How Will Thailand Cope?

[caf]

I think in ten years time from now Thailand will have come to understand that opening the doors to large numbers of aging foreigners has delivered a welfare disaster to their shores.

How so?

Interested in your comment.

No problem for Thailand. Sick older people will either die here or repatriate. Those with money will spend their life savings dying here, good for Thailand. The retirement extensions are only good for one year at a time. I would put this at about the bottom of the list of Thailand's problems. I would say quality nursing homes for farangs and also Japanese are a good business opportunity. Of course, these would be for profit, those without the funds, as above, will die or repatriate.

Thanks. Good answer to Guesthouse comment. I think a number of us feel that way.

caf

[Gaccha]

You really have fallen head over heels for the new wave of the fear discourse. This insipid use by the media and the fear-entrepeneurs to use this primoridial response by you towards fear to effect changes.

"A politics of fear rests on the discourse of fear. The politics of fear serves as a

conceptual linkage for power, propaganda, news and popular culture, and an

aray of intimidating symbols and experiences, such as crime and terrorism.

The politics of fear resides not in an immediate threat froman individual leader

e.g., Senator Joseph McCarthy [Griffith, 1987]) but in the public discourse

that characterizes social life as dangerous, fearful, and filled with actual or

potential victims. This symbolic order invites protection, policing, and inter-

vention to prevent further victimization. A public discourse of fear invites the

politics of fear. It is not fear per se that is important in social life but rather how

fear is defined and realized in everyday social interaction that is important. The

role of the newsmedia is very important in carrying selective news sources/mes-

sages. News sources are claimsmakers, and studies of crime news show that gov-

ernment and police officials dominate how crime is framed (Ericson, Baranek,

Chan, 1987, 1989; Surette, 1992)."

-- 2006; 6; 415 Cultural Studies

David L. Altheide , Terrorism and the Politics of Fear

You have never had it so safe. In the whole history of humankind you could never have had it so good. The dangers you face in Thailand are staggeringly trivial. Even if some were to improbably escalate the risk to you is utterly negligible. You have nothing to fear. Go home and read a good book.

Edited January 7, 2010 by Gaccha

[dudemeister]

Well if the basis of the marriage/relationship is the money the Farang hands over I'd not hold out much hope of the old guy when he needs his ass cleaning because old age robs him of the ability to look after himself.

Could be a business opening there! Any takers?