Thailand Tolerance

[yermanee]

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Now Jingthing where did I say that I can read minds ?

I do have 75 years of interacting with people behind me so maybe, just maybe I know a thing or 2.

If I perceive a person to be polite that's enough for me.

If I perceive that a person treats me with respect that's enough for me.

Yermanee

At first I thought "How rude is that? Turn and face them if you're talking to them, for goodness' sake!"

but then I thought maybe you have more in common with JT than you are letting on, so ....

Anyway, least said, soonest mended.

SC

I suppose JT was picking up on the difference between being respected, and being treated with respect.

In my view, no-one, not even beggars or royalty, are important enough for me to sacrifice what little good manners I have. That authority I grant only to the demon drink

I'm very sorry that my English is not clear enough for you to understand.

I'll try to do better next time, because I'm sure that if I wrote in German you would understand even less.

I'm surprised however that you don't practice your own saying i.e. least said, soonest mended.

Yermanee

[gravion]

lol 75 yrs old old man

[yermanee]

lol 75 yrs old old man

And this in a topic about tolerance.

Let's hope you grow up.

Yermanee

[thunder30101]

Tolerence in thailand comes with a price. As long as you have money they will tolerate anything.

[Flatouthruthefog]

<br />Tolerence in thailand comes with a price. As long as you have money they will tolerate anything.<br />

<br /><br /><br />

Sadly, and generally speaking, I have to agree with you. And the higher up the native social scale you go, the more that seems true.

And to bring 2 slightly differing aspects together, I note that real money around here brings REAL respect. Not just "lip service." And they don't care how the wealth was acquired.

[ianbroad]

Great site, interesting………………However your statement, and the facts on that site didn't make me blink one bit. It's one of the things that make me smile about Thailand, the Thai's unweaving belief that they and they alone hold the key to all the answers in the universe. In most cases but not all, as a non-Thai you will be seated at the head of the table, and be afforded every courtesy, but in the pecking order of things you will fall somewhere between the buffalo and the Soi dog! Let the dance begin.

Yes that is how it is... spot on.

I dont understand it.. its illogical why not treat us like soi dogs?

I always kind of feel that Thai people feel both inferior and superior to us at the same time. Strange.. is it true?

[thunder30101]

Soi dogs are not buying the meal.

[Cnxforever]

More than tolerance, i would describe it as just not caring, you know that kind

of feeling when someone just say "i couldn't be bothered about this the

slightest bit", but all in silence without telling you about this explicitely, i

hope it helps :jap:

correct...not caring ...or couldn't be bothered ..or not my problem! This is often mistaken for tolerance in this country - but it has has nothing to do with tolerance - I think the poll is correct Thais are just indifferent if it does not concern them directly - it's "not their problem".

I remember when I came here first and noticed that if you entered a shopping center or office building nobody could be bothered to hold the door open for people entering behind them - at one occasion I was almost hit by the door talking to a friend when a women in front of us let the door swing closed right in front of me. I found that very rude and asked my friend why most people do that? His answer was - "she does not know you - you are neither a friend or family - so why should she hold the door open for you??

Well common courtesy I thought by myself - but that does not exist here - nor in most other Asian countries - if it does not concern family or friends they just can't be bothered - nothing to do with being tolerant.

[neverback]

Could not have agreed more with that website.

Give me a break guys. I have not met more stubborn people,than in Thailand. And, when it comes to telling them that they are ,"sometimes". incorrect,they get pissed and assume that you are trying to disregard them.

Unfortunately, i have to disappoint many people on this forum: this is "A Land of Smiles" with a knife behind that smile.

[ianbroad]

Could not have agreed more with that website.

Give me a break guys. I have not met more stubborn people,than in Thailand. And, when it comes to telling them that they are ,"sometimes". incorrect,they get pissed and assume that you are trying to disregard them.

Unfortunately, i have to disappoint many people on this forum: this is "A Land of Smiles" with a knife behind that smile.

smiling assassins

[zzaa09]

To clarify this a bit. I am not only talking about Thais and cross cultural misunderstandings. Sometimes even married couples from the same background don't REALLY know what the other is really thinking inside. Being two faced is rather part of the human condition. When you add different cultures to the mix, it gets even harder to read people's real thoughts.

Difficult to generalize, as it would be impossible to extend. Every interacting individual and situation will be different from the next.

[jombom]

Personally, my view is that many western words, do not have the same meaning in Thailand. So the idea of tolerance, as per western thinking, may well be very foreign to a Thai perspective.

One has to remember that Thailand was never colonized by a Western country, so the people have some difficulty in understanding western concepts.

This factor (as above) should be obvious to all who live here. But ( just possibly) we are too blinkered to see it --- and therefore object to the blinkers on local people.

[HaruHaru]

Tolerence in thailand comes with a price. As long as you have money they will tolerate anything.

Exactly.

if you are poor Hmong, Karen minorities or migrant workers from Laos, Burma, don't expect too much tolerance.

[JPPR2]

Tolerence in thailand comes with a price. As long as you have money they will tolerate anything.

Exactly.

if you are poor Hmong, Karen minorities or migrant workers from Laos, Burma, don't expect too much tolerance.

Folks here make this money thing sound like it is only Thailand. This is a world wide behavior, just look around you.

[lovelomsak]

It must be the most tolerant I am still here.

[TheFishman1]

I have lived in a lot of different country I find you recieve what or how you act..People culture are not all the same,so you accept it for what it is.Life is short have fun relax and the sun will come up each morning.If you don't like a country or it's people move.They don't have to change you do.Life does not have to be like a box of chocolate.Peope who move or live in Thailand should know what there going to get.or not.If all country where the same how boring would that be.I see thing in other country that makes me laugh,I am sure Thailand will be the same for me.Counting the days till I get there can't wait.Just my 2 cents. LOL

[StreetCowboy]

8>< SNIP NESTED QUOTES DELETED ><8

Now Jingthing where did I say that I can read minds ?

I do have 75 years of interacting with people behind me so maybe, just maybe I know a thing or 2.

If I perceive a person to be polite that's enough for me.

If I perceive that a person treats me with respect that's enough for me.

Yermanee

At first I thought "How rude is that? Turn and face them if you're talking to them, for goodness' sake!"

but then I thought maybe you have more in common with JT than you are letting on, so ....

Anyway, least said, soonest mended.

SC

I suppose JT was picking up on the difference between being respected, and being treated with respect.

In my view, no-one, not even beggars or royalty, are important enough for me to sacrifice what little good manners I have. That authority I grant only to the demon drink

I'm very sorry that my English is not clear enough for you to understand.

I'll try to do better next time, because I'm sure that if I wrote in German you would understand even less.

I'm surprised however that you don't practice your own saying i.e. least said, soonest mended.

Yermanee

My apologies - no offence intended; we have to find humour wherever we can

SC

[zzaa09]

Personally, my view is that many western words, do not have the same meaning in Thailand. So the idea of tolerance, as per western thinking, may well be very foreign to a Thai perspective.

One has to remember that Thailand was never colonized by a Western country, so the people have some difficulty in understanding western concepts.

This factor (as above) should be obvious to all who live here. But ( just possibly) we are too blinkered to see it --- and therefore object to the blinkers on local people.

In this case, it comes down to cultural-centredness. Always expect the "mysterious" differences when comparing Oriental vs. Occidental.

[Kwasaki]

Great site, interesting………………However your statement, and the facts on that site didn't make me blink one bit. It's one of the things that make me smile about Thailand, the Thai's unweaving belief that they and they alone hold the key to all the answers in the universe. In most cases but not all, as a non-Thai you will be seated at the head of the table, and be afforded every courtesy, but in the pecking order of things you will fall somewhere between the buffalo and the Soi dog! Let the dance begin.

First and the best.

[IanForbes]

Tolerence in thailand comes with a price. As long as you have money they will tolerate anything.

That is not true. I know lots of Thais who walk away from good paying jobs when they percieve to have lost "face".

I do agree that money will have a sofening affect in getting to some understanding.

[jackers]

This is the first I've seen a nations tolerance level on a graph. I'll speak about the UK which has a high tolerance level on the graph. There are race discrimination laws and a lot of interracial marriages but I would say that your general population isn't really that accepting at all, especially outside major cities, there is a lot of stereotyping between everybody including ethnic groups. The tolerance level I would suggest as dropped even more since the recession started, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that there is nowhere in the world where a foreigner can go and be fully accepted as a native by the majority of natives themselves.

[thunder30101]

My post has nothing to do regarding thais being tolerant with other thais Ian.

[neverback]

As far as i have understood, there are few Thai-nationals post replies on this site,who will defend an "Amazing Thailand" claim till the last breath. Even, when there are facts,which override their claims.

That's a Thai tolerance.

I would just ask those Thai folks one question : What would Thailand be,without all of the American, Japanese,British ... etc., companies and foreign tourists,like?

[Richb2004v2]

I listened to a very interesting BBC podcast about Thailand the other day. Several of the Thais on it made some great points. One of them covered his opinion in Thai tolerance and racism. It is well worth listening to.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/documentaries/2011/01/110131_what_can_i_say.shtml