Aussies Are Drunken Louts, Says Phuket Tourist Vp

[barky]

The VP must be one very astute individual

I would think it would be difficult to tell the difference by just looking at individuals as to where they come from

Australia has a population of 21 million people, it considered one of the most multi cultural countries on earth, it has naturalised citizens from over 290 countries around the world.

Walking down the street in Phuket I defy most people to identify an Australian (Anglo Saxon as this seems to be the stero type the VP refers to) from a Britian, American, New Zealander, and majority of European countries.

Maybe he inspects there passports.

Or maybe this is a payback comment for the Bloody Beer Mat!

Quite true cobra, but never let the facts get in the road of a good story eh!

The vast majority of people seem to forget that almost 50% of "Australians" were not born there.

And of this 50% about half come from Asian countries, particularly S.E. Asia!

And be assured there is a very large "proportion of Thai origin! About 30,000 living in Sydney and around about the same living in Melbourne alone, and most of these (through the enormous generosity of Australians) have been granted full citizenship which is something that is nigh on impossible to get in Thailand for Australians with "white skin"!

So, is he (the VP) talking about the Australians of Thai extract? No of course not. He means the obvious white ones.

[F4UCorsair]

I have some difficulty understanding why people go somewhere else to get drunk. Why not stay at home and save on an air fare. Sure beer is cheaper in Thailand than at home, but a yob would have to drink a lot to offset the cost of even a jet* air fare.

If one of these idiots overindulges, I then have even more difficulty understanding why he/she would want to make a jerk of him/her self. I ould have thought it would be better to be seen as just drunk than a drunken idiot.

As for the Smoel bogan?? What can I say?? Bogans behave like bogans.

I've spent a lot of time in Asia over the past 30 years or so, and lived in four Asian countries and have never felt the need to get pi$$ed and turn into an ugly Aussie.

[angiud]

I would like to mention that I believe Italian's in Phuket are the worst and most ignorant, self centred motorbike riders full stop.

Yes they just love overtaking on the inside left in that metre you leave between you and the jungle

Then there is the Italian internet cafe user who thinks he needs to raise his voice so loud it could be heard in Rome when talking with his headphones on.

Or the arguments you hear in the morning when an Italian is ordered to pay up by a bar girl. Why me need to pay?

Yes, to me the real decline in Phuket was when they arrived, the early ones were late 80's and northerners so not so bad, but now.........

Actually most of the "white flag waving surrender monkey" countries are pretty bad when I think of it.

Did some italian steal your girl? Why so generalizing about one country? I think drunk people doesn't have nationality and behave like animals, wherever they come from.

ciao

[Stekmer]

I'm with F4UCorsair ...

That Smoel incident was just so embarrassing, not so much for a display of classic drunken Bogan behaviour but for the outcries of unfair treatment from ill-informed members of the Australian public and a politician or two.

Unfortunately some Australians behave extremely badly when out of Australia and start using cringe clichés and drinking to excess with related Bogan displays of bad behaviour .... perhaps because they think it is expected of them …. sort of doing what they think one should do????

For the benefit of decent (lare majority) Australians - stay at home and drink the cost of the airfare.

[F4UCorsair]

Happy to hear someone thinks the way I do Stekmer.

I see the same in Bali when I go through there; appalling behaviour and they think the locals should cop it.

thaiwanderer, because you contribute a small part of the 6% of GDP it does NOT mean that Thais should tolerate less than acceptable (read decent, and in your words, regardless of my actions) behaviour. Your small contribution does not entitle you to behave like a bogan/yobbo whether you believe that or not.

I'm with F4UCorsair ...

That Smoel incident was just so embarrassing, not so much for a display of classic drunken Bogan behaviour but for the outcries of unfair treatment from ill-informed members of the Australian public and a politician or two.

Unfortunately some Australians behave extremely badly when out of Australia and start using cringe clichés and drinking to excess with related Bogan displays of bad behaviour .... perhaps because they think it is expected of them …. sort of doing what they think one should do????

For the benefit of decent (lare majority) Australians - stay at home and drink the cost of the airfare.

[Old Croc]

I have some difficulty understanding why people go somewhere else to get drunk. Why not stay at home and save on an air fare. Sure beer is cheaper in Thailand than at home, but a yob would have to drink a lot to offset the cost of even a jet* air fare.

If one of these idiots overindulges, I then have even more difficulty understanding why he/she would want to make a jerk of him/her self. I ould have thought it would be better to be seen as just drunk than a drunken idiot.

As for the Smoel bogan?? What can I say?? Bogans behave like bogans.

I've spent a lot of time in Asia over the past 30 years or so, and lived in four Asian countries and have never felt the need to get pi$$ed and turn into an ugly Aussie.

I've travelled widely for most of my life and, although I have played up a bit at times, never made a complete arse of myself in another country.

I think the problem is the dirt cheap airfares available these days. It means a whole different class of people are now able to travel further to exhibit their total lack of manners and intelligence. (this also applies to Brits who now can go further afield than the traditional Spanish flesh pots)

It used to be that Aussie bogans would only go as far as Bali (and never leave Kuta). The Indons appreciated the income these people generated and usually left them to their own devices when partying. (drugs excepted). Thailand, while wanting the revenue, has a whole different set of standards and means of extracting the tourist dollar. This has lead to many of the high profile incidents now being reported.

The recent economic boom in Australia led to a whole new system of distribution of wealth. Tradies, who formally received average wages, discovered they were in shortage and therefore in great demand and started charging astronomical fees. More than the suits in the big end of town. This brought about a new culture of CUBs (Cashed Up Bogans) These people started holidaying in places like Phuket instead of Phillip Island or Mandurah and the problems started when they exported their values.

[greenwood01]

6% gdp from tourist,

25% gdp from tourist sending money to bar girls. Cant anyone with certain competance find out a real approx % of the gdp contributed by conned farangs? it has to be high, maybe not 20% but at lest 10%?

Also the police are usualy only asses in tourist areas so the gdp has absolutely nothing to do with anything. They live in an area that rely 100% on tourism.

[neverdie]

Theres no shortage of p!ss head aussies that behave like real louts in Australia, so it doesnt really surprise me that some of them get on planes & come to Thailand and behave badly.

Naturally some of these tourist hot spots in Thailand automatically attract these people which is a good enuf reason for me to stay away from there.

Of course, everything else in places like Bangala Road, Patong is all so innocent, so badly behaved Aussies are going to stand out

[PoorSucker]

The finns are the biggest drinkers in the world,get smashed but tend not to fight much.

Apparently the Finns also have the highest suicide rate per capita in the world also. I find generally that all Scandinavians, of which there are a great many of both residents and tourists in Phuket, can be loud when drunk, but with no aggressive tendencies. Could be something to do with the severe penalties that their home countries impose for unsocial behaviour.

No, we just grew up.

We could be somewhat embarrassing when we started to hit the beaches in England and France.

That lasted a couple of hundred years and we haven't behaved like that for over 900 years now.

[huggybear]

I just think it's tough to label a whole nation over a small percentage of people who like to get blasted while on vacation.

I find this scenario a total over-generalization.

[marsteele]

Fascinating insight into TAT and local psyche. Remember that thais are hereditarily and primarily farmers. they have a farming instinct for most things (including the native population)

1, I would say a big proportion of (western) tourist money goes into alcohol consumption. The prevalance of resort bars demonstrates this. The local businesses thrive on it and a lot of money goes to influential thai businesses and the government. (Thais also like to drink but average per capita expenditure is less and non-taxable)

2, Western tourists are culturally louder and appear more overtly aggressive when drunk. (to an asian) But they don't tend to go for their shooters and blaze away. It's really the overt, exhibitionist behaviour (and it's colonial after-taste) that offends Thais.

So citizens and tourist ministers of Thailand how do you want to farm your tourists?

*Bovine asian group bus tours that steal ashtrays and towels and minimise spending?

*Luxury golf tours and 5*boutique resorts only (small percentage and high maintainance)

*Sex tourism (high potential cash crop but your farm hands steal the crop)

*street drinking/low income western package tourists (aggressive and bad smelling animals but high profit)

*Backpackers (free-grazing, hard to domesticate, low meat yield)

*ask them to stay at home and just send the money?

*Not sure, send them all away and take time to think about it

I agree just ban tourism out right and the problem is solved. I am quite sure that phuket will survive nicely without all the bloody tourists.

[yumidesign]

the VPs comments could not have something to do with a pay back for recent persecution of australians in puke et and the subsequent bad international press...... could it????

[marsteele]

From an Aussie one simple word DILLIGAF

If you don't know what this means then open the You Tube thread..... True Aussie humour as only an aussie can say...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxmUKVrT0iI

[midasthailand]

I'd like him to come down my soi any night of the week in Bangkok. When the big disco-type pubs kick out, the locals usually carry on the fights they lined up earlier inside. Only outside no rules whatsoever apply. I don't think any of them are Australian.

I do hope Khun Phurit's comments get reported in the Australian press.

Hi Briggsy,

what Soi would that be then? Sounds like it could be an entertaining alternative evening out to go and watch the locals proving their manhood while having a cool beer or two.

[chiangdan]

From an Aussie one simple word DILLIGAF

If you don't know what this means then open the You Tube thread..... True Aussie humour as only an aussie can say...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxmUKVrT0iI

like it very funny good to see that people can laugh at themselves...

[Valentine]

From an Aussie one simple word DILLIGAF

If you don't know what this means then open the You Tube thread..... True Aussie humour as only an aussie can say...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxmUKVrT0iI

like it very funny good to see that people can laugh at themselves...

Kevin Bloody Wilson is great & reminds of a T-shirt with a big finger pointing to the left or right with the caption "why don't you talk to someone who gives a F___k"

[Thaddeus]

True Aussie humour

Marginally funny, just.

And goes a long way to explaining how a small drama can be turned into a crisis.

[Lancelot]

Hmmmm, does Thailand still want the drunken Aussie louts money?

:D

[cognos]

Wow there are some sweeping generalizations..... perhaps they just apply tourist in Patong.......

In Kata I would say most tourist from all over are much more mellow..

No group or race has the monopoly on being drunken idiots, but from our experiences and what we observe we draw conclusions often based on small samples.

In Vancouver Canada I could show you places where there is more crack being smoked in the open than anywhere in the world, with police often turning the other cheek..thank goodness these folks never see LOS, or the tons of alcoholics here who could never afford or want to come to Thailand. My point is it could be worse.

[thetitan99]

These thai officials are forgetting that tourists pay for their lifestyles

false sense of entitlement & reasoning -

i am a tourist

tourism provides 6% GDP*

i should be personally valued at the entire 6% (regardless of my actions)

(and remember its only 6% gdp so don't start with the 'where would they be without tourism')

and 80% of that 6% is asian tourists which means we contribute <deleted> all to their economy in the grand scheme of things

In Phuket...only 1.2% of PHUKET'S income is from tourism? Get off the crack pipe dude and try to get some sleep!!!

[ajarnmark]

The VP must be one very astute individual

I would think it would be difficult to tell the difference by just looking at individuals as to where they come from

Australia has a population of 21 million people, it considered one of the most multi cultural countries on earth, it has naturalised citizens from over 290 countries around the world.

Walking down the street in Phuket I defy most people to identify an Australian (Anglo Saxon as this seems to be the stero type the VP refers to) from a Britian, American, New Zealander, and majority of European countries.

Maybe he inspects there passports.

Or maybe this is a payback comment for the Bloody Beer Mat!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries

[BigSnake]

Just a few giving all their mates a bad name. Sad. The Same can be said about the Brit, Irish, American.

[Yahooka]

The finns are the biggest drinkers in the world,get smashed but tend not to fight much.

Apparently the Finns also have the highest suicide rate per capita in the world also. I find generally that all Scandinavians, of which there are a great many of both residents and tourists in Phuket, can be loud when drunk, but with no aggressive tendencies. Could be something to do with the severe penalties that their home countries impose for unsocial behaviour.

......and you could also contribute a lot to mandatory national service that,despite it shortcomings,is a great way to erease yob culture and unsocial behaviour !!!

[foxnsquirrels]

Mr. Bhuritt Maswongssa, vice-president of the Phuket Tourist Association, interviewed in today's Matichon newspaper about the Annice Smoel case, said that "Australian tourists are prone to behave in a rowdy manner when they have been drinking, frequently get into arguments and fights, often destroy belongings in hotels and shops so that the owners of those businesses have been forced to charge for the damage on many occasions."

Has he called it right? Or are the Aussies no worse than any other nationality in this regard?

(Original source: นายภูริต มาศวงศา อุปนายกสมาคมธุรกิจการท่องเที่ยวจังหวัดภูเก็ต กล่าวว่า นักท่องเที่ยวชาวออสเตรเลียมีพฤติกรรมค่อนข้างห่ามพอสมควร พอดื่มแอลกอฮอล์เข้าไป มักจะมีเรื่องทะเลาะเบาะแว้ง ทำลายข้าวของในโรงแรมหรือร้านค้าเป็นประจำ ผู้ประกอบการต้องชาร์จค่าเสียหายอยู่บ่อยครั้ง)

I am an Australian and I also see alot of my fellow country men & women playing up and understand the poor impression alot here in Phuket get of Australians due to their behaviour but I also agree that it is not all of them and also there are plenty of european countries that holiday in Phuket and show the same behaviour.

As for the Beer Mat saga, it is quite a common practise for some Australians to take it as a challenge by attempting to steal a beer mat or bar tap from a drinking hole and it is not something new back home but whether it is true or not whilst travelling in a country other than your own some things just are needed.

[Sir Burr]

I've worked in Aussie many times. Maybe it's the culture.

All the Aussie unions I have dealt with seem to think stealing from the company is a right, if not, a priviledge.

[LivinLOS]

I've worked in Aussie many times. Maybe it's the culture.

Now theres two words you dont often see in the same sentence.