Thai-Scottish Ranger Resigns After Incident with Racist Tourists

[kuzmabruk]

3 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

Overreaction?

Am I a racist if a say "Hello, or Guten Morgen or Buenos dias, ot Good morning...knowing that they are all from Limerick?

I think this guy got a lot of personal undisclosed problems 😳

My wife told me the story.  Thai news had lots of people talking about this.  “Farangs  being very bad to say a Chinese saying to a Thai person.  The farangs should go to jail. “.
 

Do not treat Thais with disrespect.   Wife was translating her Thai news reporter for me.  Very thin skin, if any, on most Thais.  

[JAG]

2 hours ago, chuang said:

The Chinese greeting of Ni Hao should be banned in Thailand..555

Why? It is a harmful enough phrase, although a somewhat bizarre way for an Italian to greet a Thai (or even a Jock)!

 

I can't say I have ever heard it used in Thailand! Maybe the only words the Italian knew in an oriental language?

 

"See you Jimmy Kah" next time perhaps?

[Snackbar]

Asked to step down; deportation?

[Presnock]

22 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

I think in your soi you're highly respected as a highly educated farang. 👍 Keep on going.

Btw, we traveled through 29 countries in Europe. With our dog. Our Labrador speaks all these different dog languages. Just amazing🤗😍

yeah certain breeds smarter than others...we have Siberian used to be a pair but one died, the other though is pure Siberian and thus he likes to argue with us constantly - we laugh way too much though as he never gives in!  

[newnative]

     Total overreaction to a harmless remark.  I think he is more suited to a behind the scenes job.   And, the headline to the story is horrible--there was only one tourist and he wasn't 'racist'.  

[thesetat]

3 hours ago, Scouse123 said:

Unruly tourist because he made a joke and said Hello in Chinese?

How do you know this? 

For all we know the Scottish may also have just thought that Thai man was Chinese? Not everyone is a world traveller and can distinguish peoples heritage or country of origin. 

To say the least, the Thai man did the right thing by quitting. If he can not manage to do his job without having a hissy fit over a greeting by a foreigner, then he does not belong working in a field where he encounters and interacts with foreigners. 

[Woke to Sounds]

Sai needs his own reality TV show where he can do the spit the dummy schtick.

[zakalwe]

1 hour ago, Gecko123 said:

I've noticed on a number of other occasions that Thais who have studied or lived abroad and endured overt racial condescension and micro aggressions while there, sometimes - justifiably - harbor resentments towards Westerners here for the racial mistreatment they experienced in the West long after they return to Thailand. While some may label it hyper-sensitivity or having a chip on your shoulder, but it can often be traced back to mistreatment they experienced while abroad. The message they seem to want to convey is: "you may get away with that crap back home, but you in my country now, boy!'

During covid every Asian abroad was Chinese. Even before covid, in Morocco everyone was Ni Haoing every Asian in my tour group even when they are not Chinese. 

 

It would be annoying for farang if every Thai person greeted them in Russian in a mocking way. That may yet happen in Phuket.

 

I'm not surprised that the farang mentioned in the article was Italian though. Italy is one of most racist countries in Europe. The ranger was lucky he wasn't black.

[hunkidori]

Who the fck does he think he is. Looks to me like a try at gaining some kind of recognition from the masses and to in some way rubber stamp his acceptance as a Thai because we all know luk khruengs are a notch down in some Thais eyes.

 

I don't think Thais are the right people to be mentioning racism either

[lch]

Braveheart wood be proud!

[HK MacPhooey]

On 3/13/2025 at 5:37 PM, Smokin Joe said:

 

If you're that concerned about it you should save the boarding pass stub from your last outbound flight and keep it with your passport.

 

On 3/14/2025 at 8:39 AM, bamnutsak said:

 

So the answer to my question is "No"?

 

Please share the "reasons" that a Green Card holder and the spouse of a U.S. citizen can be detained and deported without due process.

 

On 3/26/2025 at 9:06 AM, JonnyF said:

Like the 2 tier sentencing guidelines, I'm sure this will cover just about everyone except the indigenous British.

 

Second class citizens in our own country. 

 

On 1/26/2025 at 12:39 PM, norfolkandchance said:

Strawberry jam and melted Cheese.

 

[newbee2022]

1 hour ago, Presnock said:

yeah certain breeds smarter than others...we have Siberian used to be a pair but one died, the other though is pure Siberian and thus he likes to argue with us constantly - we laugh way too much though as he never gives in!  

Yes, a live with dogs/pets will change you to a better human

[IndomitableSpirit]

3 hours ago, Gecko123 said:

It wouldn't be offensive if a Chinese person had used the Chinese word for 'hello', but when a Western foreigner uses the Chinese word for 'hello' in Thailand as if to say 'that's close enough of a greeting here in Thailand,' that is fairly offensive. If the tourist didn't know how to greet someone in the Thai language, he should have stuck to the universal "hello" in English. An Italian greeting a Thai person in Mandarin Chinese probably would have gone over the head of most Thai people, but the Thai/Scottish guy, having studied abroad, being bilingual, and probably familiar with the Western cliche that 'all Asians look alike' decided to call the guy out on it. Could he have maybe handled the situation a little more diplomatically? Probably, but I'm not going to fault the guy for letting the tourist know his behavior was offensive.

This is the perfect explanation. I'm not sure if you're Asian, but you understand well why it came offensive to him. 

[terryofcrete]

5 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

knowing that they are all from Limerick?

Stab City ?....lol

[newbee2022]

1 minute ago, terryofcrete said:

Stab City ?....lol

Sometimes. Today there's another report about fist fighting farangs. Could be those from my hometown😂

[minotaur]

So if I went into a pub in Glasgow and greeted the bartender with 'Bonjour', he should quit his job and go on TV to rant about a 'racist' attack?

[Scouse123]

2 hours ago, thesetat said:

How do you know this? 

For all we know the Scottish may also have just thought that Thai man was Chinese? Not everyone is a world traveller and can distinguish peoples heritage or country of origin. 

To say the least, the Thai man did the right thing by quitting. If he can not manage to do his job without having a hissy fit over a greeting by a foreigner, then he does not belong working in a field where he encounters and interacts with foreigners. 

So what are you talking about?

 

My post agrees with everything you have just written?

 

I've pointed out already with a degree of sarcasm calling him an unruly tourist simply because he either made a joke or was being friendly, was a stretch!!!

 

Where's your issue?

 

And the tourist wasn't Scottish, he was Italian.

 

The official who chastised him was half Thai and half Scottish.

 

Read the post properly before making uninformed comments.

[sahibji]

"Ni Hao" is not a racist slur from any angle. Many Thais and Chinese look alike and if an Italian mistakes a Thai for  Chinese, it is no big deal!

[Kerryd]

What would he have done if it had of been a Chinese tourist who said it ?

After all, I'm (white) and Canadian so it would be natural for me to say "hi" or "hello" or "how are you ?" in English. Would that be racist if I said "Hi, How are you ?" to the same guy ?

And you can imagine a Chinese person would likely greet the same person by saying something similar in Mandarin (or Cantonese).

Is it then racist for a Thai person to greet me in Thai, knowing full well that I am not Thai ? 

Or maybe, just maybe, somebody's prescription for their "special cream" ran out that morning and they weren't able to get anymore in time ?

 

[kwilco]

How can it be racist? "They all look the same, don't they"????

[kwilco]

how is it that racists spend so much time arguing that something isn't racist?

[quake]

Quote

Thai-Scottish Ranger Resigns 

 

Pansy Scottish Ranger.

Nothing new.  

[KannikaP]

Is it coincidence that the Scottish guys surname is Scott?  555

[richard_smith237]

This individual is receiving an unfair amount of criticism on this forum.

 

He genuinely cares about his work and consistently demonstrates dedication to protecting the local national park areas - often in the face of resistance. There are numerous videos showing him boarding fishing boats, party boats, and dive charters, always calmly and respectfully explaining that they are in restricted zones.

 

He is an active enforcer of existing environmental laws, doing his job with commitment at a time when many of us here are quick to criticise the police for perceived apathy or inaction.

 

I believe he may have overreacted to the "Nee-how" comment - his response did seem overly sensitive and somewhat exaggerated. While the comment was racially insensitive, possibly even triggering, it could also be viewed as ignorant rather than malicious - no more harmful than someone greeting a British police officer with “Bonjour” or “Hola.” Most wouldn’t even flinch.

 

Should any of this have cost him his job? Absolutely not. I read in the Thai media that he was forced to resign, and I can’t help but feel that this has more to do with the fact he’s been upsetting the status quo. He holds people to account and enforces standards - and in doing so, he’s ruffled a few feathers.

 

His departure is a loss for the local environment. Without his presence, there’s a real risk that locals will once again feel emboldened to exploit protected areas, damaging fragile ecosystems that desperately need safeguarding.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SAFETY FIRST]

23 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

turn of events, Siranudh “Sai” Scott, a renowned 29-year-old half-Thai, half-Scottish park ranger, popularly known as Sai Merman, has stepped down

Probably the son of a foreigner with mental health issues. 

 

Poor parenting from Scottish father 

[Grumpy one]

7 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

Overreaction?

Am I a racist if a say "Hello, or Guten Morgen or Buenos dias, ot Good morning...knowing that they are all from Limerick?

I think this guy got a lot of personal undisclosed problems 😳

Well, he is part Scottish 

[newbee2022]

3 minutes ago, Grumpy one said:

Well, he is part Scottish 

Is that the explaination? 😂😂😂

[sanabavy IV]

This title is defamatory, in my opinion. 

[charmonman]

Did the tourist get confused about what country he was in? Had he not bothered to learn how to greet someone in Thai and thought Chinese was an appropriate substitute?

[Expat Tom]

Throw the Italian out and keep the Thai Scott. 

We need more Thais with balls unafraid to themselves out there

and less rude jerk farangs.,,,no ,atter what country them come from. 

 

Just one farang's opinion.