An interesting read as always.  Some serious and sobering thoughts aired on the holocaust subject !  Not wishing to be flippant, but I always look for a more amusing side to life.  In this respect, the comments on the beer survey subject, reminded me to nominate two posters for The Poster of the Week award (does it still exist ?).

 

The first was the guy who solemnly stated that  he had given up drinking many years ago.  I was awaiting a pearl of wisdom for the rest of us, but no, he went on to state that it had been a long and thoroughly boring day !!  I didn't see that coming !  Haha !  Nice one !

 

The second was the guy, obviously a Brit, who stated that he would rather drink himself to death in lovely warm Thailand surrounded by beautiful girls than be back home in a pub moaning about the weather before going home to his fat mess of a wife  !!!   Very succinctly put, I thought !

 

You've got to laugh !   

 

And what a great win for England last night in the Six Nations....!!!!

[Hardball]

Rooster59 is to be congratualted for such a long, and dare I say it, erudite article he has put together.  It must have taken hours and hours to put together.  My norm is 700 words per day. 

[Bill Miller]

4 hours ago, Soi Dog said:

Probably the best movie on the holocaust that I have seen was Schindler’s List.  To me the most striking part was that the participants in the atrocities seemed like normal people who had gotten caught up in something that they did not have the moral fortitude to fight.  We have more recently seen the same sort of phenomenon in Myanmar with the Rohyngya.  The lesson to me is and has been that we should not consider the holocaust as a bizarre one off as much as it was a manifestation of the human condition that could easily crop up again. I would like to think that if I was a German back then I could have figured out the right thing to so but I fear not.  

 

A good book on the aftermath is Bill O’Reilly’s Killing the SS.  Very sobering.

Yes. Never forgot discussing this with Mr. Harms, my seventh grade algebra teacher who had been a Hitler Youth member as required, but burned his draft card.
He took pains to explain it was near the end, and there was noone to spare for rounding up rebellious teens, but it still loomed large in my young mind with Vietnam draft just around the corner. 

[UglyBug]

8 hours ago, Samui Bodoh said:

I don't think anyone who lives and/or spends a long time in the kingdom would ever praise the Thai education system; my personal view is that the top 100 people at the national level and the top 10 people at the provincial level of the Ministry of Education should be fired, today. And, I mean literally 'today'. Then, after the above have cleaned out their desks, the rest of the Ministry should be reformed with a chain saw and/or a blowtorch. Okay, that is a personal view and a wee bit harsh, but I have yet to meet anyone who disagrees.

 

Thailand has achieved a certain success with what I call the 1/50 method; one person is well-educated and gives orders to 50, lesser educated people as a 'brains-multiplier'. And, one has to say that they have achieved some success with this method; downtown Bangkok is not all that different from downtown Berlin or Paris or London or New York or Seoul, etc. However, things are changing and the 1/50 method simply will not work anymore; the future of countries/societies will depend on how well individuals can adapt to ever-changing circumstances, and the Thai education system isn't pumping out adaptable graduates who can meet modern challenges.

 

There is a correlation between the adaptability of a country's graduates and its future prosperity and success, and Thailand isn't going to do great on that...

 

Finally, I will tell a story that I have told several times on Thai Visa, but it is still as relevant today as it was the first time. Many years ago, I saw an interview with the late Lee Kwan Yew (spelling) where he was asked if he feared for Singapore's future in relation to her larger, resource-rich neighbours. Mr Lee simply smiled, looked directly into the camera and asked "what are their Education systems like?".

 

Says it all...

 

I find after Regularly coming to Thailand since 1990 having a Thai Family and Many friends ! there is a complete lack of Common-sense in Thailand many say Thais are retarded ? but I really think in My Opinion that Common-sense as a course should be taught at infant Schools and continue right through the Education System and the kids may be able to help their Educated and Un-educated parents and Grandparents It is very Sad to see and witness on a daily basis ????

[car720]

I like the question. Why was man created to suffer and die?

In this case though I can only think of Dylan. "For the times they are a'changin."