Worried About The Image? Then Solve The Problem: Thai Editorial

[poskat]

Yes if a Lady Gaga tweet is so "insulting" and "offensive", then how much more "insulting" and "offensive" is it that it is actually true? Is that not a greater loss of Face? I appears the view of 'face' is short sighted. It appears that 'face' is used only as an excuse, only as a weapon? Not to actually govern their own behavior?

exactly.

the offense isnt the bad behavior, but rather you pointing it out.

As the thais see it, the fake goods arent the problem, the problem is GaGa's high prolile tweet about it.

[gand]

'Regardless of the amount of money spent to "improve the country's image", the public-relations effort will only ever be as effective as the commitment to uphold the law.'

......and therein lays the problem. The only time there is a commitment to uphold the law, is when the right palms haven't been greased.

There is no commitment to uphold the law. Full stop.

There is only a profit motive to use the law if it profits someone.

Yes, thus all manner of crimes get committed against the poor & powerless. The wealthy and powerful use the 'do you know who I am' defense. And if that does not work, there is always the money.

[Katipo]

As I wander over the footbridge that connects Sukumvit Soi 13 to Soi 12, I always have to restrain myself from yelling at the 2 or 3 policeman who are always there standing around or sat down at their little table. Not 1 metre away is a stall selling fake viagra and similar pills, next to that various illegal sex toys etc, then DVD's, and so on, and so on.

It's not that I care they sell that stuff here, it's that Thai officaldom pretends that they do.

[Thaddeus]

I wonder what the tourism would have to say if Thailand changed it's image to what some people want it to be.

"Return ticket to Cambodia please"

[Moruya]

One can only hope that LG writes a suitable song about this.

I might think of some lyrics later....

[moe666]

The economy of Thailand's tourist cities, depends on so called "massage parlors"; counterfit handbags, CD's, watches, designer clothing and such which would be illegal in more civil, advanced countries. Saying one thing and not taking action (such as the Thai government) is a sign of helplessness. There are so many Thais (including the police)connected to things that are illegal in Thailand that these negative money makers will be hard to wipe out. So, let's just pretend it doesn't exist and condemn those outsiders that point it out. (sarcasm)

You can still find all of the above in any big US city, London, Paris, Rome. They maybe illigal in these countries but guess what they have there corrupt police as well.

[moe666]

As I wander over the footbridge that connects Sukumvit Soi 13 to Soi 12, I always have to restrain myself from yelling at the 2 or 3 policeman who are always there standing around or sat down at their little table. Not 1 metre away is a stall selling fake viagra and similar pills, next to that various illegal sex toys etc, then DVD's, and so on, and so on.

It's not that I care they sell that stuff here, it's that Thai officaldom pretends that they do.

You post says more about you then you realize if you want a country that is perfect you are in the wrong one.Get over what you cannot control.

[JoeLing]

Love the editorial

Just wonder, was writen by a Thai?

[Payboy]

I wonder what the tourism would have to say if Thailand changed it's image to what some people want it to be.

"Return ticket to Cambodia please"

You're being too generous - that would be "One way ticket to Cambodia please".

[zakk9]

The Nation must be employing a new editorial writer. That was a fairly good read.

Sorry but I read the same article in the other newspaper, it was exactly the same!!!!!!

I think it was actually written by The Thai News Agency, then each paper has copied it and used it in their own papers.

Ha ha... that's too funny. So it's a fake then

[Soi Sauce]

What is this problem with fakes?

Loads of the ladies and even the P.M. are not the real thing.

[Sayonarax]

Do you work for the goverment by any chance...lets blame everyone else shall we

I'm too honest and assiduous to get a job in this government.

And apparently to lazy to get your facts straight and blaming sweat shops on evil american and western corporations. Most of these company's like Wal-Mart for example pay higher wages then the country's min wage.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

Yes a rare gem from the Nation, congratulations are in order.

[HAL9000]

Much ado about nothing. If someone wants Rolex quality, they buy a real Rolex. If you buy a fake, you know it has a cheap Chinese mechanism that will last a year or so. America must have an average per capita income of 5 times Thailand. It seems rather rude for a wealthy nation to put pressure on a poor nation to tell them their vendors cannot make pennies at the market so the wealthy can have their dollars.

[Kalbo]

Much ado about nothing. If someone wants Rolex quality, they buy a real Rolex. If you buy a fake, you know it has a cheap Chinese mechanism that will last a year or so. America must have an average per capita income of 5 times Thailand. It seems rather rude for a wealthy nation to put pressure on a poor nation to tell them their vendors cannot make pennies at the market so the wealthy can have their dollars.

You have completely and utterly missed the point.

[Jobiwankenobi]

Coherent, well organized and an overall enjoyable read! On top of that, a well founded argument is clearly presented! This is not normal but it's most certainly welcome!

On second thought, the writer of this article should be taken down a notch! A good dressing down is what is required of this smart alec! Who the hell does he / she think they are?! Making Thai authority point the finger back at themselves for a change?! Pfft. For clear and concise opinion I much prefer other news sources! Posts from The Nation are supposed to be fun, not interesting! What's going on around here!?

I'm scared so I'm TAKIN OFF EH!

[pxlgirl]

The Thais around me were cracking up, so did I. We all took this with humor, but from other Thais' perspective, some might still feel offended. However, it's always a matter of demand and supply, right? Not to forget, that there are places in Thailand where you can buy a real Rolex, but since not many of us have the pocket money to afford one... oh well.

[osiboy]

Editorial seeks a noble purpose without action. Why doesn't The Nation really help out and "investigate and expose" the business and the Mr. Bigs? That would be a true journalistic purpose. If the newspaper knows what's really going on and doesn't get after it and make it public, it's really just a sham.

"Why doesn't The Nation really help out and "investigate and expose" the business and the Mr. Bigs?"

Defamation.

fear more like !,........... this is thailand , life is cheap ,..........have you seen how many reporters have been murdered in honduras lately ?,...............lowlifes here will kill for around 50,000b , the police should be going after mr bigs with yingluck backing them up all the way !

[JohnAllan]

If the ministry do decide to get serious about dealing with pirated goods, they could do worse then add child pornography to the bonfire. It's a certainty that that hasn't gone away.

[JohnAllan]

As I wander over the footbridge that connects Sukumvit Soi 13 to Soi 12, I always have to restrain myself from yelling at the 2 or 3 policeman who are always there standing around or sat down at their little table. Not 1 metre away is a stall selling fake viagra and similar pills, next to that various illegal sex toys etc, then DVD's, and so on, and so on.

It's not that I care they sell that stuff here, it's that Thai officaldom pretends that they do.

You post says more about you then you realize if you want a country that is perfect you are in the wrong one.Get over what you cannot control.

As yours says much about you.

[JohnAllan]

The economy of Thailand's tourist cities, depends on so called "massage parlors"; counterfit handbags, CD's, watches, designer clothing and such which would be illegal in more civil, advanced countries. Saying one thing and not taking action (such as the Thai government) is a sign of helplessness. There are so many Thais (including the police)connected to things that are illegal in Thailand that these negative money makers will be hard to wipe out. So, let's just pretend it doesn't exist and condemn those outsiders that point it out. (sarcasm)

You can still find all of the above in any big US city, London, Paris, Rome. They maybe illigal in these countries but guess what they have there corrupt police as well.

You may well be able to do so, but not on blatently open display. And if nothing else, corruption in those countries - which certainly does exist - is viewed much more seriously, and dealt with much more rigorously, than in Thailand. As I'm sure you are aware.

[dksharron]

I wonder how the Embassy official responded.

Who in the Embassy would I call to make a complaint about what someone said?

I am sure this was good lunchtime banter.

[GarryP]

Who should solve the problem? The authorities alone? Without the rights owners involvement? Many rights owners do try to enforce their rights here and are quite successful in doing so (although the penalties are often lamentably low).There are, however, a hell of a lot of trademark owners who do not care as Thailand is not a major market for them and it is not worth their while to enforce their rights here. Do you expect the authorities to take such goods off the street when even the rights owner is not prepared to invest time and money in protecting their rights. Dream on. The authorities have neither the manpower nor the budget to undertake the policing of counterfeit and pirated products on an ex oficio basis.

Having said that, complaining about third party comments just leaves you looking silly and open to ridicule. This seems to be the national pastime for a number of high ranking officials. But at least their comments give TVers something to write about.

[Honkytowner]

It seems face/image is everything in this country. Perception = reality.

[Baloo22]

Editorial seeks a noble purpose without action. Why doesn't The Nation really help out and "investigate and expose" the business and the Mr. Bigs? That would be a true journalistic purpose. If the newspaper knows what's really going on and doesn't get after it and make it public, it's really just a sham.

First of all, the first time they published a "investigate and expose" article on any one of the puyai "big people" scum, both the paper and the journalist would get the pants sued off of them. That's one of the purposes of Thailand's extreme slander/libel laws which include both civil and criminal penalties. Take a look at what Erika Fry went through here http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/fry_in_thailand.php?page=1

Second; The investigative journalist may very well end up dead. Like Wisut ''Ae'' Tangwittayaporn down in Phuket. He investigated and published about some shady land dealings. He got some 9mm bullets for his journalism efforts. See http://cpj.org/2012/01/thai-journalist-killed-after-reporting-on-controve.php

[KeyserSoze01]

The economy of Thailand's tourist cities, depends on so called "massage parlors"; counterfit handbags, CD's, watches, designer clothing and such which would be illegal in more civil, advanced countries. Saying one thing and not taking action (such as the Thai government) is a sign of helplessness. There are so many Thais (including the police)connected to things that are illegal in Thailand that these negative money makers will be hard to wipe out. So, let's just pretend it doesn't exist and condemn those outsiders that point it out. (sarcasm)

You can still find all of the above in any big US city, London, Paris, Rome. They maybe illigal in these countries but guess what they have there corrupt police as well.

Yes, but this article is not about any of those other places, is it?

[KeyserSoze01]

As I wander over the footbridge that connects Sukumvit Soi 13 to Soi 12, I always have to restrain myself from yelling at the 2 or 3 policeman who are always there standing around or sat down at their little table. Not 1 metre away is a stall selling fake viagra and similar pills, next to that various illegal sex toys etc, then DVD's, and so on, and so on.

It's not that I care they sell that stuff here, it's that Thai officaldom pretends that they do.

You post says more about you then you realize if you want a country that is perfect you are in the wrong one.Get over what you cannot control.

Err, that's the point, innit?

Thais accept it, the rest of the world sees Thailand for what it is, it's just the Thais themselves that don't want the truth thrown in their face and whinge when someone does.

Every nation and people have the ability to change their path. The first step is wanting to. If you take the approach that you can't make a difference and just go with the flow, well, welcome to the "sheeple" category.