Thai's Attitude To Their Children's Safety.

[Maigo6]

A word to all of you posters who seem to believe that just because they are poor it is okay to put their chidren knowingly in harms way , "It is not okay in any way shape or form to put any child in harms way ". You believe this , you should be castrated , you are not fit to have children .

You must be getting ulcers in Cambodia.

[Jingthing]

Children in the west are often treated like precious diamonds. Most families are small, single child families common. It can take a million US dollars to raise a child. In poorer, more rural societies like Thailand, isn't there a tendency (as it also used to be in the west) to have bigger families with the expectation that not all of them were going to make it to adulthood?

[dingdongrb]

In the late 50s and early 60s my friends and I often left home during school holidays at around 9am and returned around 9 pm. We were in the age group maybe 8 until 11. We got into lots of scrapes but no one ever died in spite of typical childish stupidity.

The idea that my mother did not care about my safety is ludicrous, she sacrificed her life for her children but at that time the uk population was not paranoid about protecting children from any contact with the more on the edge side of life.

I have close contact with many thai families and see no evidence of lack of care. Yes there are some cultural differences but the kids do get to learn from experience and that cant be all bad.

Also if you go into most latrge housing estates in UK on a warm summer day you will see kids of all ages from maybe 3 upwards running around all over the place, playing football in the road and doing many other pretty dangerous things. You probably wont see this on a private estate as the mums will likely as not taken their kids somewhere. So once again the ability to finance comes into play. I would always collect my kids if they had been somewhere but often picked up their friends who were walking home because parents had no car.

I agree, as I grew up in the 60s & 70s we were always playing in the streets, whether it was baseball, kickball, or just horsing around. We also tied ropes from the highest points of the trees and swung off of garage roofs. We had battles with walnuts or even BB gun wars (using trash can lids as our shields.) H3ll we even jumped trains and rode them 20 miles away into the large town and then hitchhiked home before dark. Yes, a few of us got stitches and a few broken bones but nobody died. Not until we got our drivers licenses and started drinking on the back roads while racing our cars. But in summary our parents loved us. They even scolded us and warned us for some of our stupidity but hey, we were indestructible as kids and didn't listen.

As far as a child seat I agree these should be used but when I was growing up we used to sit on Dad's lap steering the car as he was cruising down the freeway. Or you could find us laying in the back rear window area looking up at the stars during the night time driving.

Cigarettes and alcohol are not good for us either and I'm sure you have heard this from loved ones, but hey, do you still drink and still smoke?

[dingdongrb]

From behind , it looked as if she had one child , aged 4 riding behind her as she operated the motorcycle with one hand, dialing a cell phone with the other, cars whizzing by at 70 - 100 kilometers ann hour on the major artery through Puket . Passing her, she's got one, no- two more in front of her- a 3 yo toddler clutching an even younger child barely able to hold himself upright .

Amazing.

I know, I know...Thai Apologists - economics.... No excuse !! I've seen poor people all over the world, only here do they subject children to dangers as nonchalantly as this woman was..

Like this you mean ? 8 people on that bike, including the baby the rearmost woman is carrying .

Nice photo. Looks like some sort of Guinness World Record attempt.

Must have been riding one of these fancy modified Chiang Mai bikes.....

Edited November 21, 2008 by dingdongrb

[dumball]

A word to all of you posters who seem to believe that just because they are poor it is okay to put their chidren knowingly in harms way , "It is not okay in any way shape or form to put any child in harms way ". You believe this , you should be castrated , you are not fit to have children .

You must be getting ulcers in Cambodia.

Not likely any time soon , i look after my health .

[brahmburgers]

The worst one i have seen,i swear you not,was a new born baby in a basket on a motorbike.i had to wind the window down and say to her that it was realy bad.she growled at me and sped off fast on the bike.my stomach was nearly wrenching at this site.

which brings up a general point. A farang who sees something amiss or dangerous in Thailand - and dares speak up about it - won't likely be responded to in a mature manner. It would be rare indeed, if the comment were not joking or couched in compliments, that the response from the Thai would be a mature acknowledgment.

Hate to say it, but most Thais are thin-skinned, and soooooo quick to get defensive and/or angry at any mention from a stranger that suggests doing something differently - for safety's sake.

One big exception: I was at a 70 meter tall popular waterfall last year - three teenage boys were frolicking in the 2' deep rocky pool at its base. Each had a large brown bottle of beer. Immediately, I called out to them to take their bottles out of the pool area. They did so, without a fuss. I respect their mature reaction and indicated as much.

It would have been so easy for a bottle to drop and break.

[patklang]

The worst one i have seen,i swear you not,was a new born baby in a basket on a motorbike.i had to wind the window down and say to her that it was realy bad.she growled at me and sped off fast on the bike.my stomach was nearly wrenching at this site.

which brings up a general point. A farang who sees something amiss or dangerous in Thailand - and dares speak up about it - won't likely be responded to in a mature manner. It would be rare indeed, if the comment were not joking or couched in compliments, that the response from the Thai would be a mature acknowledgment.

Hate to say it, but most Thais are thin-skinned, and soooooo quick to get defensive and/or angry at any mention from a stranger that suggests doing something differently - for safety's sake.

One big exception: I was at a 70 meter tall popular waterfall last year - three teenage boys were frolicking in the 2' deep rocky pool at its base. Each had a large brown bottle of beer. Immediately, I called out to them to take their bottles out of the pool area. They did so, without a fuss. I respect their mature reaction and indicated as much.

It would have been so easy for a bottle to drop and break.

i was so shocked i opened my gob,maybe i shouldnt but to see that little baby in such a dangerous position made me have a go at her.some on here think i was out of order but maybe i am a betetr father than those on here who think it is ok.sorry if i acted like a realy scared father,but its my nature to be shocked at stupid things like that.

[patklang]

A word to all of you posters who seem to believe that just because they are poor it is okay to put their chidren knowingly in harms way , "It is not okay in any way shape or form to put any child in harms way ". You believe this , you should be castrated , you are not fit to have children .

dumball,you sound like a good father,and i realy am at a loss that some folk on ehre think its ok.its realy shocked me and your post brought back the trust in farang fathers.one even having a go to say go back home if it affects me like this.if we all try to give some common sense to thais maybe the place will be better,some of you are making thai ladies rich so maybe let them think about safety too instead of having farang/thai babies then leaving their own with momma.

[dumball]

The problem on this forum seems to me , to be that the ardent supporters of even the most stupid things that SOME Thais do with their children , is okay because THIS IS THAILAND , <deleted> has nationality or country of origin have to do with the preservation of children ?

To actually proffess you agree with outright abuse of children , just shows me how deep your mental ability has become impaired , and some of the smart alec responses proove it . Be happy you have a life and a future , because many Thai children do not finish up that way due to abuse and neglect .

Yes , i am on a rant !!!!!!!!!!!! You inconsiderate bunch of wanabees , at least you could be wanabees about something not so degenerate .

After spending many happy years in Thailand , i am , at this moment , happy to be PISSED OFF IN CAMBODIA .

[mc2]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

[Richb2004v2]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

I personally don't see it at as being a similar comparison at all. They are not in immediate impending danger of being killed whilst eating a burger. They are whilst riding their motorbike overloaded in the wrong direction, or whilst walking home from school in the dark, inches from unpredictable traffic.

Also, I see many, many overweight children now in Thailand.

[kmart]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

Been to any shopping mall in Thailand recently?

[mc2]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

Been to any shopping mall in Thailand recently?

yes, and they are full of slim, attractive young Thai ladies.

Whats your point ?

Surely you don't think a few shopping malls represents the diet of the Thailand.

Macdonalds, fried food, fast food, coke burgers, high cholesterol high fat high sugar foods and childhood obesity is endemic in America and other western countries.

Only recently they have banned the sales of junkfoods in schools for health reasons.

If some of these perfect farang parents stopped stuffing their kids with junk food , we would see a sharp reduction in heart related deaths in 30 years time.

[maccaroni man]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

Been to any shopping mall in Thailand recently?

every time my i watch the X games i.e scate boards and roller blades I tell my wife that she is watching the end result of a lack of parental control. It has only been recently that a thai has been on the top of that game.

[kmart]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

Been to any shopping mall in Thailand recently?

yes, and they are full of slim, attractive young Thai ladies.

Whats your point ?

Surely you don't think a few shopping malls represents the diet of the Thailand.

Macdonalds, fried food, fast food, coke burgers, high cholesterol high fat high sugar foods and childhood obesity is endemic in America and other western countries.

Only recently they have banned the sales of junkfoods in schools for health reasons.

If some of these perfect farang parents stopped stuffing their kids with junk food , we would see a sharp reduction in heart related deaths in 30 years time.

My point is that there are a lot more obese Thai kids around now than there used to be. And heart disease and cholesterol-related illness in Thailand are quite high also.

[HorseDoctor]

A word to all of you posters who seem to believe that just because they are poor it is okay to put their chidren knowingly in harms way , "It is not okay in any way shape or form to put any child in harms way ". You believe this , you should be castrated , you are not fit to have children .

Ahem.

[kmart]

The problem on this forum seems to me , to be that the ardent supporters of even the most stupid things that SOME Thais do with their children , is okay because THIS IS THAILAND , <deleted> has nationality or country of origin have to do with the preservation of children ?

To actually proffess you agree with outright abuse of children , just shows me how deep your mental ability has become impaired , and some of the smart alec responses proove it . Be happy you have a life and a future , because many Thai children do not finish up that way due to abuse and neglect .

Yes , i am on a rant !!!!!!!!!!!! You inconsiderate bunch of wanabees , at least you could be wanabees about something not so degenerate .

After spending many happy years in Thailand , i am , at this moment , happy to be PISSED OFF IN CAMBODIA .

Take a chill pill, sweetheart.

[HorseDoctor]

See the overloaded trains, ever seen an indian or pakistani train or lorry around holiday times?

Never, these things only happen in Thailand

By the way, that pic I posted was taken in the Philipines and if you do a google search you will find whole families on motorcycles from the poor south american countries to the poor SE Asian countries to African countries if they can afford a motorcycle that is.

The lady I refer to , IN Thailand has a motorcycle and a cell phone. Solidly middle class I'd say and the point is she's not even paying full attention and using both hands, so economics has little to do with why she's subjecting her ( presumably) kids to danger. A fatalistic attitude toward life is more the culprit. I believe "My Pen Rai" is the term ?

[canadianmonkey]

thais do not feed their kids a healthy diet.. they feed them a TERRIBLE diet.. a diet TERRIBLE for brain development.. much worse than the american working class diet.

Rice does nothing good for your body, its just a filler. it should be a side dish, not the main dish with some half or a gram of chicken.

Uncooked stuff from farm markets.. chicken always red, meet always comes from TERRIBLE places on animal's body.. eating hearts and shit.. eyeballs. nothing good there.. no good lean proteins.

overeating of seafood, most coming from contaminated water.

Tons of junkfood.. KFC especialy.

Most of the chicken they eat is usualy fried and 90% of it is BONES..

Chiken feet.. dear god.

The noodles soups.. well they're not that bad but its far from a very nutritious meal.

Eggs from market and 7/11.. very unfresh

foodstand on side of street all filled with ants and sometimes rat poo/cockroaches.

they eat insects.. the dirty ones too... it's fine to eat here and there for fun but dear god man. eating fking cockroaches? what the hel_l..

list could go on for 10pages.. thai kdis are fed total crap in most cases.. Rice is an abobination in poor countries, they all think it's good for them because they feel full.. but it just kills their body slowly and makes them dumber because they dont know they have to mix it ALOT of meal/pastas/protein vegetables.

[Maigo6]

Rice is an abobination in poor countries, they all think it's good for them because they feel full.. but it just kills their body slowly and makes them dumber

Judging by your ridiculous post, I am to assume you have eaten only rice since birth.

[Maigo6]

CanadianMonkey, is this you ?

[kmart]

TERRIBLE.

[dumball]

To their credit, Thais feed their kids a reasonably healthy diet. The same cannot be said of some farang parents. They are stuffing their kids with macdonalds and coke foods , the children are obese by 10 , later grow up and get a heart attack by 40.

I personally don't see it at as being a similar comparison at all. They are not in immediate impending danger of being killed whilst eating a burger. They are whilst riding their motorbike overloaded in the wrong direction, or whilst walking home from school in the dark, inches from unpredictable traffic.

Also, I see many, many overweight children now in Thailand.

How correct ,also how quickly the inveterate defenders of the kingdom switch to food to cover their rear ends on how 'Safe' it is to put a child in harms way because you are poor , they have even taken the trouble to adopt Thais version of 'Logical thinking'.

Many children in Asea die before the age of 5 due to POOR DIET and lack of uncontaminated drinking water , that 'Could' be put down to poverty , not the same as putting them in harms way in regards to mechanised eqipement : i.e. cars/trucks/tractors/bycycles and of course the ever beloved and avered motor cycle .

Time to get your heads straight people .

[h90]

It often seems that the Thais don't give a dam_n for their children. Of course this must be untrue, but it does seem that way judging from the scenes on the streets and roads.

Just last night I can very close to ending the life of a Thai child.

I was returning home after visiting a friend. It was around 6:30pm and dark and I was about 2km outside town. As I turned a sweeping corner filter lane of a highway I was forced to move into the hard shoulder for a second. There was dim lighting on the road so I managed to spot a school boy walking in the center of this lane. Obviously I managed to avoid hitting him. I could so easily have killed him. The obvious question is why was he walking 2km outside town on a very dark road towards the traffic. Not only this, but he wasn't even looking at the traffic. Instead he was engrossed in something in a bag he was carrying. He wasn't a 'down and out' as he was dressed smartly in his school uniform with a satchel on his back. He wasn't even walking close to the verge which would be the sensible thing to do, he was right out in the middle of the lane. Knowing that this lane is used for vehicles going in both directions and some times without lights it makes my head spin that children don't know any better here in Thailand.

I know this isn't so unusual in Thailand, but the fact that I almost hit the kid got me thinking about the way Thais bring up their kids. If my parents had found me walking a highway in the dark they would have gone crazy, but here its just normal.

On my estate children play at dusk on the same road that cars speed down. I brought it up at a recent community meeting but no one seems to bothered.

I guess the alternative theory is that I didn't hit the kid and there fore his perception of danger was right and all his calculations were proved correct.

A little similar to the fact that I see a dozen very near miss accidents every time I go out but I never see any actual accidents. Maybe it's all worked out to fine margins and I just don't understand them.

How did you go to school and home when you were young?

I walked to the school or to the train station at dim light....in central europe

[mc2]

When I was a kid I played handball on the road with the neighbors , if a car came we grabbed the ball and went to the side of the road. Our parents said nothing. I never had any adult admonish us.

I suppose we exposed ourselves to a risk of some degree, but even the perfect parents, driving around in their mercedies benz with 16 airbags and a safety approved baby seat in the back are still exposing their child to some sort of risk. Why don't the perfect parents get a bus ? Their children are more safe in the bus than a Mercedes.

>>>>>>>>

To the OPs credit, he did raise the issue with the local community , thats the direction the pressure needs to be applied (also government) ,

yelling at Thai mothers and moaning to other farangs wont solve anything.

[Maigo6]

When I was a kid ...............

Seems many of the posters here were born 60 Years old.

[Maigo6]

The lady I refer to , IN Thailand has a motorcycle and a cell phone. Solidly middle class I'd say and the point is she's not even paying full attention and using both hands, so economics has little to do with why she's subjecting her ( presumably) kids to danger. A fatalistic attitude toward life is more the culprit. I believe "My Pen Rai" is the term ?

Why would you say that ?

Could it be the reason that you seem to think 4 - 5 people on a motorcycle only happened in Thailand after ridiculously stating that you had been in many poor countries and never witnessed anything like it?

I can state catagorically that is absolute rubbish.

So now your trying to cover yourself by saying in your opinion she was middle class.

Edited November 22, 2008 by Maigo6

[Maigo6]

You could always go and join dumball in a progressive country like Cambodia.

I'm sure you'll think you're in Geneva or Monaco.

[mc2]

someones in a good mood today

[Maigo6]

When I lived in Europe I had a BMW 735i and was on the Autoroute heading to the South of France doing 220 KPH with my wife in front and my daughter in the back, now IF I had an accident and we were all killed I would have been considered uncaring about my family, but I never had an accident so I'm once again a caring parent.

The Belgian guy in the Mercedes that overtook me at about 240 KPH was also probably a caring parent.

If either of us had crashed into a solid object at that speed we would have been in pieces, but it never happened.

My point is, if the Belgian guy had crashed killing his family, would you people have said " ALL Belgians don't give a toss about their children " ?

No you wouldn't cos you would identify only with the individual, yet when it comes to Thai people, you seem to generalise a whole nation on the few people you come into contact with.

An few American Soldiers kills a whole Family of innocent Iraqi's, does that make all US servicemen brutal child killers ?

Of course it doesn't, so to state that " Thai's attitude to their children " is totally wrong. I saw a Thai person today ( singular ) is acceptable.

Some Thai's I will accept, same as some UK, US, AUS, NZ, Chinese, Japanese, just name any country you want, lack parental responibility.

To state that "Thai people don't care", is a gross insult to the majority of the population.

Just read through the topics, find the posts that state that " Thai men are drunks " " Thai's can't drive " " Thai's are Lazy " Thai women are all gold digging liars " " Isaan people are all lazy alcoholics who send their daughters to bkk, pattaya etc " etc etc etc.......

Too many Farang here jump on the Thai bashing bandwagon without the slightest idea as to <deleted> they are talking about.

Are all Farangs fat lazy smelly idiots ?

No, of course they're not, but SOME are.

Edited November 22, 2008 by Maigo6