Does the inequality ever make you uncomfortable?

[rough diamond]

10 minutes ago, rattlesnake said:

If you have Thai friends, ask them if they like 7/11 food. 99% of them will answer "mai aroi". They don't eat that sh*t, that's why you don't see them buying it.

B.S.!

Do you think that 7/11's food is just for expats and tourists?

[rattlesnake]

15 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

B.S.!

Do you think that 7/11's food is just for expats and tourists?

 

It is cheap food (the average microwavable dish costs 40 baht) and the reason the 7/11 staff does not eat it is not because they can't afford it. The premise of the OP is flawed.

[rough diamond]

2 minutes ago, rattlesnake said:

 

It is cheap food (the average microwavable dish costs 40 baht) and the reason the 7/11 staff does not eat it is not because they can't afford it. The premise of the OP is flawed.

More B.S.

Not all Thais are poor. 

Those working in the city Buisiness districts  with no access to street food use 7/11's all the time.  I see it happening daily.

[frank83628]

Why would you waste so much money in a 711 on crap rather than support your local businesses or do you live off toasties and microwave burgers?

 

[rattlesnake]

5 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

More B.S.

Not all Thais are poor. 

Those working in the city Buisiness districts  with no access to street food use 7/11's all the time.  I see it happening daily.

 

Thank you for confirming that they will only buy 7/11 food when they don't have access to street food. We are therefore in agreement.

[rough diamond]

50 minutes ago, rattlesnake said:

 

The quote I replied to was:

 

Yet, I’m aware that the staff at 7-Eleven earn quite modest wages. Many of the food items I casually throw into my basket are things they’ve likely never tried themselves

 

If you have Thai friends, ask them if they like 7/11 food. Most of them will answer "mai aroi". They don't eat that sh*t, that's why you don't see them buying it.

 

10 minutes ago, rattlesnake said:

 

Thank you for confirming that they will only buy 7/11 food when they don't have access to street food. We are therefore in agreement.

More B.S.

I did NOT confirm any of your statements!

Read your posts!

You never mentioned access to street food.

 

[rattlesnake]

8 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

 

More B.S.

I did NOT confirm any of your statements!

Read your posts!

You never mentioned access to street food.

 

 

You said that 7/11 food is not their preferred option, and I concur. This ties into my refutation of the OP, which posits that to a lot of Thais, eating 7/11 food is a desirable thing only precluded by insufficient monetary means. As I stated previously, I believe this premise to be flawed.

[KhunLA]

Are you all nuts.   7-11 is thriving & expanding everyday.  Do you really think expats & tourist are their customer base 

 

They are everywhere, in the smallest of towns way off the beaten track, and street food is all around, even at their doorstep most times.  Where we travel, I rarely see foreigners in 7-11.  Y'all need to the tourist areas once in a while.

 

Thailand is second only to Japan in number of 7-11 stores.  Thailand even has more per capita than Japan.

 

[BritManToo]

8 hours ago, frank83628 said:

Why would you waste so much money in a 711 on crap rather than support your local businesses or do you live off toasties and microwave burgers?

 

I live off cow pat gung, 2 for 74bht and they're really good.

[TedG]

14 hours ago, Sir Dude said:

Lol... I'm suprised it's not Trump's fault.

Give it, and someone will get there. 

[Andre0720]

I help a lot of people here.

While I find that the Thais are the most selfish people around.

Duringr Covid, the time when I was giving money and food to Thais, every time food distribution was active.

 

Then after Covid, I saw all these Mercedes, BMW, and Fortuner's on the roads.

And I started thinking, where were these people when I was there off my motorbike, giving money to women and children.

Where?

 

Selfishness, is the norm in this world.

And your empathy demonstrates that you are an exception to this norm.

 

Regards

[Stiddle Mump]

8 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Are you all nuts.   7-11 is thriving & expanding everyday.  Do you really think expats & tourist are their customer base 

 

They are everywhere, in the smallest of towns way off the beaten track, and street food is all around, even at their doorstep most times.  Where we travel, I rarely see foreigners in 7-11.  Y'all need to the tourist areas once in a while.

 

Thailand is second only to Japan in number of 7-11 stores.  Thailand even has more per capita than Japan.

 

There are four 7-11s in the nearest town to me.

 

Very popular with the local Thais.

[Felt 35]

I pay taxes here, as most people do, just as I would in my home country. It is my contribution to the community.

Felt

[BritManToo]

36 minutes ago, Felt 35 said:

I pay taxes here, as most people do, just as I would in my home country. It is my contribution to the community.

Felt

Less than 20% of Thais pay income tax.

[KhunLA]

38 minutes ago, Felt 35 said:

I pay taxes here, as most people do, just as I would in my home country. It is my contribution to the community.

Felt

Not exactly.   Here, TH, there is ....

... VAT that all pay

... income, if claimed, and sliding scale, like home country (USA), that I don't agree with, but it is what it is.

... excise taxes, for 'luxury' items, 🙄 such as vehicles, that make up 20-25% of the price 

 

Then there are the taxes in home country (USA), that aren't here.

... state/province, country, city,  income tax

... RE taxes, after purchase, for life, even after paid off. (silly, expensive, and one I disagree with the most)

... school taxes for you free education

 

Just now, BritManToo said:

Less than 20% of Thais pay income tax.

 

As it should be.   Before income taxes in the USA, ALL taxes were derived from import tariff & excise taxes.

 

[thaibeachlovers]

On 3/23/2025 at 5:23 AM, RSD1 said:

Does the inequality in Thailand ever make you feel uncomfortable? It does for me sometimes when I am around locals who have so much less means. I guess it weighs on my conscience. For instance, I frequently visit 7-Eleven, almost daily, and fill my basket with ฿600-฿800 worth of items without even glancing at the prices. I just grab what I need, toss it in, and head to the cashier.

 

Yet, I’m aware that the staff at 7-Eleven earn quite modest wages. Many of the food items I casually throw into my basket are things they’ve likely never tried themselves, simply because they’re out of their financial reach. What I spend in just two weeks at 7-Eleven probably equals a full month’s salary for many of them, and that’s only a percentage of my total monthly outgoings, not counting what I spend elsewhere.

 

I tend to visit the same 7-Eleven branches in my area regularly, and the staff recognize me because of how often I’m there. Sometimes, I’ll have a casual chat with them. They’re always friendly and kind, and I never sense any jealousy or distaste towards me, which I truly appreciate. Still, it gnaws at me sometimes knowing they work so much harder than I do, yet the lifestyle I take for granted remains far beyond their grasp.

 

I realize the disparities I’m describing exist throughout Thailand, by any means not just in 7-Eleven. But I think this is one everyday example that captures the stark inequality I encounter so often in this country.

 

You think hi so Thais feel guilty they live better than poor Thais- they don't.

 

If you feel bad about it, do like Jesus told us to do. You'll feel better if you do.

[thaibeachlovers]

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

I live off cow pat gung, 2 for 74bht and they're really good.

At first glance I thought you were claiming you lived on cow pats.

[thaibeachlovers]

Every time I visited Thailand I made some poor Thai girl much better off.

[ChaiyaTH]

Who cares. The fact you think about it or not, or the fact you would buy less or buy at different shops so the individuals don't now, doesn't change their life at all. My experience is that Thais always will have an opinion on how we spend our money while they in fact often burn it, hence they are broke too.

 

Like it would be entirely normal to 'waste' 5000 on a Thai buffet if you suggested going with the family while if you would want to invest 5000 in some hydroponic setup to do more productive farming and make your own vegetables that way, they would most likely disagree and have beter ideas already.

 

It's in that way always easy to spend someone else their money or to tell others what to do different. Maybe people richer than you feel sorry for you all the time too when not eating at a 5 star restaurant, it is more or less the same logic.

 

Maybe the cashiers even feel sorry for you, thinking you have no clue where to get real food. They not even think about the money part as how much it is but how and what you spend it on compared to them. That's what everyone always does, relating it to their life.

[sharot724]

Trump normalized

 

[Srikcir]

On 3/23/2025 at 1:59 AM, rattlesnake said:

it's a convenience store where they grab one or two items, that's all.

Recently at my local 7/11 I filled a wheeled grocery cart of foods, milks and sodas, bill about 1,000 baht. The cashier took a photo of the cart, apparently overcome by the large purchase. To me a bargain purchase.

[Wrwest]

On 3/22/2025 at 11:23 PM, RSD1 said:

Does the inequality in Thailand ever make you feel uncomfortable? It does for me sometimes when I am around locals who have so much less means. I guess it weighs on my conscience. For instance, I frequently visit 7-Eleven, almost daily, and fill my basket with ฿600-฿800 worth of items without even glancing at the prices. I just grab what I need, toss it in, and head to the cashier.

 

Yet, I’m aware that the staff at 7-Eleven earn quite modest wages. Many of the food items I casually throw into my basket are things they’ve likely never tried themselves, simply because they’re out of their financial reach. What I spend in just two weeks at 7-Eleven probably equals a full month’s salary for many of them, and that’s only a percentage of my total monthly outgoings, not counting what I spend elsewhere.

 

I tend to visit the same 7-Eleven branches in my area regularly, and the staff recognize me because of how often I’m there. Sometimes, I’ll have a casual chat with them. They’re always friendly and kind, and I never sense any jealousy or distaste towards me, which I truly appreciate. Still, it gnaws at me sometimes knowing they work so much harder than I do, yet the lifestyle I take for granted remains far beyond their grasp.

 

I realize the disparities I’m describing exist throughout Thailand, by any means not just in 7-Eleven. But I think this is one everyday example that captures the stark inequality I encounter so often in this country.

 

No more so than it did in my own country during my working years. Now in Thailand as a retired economic refugee from my own country, I feel spending my money here is, in fact helping Thailand economically. A win-win, symbiotic relationship.

[Sierra Tango]

12 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Are you all nuts.   7-11 is thriving & expanding everyday.  Do you really think expats & tourist are their customer base 

 

They are everywhere, in the smallest of towns way off the beaten track, and street food is all around, even at their doorstep most times.  Where we travel, I rarely see foreigners in 7-11.  Y'all need to the tourist areas once in a while.

 

Thailand is second only to Japan in number of 7-11 stores.  Thailand even has more per capita than Japan.

 

Agree. Where I am there are probably more 7/11's than expats who live here. Impossible that Thai's don't like shopping there or don't like the food.

In reference to the original post, get over yourself. Living here and spending your money here is contributing to the Thai economy. I always tip for good service, where ever that may be and that's always appreciated of course.

 

[Liverpool Lou]

14 hours ago, rattlesnake said:

If you have Thai friends, ask them if they like 7/11 food. Most of them will answer "mai aroi". They don't eat that sh*t, that's why you don't see them buying it.

On the contrary, I'm aware of many Thais who do buy 7-Eleven food, I see it almost every time I'm in there, and for you to say that "most Thais don't eat that sh!t nor are they seen buying it" is just nonsense.   Thai food from 7-Elevens is not "sh!t".   I have had Thais recommend certain items.

[Ralf001]

4 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Less than 20% of Thais pay income tax.

not surprising.

A single Thai person with no children earning Bt.15,000 a month or less will be tax exempt.

[Thingamabob]

Doesn't bother me. I've seen far worse in other countries.

[IsaanT]

17 hours ago, rough diamond said:

B.S.!

Do you think that 7/11's food is just for expats and tourists?

As the only farang in my large village - and I don't shop in 7/11 (prefer Lotus, for milk and apples - everything else from the local markets and shops) - it has to be the locals keeping them in business.

Just saying.

[save the frogs]

apart from some decent healthy food, 7-11 has all manner of junk food and everyone is eating junk food.

and they also sell cigarettes don't they? never noticed as i don't smoke. 

these types of places exist all over the world. they're called corner stores. 

 

[IsaanT]

I have read every post in this thread, and the vast majority of replies appear to be constructed from the viewpoint of a westerner.  With respect, if you want to know how Thais feel about any apparent inequality (to use the western term) to know whether any guilt is justified, it's necessary to look at it from the Thai viewpoint.

In Thailand, there isn't the same societal focus on inequality as there often is in Western countries. The Thai approach is generally more accepting and pragmatic. The key factors that shape how Thais feel about foreigners with more money are respect for local culture, economic contribution, and personal behaviour. As long as a foreigner is considerate, humble, and respectful, their financial status is typically not a point of contention. Instead, it may even be viewed as a source of positive influence on the local economy and community.

Foreigners with more money can be viewed with a sense of curiosity or admiration, especially if they live in a way that respects Thai values. There may be a sense of fascination or even respect for their lifestyle and the opportunities they have had.

 

[rough diamond]

7 hours ago, save the frogs said:

apart from some decent healthy food, 7-11 has all manner of junk food and everyone is eating junk food.

and they also sell cigarettes don't they? never noticed as i don't smoke. 

these types of places exist all over the world. they're called corner stores. 

 

Just like a supermarket but smaller.