It Seems That I Am Happier In Thailand When I Don't Read This Forum

[Maverell]

Same as any 'news' outlet - very little positive stuff, bad news sells.

For TV bad news = more page hits=higher number of clicks on ads. Therefore it is encouraged.

The constant bickering gets me. I try to keep out of it.

[elkangorito]

The OP is nowhere to be seen. He/she is a buffoon.

[EffectiveAnger]

It would be difficult to find an expat forum in the world with more cynical, burnt, damaged members.

I think it's great.

dam_n embittered cyber bullies (reincarned from proverbial couch potatoes) and I sometimes feel like a Rodney Dangerfield newbie sitting down for a business meeting trying to make some effort to talk sense into the likes of drunken old red'ties' a few snobs and a couple of intellectuals.

At least the moderators are a pretty decent, balanced lot.

[dttk0009]

TV's easily the best Thailand forum for westerners. It's the my main source for news in Thailand. Threads can sometimes get heated, especially with such a populated forum and its varied political and social perspectives, but I find that most people like to just come here for a laugh or a chat.

[caf]

TV's easily the best Thailand forum for westerners. It's the my main source for news in Thailand. Threads can sometimes get heated, especially with such a populated forum and its varied political and social perspectives, but I find that most people like to just come here for a laugh or a chat.

Yes it does get heated but for all its faults it's the only forum worth viewing. Drummond is worth a look but it is a blog and not a forum. Within reason you can post what you like here and your peers will challenge what you say - sometimes fairly sometimes not so fairly but at least you can have your say. Not true of Paknam forums.

[longstebe]

It's been ok for me.

Don't read into peoples stories so much. Just because they had a bad experience doesn't mean you will.

Most of the guys on here post on here as a mere warning.

Beware of COTTO tiles being different sizes.

[mauGR1]

TV's easily the best Thailand forum for westerners. It's the my main source for news in Thailand. Threads can sometimes get heated, especially with such a populated forum and its varied political and social perspectives, but I find that most people like to just come here for a laugh or a chat.

Yes it does get heated but for all its faults it's the only forum worth viewing. Drummond is worth a look but it is a blog and not a forum. Within reason you can post what you like here and your peers will challenge what you say - sometimes fairly sometimes not so fairly but at least you can have your say. Not true of Paknam forums.

I agree,now my only worry is that i have become an addict.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

So much knowledge in such a short time. One could be forgiven for thinking that he well could be a returnee from Bansville.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Good topic - as one can expound exponentially

Even though the Forum does a swell job - George, Churchill, Webfact, etc, keep it plenty diverse and interesting - a lot of the replies and subsequent editing leave a lot to be desired. A protracted school marm mentality.

Especially the incessant noob count - get over it already - brew it in glass next time. Geez - maybe they have been around too long.

Khun Moderator did not approve and deleted my post as well as gave me a free arse chewing. I can only assume that TV inner circle is composed of humorless Brits

That " free arse chewing " is something you have come to know and love isn't it ?

[mooncake]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

So much knowledge in such a short time. One could be forgiven for thinking that he well could be a returnee from Bansville.

[ozzieovaseas]

were in the world,would you get so much entertainment,as on tv and its free.caters for nearly every one.

When i first started reading TV i was quite shocked at the number of expats that actually believe that all Thais hate us and "are out to get us".

You might find that if you venture outside of the tourist areas and experience life among (ordinary) people who are not in the..err...shall we say..tourist trade..your experiences might quickly change the perceptions you've got from reading TV.

Thats the way it was for me anyway..

Some posters ocasionally allude to the kindness and good nature of Thais and report positive experiences of how Thais have helped them in this way and that,or made their stay here unforgettable..but this goes mainly unnoticed here or is quickly shot down by the skeptics.Even sentances like this will surely get you called an apologist or sympathist or some such crap.

Still, I get a bit of a giggle when i see the guys that bitch,moan and criticise the loudest hit the roof at the slightest hint of changes to laws that might affect THEIR staying here

Sometimes however i think the grumpy expats are right..especially if 90 percent of all Thais could read English AND they all read TV they might possibly think we are all TOOLSHINERS..and i would have to forgive them

PS. AND YES, i also include myself in that category..occasionally..err OK..often

[mca]

I was using a computer in the lobby of a hotel in the north of Thailand .This is when I noticed the man next to me was posting on TV , I couldn't help it but I had to take a sneaky peek at his user name .

Anyway the next day we got talking (very few farrang in this area) and my girlfriend obviously started talking to his girlfreind.

The thing is I see his postings all the time and he is totally anti Thai and slags the women off all the time.

Anway I will get to the point.

He is a retired, late 50's and seriously lacking in brain cells. His girlfriend was 24 years old could speak English very well and was so immature I felt embarassed for him (not that he could see it).

Everytime I read a post that I think is cr*p I picture this idiot and it takes the sting out of some of the juevanile sh*t you see on here.

Take it all with a large pinch of salt.

Definitely. There was a guy on another forum of which I was a member who was the "guru" of all things Thai. Whenever a question came up regarding life here it was always a case of "Wait until .........logs on. He'll know."

I knew the guy in the flesh. Utter <deleted>. Wife took him for a house and 2 cars (and sadly after I'd met her this nugget of information was entirely predictable) yet he was still on the prowl for newcomers to dispense his "wisdom" to.

Funny. He never mentioned on that forum about his own marital shit when somebody came up asking for relationship advice.

And on the other side of the coin there's the posters on here with completely opposing viewpoints (usually regarding Thaskin) who'd more than likely be able to have a beer and a good laugh together.

Edited September 15, 2009 by mca

[cyb]

Quote of the day:

I have a friend who reads ThaiVisa first thing in the morning, then he starts drinking!

LOL

I read thaivisa on a morning and it stops me drinking, I'm shaking so much i can't hold the bottle without spilling it.

[rott]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

Reflective readers of the UK's Daily Mail* are likely to make the same observation. ThaiVisa is a 'circle-jerk' of uniquely misinformed individuals reinforcing their own absurd visions of Thailand in a chronic circle of verbosity. The Daily Mail is a deliberative provocation.

nb.*this is purely hypothetical as there are no reflective readers of the Daily Mail.

A bit like watching Fox News. You are convinced the US is going to hel_l in a hand basket after a couple of hours of it on.

Same same. I really enjoy watching it-- although I would be classed as their arch enemy-- the well educated liberal elite.

It never ceases to amaze me with their intellectual sleights of hand and disingenous news generation (rather than reporting) how the presenters actually think of themselves and their audience. They must believe there audience are too foolish to be allowed to examine the world with open eyes.

Yet (Because of this) they are immensely popular. They have two or even three times the audience of the hilariously dull alternative news channels. Their nonsense is often almost immediately repeated on ThaiVisa by some shallow man propping up a bar wall on his bar stool in some place beginning with P.

I end up watching Al Jazeera and the BBC and NewsAsia.

Funnily enough, I noticed the other day that someone suggested ThaiVisa would be perfect as a thesis on the mind of the farang in Thailand. Well, um, that is what I did a few months ago when I wrote a short paper. I conceptualised this forum as a translocal forum. And worked throught the various (often contradicting) narratives.

Come on now Gaccha, can't let you get away with describing yourself as "the well educated elite". Admittedly you use words such as reflective/deliberative/conceptualised and translocal which are hardly common currency on TV, but most of us can at least f*#%ing spell disingenuous. Now let's have a look at "there audience are too foolish", comment would be superfluous. Still think the man on the bar stool is shallow?

[mahtin]

if 90 percent of all Thais could read English AND they all read TV they might possibly think we are all TOOLSHINERS..

That must be Strine... related to KNOBPOLISHERS?

[ScubaBuddha]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

Agreed. TV is a great place to get info, but I really need to stop reading so much or I do begin to feel anger towards Thai people, and I really dont like that because I know so many wonderful Thais.

[ozzieovaseas]

if 90 percent of all Thais could read English AND they all read TV they might possibly think we are all TOOLSHINERS..

That must be Strine... related to KNOBPOLISHERS?

correct..and also nong-chai khong SCHLONGSLAPPERS

[Jimjim]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

I agree. The negativity here is unreal. I mainly read it when I'm not in Thailand but while I'm in Thailand, I can do without all the whining.

[moe666]

I love ThaiVisa best laugh of the day for me and it is free. But OOOOOOOOO the whining and crying.

[KamalaBrian]

i read this forum,because

it keeps me update about wats happening in thailand.

keeps me informed about changes in visa rules.

warns me from all new scams evryday.

helps me to find things i am looking for.

and very important thing,most of the post are true and real life facts,so even if it makes you upset,

this are facts,grow up and face the life.

babuhavas

[IanForbes]

The only question I ask is why would anything you read on the internet, or see on television, affect you in any way? Would you be upset with what Hitler, Stalin or any other evil dicator thought of you? It's no different than what is posted here. Very few of us here know each other, and it's only good friends that might have the ability to hurt your feelings. Everyone else is a non-entity.

The forum makes good entertainment when there's nothing better to do, and it's a good source of information if you are troubled by anything. Even the strange personal experiences (true or false) written on this forum makes interesting, informative reading. You get a slightly different understanding how others might think. All knowledge is worth learning... no matter how trivial it might seem at the time. It is the old story of being fore warned is being fore armed.

[geriatrickid]

May I give a little advise because the OP is upset - sometimes I tolerate trolling sometimes not...

Always look at the bright side of life

//WF

If there was a TV choir I suggest that they sing the excellent lyrics penned by the always brilliant Eric Idle;

Some things in life are bad,

They can really make you mad,

Other things just make you swear and curse.

When you're chewing on life's gristle

Don't grumble, give a whistle.

And this'll help things turn out for the best.

And....

Always look on the bright side of life, (whistle)

Always look on the bright side of life, (whistle)

If life seems jolly rotten,

There's something you've forgotten,

And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.

When you're feeling in the dumps,

Don't be silly chumps.

Just purse your lips and whistle, that's the thing.

And...

Always look on the bright side of life. (whistle)

Come on...

Always look on the bright side of life...

For life is quite absurd,

And death's the final word,

You must always face the curtain with a bow.

Forget about your sin,

Give the audience a grin,

Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow.

So always look on the bright side of death,

Just before you draw your terminal breath,

Life's a piece of shit,

When you look at it,

Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true.

You'll see it's all a show,

Keep 'em laughing as you go.

Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

And always look on the bright side of life,

Always look on the right side of life,

Come on guys, cheer up.

Always look on the bright side of life.

Worse things happen at sea, you know.

Always look on the bright side of life.

I mean - what have you got to lose?

You know, you come from nothing,

you're going back to nothing.

What have you lost? Nothing!

If more foreigners in Thailand sang this song, why golly gee, there would be no more unhappiness

Edited September 16, 2009 by geriatrickid

[webfact]

May I give a little advise because the OP is upset - sometimes I tolerate trolling sometimes not...

Always look at the bright side of life

//WF

If there was a TV choir I suggest that they sing the excellent lyrics penned by the always brilliant Eric Idle;

Some things in life are bad,

They can really make you mad,

Other things just make you swear and curse.

When you're chewing on life's gristle

Don't grumble, give a whistle.

And this'll help things turn out for the best.

And....

Always look on the bright side of life, (whistle)

Always look on the bright side of life, (whistle)

If life seems jolly rotten,

There's something you've forgotten,

And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.

When you're feeling in the dumps,

Don't be silly chumps.

Just purse your lips and whistle, that's the thing.

And...

Always look on the bright side of life. (whistle)

Come on...

Always look on the bright side of life...

For life is quite absurd,

And death's the final word,

You must always face the curtain with a bow.

Forget about your sin,

Give the audience a grin,

Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow.

So always look on the bright side of death,

Just before you draw your terminal breath,

Life's a piece of shit,

When you look at it,

Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true.

You'll see it's all a show,

Keep 'em laughing as you go.

Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

And always look on the bright side of life,

Always look on the right side of life,

Come on guys, cheer up.

Always look on the bright side of life.

Worse things happen at sea, you know.

Always look on the bright side of life.

I mean - what have you got to lose?

You know, you come from nothing,

you're going back to nothing.

What have you lost? Nothing!

If more foreigners in Thaialnd sang this song, why golly gee, there would be no more unhappiness

[Travel2003]

The only question I ask is why would anything you read on the internet, or see on television, affect you in any way? Would you be upset with what Hitler, Stalin or any other evil dicator thought of you? It's no different than what is posted here. Very few of us here know each other, and it's only good friends that might have the ability to hurt your feelings. Everyone else is a non-entity.

The forum makes good entertainment when there's nothing better to do, and it's a good source of information if you are troubled by anything. Even the strange personal experiences (true or false) written on this forum makes interesting, informative reading. You get a slightly different understanding how others might think. All knowledge is worth learning... no matter how trivial it might seem at the time. It is the old story of being fore warned is being fore armed.

Ehhm, I would have been a little bit worried if I lived in the same country as Hitler, or Stalin, and they thought less of me.

Anyhow, I totally agree with all the rest of your post.

[mca]

When you read the depressing stuff on here you then have to analyze your own Thai experience and think "Has any of this actually happened to me during my time here?"

Westerners getting stung by Thai spouses, rip offs, cops looking for a handout, red shirts, yellow shirts, murders etc. etc etc

I once saw Kwanchai Sarakham getting out of a car, the Red Shirts blocked part of Mitraparp Highway at Songkran so I took a back route, my neighbours nephew got stabbed in a fight and after the coup I was waved past an army roadblock in downtown KK.

That's about it.

Basically my life here is quite similar to back home apart from there are palm trees and elephants.

[Chunkton]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

I have read none of the replies as I already know what they will say. It is true there is a lot a negativity here, and ignorance and stupidly that test the bounds of the bottom rung. Yet there is also some interesting stuff, even if found in motoring or home improvement where the know nothing know alls never venture. Be selective in what you read.

[mca]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

I have read none of the replies as I already know what they will say. It is true there is a lot a negativity here, and ignorance and stupidly that test the bounds of the bottom rung. Yet there is also some interesting stuff, even if found in motoring or home improvement where the know nothing know alls never venture. Be selective in what you read.

Oops!

[Stricken]

its just my personal observation that i am more likely to be in a negative mood after reading thai visa or to end up feeling angry towards Thai people. you read a story about some event or another's experience and it makes you angry or on edge when in actuality, you are not likely to experience the same event yourself.

Yes seems that way most of the time, doesn't it, better to stay in the positive-

[Marmelad]

Completely agree with OP: sometimes I try not to go to this site to avoid the depressing feeling it often leaves me with after I read some postings (especially in General section). Or I look only at the neutral topics, but if you want to stay in good mood - better without it.

[villagefarang]

Its called entertainment boys. Come here looking for anything else and leave very disappointed.