New York Times Article On Farang Husbands In Issan

[FarangBuddha]

The Times' reporter in Thailand is really getting aroundl...first to Pattaya a couple weeks ago (of course...just to report on the changing face of the resort town mind you...yeah right) and now up to Udon to report on those curious specimens...foreign men who marry Isarn girls and call the place home!

http://www.nytimes.c...=me&ref=general

Edited September 26, 2010 by FarangBuddha

[tonititan]

That Mr. Davis is rockin an awesome mullet.

[Loz]

One barrier is language, as few foreigners learn Thai. “I can’t speak English so well, but I can live with him many years,” Ms. Sorensen said, speaking in Thai. “Sometimes when he is very upset I don’t understand what he is talking about but I understand the tone and I just walk away.”

from the article.

\

“It looks pretty good and they look pretty happy,” said Rojjana Udomsri, 30, who is married to a Thai man and has a 2-year-old son. “They have money to spend and they can go anywhere they want.”

But she said she had her doubts.

“I don’t know if they are really happy,” she said. “There were times I wanted to have a good life like them, but I can’t live with a person I don’t love. With someone I love I can go through all the hardships of life together.”

also from article

Food for thought right there...

[TheLaughingMan]

"before they discovered their rights and became strong headed and opinionated".... lol Davis is a putz. Might as well say "before they discovered they were human beings too!"

[IanForbes]

It was a reasonable article with a fairly accurate portrayal of what goes on. There didn't seem to be any bigoted opinions or portrayals. Common sense would tell you that mixing widely differing ages and cultures is not going to make for great love affairs.

[tonititan]

"before they discovered their rights and became strong headed and opinionated".... lol Davis is a putz. Might as well say "before they discovered they were human beings too!"

Yeah, almost as good as this line (referring to American women):

“The women now know they are equal,” said Mr. Davis, a retired Naval officer who has been divorced twice, “so the situation is not as relaxed and peaceful as it is between an American and a Thai lady.”

What I wonder (but I'm sure will never find out for sure) is how many guys feel the same way but aren't brave (or dumb?) enough to say things like this?

[mahtin]

mixing widely differing ages and cultures is not going to make for great love affairs.

Worked for me, miscegenating mongrel that I am.

[IanForbes]

mixing widely differing ages and cultures is not going to make for great love affairs.

Worked for me, miscegenating mongrel that I am.

There are exceptions to every generalization... which my comment was... just a generalizaton. I have a very good friend in Chiang Mai who is 60 with a wife in her thirties and they seem very much in love, and have a lovely 4 year old daughter together.

[DP25]

lol what a joke of an article. Gotta pay for that vacation to Thailand somehow though. You could make a bot to write up these clueless farang articles about Thailand

[floridaguy]

While I was watching, the Thai friend girl came over to see the video. She loved the somlar and the German guys house. "OOOOOHHHH!!! I want a house like that in Chiang Mai!" Never said a word about anything else. Goes to show, when you don't have money, it becomes the most important thing to you. When you do have it, you don't really think about it. The Thai girl at the end got it right. When you are in love it is best. Not that I would know anything about that.....

[Loz]

is that a clueless article? or an article about clueless farangs?

I thought the article wasn't too biased. They showed a success story and they showed everyone happy. Not one mention of balcony jumpers or todgers being cut off!

[ilyelol]

mixing widely differing ages and cultures is not going to make for great love affairs.

Worked for me, miscegenating mongrel that I am.

There are exceptions to every generalization... which my comment was... just a generalizaton. I have a very good friend in Chiang Mai who is 60 with a wife in her thirties and they seem very much in love, and have a lovely 4 year old daughter together.

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

[Loz]

When the german's wife said, "I didn't like him much" but then it transpired they had managed to stay together for 14 years, I thought it was quite telling that the bloke spoke Thai. One suspects he's an easygoing chap from the way he got stuck in with the buffalos and the farming.

sabai sabai. when you drink enough S-py!

[Loz]

mixing widely differing ages and cultures is not going to make for great love affairs.

Worked for me, miscegenating mongrel that I am.

There are exceptions to every generalization... which my comment was... just a generalizaton. I have a very good friend in Chiang Mai who is 60 with a wife in her thirties and they seem very much in love, and have a lovely 4 year old daughter together.

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

[tonititan]

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

Are you talking about Mr. David, the guy with the mullet in the top photo? Because I'd say he's a normal guy....so it does apply. If you watch the video, you'll see that he actually seems quite articulate and intelligent....not at all the kind of person I'd consider "trailer park trash."

[ilyelol]

Yes he's clearly a genius that had his pick of women back in the west.

[Loz]

Is NOBODY going to mention that " swimming pool " For the LOVE OF G O D !!! [4:29 into the video]

And Joe Davies seems like a nice chap but explain the picture at 0:07 seconds into the video. I stopped playing "Dress up" before my teenage years. Here's a guy embracing the game in his twilight years

Edited September 26, 2010 by Loz

[flying]

is that a clueless article? or an article about clueless farangs?

I thought the article wasn't too biased. They showed a success story and they showed everyone happy. Not one mention of balcony jumpers or todgers being cut off!

Actually they did mention this....

A clash of expectations strains many marriages, and more than half end in divorce, said Prayoon Thavon, manager of international services at Panyavejinter Hospital in Udon Thani.

Then again here in the US....

According to enrichment journal on the divorce rate in America:

The divorce rate in America for first marriage is 41%

The divorce rate in America for second marriage is 60%

The divorce rate in America for third marriage is 73%

[Loz]

flying,

There is a quantum leap between suicide and mutilation on the one hand, and "a clash of expectations" on the other. at least in my book...

[Spaniel]

lol what a joke of an article. Gotta pay for that vacation to Thailand somehow though. You could make a bot to write up these clueless farang articles about Thailand

I thought the article was pretty balanced. Why do you think it's "clueless"?

[flying]

flying,

There is a quantum leap between suicide and mutilation on the one hand, and "a clash of expectations" on the other. at least in my book...

True but are we talking about the article? Because if so your last post made it sound as if it was all one sided....When in fact it clearly stated a 50% failure rate...Just saying

[Loz]

flying,

There is a quantum leap between suicide and mutilation on the one hand, and "a clash of expectations" on the other. at least in my book...

True but are we talking about the article? Because if so your last post made it sound as if it was all one sided....When in fact it clearly stated a 50% failure rate...Just saying

No biggie, but which part of this post made you think I was saying the article was biased. I thought I'd expressed myself clearly but then on that, I am biased.

I thought the article wasn't too biased. They showed a success story and they showed everyone happy. Not one mention of balcony jumpers or todgers being cut off!

Edited September 26, 2010 by Loz

[flying]

No biggie, but which part of this post made you think I was saying the article was biased. I thought I'd expressed myself clearly but then on that, I am biased.

I thought the article wasn't too biased. They showed a success story and they showed everyone happy. Not one mention of balcony jumpers or todgers being cut off!

Agreed no biggie...

It was that part that confused me....

because you said they showed one success & everyone happy but not one mention of balcony jumpers... that did sound like you thought it was biased...

yet they did in fact say there was a 50% failure rate....albeit not failure via suicide but a failure none the less. So yes I thought it was honest

Edited September 26, 2010 by flying

[onnut]

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

Are you talking about Mr. David, the guy with the mullet in the top photo? Because I'd say he's a normal guy....so it does apply. If you watch the video, you'll see that he actually seems quite articulate and intelligent....not at all the kind of person I'd consider "trailer park trash."

are you him?

[IanForbes]

lol what a joke of an article. Gotta pay for that vacation to Thailand somehow though. You could make a bot to write up these clueless farang articles about Thailand

As a former magazine writer I could say that about any article about any subject in any magazine or newspaper today.

Take a trip somewhere, write 1500 words in a fairly articulate fashion and you are done.

[ilyelol]

lol what a joke of an article. Gotta pay for that vacation to Thailand somehow though. You could make a bot to write up these clueless farang articles about Thailand

As a former magazine writer I could say that about any article about any subject in any magazine or newspaper today.

Take a trip somewhere, write 1500 words in a fairly articulate fashion and you are done.

That's how the world works.

If you're a shitty money manager but you're very articulate, you'll get more investments than the guy who's really good but speaks as if he had down syndrom.

I think that article was awesome. Im sure it was only written to show off the weird guy with a beautiful mullet. The writer wanted the world to witness this beautiful and successful guy.

[Tonto21]

I clicked the link to the journalist's exposé expecting to read another hatchet job on the western male's exploitation and lust for young Thai women. However, I thought it was a fair assessment, a snap shot of the subject it was covering. Is any of his finding news? Well, IMO no, not if you live in Thailand but, to the outside world, predominately "farang land"………Still no, but they love it! There is an element of people who can't get enough, video, news and articles, anything that reinforces there view of Thailand, as a den of iniquity, with poor little Thai girls and fat old farang pressing the flesh. These maggots review the videos or articles, (box of tissues on stand-by) screaming out "FILTH, Oh its DISGUSTING" All in all, Fair assessment considering what he could have wrote if he was working for  "THE MIRROR" a UK rage.

Edited September 26, 2010 by Tonto21

[tonititan]

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

Are you talking about Mr. David, the guy with the mullet in the top photo? Because I'd say he's a normal guy....so it does apply. If you watch the video, you'll see that he actually seems quite articulate and intelligent....not at all the kind of person I'd consider "trailer park trash."

are you him?

Lol, no, not even close. I just thought it was silly for someone to say that the article doesn't apply to the real situation because this guy is trailer trash. Other than his crazy hairdo (which is NOT limited only to trailer trash kind of people!), I don't see anything "trailer park" about him.

[ilyelol]

is he trailerpark trash or a normal guy?

The guy in the article is trailer park trash, it doesnt apply.

A normal bachelor in his 60's that still looks ok(men often age well) is active and not dumb will be attractive for other things than money to the young gal.

So it's quite normal if he has a good love affair with his wife.

Are you talking about Mr. David, the guy with the mullet in the top photo? Because I'd say he's a normal guy....so it does apply. If you watch the video, you'll see that he actually seems quite articulate and intelligent....not at all the kind of person I'd consider "trailer park trash."

are you him?

Lol, no, not even close. I just thought it was silly for someone to say that the article doesn't apply to the real situation because this guy is trailer trash. Other than his crazy hairdo (which is NOT limited only to trailer trash kind of people!), I don't see anything "trailer park" about him.

Yes clearly he's a sucess. He knows fashion very well also.

His choice of an uneducated bargirl with bad english is only because "women" are such an angry annoying species right? Theres no chance in hel_l he's just an uneducated trailerpark trash who waited his whole life to have a long mullet and a 'slave' wife that would not understand him, therefore wouldn't be put off by his dumbness.

There's about 0,0000,0000% of a chance that you arent him, his friend or in the same situation.

[tonititan]

are you him?

Lol, no, not even close. I just thought it was silly for someone to say that the article doesn't apply to the real situation because this guy is trailer trash. Other than his crazy hairdo (which is NOT limited only to trailer trash kind of people!), I don't see anything "trailer park" about him.

His choice of an uneducated bargirl with bad english is only because "women" are such an angry annoying species right? Theres no chance in hel_l he's just an uneducated trailerpark trash who waited his whole life to have a long mullet and a 'slave' wife that would not understand him, therefore wouldn't be put off by his dumbness.

So are you saying that all the men who marry uneducated bar girls with bad English are undeducated trailer park trash? I'm not arguing, I'm just verifying.

There's about 0,0000,0000% of a chance that you arent him, his friend or in the same situation.

Oh, how wrong you are! Might want to check your statistics.