2 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

and that licentiousness is the main pleasure of them all. But, it does a faded European good to spend some time among such a jolly, extrovert and anti-intellectual people!"

I'm down with that! (Although I do like their music).

yes he was wrong about the music, but that's about all

9 minutes ago, TheFreqFlyer said:

A huge exaggeration if you ask me.

 

In any case, what you are saying could just as well be applied to any neighboring country too. China is very similar, so is Myanmar. Not to mention the Middle East! 

 

In my experience, the Burmese (as lovely as they are but still) are some of the most entitled, stubborn, rigid and selfish people I've ever met. Can't tell you how many times I've been blocked in by nonchalant drivers who don't even so much as say sorry when they come to move their vehicles...half an hour later! I've never experienced anything like this in Thailand. 

 

I also find that in many of Thailand's neighbors (other than Cambodia) there are generally fewer smiles especially in urban areas. In the countryside, the people are quite charming. 

 

Thanks for quoting and I agree. Of course there was some exaggeration in my comment. Mentioning the Thai street dogs as part of Sakdina was partly meant satirical, but also partly realistic as I indeed know cases confirming this.

 

But I want to emphasise again that what I wrote was in order to describe the use of xenophobia as a political tool in the culture of Sakdina. I neither did say that the average Thai follows these ideas always, nor did I say that the elite itself believes these own arguments always.

 

In the opposite, the elite is well aware about the progressiveness of the Western world, as neither their Mercedes or Ferrari cars, nor their Rolex watches, nor the Western universities they send their offsprings to give any hint on Thai supremacy as tought at Thai schools. Even the generals at the top might agree to this in a private talk.

 

All this propaganda to keep Sakdina alive, and the related xenophobia, are simply used as political tools to stabilise the political totalitarian system, and to keep the people at the bottom of the systems obeying peasents.

 

And as I pointed out in my last paragraph, teaching the populace to be superior while claiming that foreigners or other races are the root of all evil is and always has been a well proven political tool in totalitarian countries all over the world. The other countries you mention are totalitarian as well. So yes, what I said can be applied to them as well.

1 minute ago, Flying Saucage said:

 

Thanks for quoting and I agree. Of course there was some exaggeration in my comment. Mentioning the Thai street dogs as part of Sakdina was partly meant satirical, but also partly realistic as I indeed know cases confirming this.

 

But I want to emphasise again that what I wrote was in order to describe the use of xenophobia as a political tool in the culture of Sakdina. I neither did say that the average Thai follows these ideas always, nor did I say that the elite itself believes these own arguments always.

 

In the opposite, the elite is well aware about the progressiveness of the Western world, as neither their Mercedes or Ferrari cars, nor their Rolex watches, nor the Western universities they send their offsprings to, give any hint on Thai supremacy as tought at Thai schools. Even the generals at the top might agree to this in a private talk.

 

All this propaganda to keep Sakdina alive, and the related xenophobia, are simply used as political tools to stabilise the political totalitarian system, and to keep the people at the bottom of the systems obeying peasents.

 

And as I pointed out in my last paragraph, teaching the populace to be superior while claiming that foreigners or other races are the root of all evil is and always has been a well proven political tool in totalitarian countries all over the world. The other countries you mention are totalitarian as well. So yes, what I said can be applied to them as well.

 

 

 

20 hours ago, quake said:

Go one step more, bin all religions,  they will all go the same way as the dinosaurs at some point in time.  very soon i hope

"very soon"? You don't see the news then.? 

20 hours ago, quake said:

Go one step more, bin all religions,  they will all go the same way as the dinosaurs at some point in time.  very soon i hope

The antidote to religions is education. And education is poison to autocrats. England with it's history of kings and religion working in tandem to oppress the people is one good example of the dynamics at work.

 

So .. get rid of dictators first and then proceed to educate. Religions will fade into the background automatically. Unfortunately getting rid of dictators and keeping them away requires an educated crowd. It's a hard circle to break.

46 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Sir Anthony Rumbolds letter on leaving Bangkok as UK ambassador in 1967 could not be improved upon

 

"I have very much enjoyed living for a while in Thailand. One would have to be very insensitive or puritanical to take the view that the Thais had nothing to offer. It is true they have no literature, no painting, and only a very odd kind of music — that their sculpture, their ceramics and their dancing are borrowed from others — and that their architecture is monotonous and their interior decorations hideous. Nobody can deny that gambling and golf are the chief pleasures of the rich — and that licentiousness is the main pleasure of them all. But, it does a faded European good to spend some time among such a jolly, extrovert and anti-intellectual people!"

 

Pretty racist and disgusting view. Thailand has a great culture...it's music, traditions, sports etc.

 

Also, as to whether Muay Thai originated in Thailand, Cambodia or Burma depends on who writes the history books. Don't think that question is ever going to be easily settled...but let's also not forget the fact that the boundaries of the country have shifted numerous times over the centuries. 

33 minutes ago, Flying Saucage said:

 

Thanks for quoting and I agree. Of course there was some exaggeration in my comment. Mentioning the Thai street dogs as part of Sakdina was partly meant satirical, but also partly realistic as I indeed know cases confirming this.

 

But I want to emphasise again that what I wrote was in order to describe the use of xenophobia as a political tool in the culture of Sakdina. I neither did say that the average Thai follows these ideas always, nor did I say that the elite itself believes these own arguments always.

 

In the opposite, the elite is well aware about the progressiveness of the Western world, as neither their Mercedes or Ferrari cars, nor their Rolex watches, nor the Western universities they send their offsprings to give any hint on Thai supremacy as tought at Thai schools. Even the generals at the top might agree to this in a private talk.

 

All this propaganda to keep Sakdina alive, and the related xenophobia, are simply used as political tools to stabilise the political totalitarian system, and to keep the people at the bottom of the systems obeying peasents.

 

And as I pointed out in my last paragraph, teaching the populace to be superior while claiming that foreigners or other races are the root of all evil is and always has been a well proven political tool in totalitarian countries all over the world. The other countries you mention are totalitarian as well. So yes, what I said can be applied to them as well.

That's a leftist worldview. One could equally say that the destructive nation destroying agendas like feminism, extreme political correctness, acceptance of abnormality such that it becomes normal etc. is just as much a tool to keep people in their place as the promotion of blind nationalism. 

 

I don't get the impression that they're teaching foreigners are the root cause of evil...as a country that has never been officially colonized that seems like a huge misunderstanding. Instead, the teaching is more along the lines of Thai superiority as in "we were so great as to have never been colonized". Quite a bit different.

 

As I understand Thai, I watch the news and I watch current affairs shows and documentaries. Not once have I heard anyone say: "farang are evil, purge them from society". It's more like (in the context of covid) "let's keep the country closed to keep out the foreign virus, which could infect you and you could die". 

Unless grovelling appreciation, any critic of another culture, however backward is always tagged as 'racist' these days. Old Anthony was spot on, he never mentioned muay thai but he would have added it to the borrowed list. He even had a point about the music, if you listen to anything from the 60's it sounds like it was recorded in a garage on a cassette tape. ????

1 hour ago, DrTuner said:

The antidote to religions is education. And education is poison to autocrats. England with it's history of kings and religion working in tandem to oppress the people is one good example of the dynamics at work.

 

So .. get rid of dictators first and then proceed to educate. Religions will fade into the background automatically. Unfortunately getting rid of dictators and keeping them away requires an educated crowd. It's a hard circle to break.

 

Could we just round them all up, then put them on the

Golgafrinchan Ark Fleet Ship B

13 minutes ago, quake said:

 

Could we just round them all up, then put them on the

Golgafrinchan Ark Fleet Ship B

That's how they got here ????