Stickmanbangkok Site Has Change In Focus Area?

[kerryk]

I liked the readers submissions and back in the heyday of 40 baht to the dollar they were well written and fun to read.

As the dollar dropped so did the quality of the submissions and a bunch of negative stories began to creep in.

Stick seemed to get straight laced and then his wife stopped doing a Thai advice column. To be honest most of her advice was slanted and short sited, kind of like some posters on Thai Visa, the ones with the Hi So Uni wives.

I think he has a deal to sell the site and is only hanging about till it closes. One would think he would want to increase readership while he waits to collect his cash and go back to Kiwi land but it doesn't seem he is doing that. Late columns and a lackadaisical attitude seem the new mode of operation. A busted marriage would explain it.

The world does not circulate around the good old US of A. The Ozzy dollar is as high as it's ever been. I think your assumption is floored.

I was talking about the reader submissions. Dana and Chiang Mai Kelly are Americans and Dana has stopped coming to Thailand and no one knows what happened to Kelly. Foster an Aussie, went back to Aussie land. The Brits seem less in dominance in Pattaya as a result of economics and I don't think the Aussies have taken their places in the same numbers. Would have been OK with me if the boys from down under had filled all the ex pat slots left by the Brits and Yanks as Aussies are fun guys but they didn't.

[kerryk]

Stickman and Stick site are a joke. You are correct, he has outsourced all the anecdotes to the mob. He never puts up anything controversial. What you are left with is a endless "stoopid farang" stories. If someone writes in and has been jumped by thugs, scammed, ripped off by some thieving girlfriend, had their bags rifled at a guesthouse or on a bus. If it involves a Thai and unless it is a "my 'bar/girlfriend scammed me out of _____" he doesn't touch it. He questions and denies - Oh, cops aren't that bad, Oh, Tourist Police wouldn't do THAT, I know them...A friend had shown me some email from him, fwdd by another friend over some bar issue. He is a total pantload.

If you read back a few weeks, you will find many stories about the corruption of cops especially having to do with traffic police. He went into a big Thai bashing episode and that was the reason he sold his car after driving for 10 years in Thailand.

He routinely talks about bar scams and customers getting beaten by security staff at bars.

I would mention examples of controversy but one can't mention it on Thai Visa.

[nocturn]

Stickman and Stick site are a joke. You are correct, he has outsourced all the anecdotes to the mob. He never puts up anything controversial. What you are left with is a endless "stoopid farang" stories. If someone writes in and has been jumped by thugs, scammed, ripped off by some thieving girlfriend, had their bags rifled at a guesthouse or on a bus. If it involves a Thai and unless it is a "my 'bar/girlfriend scammed me out of _____" he doesn't touch it. He questions and denies - Oh, cops aren't that bad, Oh, Tourist Police wouldn't do THAT, I know them...A friend had shown me some email from him, fwdd by another friend over some bar issue. He is a total pantload.

If you read back a few weeks, you will find many stories about the corruption of cops especially having to do with traffic police. He went into a big Thai bashing episode and that was the reason he sold his car after driving for 10 years in Thailand.

He routinely talks about bar scams and customers getting beaten by security staff at bars.

I would mention examples of controversy but one can't mention it on Thai Visa.

sure he's not skint?

[trisailer]

Before his divorce he said;

"There's no reason why you can't have a fabulous relationship with a Thai woman. Take the time to choose the right one, take the time to get to know her and don't accept anything that you would not be prepared to accept in the West. A Thai woman can make a fabulous life partner but if you choose badly, she can end up a real nightmare!"

What he failed to say was that once you find "the right one" you have to manage the relationship. I sometimes think that being married to a Thai woman is like owning an exotic pet. They are different and they do demand a different approach. I had to teach my wife about communication and compromise and negotiation. She resisted at first, but now I enjoy hearing her teach her friends and family the same lessons. She now embraces these ideas because she can see that they work. That still doesn't buy me a guarantee that she will always be faithful and not turn on me, but it does improve my odds. Humans are never going to stop being human and as such we are basically unreliable. The includes me and everyone I ever knew.

The rumor is that Stick's wife cheated on him. He is welcome to set the story straight as I am certain that he is reading this. It's no big embarrassment when a partner does this and it only says something about the character of the cheating partner.

The point that I want to make is that there is no formula for choosing a partner. Finding a "good girl" who is worth making the effort is important, but it doesn't end there. It is a daily challenge to keep a relationship on a healthy track.

The best of Stickman is when he writes about his own personal experiences. It is easy to see him as a fellow human when he does this and that is far more interesting than the distant, judgmental person he appears to be when keeping his distance.

[OlafStapleton]

So when he give us advice to find "hi-so educated half-Chinese lady", this was bad advise?

He must be sad to find his advice wrong.

She turn out to be same same like bar girl!

[ExpatOilWorker]

>>What do you expect from a ex sexpat who was dumped by a good woman and is now back on the game with not much money?

So you know the guy do you?

I rarely give his site a read, but it sounds like he's doing the right thing to gain more international readership which translates into more ad revenue.

email him and ask why he was dumped. I dont know him at all or anyone who hang out in those areas more than once a year

If you dont know him..can i ask how you know he was dumped?

Some info here: http://notstickmanbangkok.com/

[HeavyDrinker]

So when he give us advice to find "hi-so educated half-Chinese lady", this was bad advise?

Everyone on Thai Visa has one of these.....

[jayjayjayjay]

The world does not circulate around the good old US of A.

Actually, it does, but how much longer before we are all studying Chinese and going to Representatives of the Communist and Workers' Parties meetings every week?

I'm an American and I agree. The US was in a position to lead the world into the 21st century back in the 60's , but it has thrown that away in favor of huge profits for a handful of billionares. Now prepare yourself for the fall. Watch and see the US drag the whole world down through it's greed and incompitence.

Ireland, US and Greece can enjoy a few years of hardship. The rest of us can enjoy. Unemployment in Australia still under 5%, but who cares. The reality is the word does not evolve around the US, the only reality is the America(Americans) make more noise than any other nation, thus believe they are more important. WRONG.

[kerryk]

The world does not circulate around the good old US of A.

Actually, it does, but how much longer before we are all studying Chinese and going to Representatives of the Communist and Workers' Parties meetings every week?

I'm an American and I agree. The US was in a position to lead the world into the 21st century back in the 60's , but it has thrown that away in favor of huge profits for a handful of billionares. Now prepare yourself for the fall. Watch and see the US drag the whole world down through it's greed and incompitence.

Ireland, US and Greece can enjoy a few years of hardship. The rest of us can enjoy. Unemployment in Australia still under 5%, but who cares. The reality is the word does not evolve around the US, the only reality is the America(Americans) make more noise than any other nation, thus believe they are more important. WRONG.

My world revolves around Thailand. Other countries only effect me as it relates to my life in Thailand. Currency issues effect me but all of my cash is in Thai baht so only as the buying power of the baht effects the price of cheese and salami.

I never read much of Stickman's writing only the readers submissions. Dana is by far the most creative writer on the site but as of late he seems to have gone the way of the site in general.

Who can forget the visual of him and his mother throwing flaming drug filled dead dogs over the wall at the Nana hotel. Coining phrases like, “Jesus Christ on a cracker” and “the Mothership (Nana hotel)”.

Thank you for taking the time to share your opinion of other countries.

[lovelomsak]

I always thought the stickman leaned more towards the high roller type of foreigner. The bars he frequented and talked about in his weeklys, all arenot on my list of places to go. I liked his last week article about Thai places to go. I am a firm believer when in Rome go with the Romans. Thailand isnot the US,UK or any other country .it is Thailand. All the years I read him I felt he was more a tourist tote than anything else.

But I did have a good burger at Dukes after winning a photo contest a few weeks ago.Want to win a second burger.

[DP25]

I personally find him depressing as he documents and fictionalizes his middle age crisis.

Haven't read it for years, but the site always seemed somewhat depressing and fictional. Reader submissions felt like some bizarre creative writing class

[ExpatJ]

I liked Dana's earlier writing about his holidays in thailand- which bars he went to etc and what happened. Last year or two i find his 'surreal' stories utterly boring and don't even bother clicking on his submissions any more.

I found stickmans site to be a nice link to thailand while i was living in new york in early 2000s and still enjoy his sunday columns % reader submissions- will be a tad melancholy if he packs it up in September since he basically covered the same period as i have had a connection with Thailand from 1995+.

[KeyserSoze01]

Anyone else got the intestinal fortitude to start a blog about Thailand's nightlife, carry it forward 10+ years, gather readership worldwide, generate income from paid advertising and deal with constant attacks from the peanut gallery?

[nocturn]

So when he give us advice to find "hi-so educated half-Chinese lady", this was bad advise?

He must be sad to find his advice wrong.

She turn out to be same same like bar girl!

no you bigoted sap, it turns out she was human like the rest of us.

[nocturn]

Anyone else got the intestinal fortitude to start a blog about Thailand's nightlife, carry it forward 10+ years, gather readership worldwide, generate income from paid advertising and deal with constant attacks from the peanut gallery?

good lord, why would anyone want to unless they craved attention and the thrill of authority. Besides it cant have been that great an earner, he continued teaching throughout.

[Nawtier]

nice puppy.....I just got one....but yours looks cross eyed.

[trisailer]

Anyone else got the intestinal fortitude to start a blog about Thailand's nightlife, carry it forward 10+ years, gather readership worldwide, generate income from paid advertising and deal with constant attacks from the peanut gallery?

It sounds like everyone agrees that his site is ok, but it could be much better. I think Stick is riddled with ambivalence about what to do with his life, where to live, how to process after his failed marriage. He did do well starting out as a teacher and creating the site, but it could be so much more if he had the ability and the focus. A lot of the writing from contributors was very good and I think that Stick is himself a frustrated writer (me too) He could have expanded the writing about Thailand and have short story contests. I liked that part of the site the best, but I didn't agreed with his green star ratings. I also think that there is a lot of great history about Thailand that could have been stimulating. Echoing the rants of the Thai haters was not the way to go IMO.

There is so much potential for a site like that to draw people in, it could be a huge moneymaker. I don't know why anyone would want to buy his site since it would have to be completely redone anyway and a person would be better off starting from scratch.

[bangkokburning]

The world does not circulate around the good old US of A.

Actually, it does, but how much longer before we are all studying Chinese and going to Representatives of the Communist and Workers' Parties meetings every week?

I'm an American and I agree. The US was in a position to lead the world into the 21st century back in the 60's , but it has thrown that away in favor of huge profits for a handful of billionares. Now prepare yourself for the fall. Watch and see the US drag the whole world down through it's greed and incompitence.

Ireland, US and Greece can enjoy a few years of hardship. The rest of us can enjoy. Unemployment in Australia still under 5%, but who cares. The reality is the word does not evolve around the US, the only reality is the America(Americans) make more noise than any other nation, thus believe they are more important. WRONG.

Jay, the US has made tragic mistakes in the last few decades but the notion that Australians will lead anything into the future save for sheep shearing and binge drinking is hopeless. OZ is raping its landscape selling coal and minerals to the communist Chinese as fast as it can. It's gold interests all over the world are also as quite destructive. Spare us the lecture and go smash some beer cans on your head.

[vpi78]

thank god we have the commercial-interest-free, uncensored, unsanitized integrity of Thai Visa to fall back on.

Funny but the irony will be missed by many.

[vpi78]

I liked Dana's earlier writing about his holidays in thailand- which bars he went to etc and what happened. Last year or two i find his 'surreal' stories utterly boring and don't even bother clicking on his submissions any more.

I found stickmans site to be a nice link to thailand while i was living in new york in early 2000s and still enjoy his sunday columns % reader submissions- will be a tad melancholy if he packs it up in September since he basically covered the same period as i have had a connection with Thailand from 1995+.

+1Seems Stick got bored himself or just lost the plot over the years. That commando foray up north with his looney "Black Ops" photographer buddy to confront his stalker must have been one of the straws. It will be sad to see the site close but no sadder than seeing other markers of the era fade away such as Washington Square.

[moe666]

Stick got boring everytime he went home and came back carring on about it and slamming Thailand. he would carry on about Thailand being a dead end and that farangs had no future here. I guess he never asked himself what kind of a future a school teadher would have in NZ (not to knock teachers they do good work) if its dead end in Thailand it cannot be any better in NZ. I guess he will go back home now and set the world on fire, he can do a blog about the night life in Auckland.

Any way good luck to him I think he will need it in the real world.

[OlafStapleton]

Stick got boring everytime he went home and came back carring on about it and slamming Thailand. he would carry on about Thailand being a dead end and that farangs had no future here. I guess he never asked himself what kind of a future a school teadher would have in NZ (not to knock teachers they do good work) if its dead end in Thailand it cannot be any better in NZ. I guess he will go back home now and set the world on fire, he can do a blog about the night life in Auckland.

Any way good luck to him I think he will need it in the real world.

Teacher work in Thailand often not have qualification to teach in home country.

Even I can be English teacher in Thailand, they not bothered.

[Ulysses G.]

Now that is scary.

[EvilDrSomkid]

Some info here: http://notstickmanbangkok.com/

edit: just remembered why I don't visit 'General' anymore....

Edited June 17, 2011 by EvilDrSomkid

[submaniac]

stickmanbangkok.com = poorly designed site that is really hard to navigate to get past the advertising and actually read the postings. Due to that reason I never really got into it.

notstickmanbangkok.com = why is this website still up??? Well at least there's no advertising to sift through. (Gee, I wonder why no one wants to advertise on that site. )

mangosauce = I miss you. At least you were entertaining.

Thaivisa = most successful site. The other sites should pay attention, running a non-adult oriented website (and getting the advertising from it) does pay off.

[80ojom]

i do find the comments about Stickmanweekly being negative highly entertain as, imho TV ( posters)is the most negative site of them all.

Stickamn weekly often provides an entertaining half hour every sunday!

[Nawtier]

^ Hi Stick..

[Beetlejuice]

What does the guy’s private life have to do with his web site?

No one has to take the content of the web site as literal. I just find it interesting and can draw my own conclusions. The same regarding newspapers, I enjoy to read, but then form my own judgments.

I do agree with one poster that the Stickman web site is difficult to navigate and I have sometimes given up rather than struggling by clicking on links that don`t appear to work or not there.

I like Stickman and have enjoyed his stories and witty comments over the years. Of course everyone has choices, don`t like, then no need to go there.

[hanuman1]

stickmanbangkok.com = poorly designed site that is really hard to navigate to get past the advertising and actually read the postings. Due to that reason I never really got into it.

notstickmanbangkok.com = why is this website still up??? Well at least there's no advertising to sift through. (Gee, I wonder why no one wants to advertise on that site. )

mangosauce = I miss you. At least you were entertaining.

Thaivisa = most successful site. The other sites should pay attention, running a non-adult oriented website (and getting the advertising from it) does pay off.

I miss Mangosauce too. Anyone know what happened to the guy that wrote the articles? Same kind of humour as Not the Nation - any connection?

[EvilDrSomkid]

stickmanbangkok.com = poorly designed site that is really hard to navigate to get past the advertising and actually read the postings. Due to that reason I never really got into it.

notstickmanbangkok.com = why is this website still up??? Well at least there's no advertising to sift through. (Gee, I wonder why no one wants to advertise on that site. )

mangosauce = I miss you. At least you were entertaining.

Thaivisa = most successful site. The other sites should pay attention, running a non-adult oriented website (and getting the advertising from it) does pay off.

I miss Mangosauce too. Anyone know what happened to the guy that wrote the articles? Same kind of humour as Not the Nation - any connection?

None.

I miss MangoSauce, too. The guy (he is on TV, too) running the antiStick site referenced above had several run ins with Stick and others in the comments.

MangoSauce shut down partially due to this (it is speculated) and to some difficulties with Google adsense. He went on to doing other things.