What is the Thai national character?

[Logosone]

9 hours ago, kingofthemountain said:

I am far from having the talent of Madame de Stael

in fact i have no talent at all lol

but with my observations of a lot of thais people in the last years

particularly in the rural areas, if I had to ''sum up'' the Thais it would be

they are optimistic, cheerful and carefree in nature, they are individualists but at the same time proud and confident in the resources of their country, and their spirituality gives them an astonishing resilience .

They are full of goodwill, however they find it difficult to keep the distance on long-term projects.

I think that is one of the best posts on here so far and it really is factually correct.

 

Thais are cheerful, fun-loving, carefree, and they do love nature, fires, cooking outside. They are highly individualistic, ego-centric, proud but at the same time prize social harmony highly. 

 

They are extremely resourceful, able to adapt, flexible and they do have a strong belief in another world. How else to explain all the merit making, amulet and magic customs. Their flexibility indeed means that adherence to principle, staying the course, is not their forte. As we know Thai women admitted to being the most unfaithful in the world.

 

It is right that this focuses on the positive traits above all. That is what national character is all about. It is about positive traits, noticed by foreigners, which the subject people themselves recognise as accurate.

 

However the difference with Madame de Stael and Germans was that she was able to judge the output of German academics, poets and such. Which was translated. So in a way, Madame de Stael's judgement was one about what Germans have given to the world. 

 

If one then tries to apply this to what Thais have given the world the matter become more difficult, because we do not have the wealth of translated poetry, academic treatises, philosophy and such which Madame de Stael had from Germans. Mostly because we are not able to read Thai. And Thai is not translated widely. However, it is questionable if the Thai main corpus of work lies in poetry, philosophy or academia. It is unlikely.

 

What has Thailand really given the world? Varied cuisine. Muay Thai, a form of combat which has almost no defense and mostly offense. The prosthetic leg, an expression of Thai resourcefulness and power to adapt. Cane ball. A very unique and inventive alphabet. An elaborate massage technique.

 

I guess creativity, in an adaptive and elaborate way is the most obvious facet of the Thai national character.

 

 

 

 

[robblok]

29 minutes ago, transam said:

Try reading some books on the subject....????

There are subjects on the subject of think skinned British nationalists .. i never knew that. Or did you not understand what rookiescot posted ?

[bodga]

1 hour ago, pineapple01 said:

Being Dutch and 75 and worked lived near Coventry for 14.5 happy Years i make little sense of anything he posts !. Typical Young Me Me sprouting popular rhetoric beloved of Facebook types..

so,  you  were "sent  to  Coventry"????

[NanLaew]

15 hours ago, jvs said:

Hi Yinn,i am Dutch but my father was from the Netherlands and my mother came from
Holland.

Quite a coincidence but true.I am 194cm and that is about average in Dutchland,but my brothers are taller and their kids close to two meters!Even the girls are very tall!

I like Dutch birds too.

[NanLaew]

14 hours ago, checkered flag said:

My son who is half Thai is 2 meters tall. Although he grew up in the US dinner was mostly Thai and rice. 

Something in the water maybe?

[robblok]

7 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

Curiously enough, the Brits have traditionally considered the nation on the other side of La Manche as being the perpetually great unwashed of Europe. Maybe it's the garlic?

 

Toke on.

No idea but there has always been a lot of rivalry and war between France and the UK. So its not so strange that one would look down on its enemy. Only after defeat of napoleon and the first world war did France and Britain become allies. Before that was it not the French that actually conquered Britain. In a way your all descendants of those French.

 

Must say Britain has been conquered a lot, Romans, Norshmen, Germans (saxons) French(Normans). I mean you guys are a melting pot of nationalities. Seems like a positive thing and one would expect the people then to be more open minded about others.

[bodga]

11 hours ago, Logosone said:

The French author Madame de Staël described the Germans as the poetic and thinking people in her book De l’Allemagne, which was published in 1813 in England, after being censured in 1810 in France:

 

„Since the outstanding men of Germany are not assembled in one and the same city they almost do not meet each other and are only connected through their writings...the German authors busy themselves only with theories, learning, literary and philosophical discourse,  something which the powerful in this world do not fear".

 

Many others since took up the theme of Germans as the poets and thinkers. Of course a dream is a pre-requisite to action. That was something Madame de Stael did not realise.

 

Now, I am trying to encapsulate the Thai national character as precisely as Madame de Stael did with Germany. But how....how indeed....

Theres  also a distinction with Old/Young  Thais

[pineapple01]

1 hour ago, robblok said:

I don't use facebook.. sorry. 

You get yer rhetoric from where then.?. Tic Tok.????

[transam]

12 minutes ago, robblok said:

There are subjects on the subject of think skinned British nationalists .. i never knew that. Or did you not understand what rookiescot posted ?

There is on the British Empire and Dunkirk, the use of these two momments in history has nothing to do with being thin-skinned.

OK Tulip...

[NanLaew]

13 hours ago, herfiehandbag said:

 

 

Transam makes a very good point. You do seem entirely unable, in any debate involving the UK, or more particularly England, and especially if you are arguing or commenting on the posts made by someone who is English, to resist indulging your somewhat stereotyped and often frankly offensive opinions on England and the English. I have for some time considered they you take a balanced approach to any topic involving the United Kingdom, England or the English. Balanced, as you appear to have a chip on both shoulders!

Are you an(other) Englander by any chance?

[robblok]

1 minute ago, transam said:

There is on the British Empire and Dunkirk, the use of these two momments in history has nothing to do with being thin-skinned.

OK Tulip...

Then you misunderstood his question Trans. He knew about the heroics of Dunkirk (and so do I) and just wondered why a people that did such feats is so thin skinned. 

[Logosone]

Just now, bodga said:

Theres  also a distinction with Old/Young  Thais

Indeed, and national character is generally something that filters down slowly, so it is something mostly displayed by the older generation. Witness how we still view the British as stiff-upper-lip not prone to excess, however, the younger generation of Brits could be turning out to be somewhat different.

 

National Character, like all things, is subject to change. But to the extent we can see it, it is mostly visible among the older generations.

 

Having said that, there are of course values that are held by both old and young Thais.

[checkered flag]

48 minutes ago, Yinn said:

They “bash” everyone same. If this is “Burma Visa Forum” they will do it for Burmese.

 

They also bash each themself. (Many about Liverpool people?) 

 

i know who they not like. Especially China, India, Russia etc. 

 

Still I not know who they like? 

 

They like anyone?

It seems to be part of the British character to bash others and cry when others complain about them. It's the easy way out to complain when finding good things to say (even when they are right in front of you) might take an effort. I was taught that people are 10 times more likely to complain than compliment others. Sometimes a simple thank you or a reasonable tip is all that's needed.

I have friend in all nationalities and races, but I'm put off by those who (mostly falsely) to act superior.

Their daily life must be very sad, if this is how they truly view others.

[NanLaew]

12 hours ago, baansgr said:

I won't give my view as may get banned but other Asian nationalities I have talked to over the years regard Thais as liars and cheats with everything fake....now it's even more obvious as they keep saying to me they don't believe the Covid figures for Thailand...That's from Indo, Malay and Flippers

Sound like a monger in (yet another lost) paradise.

[NanLaew]

10 hours ago, kingofthemountain said:

I am far from having the talent of Madame de Stael

in fact i have no talent at all lol

but with my observations of a lot of thais people in the last years

particularly in the rural areas, if I had to ''sum up'' the Thais it would be

they are optimistic, cheerful and carefree in nature, they are individualists but at the same time proud and confident in the resources of their country, and their spirituality gives them an astonishing resilience .

They are full of goodwill, however they find it difficult to keep the distance on long-term projects.

Agreeable observations.

 

Thanks!

[NanLaew]

50 minutes ago, ChakaKhan said:

...sangsom....I prefer the latter, with ginger ale,............and lime(manao)

I'll need to try that when I run out of Jamesons.

 

Thanks!

NL

[NanLaew]

19 minutes ago, transam said:

33 minutes ago, robblok said:

There are subjects on the subject of think skinned British nationalists .. i never knew that. Or did you not understand what rookiescot posted ?

There is on the British Empire and Dunkirk, the use of these two momments in history has nothing to do with being thin-skinned.

OK Tulip...

If you say so... Petal.

[ChakaKhan]

20 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

I'll need to try that when I run out of Jamesons.

 

Thanks!

NL

Is my go to....Ive tried em all---Reg, Premium, and the elusive Similan Sangsom....I go with Premium now, though can be tricky to find, large bottle 180.....ginger ales from tesco express and a 5 bt lime...arroy dee!

[Logosone]

In Britain there seems to be a major confusion about national identity. Are we British? Are we English? What does it mean to be English? The current confusion goes so deep that the left-leaning pseudo marxist Feminist Trans-Gender Gay Lesbian organization aka the BBC has commissioned a survey about what  it means to be English. It found the country is deeply divided between those clinging to "old" virtues, and those plain embarassed to be called "English".

 

""England's Christian tradition is important for almost half of Leave voters, but only 29% of remain voters. Leave voters are significantly more likely to talk of Englishness in terms of history, fair play, tolerance, plain-speaking and friendliness than those who wanted to remain.

 

But not everyone is comfortable calling themselves English. Eight out of 10 people regard it is a strong part of their identity but fewer than six in ten say it is a source of pride.

 

For some it is the opposite: among graduates, the young, Labour and Lib Dem voters, remain voters, Londoners, Mancunians and Liverpudlians, roughly one person in 10 says they would be embarrassed to describe themselves as English.

 

Nevertheless, the interlaced English and British identities remain an important part of how the people of England see themselves. For many it seems the two are almost interchangeable, reflecting an enduring loyalty and love for the nation, its story and its values.

 

Being English is more than a factual statement about place of birth or citizenship. It is an attitude and a state of mind."

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44306737

 

[Logosone]

Interestingly one of the nations where national character is the easiest to see and to accurately describe is Russians.

 

The Russians see themselves as "strong" and "romantic", with deep feelings. And they truly are among the strongest people, both in expression, conflict, and daily life. Raised in harsh, cold lands, vast swathes of country their feelings are similarly grand and deep. Their expressions of feelings, their show of wealth, excessive in every way.

[toofarnorth]

17 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

Good card players ????

Would that be Thais or Germans as they seem to be edging in up to now.

[toofarnorth]

17 hours ago, robblok said:

Your actually right.. compared to most of my countrymen im quite short. 

You have just reminded me robblok , in 1968 I had a Dutch aupair girl friend in England , ( she was from Gronigen so maybe girls from there are extra big ) It came back to me that people were saying she was fat , legs like tree trunks etc.  Not so , she was just big , not one to argue with , Biggest girl I ever had but ..damn good mind to post a pic.

[herfiehandbag]

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

Are you an(other) Englander by any chance?

 

3 hours ago, Yinn said:

Maybe he not like English people. 

 

Not have Dutch law “You must like English people.”

Up to him. 

 

Some not like Thai people.

Up to them.

Yes I am English - from the South West , Somerset. 

 

I have no particular "down" on any other nationalities, either within the UK, Europe or Worldwide. I have lived in and travelled widely in Europe, North America and beyond.

 I speak ( perhaps idiosyncratically)  French, German and some Thai. I think that I am reasonably thick skinned, and as I said I don't really subscribe to the views that one can stereotype national characteristics.

 

As I said, in support of Transam, I am also bored, fed up, whatever other expression you think fits the bill, with the unfailing efforts of one particular poster to crayon over every topic and thread with his own particular dislike of the English. He made his views clear many moons ago; but like the Duracell bunny, he just goes on, and on, and on...

Edited July 11, 2020 by herfiehandbag

[robblok]

19 minutes ago, herfiehandbag said:

 

Yes I am English - from the South West , Somerset. 

 

I have no particular "down" on any other nationalities, either within the UK, Europe or Worldwide. I have lived in and travelled widely in Europe, North America and beyond.

 I speak ( perhaps idiosyncratically)  French, German and some Thai. I think that I am reasonably thick skinned, and as I said I don't really subscribe to the views that one can stereotype national characteristics.

 

As I said, in support of Transam, I am also bored, fed up, whatever other expression you think fits the bill, with the unfailing efforts of one particular poster to crayon over every topic and thread with his own particular dislike of the English. He made his views clear many moons ago; but like the Duracell bunny, he just goes on, and on, and on...

Each and every topic, i think you moan a bit too much. Most of my topics have nothing to do with Brits. Maybe look in the topics about Trump or in the health section. Most of the times I come out is when a Brit makes some bad remarks about Thais or other nationalities. 

 

Here a Brit stereotyped other nationalities but forgot his own. I added the Brit stereotype and my own (Dutch stoner). Seems I have a bit more self critique then some thin skinned members. 

 

I have absolutely no problems with most Brits. Just the overly nationalistic ones and tommy Robinson fans ect. 

 

I did have some remarks about how badly the Brits did covid wise. But that is a fact and has nothing to do with liking or disliking people from the UK. 

Edited July 11, 2020 by robblok

[bodga]

4 hours ago, robblok said:

its in the urban dictionary

Must be true  then, I  myself  shower regularly, twice last year

[bodga]

4 minutes ago, robblok said:

but forgot his own

I DID not  forget my own if  you are referring to me? I deliberately left me  out as its for  johnny foreigner to say what "we" are  like.

[robblok]

5 minutes ago, bodga said:

I DID not  forget my own if  you are referring to me? I deliberately left me  out as its for  johnny foreigner to say what "we" are  like.

Ah ok.. yes was refering to you. But now Johny foreigner me did it and got a <deleted>load of complaints from Brits ???? I added what people thought about Dutch just to prevent it that people thought i was one sided. 

[robblok]

7 minutes ago, bodga said:

Must be true  then, I  myself  shower regularly, twice last year

Twice in year.. you can shower more often just don't use soap ????

[bodga]

16 minutes ago, robblok said:

Twice in year.. you can shower more often just don't use soap ????

Whats  soap? everyone  knows  Ajax or Vim is  enough.

[robblok]

9 minutes ago, bodga said:

Whats  soap? everyone  knows  Ajax or Vim is  enough.

I can imagine you having to use Vim if you only shower twice a year .. it must keep the Thais and others away though ????