lemoncake Posted February 26, 2013 Share Posted February 26, 2013 It's an observation.The largest gene pool in the world is the one started by Genghis Kahn. Now, is he Chinese? Do you know all Chinese people? Do you know all Thai people? The Japanese were proud of their many accomplishments and resented racial slurs they met with in some Western nations. Their attempt to establish a statement of racial equality in the Covenant of the League of Nations was vetoed by the United States (because of opposition in California) and Great Britain (Australian resistance) so they started WW II in Asia. Your personal observations that Thai Chinese are smarter than Thai people is racist. It is in poor taste and totally unsupported by any evidence except the comments of the uneducated and misinformed. Take it easy. I'm not saying non- ethnic Chinese Thais are incapable. That would be ridiculous, but I'm sure you would not deny that ethnic Chinese Thais are very obviously more successful and educated as a percentage of their numbers in Thailand. I am only calling attention to a reality. Look around us. Everywhere you look in Thailand, the highest achieving Thais are Thai-Chinese, and my point now is that it's not a mistake. It is cultural. And, there's nothing wrong with saying as much, in my opinion. Just as many of us Westerners typically state that on average we are richer, have better standards of living, etc. Or that Nigerians down on Soi 3 are often drug dealers. Don't be so sensitive. I know that any group of people can achieve, but not all groups achieve equally at a given time. Who knows what the future holds for ethnic Thais. The Thais have enough problems with racism. I don't feel we help the issue by agreeing with them especially the Thai/Chinese ones.I am sure A Thai is really worried or concerned with your opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaullyW Posted February 26, 2013 Share Posted February 26, 2013 It's an observation. The largest gene pool in the world is the one started by Genghis Kahn. Now, is he Chinese? Do you know all Chinese people? Do you know all Thai people? The Japanese were proud of their many accomplishments and resented racial slurs they met with in some Western nations. Their attempt to establish a statement of racial equality in the Covenant of the League of Nations was vetoed by the United States (because of opposition in California) and Great Britain (Australian resistance) so they started WW II in Asia. Your personal observations that Thai Chinese are smarter than Thai people is racist. It is in poor taste and totally unsupported by any evidence except the comments of the uneducated and misinformed. Take it easy. I'm not saying non- ethnic Chinese Thais are incapable. That would be ridiculous, but I'm sure you would not deny that ethnic Chinese Thais are very obviously more successful and educated as a percentage of their numbers in Thailand. I am only calling attention to a reality. Look around us. Everywhere you look in Thailand, the highest achieving Thais are Thai-Chinese, and my point now is that it's not a mistake. It is cultural. And, there's nothing wrong with saying as much, in my opinion. Just as many of us Westerners typically state that on average we are richer, have better standards of living, etc. Or that Nigerians down on Soi 3 are often drug dealers. Don't be so sensitive. I know that any group of people can achieve, but not all groups achieve equally at a given time. Who knows what the future holds for ethnic Thais. The Thais have enough problems with racism. I don't feel we help the issue by agreeing with them especially the Thai/Chinese ones. I can't think of a group that does not or has not had issues with racism at one point or another. Incidentally, the Chinese in Thailand for hundreds of years until fairly recently fought racism (including institutional racism) from the ethnic Thais. (Same in Malaysia, btw). They somehow fought through it all and now control nearly everything in this country including the culture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiangmaikelly Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 The largest gene pool in the world is the one started by Genghis Kahn. Now, is he Chinese? Do you know all Chinese people? Do you know all Thai people? The Japanese were proud of their many accomplishments and resented racial slurs they met with in some Western nations. Their attempt to establish a statement of racial equality in the Covenant of the League of Nations was vetoed by the United States (because of opposition in California) and Great Britain (Australian resistance) so they started WW II in Asia. Your personal observations that Thai Chinese are smarter than Thai people is racist. It is in poor taste and totally unsupported by any evidence except the comments of the uneducated and misinformed. Take it easy. I'm not saying non- ethnic Chinese Thais are incapable. That would be ridiculous, but I'm sure you would not deny that ethnic Chinese Thais are very obviously more successful and educated as a percentage of their numbers in Thailand. I am only calling attention to a reality. Look around us. Everywhere you look in Thailand, the highest achieving Thais are Thai-Chinese, and my point now is that it's not a mistake. It is cultural. And, there's nothing wrong with saying as much, in my opinion. Just as many of us Westerners typically state that on average we are richer, have better standards of living, etc. Or that Nigerians down on Soi 3 are often drug dealers. Don't be so sensitive. I know that any group of people can achieve, but not all groups achieve equally at a given time. Who knows what the future holds for ethnic Thais. The Thais have enough problems with racism. I don't feel we help the issue by agreeing with them especially the Thai/Chinese ones. I can't think of a group that does not or has not had issues with racism at one point or another. Incidentally, the Chinese in Thailand for hundreds of years until fairly recently fought racism (including institutional racism) from the ethnic Thais. (Same in Malaysia, btw). They somehow fought through it all and now control nearly everything in this country including the culture. I don't think that past racism justifies present racism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poanoi Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) I'm ex engineer but i cant remember phone nr & names most of the time either, in fact i can't remember i'm boiling eggs until too late. Agree with naboo btw, if this semi illiterate nonsense is the best you can do to feel better, just skip it, have a beer, study some math, whatever Edited February 27, 2013 by poanoi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doggie888888 Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) arthurwait, on 23 Feb 2013 - 12:48, said: Minimum wage staff and bar girls didn't have a good education shocker. Do you lot not know any educated Thai people ? Loan officer from Krungsi Bank, supposedly with bachelor and possibly masters, does not know how to calculate interest or repayments Guess he/she has staff who handles this. No, he has a computer and on it is a program that does all these calculations, just like in the west. Ask an Aussie bank manager (worse, American or English) to do a repayment schedule for your loan or hp or lease, and they'd all struggle to do it manually. The smart ones, be they Thai or otherwise can do a close estimate of monthly repayment and interest. By the way, the dumbest bank manager I ever meet was American. He thought CNY was a TV channel and had no idea it was Chinese yuan. And then he got really confused when his computer said Chinese currency was rmb. I told dumbo that it was like dollar, bucks, greenback. Edited February 27, 2013 by doggie888888 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radar501 Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) Anyone who works all day adding up or subtracting money knows that, by the end of the day , you often make very simple arithmetical mistakes. Please give the poor girl behind the shop counter who uses a calculator to subtract 20 from 50 a break. As someone else noted, if the till balance is short at the end of her shift, she will be paying back the difference. Edited February 27, 2013 by Radar501 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeijoshinCool Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Some people can't spell simple words OP.......just like some people can't do simple suns in their head. Suppose if they could, it would make them brighter than you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honkie Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Minimum wage staff and bar girls didn't have a good education shocker. Do you lot not know any educated Thai people ? Minimum wage staff and bar girls didn't have a good education shocker. Do you lot not know any educated Thai people ? YEP. My wife , got her Master degree from England . My brothers-in-law, all got degrees from England or Australia. Not bragging , since you asked. By the way , what does it got to do with the price of eggs ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joepattaya1961 Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Calculators are not only a fast, safe and easy way to be sure of any mathematic 'problem' that crosses one's path. Calculators are also used to communicate in a universal language in case of negotiations. Negotiations often require quick thinking and fast responses and any lack of a foreign language (for Thai it's English and for most of us it's Thai) requires a safe and universal expressions of the desired quotation/offer. Ok ok, after having settled the price of THB 150 for a small Buddha statue, it need to be extracted from the THB 200 payment in order to come up with the correct change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeijoshinCool Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) If you're going to post a topic putting down Thais and their maths, you should start by not making simple mistakes in your topic title. Their, not there. If you're going to post a topic putting down Thais and their maths, you should start by not making simple mistakes in your topic title. Their, not there. The definition of reading comprehension is the level of understanding of what is written; this requires a lack of bias. The OP likely is not a native English speaker, in which case he did an admirable job of getting his point across. I do not see any real evidence of his criticizing Thais, (though it could be inferred with a biased eye) rather he makes an observation and requests an answer so he can understand Thai culture better. Why is that so offensive? It isn't. EDIT: I look forward to more of the OP's posts. Edited February 27, 2013 by HeijoshinCool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naboo Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 My point was that if you're going to criticise others you should make sure your own house is in order first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berkshire Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 an other "why Thais cant be as smart as as " Thread as if the store clerks in the west are mathematical geniuses. Thais are not as stupid as they you think, and the Op is not as smart as he thinks. Agree. And if I may point out, it's also a generational thing. Some of these kids may not be math whizzes, but can function in the modern IT world much more deftly than the old farts populating this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiangmaikelly Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 an other "why Thais cant be as smart as as " Thread as if the store clerks in the west are mathematical geniuses. Thais are not as stupid as they you think, and the Op is not as smart as he thinks. Agree. And if I may point out, it's also a generational thing. Some of these kids may not be math whizzes, but can function in the modern IT world much more deftly than the old farts populating this forum. Like this old guy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeijoshinCool Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 If you're going to post a topic putting down Thais and their maths, you should start by not making simple mistakes in your topic title. Their, not there. >If you're going to post a topic putting down Thais and their maths, you should start by not making simple mistakes in your topic title. Their, not there. The definition of reading comprehension is the level of understanding of what is written; this requires a lack of bias. The OP likely is not a native English speaker, in which case he did an admirable job of getting his point across. I do not see any real evidence of his criticizing Thais, (though it could be inferred with a biased eye) rather he makes an observation and requests an answer so he can understand Thai culture better. Why is that so offensive? It isn't. EDIT: I look forward to more of the OP's posts. My point was that if you're going to criticise others you should make sure your own house is in order first. I rest my case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berkshire Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 an other "why Thais cant be as smart as as " Thread as if the store clerks in the west are mathematical geniuses. Thais are not as stupid as they you think, and the Op is not as smart as he thinks. Agree. And if I may point out, it's also a generational thing. Some of these kids may not be math whizzes, but can function in the modern IT world much more deftly than the old farts populating this forum. Like this old guy? I was mostly referring to the OP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norrona Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 why use your head when theres a calculator there? why walk when you can drive? apart from the exercise either mental or physical that is..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoshowJones Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 If you're going to post a topic putting down Thais and their maths, you should start by not making simple mistakes in your topic title. Their, not there. But that is not maths, that is grammar. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
transam Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Where l buy my beer the calc comes out, and the bird is fanominal, a married lady with two kids, so just great for my daily smile . Yep, the calc comes out for her arithmetic, BUT, at least once a week gives me back 100bht to much, WHICH, l always give her back. Me honest. ...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoshowJones Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 When I was young, this was used in schools. slide rule.jpg What is that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rattler Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Years ago as a kid I worked in a supermarket in the UK it was one of those cheapy ones KIWK SAVE, all the girls on the till had to REMEMBER the prices of everything in the shop, no bar codes and no price labels. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rattler Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Where l buy my beer the calc comes out, and the bird is fanominal, a married lady with two kids, so just great for my daily smile . Yep, the calc comes out for her arithmetic, BUT, at least once a week gives me back 100bht to much, WHICH, l always give her back. Me honest. ...... Nah she's just toying with you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
transam Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Where l buy my beer the calc comes out, and the bird is fanominal, a married lady with two kids, so just great for my daily smile . Yep, the calc comes out for her arithmetic, BUT, at least once a week gives me back 100bht to much, WHICH, l always give her back. Me honest. ...... Nah she's just toying with you I wish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rsquared Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Probably mentioned before.....but this is not restricted to Thailand. I have lost count of the number of times that I have purchased something....for example 420 Baht, I give the person a 500 hundred and a 20 baht note.....and they still have to use a calculator to work out the change. You can change the currency to suit....young people are not encouraged to use their brains, they have machines that do it for them. Even if they happen to press the wrong button on the calculator.... they still accept the final result displayed by their wonderful machine. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaullyW Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) Probably mentioned before.....but this is not restricted to Thailand. I have lost count of the number of times that I have purchased something....for example 420 Baht, I give the person a 500 hundred and a 20 baht note.....and they still have to use a calculator to work out the change. You can change the currency to suit....young people are not encouraged to use their brains, they have machines that do it for them. Even if they happen to press the wrong button on the calculator.... they still accept the final result displayed by their wonderful machine. Cheers. Hmmm, again, at the upper end, it's simply not true. At the upper end, kids today are by far the smartest generation on record. Research it. We are in the "information age" and young people have benefited from what previous gens simply didn't have available to them. By contrast, 30 years ago and earlier, kids, even at the upper end, were very much more narrowly educated, with narrow and rigid views. Also, young people in the last couple gens have been tasked with doing orders of magnitude more work than your older gens were ever made to do. We simply didn't/don't have time to "show how smart we are" by doing mental maths. We are busy revolutionizing the world at as rapid a pace as has ever been recorded in human history. Edited February 27, 2013 by PaullyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokie36 Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Thai calculators are highly effective in my experience. I love them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirineou Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) an other "why Thais cant be as smart as as " Thread as if the store clerks in the west are mathematical geniuses. Thais are not as stupid as they you think, and the Op is not as smart as he thinks. Agree. And if I may point out, it's also a generational thing. Some of these kids may not be math whizzes, but can function in the modern IT world much more deftly than the old farts populating this forum. you are absolutely right. They don't do math mentally anymore because they don't have to, and because they dont have to they are not as good at it as those who had to learn because they had no other choice, and got good at it because they used it on a daily bases. Much in the same way that we are no longer good in many unnecessary skills for our generation, such as starting a fire with out a lighter. I find the Thai people to be very intelligent and resourceful, I remember when I first got to Thailand I would see all these broken tree twigs in the highway and I would change lanes, at first I could not figure out why there were so many twigs a leafs in the highway, Until I see a broken gown truck and the driver braking twigs of the trees and placing them far behind the truck to warn other drivers. A very resourceful technique, even though I did not know why the twigs were there, I moved over. If I had broken down it would never had occurred to me to use the twigs, I would had probably stood there waving my arms. Thais do so much with so little, I am sure many of you have similar stories. many people make the mistake of confusing intelligence with sophistication, two totally different things European explorers and adventurers arriving in the Pacific islands a few centuries ago made the above mistake and with their sophisticated technology claimed they were gods, and the locals bought it for a little while, but it did not take them long to figure out that these Europeans were not gods but simple people with different technology. And very very Delicious Aloy Mak Mak Some Thais are Unsophisticated, others are generationaly skilled (i.e. have the skils required by their generation) others are very intelligent and some are stupid. much in the same proportions as any other nationality and in accordance with their culture. Edited February 27, 2013 by sirineou 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajarnpot Posted February 28, 2013 Share Posted February 28, 2013 Not sure about the uneducated, but certainly the educated Thai's have better mental maths skills than most Western schools. Still using pen and paper to carry out calculations that most Westerners would carry out on calculator due to introduction in schools. I use the Western catch term, but his refers mainly to England, US science and maths is pretty bad and way below standards of other countries. Iran too have very good mental arithmetic. my tuppence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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