Thai Student Nazi Dress-Up Day Causes Outrage

[tlansford]

The Nazis stole the swastika. It's high time that it's taken back.

The Sawastika in Buddhism is the symbol of the heart of Buddha. Thats why you will find it on the buddha statues in many Budhist temples.

Also you are in Thailand. I guess you have heard the Thai sai hello to each other, and used the Thai word for it yourself: Sa wat dee

Sa wat comes directly from the sanskrit word swasti which means well being...and the swastika is the symbol for that. You are in other words using the sawastika every time you say hello to someone on Thailand...

So please don't get worked up every time you see this religious symbol, which is the second most holy symbol in both Buddhism and hinduism.

But okay, dressing up in Nazi uniforms was over the top. I agree to that.

Thank you for the sanskrit information.

[Soutpeel]

Prince William and Prince Harry......

At least they have German ancestors and it was only Harry...

[chutai]

that emblem has been used in India long before hitler was born. associated with Buddhism and Hinduism. a school teacher of mine while I was growing up spoke about this emblem and mentioned that Hitler was a buddhist before he turned "to the dark side". turned the emblem upside down and there they have something for the nazis. probably just a fairy tale the story but thought i'd share it anyways.

Your teacher was incorrect : Hitler was always a catholic and was never a Buddhist. But the symbol is much older than the Nazis.

To be absolutely correct, Hitler subscribed to fantastical idea that the world was concave and on its outer crust lived a race of blond haired giants. Not hing to do with Buddhism or Catholicism. More to do with regularly taking methadrine aka yaa-baa.

[atyclb]

You are all wrong.

This is the TAT's ultimate wisdom and logic in collaboration with students in an effort to get more tourists from Israel and all over the world with Jewish descent.

[VictorOne]

i'm sick of reading this, i'm a 1960 generation, now we have 2011.

get over it.

It must be that the 60's generation were never educated either. Just like the moronic education system in Thailand. They wouldn't know history if it bit them in the arrrse.

[globalmenace]

My wife (of two years) is making fish cakes as we speak, which are excellent by the way, but I digress.

After reading this thread I thought I'd ask her, as despite having a high school education she has always seemed very ignorant of history and geography.

"Have you heard of the Nazis?"

"NASA? Yes, one of the things in the sky fell down yesterday"

"No, Nazis. They killed lots of Jews in the Holocaust, and many, many other people in World War II"

"I don't know about Jews"

"What about Hitler?"

"What Hitler?"

I'm reaching OMG status by now. The conversation continued and her knowledge of WWII is limited to the Japanese, the Burma Railway and the fact that Australians were there.

There you go. I should add however that she is a wonderful person who doesn't display many of the characteristics that are often portrayed here as being "typical Thai" - profoundly selfish, devoid of morals, only after money etc. Just a victim of a crappy education system. Rest assured I shall be addressing the situation. She is at least aware now that WWII wiped out almost 4 times the population of Thailand (which was about 15 million in 1940). She'll be on a virtual tour of Auschwitz this evening. At least there will be one more Thai aware of what happened.

I must say I'm pretty amazed.

Ha! I had a somewhat similar experience with my Thai wife when we were living in the US. I was watching a WWII documentary, and Hitler of course is shown. I asked her, "Do you know who that is?"

Her reply was "I not know and I not care".

[MILT]

Seems some one new something as plastic machine guns were part of the ensemble. No ggle at this school?!

Plausible, i guess that this could be very big mistake.

It is well known and documented that Hitler dabbled in the metaphysical. The swastika was originally a Hindu symbol that Hitler had turned in the opposite direction that he used for his symbol. The swastika that Hitler created is not the same nor does it mean the same as the original Hindu symbol.

[Tanlic]

My wife (of two years) is making fish cakes as we speak, which are excellent by the way, but I digress.

After reading this thread I thought I'd ask her, as despite having a high school education she has always seemed very ignorant of history and geography.

"Have you heard of the Nazis?"

"NASA? Yes, one of the things in the sky fell down yesterday"

"No, Nazis. They killed lots of Jews in the Holocaust, and many, many other people in World War II"

"I don't know about Jews"

"What about Hitler?"

"What Hitler?"

I'm reaching OMG status by now. The conversation continued and her knowledge of WWII is limited to the Japanese, the Burma Railway and the fact that Australians were there.

There you go. I should add however that she is a wonderful person who doesn't display many of the characteristics that are often portrayed here as being "typical Thai" - profoundly selfish, devoid of morals, only after money etc. Just a victim of a crappy education system. Rest assured I shall be addressing the situation. She is at least aware now that WWII wiped out almost 4 times the population of Thailand (which was about 15 million in 1940). She'll be on a virtual tour of Auschwitz this evening. At least there will be one more Thai aware of what happened.

I must say I'm pretty amazed.

Ok so without googling it tell us what you know about Guerre franco-thaïlandaise and while you are at it what was Phibun's real name?

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but 99% of those who amazed at Thais for not knowing who Hitler was should look at themselves.

There is simply a huge void between East and West and what events in history are/were important to one is of little interest to the other.

Because of where we come and our countries involvment Hitler is very much to the fore when it comes to the most evil man who ever lived.

The mention of his name makes your skin crawl, yet mention Mengistu Haile Mariam to the ordinary man on the street in the UK and he'll say "WHO?"

We should not expect Thai people to know what we know without knowing what they know. Not unless you think you are some sort of superior being

[chutai]

Seems some one new something as plastic machine guns were part of the ensemble. No ggle at this school?!

Plausible, i guess that this could be very big mistake.

It is well known and documented that Hitler dabbled in the metaphysical. The swastika was originally a Hindu symbol that Hitler had turned in the opposite direction that he used for his symbol. The swastika that Hitler created is not the same nor does it mean the same as the original Hindu symbol.

That was my understanding too. Hitler took the Hindu symbol for peace and reversed it to mean the opposite.

[Ohms]

What a bunch a morons you all are, that a bunch of school kids in fancy dress can get you so all worked up ha ha!

And you people are probably the first to complain of political correctness when the shoe is on the other foot (or jackboot ha ha)

I wasnt so long ago that a certain Prince dress up in fancy dress knowing full well the history and he was Eaton educated

Get a Life sad gits!!

(To mods this is not a flame just MHO)

[Stokakrishna]

Same thing has happened last year at my achool in RAtchaburi province. but here beside CS uniforms and swastikas, there were wooden guns and tanks as well on a street.

Surprisingly some of the farang teachers at the school didn;t see anything wrong with it.

Not only Thais need education

[FOODLOVER]

Suggestions for movies to educate my Thai family please. Shock value is good thing.

Google (Videos) for "Nacht und Nebel". I'm not sure if forum rules allow to post a link.

Thank you! Trying to source the English version now.

Google for "Night and Fog". You'll find a French version (in 3 parts) with English subtitles.

Thank you. Education weekend.

[ZeitgeistAsia]

Kudos. Please read my comment below yours. :-)

What a bunch a morons you all are, that a bunch of school kids in fancy dress can get you so all worked up ha ha!

And you people are probably the first to complain of political correctness when the shoe is on the other foot (or jackboot ha ha)

I wasnt so long ago that a certain Prince dress up in fancy dress knowing full well the history and he was Eaton educated

Get a Life sad gits!!

(To mods this is not a flame just MHO)

[Riely]

I wonder if in the west, say the USA, if some students made light of Chairman Mao, would it be such a uproar? Yet 10 died under his regime for every 1 who Jews claimed died in the Holocaust. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Zedong

Respect should work both ways. Not to mention how Hollywood has portaied the monarchy in such films like the King and I, and the more recent one with Chao Yun Fat, drooling over the white woman like some amorous lap dog.

It was banned in Thailand for a reason, because it was offensive to Thais. Delegations? No, just banned. Now these same western nations who think it's cool to mock the values and people that Thais hold dear, want to bitch and complain when Thais make light of what they value???

Hypocrisy at it's ugliest I say.

[Roachiebkk]

remember the hitler billboards in pattaya promoting the louis tussaud wax museum? they were taken out only after the israeli and german ambassador vented their outrage.

And I saw a tv news report recently at some motor show, there were some old motorbike enthusiasts in fron of their motorbikes dressed as Adolf Hitler. Even one guy dressed in a uniform of the Japanese Imperial forces but with a Hitler moustache.

[srn89]

Just a fine example of the crappy thai school curriculum. They don't want to learn english or about the western culture, but hell, let's dress up as nazis and pretend we know what it's all about.

Edited September 27, 2011 by srn89

[David006]

Hmmm..whereas I agree that Thai kids in Nazi gear is disgusting....nobody would give a flying @#$%^&..if they dressed up in British 'lobsters',American blue coats,catholic, C of E, jew converso Spanish and Portuguese, black ballers, Japanese soldier/sailors,Balkans,Israelis in Arab lands or as African so called liberators ,Stalin type uniforms etc etc....I suppose.

......they have all murdered thousands maybe millions of aboriginals in Africa ,Americas, Australia,Asia, Africa, China,Russia and Europe....ad nauseam....

nobody really cares!!!!! political/media lip service!!

not on topic I know but.... it was not only Jews the Nazis murdered in the camps..although that is what is thrust down or throats[/i]xx years after the fact...!!!! What about all the lads that died fighting in WW2 ( yes including Jews..agreed)....don't they deserve some consideration???

[garrfeild]

I think it is not Just Thailand that is ignorant of Nazism even in Japan they don't learn about what happened in Europe in WWII. It is amazing not even one of the teachers knew what offence that would cause. I could imagine some foreign students not going back to that school in the new term.

the fact that the costumes must have looked realistic means someone had to do the research, but were ignorant or stupid not to make a connection with what it represented. Especially a girl dressed like Hitler. Who are they trying to fool. You'd be forgiven for thinking they were deliberately trying to cause offence.

[Lammbock]

Gott im Himmel !!!!!

[Thai at Heart]

My wife (of two years) is making fish cakes as we speak, which are excellent by the way, but I digress.

After reading this thread I thought I'd ask her, as despite having a high school education she has always seemed very ignorant of history and geography.

"Have you heard of the Nazis?"

"NASA? Yes, one of the things in the sky fell down yesterday"

"No, Nazis. They killed lots of Jews in the Holocaust, and many, many other people in World War II"

"I don't know about Jews"

"What about Hitler?"

"What Hitler?"

I'm reaching OMG status by now. The conversation continued and her knowledge of WWII is limited to the Japanese, the Burma Railway and the fact that Australians were there.

There you go. I should add however that she is a wonderful person who doesn't display many of the characteristics that are often portrayed here as being "typical Thai" - profoundly selfish, devoid of morals, only after money etc. Just a victim of a crappy education system. Rest assured I shall be addressing the situation. She is at least aware now that WWII wiped out almost 4 times the population of Thailand (which was about 15 million in 1940). She'll be on a virtual tour of Auschwitz this evening. At least there will be one more Thai aware of what happened.

I must say I'm pretty amazed.

Ok so without googling it tell us what you know about Guerre franco-thaïlandaise and while you are at it what was Phibun's real name?

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but 99% of those who amazed at Thais for not knowing who Hitler was should look at themselves.

There is simply a huge void between East and West and what events in history are/were important to one is of little interest to the other.

Because of where we come and our countries involvment Hitler is very much to the fore when it comes to the most evil man who ever lived.

The mention of his name makes your skin crawl, yet mention Mengistu Haile Mariam to the ordinary man on the street in the UK and he'll say "WHO?"

We should not expect Thai people to know what we know without knowing what they know. Not unless you think you are some sort of superior being

All possibly true. However, it then depends what maybe someone's reaction to not knowing about Mengistu Haile Mariam? Would it be to try to find out about him, or would it be to say, "That is worlds away, I don't need to know".

This doesn't mean that curiosity to learn is limited to one part of the world or another, my experience (as selective as that is) leads me to believe that in Thailand at least, that, it is relatively low. So be it, that is the choice of any individual, but as other's have pointed out, having an understanding of what goes on further than your own doorstep is an important facet for the world, and seeing a school, of all places, apparently being so ignorant, is in reality terrible. It merely serves to illustrate ignorance and a lack of appreciation of the world. Hardly good for any scholastic institution.

[Bosse137]

Nazi paraphernalia is tolerated in Thailand because this country did not suffer much from WWII. If they'd lost 25 million people like the Soviet Union did for example, they would have been wearing different sort of uniforms.

Sweden was "neutral" in WW 2. There is zero tolerans to anything to do with nazis or their symbols....

[sfbandung]

My wife (of two years) is making fish cakes as we speak, which are excellent by the way, but I digress.

After reading this thread I thought I'd ask her, as despite having a high school education she has always seemed very ignorant of history and geography.

"Have you heard of the Nazis?"

"NASA? Yes, one of the things in the sky fell down yesterday"

"No, Nazis. They killed lots of Jews in the Holocaust, and many, many other people in World War II"

"I don't know about Jews"

"What about Hitler?"

"What Hitler?"

I'm reaching OMG status by now. The conversation continued and her knowledge of WWII is limited to the Japanese, the Burma Railway and the fact that Australians were there.

There you go. I should add however that she is a wonderful person who doesn't display many of the characteristics that are often portrayed here as being "typical Thai" - profoundly selfish, devoid of morals, only after money etc. Just a victim of a crappy education system. Rest assured I shall be addressing the situation. She is at least aware now that WWII wiped out almost 4 times the population of Thailand (which was about 15 million in 1940). She'll be on a virtual tour of Auschwitz this evening. At least there will be one more Thai aware of what happened.

I must say I'm pretty amazed.

Ok so without googling it tell us what you know about Guerre franco-thaïlandaise and while you are at it what was Phibun's real name?

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but 99% of those who amazed at Thais for not knowing who Hitler was should look at themselves.

There is simply a huge void between East and West and what events in history are/were important to one is of little interest to the other.

Because of where we come and our countries involvment Hitler is very much to the fore when it comes to the most evil man who ever lived.

The mention of his name makes your skin crawl, yet mention Mengistu Haile Mariam to the ordinary man on the street in the UK and he'll say "WHO?"

We should not expect Thai people to know what we know without knowing what they know. Not unless you think you are some sort of superior being

Some sort of superior being? Really. I've re-read my post and I'm not quite sure how you got that idea.

You talk about the Franco Thai war that occurred during, and basically because of World War II. Mariam's atrocities in Ehiopia pale into insignificance compared to the riegns of terror of various other despots. None of whom had a global significance. World War II occurred in and around Thailand, not in some far off corner of the globe. 55 million people were killed.

It isn't some obscure esoteric piece of history that the education system can be excused for missing.

[Tokay]

Thais don't even know about the genocide that happened in Cambodia right next door to them, how can anyone expect them to know about Nazi Germany and the mass execution of the Jews?

I actually feel sorry for many Thais. Their education is beyond horrible.

Ask the Thais you know if they know about the Speed Of Light, and what it means. Or Gravity. Most will not.

[Haydn]

Why is anyone surprised?-- In February 1942 I stood to attention in the school playground to hear the list of those expupils from the school who had been killed or wounded fighting against the Germans and the Japanese -- at the end the headmaster announced that Siam had declared war on the side of the Japanese against Great Britain but that we would be victorious

[freedom4life]

This is very strange and is smacks of total ignorance of WWII history and Nazi Germany. Don't these teachers read? If I am not mistaken, this is NOT the first time it has happened in Thailand.

A history full of errors and misconceptions...

[Kananga]

This is very strange and is smacks of total ignorance of WWII history and Nazi Germany. Don't these teachers read? If I am not mistaken, this is NOT the first time it has happened in Thailand.

A history full of errors and misconceptions...

Bit like their entire education system then

[developer3d]

Although I understand the underlying intent the biggest problem IMO is that every race/nation has had its turn at acts of horror over the past 2000 years.

The Chinese, Romans, Spanish, Portuguese, English, the USA and on and on and on - no nation is free from disgrace or in a position to throw the first stone.

When we look at history so much of it was built on blood its hard to alienate one nation for their "go at it"

After all all the Germans did was do it far more successfully and on a scale far greater than anyone else in history with perhaps the exception of Russia and China.

The individual acts where not new or unique and certainly where not the last time committed.

If you could recount the horrors done by your nation and understand their impact on the opposing side then that USA flag or Union Jack isn't any different in some parts of the world.

How do you think the Native Indian Nations feel about the Stars and Stripes ? or the Mauri about the British Flag ?

I would feel no different towards you if you murdered my entire family and everyone in my village and stopped or kept going for a million more.

Edited September 27, 2011 by developer3d

[diehard60]

I HAVE READ a few of the comments here and I find it very hard for people to plead ignorant. They don't know? Come on how stupid can an educational facility be? With everything that has been in the news are the teachers and (so called educators) up there realy that stupid? They must be. Not ignoant just plan stupid. NO COMMON SENSE. I feel very sorry for those children. The schoolisprobably run by fools that just want and care about money, not to educate the children. What a bunch of dumbies.

[freedom4life]

My goodness expats...relax..oh oh outrage! At what? What are you outraging about?

[Arkady]

Do they know that if Hitler had his ways they'd be considered as second class monkeys on the scale of mankind?

This is a very important point you are making and one that should be drilled into the student's.

They would probably be slaves, exterminated or used for medical experiments.

Indeed. Thais were classified as "coloureds" under apartheid in South Africa. No doubt Hitler would have viewed them no differently from his Afrikaner brothers.

So Thais were classified as 'Coloureds'; Indians were classified as 'Asian', and Chinese were classified as 'Honorary European'... were Thais really classified as coloured under the apartheid regime? That is news to me, since I always thought 'coloured' mean 'half-cast'... anyway, I am not sure.

What I am sure about is that South Africa did it's fair share of fighting for the Allied side... so how do you get the conclusion that Hitler viewed them no differently to his Afrikaner brothers? By that statement you discount the efforts of Gen. Smuts is setting-up the League of Nations... and forget every life lost Afrikaner or English.. for the Allied cause.

Rubbish post.

South Africa under apartheid had four racial classifications: white, coloured, Asian (meaning Indian Subcontinent people) and black. There is a large community of Malays, mainly in Cape Town, who came, not from Malaysia, but from Indonesia and the Philippines as bonded labour and they were classified as coloured, along with mixed race people. Similarly local Chinese descended from imported bonded labourers were also classified as coloured, despite the fact that many had become very wealthy. The interesting wrinkle to which you allude with only a vague grasp of the facts is that Japanese and Taiwanese citizens were classified as "honorary whites" in return for their countries' colaboration in maintaining diplomatic and trading relations with South Africa during the embargo years. Thailand had no such agreements with South Africa and its citizens were classified as coloured, if any dared venture there. Even Koreans, who are on average a lot whiter than most Thais were classified as coloured, along with all non-Taiwanese Chinese. My brother-in-law is South African and remembers as a student at the English speaking Cape Town uni which, unlike the Afrikaans speaking unis, allowed coloured students having to vouch that his local Chinese friend was "Japanese", so that he could go into "white" cafes and restaurants with his fellow students.

I don't understand your point about South Africa's involvement in the Second World War or Jan Smuts. As a British dominion South Africa was constitutionally obligated to join the British Empire in the war against the axis but that obligation in no way diminishes the sacrifice of the many South Africans who volunteered to serve with the British forces. Many served with great credit in North Africa and in the RAF. Field Marshall Jan Smuts was of course vehemently pro-British and anti Nazi which is why he was made a field marshall in the British army and appointed to the Imperial War cabinet by Churchill. However, many Afrkaners including pre-war prime minister Herzog and John Vorster who came to power after the war actually wanted South Africa to go to war on the axis side. After the war local issues were restored to the forefront of South African politics and it was Field Marshall Smuts' pro-British and anti-Nazism stance that led to his downfall, as the extreme right wing pro-Nazi Afrikaners became dominant in South African politics.

Unfortunately it is not at all unusual for people to have deeply held beliefs based on total ignorance of the underlying facts and non sequiturs. However, your arguments to defend the evils of apartheid are patently absurd. You could equally argue that the IRA's decades long campaign of mutilation and murder was entirely justified by the fact that a million Irishmen volunteered to fight for the English crown in the First World War, as did many others in the Second World War, and because Ireland may have occasionally produced some good statesmen.

Edited September 27, 2011 by Arkady