We Know It Happens But Have You Seen It ?

[StreetCowboy]

I think all the holy of holies out there need to admit that they enjoy many of the fruits of corruption.

I, for one, would like to check their living rooms for pirated DVD's and their medicine cabinets for illicit prescription medicines.

I would like them to say they have never enjoyed a night out in places where prostitution was taking place unabashedly thanks to corruption. Never paid iff a traffic cop to avoid the (oh the horror!) of retrieving their license from the station the next day.

Then, I would like them to admit that they only hate corruption in forms thay affects them negatively, and that they have no problem with -- and actually encourage -- the forms that bring them happiness.

It's called being a hypocrite, something which most of us clearly are.

Personally, I would rather that the laws of the land reflected what we considered acceptable, rather than what was most lucrative for those that did not enforce them

I would rather people worked for their employers, rather than third parties that paid them money.

If that meant that I had to pay a thousand baht instead of 100 baht for DVDs, I;d not buy any pornographic DVDs. I'd still buy Nat Geo DVDs for the bairns, since they're not so readily available on Sukhumit Road, and I'm paying full whack anyway. Actually, I don;t mind paying full whack for good films, and if HMV was as convenient, I would go there for the films I REALLY wanted.

Ayway, cheerio and happy new year, or Santika, as they say in Thailand

SC

[benever]

And regarding "gifts", that's something I learned from my wife. Always have a little gift for people you meet on a regular basis, the doorman of your building, the parking attendant, the waitresses at your favorite restaurant / watering hole, the employees at the bank or at your local administration office ... It's incredible how it can improve your daily life.

I'm curious, what kind of gift do you give? Money or items? What kind of items or how much money, and how often? And how does it improve your daily life?

I've long wanted to try this, but never got the chance to be schooled by a local.

[farang000999]

I woke up one morning and found over 20000 baht in 100 baht notes in my drawer when I went to get dressed. I asked my wife what it was and she said that our friend was running for a local office and it was bribery money.. He was afraid to keep it in his own house! He paid 300 baht each to people in hopes that they would vote for him, he did win the election, I guess the other guy was a cheapskate. Unfortunately corruption and nepotism are in breed parts of Thai society.

must have been a small election.

[Sing_Sling]

@NewlyMintedThai

Corruption is all good and nice untill your wife / child ect is mowed down by a rich drunk guy in a ferrari speeding and ignoring a traffic light.

He gets away with it because he can afford to pay someone off.. I wonder how you feel then.

Or when you get stuck in a hotel that you thought had safety standards and now burns down around you while your trapped and the emergency doors are nailed shut.

How about something even more mundane like a trip to get your visa/doctor/license etc... You wait and wait until it is your turn then someone gets up and hands over some money to be let in before you . . . then another does it and so on and so on . . .

You may say that you'll do the same . . . and the poor old man/woman who can't afford to offer a bribe is left out time after time

Nice, very nice

Never patronize a bar, I suppose, Mr. Clean. Brought to you by corruption. Or is that the kind of corruption you're OK with?

It's difficult for you to address an issue then, is it? Care to comment on Robblok and StreetCowboy's posts or is it simply more convenient for you to spout nonsense?

(And what has a bar to do with people being run over, buildings collapsing, pedophiles getting their clean papers . . . ?)

[robblok]

I think all the holy of holies out there need to admit that they enjoy many of the fruits of corruption.

I, for one, would like to check their living rooms for pirated DVD's and their medicine cabinets for illicit prescription medicines.

I would like them to say they have never enjoyed a night out in places where prostitution was taking place unabashedly thanks to corruption. Never paid iff a traffic cop to avoid the (oh the horror!) of retrieving their license from the station the next day.

Then, I would like them to admit that they only hate corruption in forms thay affects them negatively, and that they have no problem with -- and actually encourage -- the forms that bring them happiness.

It's called being a hypocrite, something which most of us clearly are.

So you don't hate the fact that someone can run over an other person and get away with it because they pay someone off. Or that people die in disco's because the safetyofficers are bribed.

You either hate that too and are a hypocrite (knife cuts both ways) or your moral compass is totally screwed up.

You know i dowload all my pirated stuff no need corruption for that. You can check my medicine cabinet if you want. I admit to paying a fine on the spot, but got o ticket for it. Bars i have frequentend in the past but not now. But guess what they could legalise prostitution because its already a fact here. Then no corruption needed.

What good are laws when the police don't police them and are corrupt ? sure it has some benefits for alcoholics and such who love to drink and drive. But why even make laws if you know they are not followed.

[NewlyMintedThai]

I admit that I'm a hypocrite.

I like the forms of corruption that give me an advantage, such as saving time dealing with a traffic ticket, allowing me to buy antibiotics and other prescription meds over the counter, stay out late partying if I want to in a place where open prostitution is ignored, and buying fake crap on the street every now and then.

But I abhor the other types of corruption.

Most people likely feel the same way, but few are admitting it.

[Sing_Sling]

Most people likely feel the same way, but few are admitting it.

And you can read their minds . . . after all, if they don't admit it then you must have an insight into their true thoughts.

Perhaps you shouldn't judge others by your own actions, thoughts and standards

[StreetCowboy]

Most people likely feel the same way, but few are admitting it.

And you can read their minds . . . after all, if they don't admit it then you must have an insight into their true thoughts.

Perhaps you shouldn't judge others by your own actions, thoughts and standards

He has a fair point. Many of us lack the moral strength to apply the same standards to ourselves that we expect from others, and take advantage of circumstances in our favour when we can. But as NMT says: most of us do know that it's wrong and that we shouldn't do it.

We might seek to avoid getting our own home extension inspected, yet we condemn the recklessness of nightclub owners. That is why honest bureaucrats and police are needed. So that we are not reliant on the moral scruples of every individual.

SC

[robblok]

I admit that I'm a hypocrite.

I like the forms of corruption that give me an advantage, such as saving time dealing with a traffic ticket, allowing me to buy antibiotics and other prescription meds over the counter, stay out late partying if I want to in a place where open prostitution is ignored, and buying fake crap on the street every now and then.

But I abhor the other types of corruption.

Most people likely feel the same way, but few are admitting it.

I admit i like things that benefit me, though paying a ticket that is just to a copper is not really corruption. It would be if you pay to avoid going to court or pay a lower price to get off the hook. I don't really think its that bad as long as they prosecute the bad cases. I try to pay them on the spot i don't care that i have to pay the same or cheaper its just the hassle of getting my drivers license.

Thing is with this its a sliding scale.. next time they don't prosecute the drunk who drives home and he kills my wife.

So no im not 100% innocent either

[StreetCowboy]

I admit that I'm a hypocrite.

I like the forms of corruption that give me an advantage, such as saving time dealing with a traffic ticket, allowing me to buy antibiotics and other prescription meds over the counter, stay out late partying if I want to in a place where open prostitution is ignored, and buying fake crap on the street every now and then.

But I abhor the other types of corruption.

Most people likely feel the same way, but few are admitting it.

I admit i like things that benefit me, though paying a ticket that is just to a copper is not really corruption. It would be if you pay to avoid going to court or pay a lower price to get off the hook. I don't really think its that bad as long as they prosecute the bad cases. I try to pay them on the spot i don't care that i have to pay the same or cheaper its just the hassle of getting my drivers license.

Thing is with this its a sliding scale.. next time they don't prosecute the drunk who drives home and he kills my wife.

So no im not 100% innocent either

We're none of us spotless pearly white, but I like to think of myself as magnolia, verging on full-fat creamy.

SC

[Sing_Sling]

I like to think of myself as magnolia, verging on full-fat creamy.

SC

If your nic was StreetCowgirl that would sound much, much better

[nietzche]

Unless you've been living under a rock, bribery is a part of every society. Back in the U.S. it plays a major role in our politics and legislation.

[mauGR1]

Unless you've been living under a rock, bribery is a part of every society. Back in the U.S. it plays a major role in our politics and legislation.

It seems to me that what is so blatantly obvious in Thailand, and Asia in general, may possibly happen everywhere else in the world, in a more subtle way.

That's pure speculation of course