Trying To Show Generousity In A Corrupt Society

[connda]

We had an older computer that stopped working. We are cleaning out the house and my wife mentioned that we can give the computer to the grand-daughter of a couple that work for us. I told her I want the computer repaired first. So she called someone in the village. My wife gets a call later and she tells me it will cost 600 baht to fix it. Something is broken on the inside and needs replaced. I talk to the voice on the other end, and I'm able to get that the motherboard needs replaced and he has an old replacement. This evening the guy shows up, not with my old computer, but a completely different computer with no CD drive. When it's booted up, its not the hard drive that was in the old system either. I tried to explain to my wife that we were getting ripped off, but she simply turned herself off, "I no understand computer."

This is one thing that I detest about this Thailand. I'm trying to do an act of kindness and generosity for a child, and I'm blatantly ripped off, and the kid ends up with a piece of junk that may or may not work, which means the child was ripped off too. It was a 600 baht lesson -- don't trust anyone that I have not thoroughly checked out and worked with in advance. That is just an incredibly ugly side to this country. I'm find this really disturbing. Why are so many people are completely devoid of morals.

When I have the extra money, I going to buy that child a new computer system.

...and why do I bother? Maybe I can steer one child in the direction of generosity and away from the moral degeneracy that seems to be growing in prevalence.

[transam]

Good for you BUT Windows in LOS are copies and must be changed near every year at your local PC shop, 300 bht.

[Ohyesuare]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

[nocturn]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

exactly. my god. worst case scenario there is you save 600 baht, lose an old computer, but get to point at the guy and call him a thief to his face.

the wife seems a real prize, you reckon she might have understood it it was her iphone 4g that cam nack as a broken 3gs?

[connda]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

[transam]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

At least yo learned something eh. Tomorrow is another day where we can ROCK ON.

[barefoot1988]

the board being replaced, need a fresh installation of drivers, maybe that explains the hdd? why dont you check the bios to see if its indeed a different computer.

[connda]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

exactly. my god. worst case scenario there is you save 600 baht, lose an old computer, but get to point at the guy and call him a thief to his face.

the wife seems a real prize, you reckon she might have understood it it was her iphone 4g that cam nack as a broken 3gs?

I almost explained that way to my wife. I used a microwave as an example: Our microwave stops working. Take it to shop. Told the amplifier needs replace. Shop gives us old microwave without the glass plate or turnstile motor and charges up 600 baht.

And like I said, she just "turned off" and said she didn't understand, and when the guy showed back up she "lost face". At that point I dropped it as I mentioned in post #5.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Trust me -- it ain't going to happen again.

[aussiebebe]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I agree. I have sympathy for the OP but saw the way his post was going when I read the word 'village' in the fourth sentence. Here in Bangkok, when my laptop needs fixing I take it to a shop in a mall, agree upon a price and collect it at the specified time, a process that bears more than a passing similarity to life in a Western society IMHO.

As for ...

Good for you BUT Windows in LOS are copies and must be changed near every year at your local PC shop, 300 bht.

is 'local' a euphemism for 'village'? My pirated version on Windows 7 cost 400bt in 2009 and has still yet to even crash, let alone need re-installing.

[connda]

the board being replaced, need a fresh installation of drivers, maybe that explains the hdd? why dont you check the bios to see if its indeed a different computer.

Reread the post. The board was not replace. The moral degenerate brought a completely different computer. The original computer was a custom build. The computer he brought was a Dell GX100 -- a very beat Dell GX100: no CD drive, no fan, Dell case. I'm pretty sure he took the original computer for the case, power supply, and internal parts and gave me this POS. He basically ripped off the child.

[theblether]

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Generosity = stupidity.

That's the primary reason why Thais think we are idiots, because we flash cash and give it away. We think we're being kind, and they think we are clowns. It's a topsy turvy world we live in

[Tonto21]

So, what should I say about you trying to do some good, an act of kindness, not, I think for self-gratification, but a genuine feeling of wanting to help someone less well off.

The cynic in me would say, “your banging you head off a wall” it’s going to happen over and over again here, why bother? But thankfully I don’t think like that, (not all the time) and will help people, locals I see on a regular basis and relative, not on there terms, but mine, and yes there are times that some ‘scrot’ will try and exploit the situation, sometimes they get lucky….most of the time not.

We’re not talking new kidney’s all round for the village piss-heads or a new house for mum and dad, but maybe new school shoes for the kid next door, books and pens or food parcels for some of the old people in my village. I don’t get involved in the ‘hands-on’ stuff; I let the wife deal with all the waffle that goes on.

I have a feeling that some of the villages where I live think my wife is such a good egg…….And what is she doing with that farang, but personally I like it that way.

‘connda’ don’t let a few wanke_rs put you off helping in small ways, just be more careful about how you do it.

Good on yer!

[pattayadingo]

Good intentions. Bad end result. Good on you for trying.

[brit1984]

You can buy the kid a new computer... so the kid is happy

You will have done a good deed (despite adversity)... so you will be happy

That waste-of-space-fraudster-computer-repair-guy will never be happy

[Payboy]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

Sorry, but I don't understand how your wife loses face trying to protect your property / interests.

[Geekfreaklover]

No good deed goes unpunished in the village.

[wana]

I learned a valuable lesson once ,very cheaply

We were drinking whisky ,lots of it

Standing beside a pool wearing jeans+ t-shirt ,with passport ,nokia phone ,cigaretes and lighter in pockets of my jeans

My then Gf jumped on my back and we fell into the pool

very funny until i remembered everything in the pockets ,next day woke passport was <Snip!!!!>,ink ran together and washed all the visa stamps into a blur,also was phone as you can imagine

brought phone to mbk ,first shop says he can fix ,500 thb i said ok (come back in 1 hr )

back in 1 hr and he hands me back the phone and says sorry ,we cant fix it ,no charge

gave it to another shop in mbk ,same story ,come back in 2 hours ,eventualy they said it couldnt be fixed

and gave it back to me again

so ,i goes back to the hotel and the manager (who i trust very well ) was there ,i told him the phone story , he told me his friend has a mobile shop in banglumphu ,he can get them to check it properly so i gave it to him

he comes back the next day and asks where i had brought the phone to fix initially ? i said MBK ,why ?

his friend told him ,that the camera ,(memory ) ram and some other components had been removed from the phone by the vultures

who offered to fix it at MBK

he wanted to know which shop so we could go back together but i couldnt remember the exact stalls or staff who had worked on the phone because i talked to so many phone booths in those 3-4 hours i was at MBK and they all look the same

after a while ,i was telling this to my other thai friend ,he owns a bar in bangkok and a few small factories ,his advice was :

if you take anything to fix ,make them fix it in front of you (car/motorbike /watch /phone /laptop)

if they say come back and collect ,refuse and offer to wait

if they say they need to go to the back room ,go with them

watch every move ,dont trust anything

if repairs are taking too long ,and they want you to return tomorrow ,take the item with you

(refuse offers of letting them work overtime in the night so you can pick it up in the morning etc )

scooters often have parts replaced ,if you leave them enough time ,they will cheat and replace every component

that has re -sale value with an older ,more worn out one and give you back a bike thats worse on every level than you gave them

this advice was from a thai (razor -sharp business owner) ,regarding other thais and how to deal with them safely

Edited May 4, 2012 by metisdead
From now on, if you don't want your posts deleted, don't use disguised profanity!!

[connda]

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Generosity = stupidity.

That's the primary reason why Thais think we are idiots, because we flash cash and give it away. We think we're being kind, and they think we are clowns. It's a topsy turvy world we live in

Then I'll continue to live my life of stupidity if that is truly what you consider generosity to be. I've always have tried to help people, and I'll continue to do so as long as I am better off than others. If that is "Stupid", well, so be it. I choose to live my life of "Stupidity".

[connda]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

Sorry, but I don't understand how your wife loses face trying to protect your property / interests.

Honestly, I don't either. But I'm keenly aware of how my wife acts when she is about to lose face. And she was going down that path. If I would have pressed it, it would have gotten ugly. I will not have that disharmony in my own house. I don't know how else to explain it.

[Payboy]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

Sorry, but I don't understand how your wife loses face trying to protect your property / interests.

Honestly, I don't either. But I'm keenly aware of how my wife acts when she is about to lose face. And she was going down that path. If I would have pressed it, it would have gotten ugly. I will not have that disharmony in my own house. I don't know how else to explain it.

I feel for you man, but really you don't have to roll over and play dead everytime it looks like your wife's losing face.

[DP25]

So...you paid him 600 baht and he stole your computer and gave you a crappy older one? That's quite a deal for him

[waza]

Dammm thats cold

[connda]

So...you paid him 600 baht and he stole your computer and gave you a crappy older one? That's quite a deal for him

Yep!

[zzaa09]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

At least yo learned something eh. Tomorrow is another day where we can ROCK ON.

Yet, many never learn.

It's all about money, image, kreng jai, and face.

The faster one absorbs, understands and accepts these complex factors, the easier it will be.

[theblether]

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Generosity = stupidity.

That's the primary reason why Thais think we are idiots, because we flash cash and give it away. We think we're being kind, and they think we are clowns. It's a topsy turvy world we live in

Then I'll continue to live my life of stupidity if that is truly what you consider generosity to be. I've always have tried to help people, and I'll continue to do so as long as I am better off than others. If that is "Stupid", well, so be it. I choose to live my life of "Stupidity".

Aha connda, get off your horse!!! I'm not having a go at you, far from it. I'm making an observation of how we are regarded. As I said it's a topsy turvy world.

So maybe the next time you read a post you read it all and not miss out on the first phrase which was,

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Feel free to apologize

[wana]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

Sorry, but I don't understand how your wife loses face trying to protect your property / interests.

because its an uncomfortable situation to accuse someone of dishonest practices or basically call him a lying cheating scumbag to his face

because of the langauge barrier your wife wold have had to make the accusations to the guy

i doubt a thai man would have had this problem but thai women are often scared of scumbag thai men and will often be afraid to stand up and start a ruckus when they can just pay up and avoid the fuss

your wife probably understood perfectly ,but women arent filled with testosterone and rage like a man in the same situation would be ,and thus are easier scammed

best not to let your wife make future deals ,i use thai women as translation only,not negeotiation ,and i tell them what i want to say and make the decisions myself ......

[draftvader]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I agree. I have sympathy for the OP but saw the way his post was going when I read the word 'village' in the fourth sentence. Here in Bangkok, when my laptop needs fixing I take it to a shop in a mall, agree upon a price and collect it at the specified time, a process that bears more than a passing similarity to life in a Western society IMHO.

As for ...

Good for you BUT Windows in LOS are copies and must be changed near every year at your local PC shop, 300 bht.

is 'local' a euphemism for 'village'? My pirated version on Windows 7 cost 400bt in 2009 and has still yet to even crash, let alone need re-installing.

That is because it is Windows 7, not Vista. Thai bootleggers must curse 7 and the excellent "Remove ***" exe that means people can actually use their computer effectively again.

[connda]

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Generosity = stupidity.

That's the primary reason why Thais think we are idiots, because we flash cash and give it away. We think we're being kind, and they think we are clowns. It's a topsy turvy world we live in

Then I'll continue to live my life of stupidity if that is truly what you consider generosity to be. I've always have tried to help people, and I'll continue to do so as long as I am better off than others. If that is "Stupid", well, so be it. I choose to live my life of "Stupidity".

Aha connda, get off your horse!!! I'm not having a go at you, far from it. I'm making an observation of how we are regarded. As I said it's a topsy turvy world.

So maybe the next time you read a post you read it all and not miss out on the first phrase which was,

The Alice in Wonderland guide to Thailand.

Feel free to apologize

Sorry

You're reading too deeply. Just saying I'll come down on the side of generosity regardless of the jackasses in the world. Never considered you has "having a go". You're not that type TV member.

[connda]

Why did you accept the older computer and pay the 600 baht? I would say give me my old computer back and not pay a thing.

I started down that road, had already mentioned that to my wife, but it was obvious that my wife was losing face in front of the degenerate that was ripping me off. Creating a situation where my Thai wife loses face IS NOT worth 600 baht.

I dropped it for my wife's sake, and probably for my sake too -- I was extremely angry at that point. It's wasn't worth 600 baht to create the amount of disharmony that was about to happen in my house. I wanted the low-life and his junk computer out of my house as quickly as possible. I told my wife I was done with it, and turned my back on the guy. I refused to talk to him and the wife issued him out of the house. End of story.

Sorry, but I don't understand how your wife loses face trying to protect your property / interests.

because its an uncomfortable situation to accuse someone of dishonest practices or basically call him a lying cheating scumbag to his face

because of the langauge barrier your wife wold have had to make the accusations to the guy

i doubt a thai man would have had this problem but thai women are often scared of scumbag thai men and will often be afraid to stand up and start a ruckus when they can just pay up and avoid the fuss

your wife probably understood perfectly ,but women arent filled with testosterone and rage like a man in the same situation would be ,and thus are easier scammed

best not to let your wife make future deals ,i use thai women as translation only,not negeotiation ,and i tell them what i want to say and make the decisions myself ......

I'm thinking you just hit the nail on the head. Yeah, agreed.

[nocturn]

Good intentions. Bad end result. Good on you for trying.

i will agree with that, i have given away a couple of old computers and it is a really a special gift when it works out.

that is until they try to friend you on facebook