Conmplete Peace, A Philosphy Of Life For Expats In Thailand

[aeolion]

About 25 years ago I came across this image, which has come to symbolize my philosophy of life. Life, only an adventure, is often a joy, but things can suddenly go very badly. This somehow seems relevant to us on this forum.

aeolion

[Johnniey]

Life is a wonderful adventure and challenge. Accept it.

[Ricardo]

If he'd rented a jet-ski, instead of a li-lo, he would at least have seen the shark/vendor coming his way !

[Livinginexile]

Nope...not relevant to me!

I believe fatalism is just a cop out for people that can't take responsibility for themselves.

I think what you meant was "this is relevant to you!"

[Ulysses G.]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

[Livinginexile]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

1) Thai society for not being the "civilized" society it should be according to your standards? or;

2) Your fault for not planning an "exit stragety" based on your fears and insecurities of living in a third world country?

Either way it's not your fault right? It was all fate! bad luck right?

You need to take responsibilities for yourself and realise that the whole world does not evolve around you.

[aeolion]

Nope...not relevant to me!

I believe fatalism is just a cop out for people that can't take responsibility for themselves.

I think what you meant was "this is relevant to you!"

I think you confused the meaning of "Complete Peace."

Fatalism is a philosophy that ascribes everything to fate, though an even moderately observant person will notice that luck seems to cluster around those who approach life with a certain diligence.Accordingly, I do not ascribe to good luck my being prepared for a life of frugal comfort in retirement.

But I think it is undeniable that we live in a world where bad things often happen with little notice. Tsunamis suddenly flatten towns, and regae concerts end with nearby hospitals filled and local morgues with fewer blank toe tags. There are massive floods on Samui and Pha-ngan, temples with stacks of dead redshirts, and divorces and lost houses. Not to mention the quieter, unpublished things, like fatal disease.

It's the old Myth of Sisyphus thing. We push the rock up the mountainside and reach the top, and the rock falls to the valley below. We slowly follow it down and the process resumes. Unless we are fatalists, in which case we don't bother with the rock.

Of course "Complete Peace" has no relevance for you if you live in a system where bad things never arrive with no warning. If so, I envy you.

Peace to you.

[zzaa09]

Life is a wonderful adventure and challenge. Accept it.

And there isn't such defined standards for each and every situation.

Except those whom are willing to find everything stereotypical through the odd mythological tale.

[zzaa09]

....[sic] living in a third world country?

Third World?

Whould this be a benefit or detrimental?

[Ulysses G.]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

Number one, I did not predict anything. You are projecting your own paranoid fantasies.

Number two, the rest of your post is equally as illogical and bizarre as Number one.

[nocturn]

Life is a wonderful adventure and challenge. Accept it.

And there isn't such defined standards for each and every situation.

Except those whom are willing to find everything stereotypical through the odd mythological tale.

i swear you are using google translate.

[inthepink]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

1) Thai society for not being the "civilized" society it should be according to your standards? or;

2) Your fault for not planning an "exit stragety" based on your fears and insecurities of living in a third world country?

Either way it's not your fault right? It was all fate! bad luck right?

You need to take responsibilities for yourself and realise that the whole world does not evolve around you.

I'm sick of reading ridiculous posts on this forum that refer to Thailand as a third world nation. It doesn't mean what you think it does and even if it did it wouldn't apply to Thailand in the 21st century. Are there really so many thick people living over here?

[afarang]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

Eh? Expats fled the country ? Never returned ? Load of nonsense. We were in the middle of it .Sure ,we got evacuated, Not one farang did not come back . Not one. The biggest problem we had was the yellow shirts ,they did their stupid best to stuff up our lives.Now we have a Govt. that gets on well with Cambodia- our problems are over, to the extent that our much loved Cambodian market , returns next week. On Thai soil .Brilliant, We thank you ,Yingluck!! Sitting on a powder keg? _ what a load of ignorant nonsense.

[StreetCowboy]

Nope...not relevant to me!

I believe fatalism is just a cop out for people that can't take responsibility for themselves.

I think what you meant was "this is relevant to you!"

I think you confused the meaning of "Complete Peace."

Fatalism is a philosophy that ascribes everything to fate, though an even moderately observant person will notice that luck seems to cluster around those who approach life with a certain diligence.Accordingly, I do not ascribe to good luck my being prepared for a life of frugal comfort in retirement.

But I think it is undeniable that we live in a world where bad things often happen with little notice. Tsunamis suddenly flatten towns, and regae concerts end with nearby hospitals filled and local morgues with fewer blank toe tags. There are massive floods on Samui and Pha-ngan, temples with stacks of dead redshirts, and divorces and lost houses. Not to mention the quieter, unpublished things, like fatal disease.

It's the old Myth of Sisyphus thing. We push the rock up the mountainside and reach the top, and the rock falls to the valley below. We slowly follow it down and the process resumes. Unless we are fatalists, in which case we don't bother with the rock.

Of course "Complete Peace" has no relevance for you if you live in a system where bad things never arrive with no warning. If so, I envy you.

Peace to you.

Whether you see a crash coming or not, you;ll be better off wearing a seat belt.

We take precautions against things we can't foresee, because we do not want to let our safety be limited by our imagination.

But there is no point in worrying over what MIGHT happen, after we have taken our reasonable precautions. How bad would poor Ulysses feel if he left Thailand out of precaution, and there was no civil war? The essence of safety is the acceptance of residual risk. Once we have assessed it (oh no, another busman's holiday) we can accept it, and conclude it is safe. If we do not identify and assess our risks, how can we deem the situation safe?

SC

[IanForbes]

Whether you see a crash coming or not, you;ll be better off wearing a seat belt.

We take precautions against things we can't foresee, because we do not want to let our safety be limited by our imagination.

But there is no point in worrying over what MIGHT happen, after we have taken our reasonable precautions. How bad would poor Ulysses feel if he left Thailand out of precaution, and there was no civil war? The essence of safety is the acceptance of residual risk. Once we have assessed it (oh no, another busman's holiday) we can accept it, and conclude it is safe. If we do not identify and assess our risks, how can we deem the situation safe?

SC

That is pretty much my philosophy. I am a fatalist to some degree, but believe that I have some control over my future by the choices I make. We make personal choices every hour in our lives, and any one of those choices could alter our lives completely. For example, We forget to set the alarm and we wake up late for work. That could mean we get involved in an accident that we might have otherwise missed. Or, we choose to eat steak and fail to chew it properly, and a chunk gets stuck in our throat and we die... like the guy did on an airline recently. Life is full of choices. Some you have control over and others you don't. I choose to ride a motorcycle in Thailand. That is probably the most risky thing I do nowdays, but if fate has something to do with it then I could just as easily get killed while driving my truck 10 miles from my home.

I don't worry about things I have no control over, but I've learned to not take as many risks as I once did. However, some risks are just worth taking and certainly add spice to what otherwise might be a boring life..

[SomTumTiger]

Fortunately, I don't care if others are at complete peace or not, I'm doing just fine. Find your own inner peace, and leave mine alone.

[StreetCowboy]

Whether you see a crash coming or not, you;ll be better off wearing a seat belt.

We take precautions against things we can't foresee, because we do not want to let our safety be limited by our imagination.

But there is no point in worrying over what MIGHT happen, after we have taken our reasonable precautions. How bad would poor Ulysses feel if he left Thailand out of precaution, and there was no civil war? The essence of safety is the acceptance of residual risk. Once we have assessed it (oh no, another busman's holiday) we can accept it, and conclude it is safe. If we do not identify and assess our risks, how can we deem the situation safe?

SC

That is pretty much my philosophy. I am a fatalist to some degree, but believe that I have some control over my future by the choices I make. We make personal choices every hour in our lives, and any one of those choices could alter our lives completely. For example, We forget to set the alarm and we wake up late for work. That could mean we get involved in an accident that we might have otherwise missed. Or, we choose to eat steak and fail to chew it properly, and a chunk gets stuck in our throat and we die... like the guy did on an airline recently. Life is full of choices. Some you have control over and others you don't. I choose to ride a motorcycle in Thailand. That is probably the most risky thing I do nowdays, but if fate has something to do with it then I could just as easily get killed while driving my truck 10 miles from my home.

I don't worry about things I have no control over, but I've learned to not take as many risks as I once did. However, some risks are just worth taking and certainly add spice to what otherwise might be a boring life..

You probably don't follow cricket...

but when you go out to bat, you put on your pads, helmet and box, and take your bat out.

You can only play what life bowls at you, but if you know what total you're chasing, how many overs you've got, who is coming after you... then you've got more chance of being on the winning side.

But still, you can only play what's in front of you, and everyone gets stumped from time to time.

for all I know - I've never played cricket either

SC

[Ulysses G.]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

Eh? Expats fled the country ? Never returned ? Load of nonsense. We were in the middle of it .Sure ,we got evacuated, Not one farang did not come back .

Horse mmanure. Bert of Bert's books did not go back and there were plenty more. I was visiting the place fairly regularly at the time.

[Ulysses G.]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

I don't know how you manage to sleep at nights ?

I have more problems staying awake.

[carmine]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

1) Thai society for not being the "civilized" society it should be according to your standards? or;

2) Your fault for not planning an "exit stragety" based on your fears and insecurities of living in a third world country?

Either way it's not your fault right? It was all fate! bad luck right?

You need to take responsibilities for yourself and realise that the whole world does not evolve around you.

How wonderful to see the world in such clarity.

You are totally wrong. Those of us that are happily settled here, but also aware of the social and political situation hereand are well aware that there are many things that can change and some not for the better. However, people, apart from your goodself, cannot predict and compensate for everything that might happen in the future. You have an extremely liberal use of the word "responsibilities". Responsibilities have little to do with it. We wish to live in a certain country and choose to live there knowing that certain situations can change for better or worse. Are we supposed to live our lives day to day on the basis of something that might concievably happen? Lets face, were not living in downtown Mogadishu hedging are bets on whether the governments forces can beat Al Sabab are we? That, i would consider irresponsible.

Tell me, were New Yorkers caught up in the nightmare on manhatten not taking responsibility for what might happen baring in mind Osama's frequent threats?

[TigerWan]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

Eh? Expats fled the country ? Never returned ? Load of nonsense. We were in the middle of it .Sure ,we got evacuated, Not one farang did not come back . Not one. The biggest problem we had was the yellow shirts ,they did their stupid best to stuff up our lives.Now we have a Govt. that gets on well with Cambodia- our problems are over, to the extent that our much loved Cambodian market , returns next week. On Thai soil .Brilliant, We thank you ,Yingluck!! Sitting on a powder keg? _ what a load of ignorant nonsense.

I think you are confusing the riots in Bangkok last year with UG's statement about violence ocurring in Cambodia driving out foreigners, for good..

I don't think humans are wired for peace. Certainly capitalism doesn't nurture it Cooperative respect may be the best we can really achieve. At least these forums allow conversation about frustrations, which is a valuable outlet.

[rgs2001uk]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

1) Thai society for not being the "civilized" society it should be according to your standards? or;

2) Your fault for not planning an "exit stragety" based on your fears and insecurities of living in a third world country?

Either way it's not your fault right? It was all fate! bad luck right?

You need to take responsibilities for yourself and realise that the whole world does not evolve around you.

How wonderful to see the world in such clarity.

You are totally wrong. Those of us that are happily settled here, but also aware of the social and political situation hereand are well aware that there are many things that can change and some not for the better. However, people, apart from your goodself, cannot predict and compensate for everything that might happen in the future. You have an extremely liberal use of the word "responsibilities". Responsibilities have little to do with it. We wish to live in a certain country and choose to live there knowing that certain situations can change for better or worse. Are we supposed to live our lives day to day on the basis of something that might concievably happen? Lets face, were not living in downtown Mogadishu hedging are bets on whether the governments forces can beat Al Sabab are we? That, i would consider irresponsible.

Tell me, were New Yorkers caught up in the nightmare on manhatten not taking responsibility for what might happen baring in mind Osama's frequent threats?

Add me to the list of 'cannot predict and compensate for everything that might happen in the future', thats why I agree with him.

None of us know what will happen, but I would have added a rider to UG's 'many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best', that would be, but prepared for the worst.

How many here actually have an exit plan in place, how many cant afford an exit plan? I have no idea and too be honest its no concern of mine.

I liken it to having insurance, I pay for it every year and hope I never have to use it, but I would rather have it and not need it, that need it and not have it.

[robblok]

Exit plan,

I mean what is hard about that just get on a plane and leave. Just make sure your money is not mainly on a Thai bank. If you have a home or invested a lot it will hurt.

I own stuff here and i would hate to loose it but it would not kill me. I could just do the same thing i do now somewhere else.

[rgs2001uk]

Exit plan,

I mean what is hard about that just get on a plane and leave. Just make sure your money is not mainly on a Thai bank. If you have a home or invested a lot it will hurt.

I own stuff here and i would hate to loose it but it would not kill me. I could just do the same thing i do now somewhere else.

Rob, have a look at some of our fellow farang here, they couldnt afford a taxi to the airport never mind a plane ticket.

For me it would be an inconvience not the end of the world it would be for many.

Agree with your 'I mean what is hard about that just get on a plane and leave' its not rocket sceince.

Too many are just one paycheque from bankruptcy, if that cheque doesnt come in this month they are screwed.

[moe666]

Peace a condition you have complete control of. Peace is only a condition of your own mind and has nothing to do with what goes on around you other than how you precieve it

[robblok]

Exit plan,

I mean what is hard about that just get on a plane and leave. Just make sure your money is not mainly on a Thai bank. If you have a home or invested a lot it will hurt.

I own stuff here and i would hate to loose it but it would not kill me. I could just do the same thing i do now somewhere else.

Rob, have a look at some of our fellow farang here, they couldnt afford a taxi to the airport never mind a plane ticket.

For me it would be an inconvience not the end of the world it would be for many.

Agree with your 'I mean what is hard about that just get on a plane and leave' its not rocket sceince.

Too many are just one paycheque from bankruptcy, if that cheque doesnt come in this month they are screwed.

I have a mobile business, if there is a computer and internet i can work. Anyway most problematic would be the wife but if we moved to Malaysia for a while could work.

But i dont think anything will happen here. Even civil wars are not as bad as people say they are. We are not going to have a Libia style thing here. Maybe some bombs and riots but nothing much worse as we already seen on the streets of BKK.

[IanForbes]

I remember 43 years ago when my new wife and I decided not to have children because the scientific pundits had proven that by the year 2000 there would be 250 million people in Canada and the US would have over a billion. Of course, that never happened. The PILL was available and became a refined form of contreception. Our two countries have since had to bring in foreigners just to keep the population from stagnating. Fortunately, my wife and I gave up the idea of not having children and now we have 3 grand children from our 2 offspring.

Then, 20 years later the AIDS epidemic arrived and the scientific pundits proclaimed that by the year 2000 there would be millions of people dead and dying in North America. Of course that also never happened either. People had started becoming more responsible. And, a few years ago all the scientists were telling us that we are in a world crisis because human pollution is causing global warming and we are all going to die. Sorry if I just don't believe it. I think it's the same with the political crisis (if there actually is one) in Thailand. Yes, there are going to be changes, there always are, but I'm far from being a gloom and doom proponent. I'm quite sure that saner heads will prevail and Thailand will weather the crisis. It always has in the past.

It is easy enough to stay out of the troubled areas and not make waves. I have little sympathy for those that go running TOWARDS a fight or protest. They have to accept the consequences of their own actions. Unfortunately, there are always the poor that get caught in the middle of someone else's fight.

[Soutpeel]

Even civil wars are not as bad as people say they are.

...Try telling that to people who lived through civil wars in Liberia, Ruwanda and Somalia....

Got to be a nominee for the Darwin award making statements like that...

[andrewbkk]

It is certainly relevant to me. I remember the coup and all the violence in Cambodia somewhat recently when all the happily settled expats fled the country and most did not return.

I hope that it does not happen here, but between the red shirts and the yellow shirts and a lot of other possibilities many of us are sitting on a powder keg and just hoping for the best.

So Ulysses....if there IS a coup and Thailand turns to <deleted> like you are predicting and you are caught up in the middle of it and need to flee and lose everything, who's fault would that be?

1) Thai society for not being the "civilized" society it should be according to your standards? or;

2) Your fault for not planning an "exit stragety" based on your fears and insecurities of living in a third world country?

Either way it's not your fault right? It was all fate! bad luck right?

You need to take responsibilities for yourself and realise that the whole world does not evolve around you.

I'm sick of reading ridiculous posts on this forum that refer to Thailand as a third world nation. It doesn't mean what you think it does and even if it did it wouldn't apply to Thailand in the 21st century. Are there really so many thick people living over here?

Isn't Thailand now defined as a Developing Country?

[robblok]

Even civil wars are not as bad as people say they are.

...Try telling that to people who lived through civil wars in Liberia, Ruwanda and Somalia....

Got to be a nominee for the Darwin award making statements like that...

Yes but do you expect a civil war like that here ? I don't there wont be anything close to that over here. People have too much too loose. Worst thing that i expect here is the stuff that happened in BKK before.

Not all civil wars are the same and not all area's are affected.

In the south there is something close to a civil war going on do you notice anything of that here ?