What Bangkok tells us about Thainess

[DrTuner]

1 hour ago, Kasane said:

 Military, political, cultural, and economic dominance of people and other nations is a Western concept based on aggression. 

I knew it, the Edo period was due to time travellers from Hollywood! Tom Cruise did it, ha!

Edited April 30, 2019 by DrTuner

[Kasane]

6 hours ago, jayboy said:

I don't see how your comment is of the slightest relevance to the subject. 

" timid, selfish, uncultured, consumerist, and  without any decent vision of the future of the country." Screw Anderson and his demeaning words for Thai culture. 

[jayboy]

25 minutes ago, Kasane said:

" timid, selfish, uncultured, consumerist, and  without any decent vision of the future of the country." Screw Anderson and his demeaning words for Thai culture. 

Your response suggests you have not had the benefit of much reading around the subject, or indeed of any serious thought at all.

 

Benedict Anderson, a world renowned South East Asian scholar and fluent Thai speaker was not of course disparaging Thai culture but commenting on its superficial urban middle class.

[Kasane]

Scratch the  surface of "cultured" Western facade  and you see the ugly toxicity of arrogant and condescending attitude towards other cultures that not only demeans the people of Thailand but all people of nearby countries too. Couching it as the work of a "world renowned" Anderson does not diminish the intended political and psychological harm that the words intend. 

[jayboy]

Scratch the  surface of "cultured" Western facade  and you see the ugly toxicity of arrogant and condescending attitude towards other cultures that not only demeans the people of Thailand but all people of nearby countries too. Couching it as the work of a "world renowned" Anderson does not diminish the intended political and psychological harm that the words intend. 

Pitifully ignorant.Benedict Anderson was a doughty champion of South East Asian culture and its peoples , and an outspoken critic of Western imperialism.


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[Kasane]

"I should say that in this way the Bangkok bourgeoisie isn’t far from that of Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Jakarta: timid, selfish, uncultured, consumerist, and  without any decent vision of the future of the country." Demeaning words of a western imperialist even though he pretends to be an outspoken critic. In my eyes he was a bullshit artist.

And can you smell your own arrogance?

[jayboy]

8 minutes ago, Kasane said:

"I should say that in this way the Bangkok bourgeoisie isn’t far from that of Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Jakarta: timid, selfish, uncultured, consumerist, and  without any decent vision of the future of the country." Demeaning words of a western imperialist even though he pretends to be an outspoken critic. In my eyes he was a bullshit artist.

And can you smell your own arrogance?

Pitiful. Suggest you do a little googling on Benedict Anderson before embarrassing yourself further.

Edited April 30, 2019 by jayboy

[Kasane]

7 minutes ago, jayboy said:

Pitiful

See your own arrogance and condescension towards Thai's. "I love Bangkok or otherwise I would not live here. ....its middle-class are generally not a very impressive lot". Pathetic, sad, and weak to look down on people.

[overherebc]

7 hours ago, DrTuner said:

I knew it, the Edo period was due to time travellers from Hollywood! Tom Cruise did it, ha!

And he ruined the best beach.

[jayboy]

6 minutes ago, Kasane said:

See your own arrogance and condescension towards Thai's. "I love Bangkok or otherwise I would not live here. ....its middle-class are generally not a very impressive lot". Pathetic, sad, and weak to look down on people.

It is true that I am not a great admirer of the Sino Thai urban middle class generically speaking though there are many exceptions whom I count as my close friends.

 

And now we must part company since with the greatest respect we are talking at such different and mutually incomprehensible levels that further discussion will continue to irritate you as well as being difficult for you to absorb.

 

I mean that caringly as Edna Everage might say.

[DrTuner]

2 hours ago, Kasane said:

Scratch the  surface of "cultured" Western facade  and you see the ugly toxicity of arrogant and condescending attitude towards other cultures that not only demeans the people of Thailand but all people of nearby countries too. 

Or it could be that those cultures are in fact superior. At least they have (mostly) managed to get rid of military juntas.

[marcusarelus]

4 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

Or it could be that those cultures are in fact superior. At least they have (mostly) managed to get rid of military juntas.

Singapore is a nice dictatorship.  America is a toxic democracy.  Brexit is an example of it you don't do it the rich guys way you will have to keep voting till you vote correctly.  I find it difficult to award superior ranks - different yes but better or worse?  Hard to tell.  

Edited April 30, 2019 by marcusarelus

[DrTuner]

1 minute ago, marcusarelus said:

Singapore is a nice dictatorship.  America is a toxic democracy.  Brexit is an example of it you don't do it the rich guys way you will have to keep voting till you vote correctly. 

I'll agree on Singapore.

 

US is going through an eyewall replacement cycle, thanks to the backlash to the extreme leftism that governed there for years. Unstable, but at least a democracy, it'll self correct. US is agile.

 

Brexit is an example of what happens when the government is not sufficiently scared of it's people. Might be closest to Thailand in the West, general population is sitting on the sidelines while elites do whatever they want. At least they are hitting the streets in protest. 

[Bangkok Herps]

Quote

Bangkok certainly has its flaws. Since being designated the capital in 1782, and chiefly in modern times, it has become Exhibit A in the case against poor urban planning. The remaining canals are mostly eyesores. Greenery vanishes far faster than it can be replaced. Pollution is worsening. Traffic remains horrendous.

 

I'm disturbed but not surprised to see poor urban planning, canals, lack of greenery, pollution, and traffic as the "flaws" of Bangkok.

 

You're think that human trafficking, extreme poverty in the slums, rampant commercialism/materialism and its place as the epicenter of military dictatorship would have placed a bit higher on the list than the presence of canals.