I've been mulling on this for a while.

Compare Australia/the US/UK/Europe etc with Thailand of today.

Go right across the board,

Try to ignore "recovering from WW2" issues in your home country.

Consider things as diverse as:

i) Family Values

ii) Religious beliefs

iii) Political life

iv) Law enforcement

v) Driving and motor vehicles

vi) Health care

vii) Environmental concerns

ix) Food preparation and hygiene.

x) Employment

xi) Immigration issues

... And any other.

I've fairly set views on this which I'll reveal if the thread takes off. Younger members are welcome to contribute but don't consider that watching reruns of the Brady Bunch gives you an insight into the 1950s.

Try to ignore "recovering from WW2" issues in your home country.

because WW2 was a non-event, especially in my home country Germany

Sorry Naam, I wanted to try to work around that issue. My parents were immigrants from the UK and also had to live with post war problems.

I was looking forward to your opinion on the OP, hopefully we can get that with out the thread being hijacked by "how we lived on acorns for ten years" type stuff.

I resent this topic ...for being 'ageist' (is that the right word?)

but seriously, would make for an interesting read....I certainly look forward to hearing views from the more 'mature' members

and Naam - Germany's role in the world wars is definitely a topic that would interest and raise emotions in many. I have witnessed what Germany is trying to do AFTER the wars, and have come to admire Germans and Germany as a country for their efforts

i) Family Values

I think Thais are more marriage, children and family orientated than modern Westerners. While I love being in a relationship I'd never consider marrying again. That wouldn't have happened 50 years ago.

ii) Religious beliefs

When I was a kid, I'd say at least half the Australians I knew were church goers. Now it wouldn't be 5%. Thais are regular temple goers.

iii) Political life

It used to be generally accepted that politicians helped out friends and received favors in return. Thailand...

iv) Law enforcement

"There's no such thing as a free lunch" never applied to the constabulary of my day. Also the interrogation of suspects was a tad more aggressive than what is currently the norm.

v) Driving and motor vehicles

Back in the day the test for a drivers license was the ability to fill out the application form. The accident rate was a lot higher than modern times and speed and red light cameras and breathalyser blitzes unknown.

vi) Health care

I'll give this one a miss, other than to say that families back then tended to take care of their own a lot more.

vii) Environmental concerns

You know what we slag off the Thais for? Burning off, shooting everything that moves, cutting down what doesn't? You should have seen it at home in MY time sonny.

ix) Food preparation and hygiene.

Self explanatory, if you don't have health inspectors "self regulation" takes over.

x) Employment

When I was a kid, my father managed a sawmill that employed over 200 people. When that mill closed ten years ago it employed 40 workers for three times the production. Labor intensive back then, the Thais are described as inefficient.

xi) Immigration issues

This a curly one, I grew up during the great Diasporas of modern times, my school class was half immigrant, the West doesn't seem to be handling it quite so well these days. While expats don't like being called immigrants we do seem to get a better deal off the Thais than when what we do is tried in our own country.

One observation I have is that back home in the 70s (can't quite make the 50 years) it seems that children were able to easily have fun and be occupied compared to Thai kids. Weekends were always for being out with your friends doing whatever provided your schoolwork was done. The options for kids were enormous back in Sydney in those days. I don't see Thai kids having anywhere near the same options and the safe and carefree environment I remember.

Furthermore, the kids I grew up with believed it was possible to have a good job/career through hard work and a university degree was optional. Not in Thailand today, or in most countries today.

Can't agree with that one. The local kids actually get out and play... the same as we did, bikes, toy guns, balls, skipping ropes.

Sure they have TV but they don't seem to loaf around in front of it like kids in Oz do.

Computer games are starting to appear but mainly played after dark from what I see.

The environment is a safe as I remember it, they wander around quite freely.

I'm a bit iffy about the hard work bit. They realise that it's the only road to money, there's no dole here, but some only work as hard as they have to. But then I grew up with a few people like that.