Thailand Loves America

[tomahawk]

I have farang friends from England, France and Australia, and we travel different places in Thailand and invariably whenever Thai people ask where we all come from, they seem most impressed by America. When my friends say where they come from, the Thai people are always polite, but when I say I come from America, they get all excited and say, "America number 1", and almost always say they really wish to visit America someday, which they rarely say about the other countries. Thai people seem to like American movies and music more than European, and American stuff like Coca Cola. They do not go on about war in Iraq, which I am sure partly is because they have their own problem with Islamic terrorists. They do not consider America to be evil or whine about US foreign policy. After being in countries where anti-Americanism is popular it is refreshing to be somewhere that it is not.

[bkkjames]

I think you need to broaden out your demographic for who you ask the question to mate. Aim a little higher on the educated vs non educated respondents.

Tuk tuk drivers and bg's say the same thing to other farangs, from other countries. It's whoever has potential to pay at that given time.

It's not like they are gonna say, "You from America? oh I dislike America".

[wintermute]

I agree with BKKjames they are just being polite. Thais are fanatical about English football so they like the U.K. a lot just for that. I'd say most Thais couldn't give a toss about any western country unless there is some kind of monetary benefit attached.

[ballpoint]

And I bet they all tell you that you're a hansum man too.

[robblok]

I agree with BKKjames they are just being polite. Thais are fanatical about English football so they like the U.K. a lot just for that. I'd say most Thais couldn't give a toss about any western country unless there is some kind of monetary benefit attached.

I go crazy with all the Thais who start about "Ruud Gullit, Frank van Basten, Ruud Nistelrooi" when i tell them im Dutch. I absolutely hate football but ill humor them and talk about it.

I must say the ppl who start about football are usually taxi drivers with whom i have some chit chat to improve my Thai.

Edited December 29, 2009 by robblok

[omarfromyemen]

EVErYONe KNOW USA IS NUMBER 1 . can someone point out a better country?

BUT giVe OBAMMA some time he will bring us back to the pack.

deep down i really think obama wants the usa to be more like england...............

Edited December 29, 2009 by omarfromyemen

[robblok]

EVErYONe KNOW USA IS NUMBER 1 . can someone point out a better country?

BUT giVe OBAMMA some time he will bring us back to the pack.

To bring us back implies your not nr 1 at the moment. I have no fondness of the USA probably because i have never been there.

[omarfromyemen]

you dont understand what falling back to the pack means?

it means Amerikaaaaaaaaaaaa is number 1 but is deteriorating to a point where number 2 is catching up to number 1.

[omarfromyemen]

EVErYONe KNOW USA IS NUMBER 1 . can someone point out a better country?

BUT giVe OBAMMA some time he will bring us back to the pack.

To bring us back implies your not nr 1 at the moment. I have no fondness of the USA probably because i have never been there.

lots of humans never been to usa yet know it rules! you never read a book? can you name a company better known than mc donalds........... .thais know mickey mouse!

Edited December 29, 2009 by omarfromyemen

[slapout]

Guess if you look at population, China and India are 1 and 2. If you look at immigrants as a % of original population the US would have to be running neck and neck with Australia for some prize. Probably the ponds around us keep some of the numbers down. The UK seems to be a target for certain groups, maybe its the beautiful weather that draws them, likewise the Scandinavian countries. I have noticed most of the people who tell you they want to live in your country of origin or any other prospective nesting ground, have never been there and are expressing their desires on rumor or tv programs. Many immigrants seem to be promoted by deplorable conditions where the originate more than the promise of a utopia somewhere else.

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

I have found that Thais like American culture, consumerism and products. They share an entrepreneurial spirit and love of cars with Americans. However, Bush did a lot of damage to America's international reputation, even here in Thailand. Obama's election healed some of that, as he is very popular with the Thais, but now many Thais think America has a predominately black population (Tiger Woods, Barack Obama, the Williams sisters, and many NBA players).

[Jingthing]

I agree basically with the OP. Thailand people and government are for the most part pro American. I like it. It beats being spit in the face, like in Malaysia.

[wintermute]

I have found that Thais like American culture, consumerism and products. They share an entrepreneurial spirit and love of cars with Americans. However, Bush did a lot of damage to America's international reputation, even here in Thailand. Obama's election healed some of that, as he is very popular with the Thais, but now many Thais think America has a predominately black population (Tiger Woods, Barack Obama, the Williams sisters, and many NBA players).

Thais like American movies and some of the pop music/culture but I wouldn't say they like American products overall. Look inside your average Thai middle class household and you see mostly Japanese/Korean electronics and maybe the only "American" branded item is an "American standard" sink which i'm not sure is even an actual U.S. brand to begin with.

Ditto for cars..mostly Japanese make/model with a few luxury european automobiles.

[richieudon]

Chop Amelika

Chop Dollar

Chop chop

[Nignoy]

Maybe the over40 age group of thais appreciate the USA because without the yanks places like Korat ,Ubon Udon would still be country towns, no decent roads or bridges and definitely no airports,the thais were able to take over and improve and enlarge the infrasructure left behind by the US

[Dakhar]

I have found that Thais like American culture, consumerism and products. They share an entrepreneurial spirit and love of cars with Americans. However, Bush did a lot of damage to America's international reputation, even here in Thailand. Obama's election healed some of that, as he is very popular with the Thais, but now many Thais think America has a predominately black population (Tiger Woods, Barack Obama, the Williams sisters, and many NBA players).

Thais like American movies and some of the pop music/culture but I wouldn't say they like American products overall. Look inside your average Thai middle class household and you see mostly Japanese/Korean electronics and maybe the only "American" branded item is an "American standard" sink which i'm not sure is even an actual U.S. brand to begin with.

Ditto for cars..mostly Japanese make/model with a few luxury european automobiles.

REG: .... like American brands....

To be honest, there is little left as far as "American" brands, we Americans out sourced our production needs. It is a "no brainer" to figure out that it is SE Asia, is producing Nike, Levi's, DeWalt etc etc.... not America. "Made in America....kinda sorta" aint going to cut it much longer for America. I wish the folks back home all the best.

[longball53098]

I have found that Thais like American culture, consumerism and products. They share an entrepreneurial spirit and love of cars with Americans. However, Bush did a lot of damage to America's international reputation, even here in Thailand. Obama's election healed some of that, as he is very popular with the Thais, but now many Thais think America has a predominately black population (Tiger Woods, Barack Obama, the Williams sisters, and many NBA players).

Thais like American movies and some of the pop music/culture but I wouldn't say they like American products overall. Look inside your average Thai middle class household and you see mostly Japanese/Korean electronics and maybe the only "American" branded item is an "American standard" sink which i'm not sure is even an actual U.S. brand to begin with.

Ditto for cars..mostly Japanese make/model with a few luxury european automobiles.

Ha! Take a look in most American homes and what do you see? Japanese/Korean/Chinese and all sorts of other products from around the world. Do we have a choice on the products we buy? Not likely. Not much is made in the US anymore. The center of the universe for most movies is L.A. for the most part. But the actors come from everywhere.

[tomahawk]

If I were alone and they said, "America number 1", I would agree they are just being polite. The point is I was with people from other countries, and Thais did not same same polite things to them, so this argument is invalid.

[Jingthing]

My main feeling is that Thailand is a very friendly country for Americans to visit. Many countries in the world even in the age of Obama are not friendly in this way.

[bkkjames]

If I were alone and they said, "America number 1", I would agree they are just being polite. The point is I was with people from other countries, and Thais did not same same polite things to them, so this argument is invalid.

Mr. Cruise, what you don't know that the others do is that when you went to the bathroom they took it all back.

[h90]

Even my wife is telling that to American (she likes most Americans) but she deeply hates USA for their crimes.

She just see the differences between some nice people and evil Presidents.

[sacrificialpig]

i like this song

[Harcourt]

I guess the Thais the OP has come across are either just being polite, as some respondants here have stated, or naive, also as some rspondants have stated.

I'm a little sceptical about the chap from Yemen, considering the current airport situation. Sounds like a troll.

[beechguy]

Even my wife is telling that to American (she likes most Americans) but she deeply hates USA for their crimes.

She just see the differences between some nice people and evil Presidents.

That's unfortunate she doesn't consider all of the facts. I don't agree with President Obama's policies, but I'm still not prepared to call him evil.

Edited December 29, 2009 by beechguy

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

I have found that Thais like American culture, consumerism and products. They share an entrepreneurial spirit and love of cars with Americans. However, Bush did a lot of damage to America's international reputation, even here in Thailand. Obama's election healed some of that, as he is very popular with the Thais, but now many Thais think America has a predominately black population (Tiger Woods, Barack Obama, the Williams sisters, and many NBA players).

Thais like American movies and some of the pop music/culture but I wouldn't say they like American products overall. Look inside your average Thai middle class household and you see mostly Japanese/Korean electronics and maybe the only "American" branded item is an "American standard" sink which i'm not sure is even an actual U.S. brand to begin with.

Ditto for cars..mostly Japanese make/model with a few luxury european automobiles.

REG: .... like American brands....

To be honest, there is little left as far as "American" brands, we Americans out sourced our production needs. It is a "no brainer" to figure out that it is SE Asia, is producing Nike, Levi's, DeWalt etc etc.... not America. "Made in America....kinda sorta" aint going to cut it much longer for America. I wish the folks back home all the best.

Yeah, nothing is American anymore. Like McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, GM, Caterpillar, Proctor & Gamble (which manufacturers the majority of personal care products sold in Thailand), CNN, Coca-Cola, Pepsico, and all the Hollywood movies.

You guys know nothing about multinationals and international business. GM has to build factories in Thailand, because import taxes make it prohibitive to bring the cars in from America. It's cheaper to produce consumer staples in the region, rather than import them. For instance, Mars candies are manufactured in Singapore, and distributed throughout SEA. In the global economy, where a corporation is headquartered is what counts, because most of the big salaries and profits will be paid out to people from the domiciled country.

[PeaceBlondie]

I grew up with the elves in Elmhurst, Illinois http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keebler_Company

[vahack]

I agree basically with the OP. Thailand people and government are for the most part pro American. I like it. It beats being spit in the face, like in Malaysia.

yea there IS a difference that Aussies or Brits obviously wouldn't know about.

yesterday a lady who owns a furniture store asked me where i was from and when I said America she perked up and yelled at her kid to go get me water and a chair. she said she thought i was from Australia.

the difference is Thais think Americans are rich. most of us were until Bush's mortgage crisis lol

[koheesti]

I have farang friends from England, France and Australia, and we travel different places in Thailand and invariably whenever Thai people ask where we all come from, they seem most impressed by America. When my friends say where they come from, the Thai people are always polite, but when I say I come from America, they get all excited and say, "America number 1", and almost always say they really wish to visit America someday, which they rarely say about the other countries. Thai people seem to like American movies and music more than European, and American stuff like Coca Cola. They do not go on about war in Iraq, which I am sure partly is because they have their own problem with Islamic terrorists. They do not consider America to be evil or whine about US foreign policy. After being in countries where anti-Americanism is popular it is refreshing to be somewhere that it is not.

I was having a discussion about this very topic last night at dinner. Most places I've been - Russia, China, Indonesia, most of Eastern Europe and Vietnam, to name a few - there has always been an enthusiastic response when I answered that I was from America. I put this down partly to there being less Americans around. I would never expect to hear a Thai down here on Samui get excited if someone said they were from England. No offense intended, there are just so many of them down here. Americans are harder to come by. Oh, yeah, and we leave a TIP.

I can't imagine anyone in Canada or Mexico getting excited over meeting an American. In America, if you go outside of the large cities I think you would find being from England or Australia is generally a big plus.

Edited December 29, 2009 by koheesti

[vahack]

Oh, yeah, and we leave a TIP.

haha a BIG difference. i sometimes have clients from the EU come to Thailand for meetings/relaxation and they never leave tips. if they pay a tab i have to drop money on the table for the tip.

i even tip at a noodle stand, which always confuses the noodle ladies. they come running after me with the 20 baht i dropped on the table.

like they said in Casino, "i tip everybody"

yea they only love me for my money. so what.

[maccaroni man]

the thais have had some very good study in the states since the 50's if i remember correctly it was bewteen thai dr's and john hopkins Uni. many thais with lower eductaion havealso moved to the states and found great financial opportunity as most asian do. Why? IMO because unlike the entitlment crowd that put the current president in office, the asians understand that if you want to eat you have to work.