A Prostitute's Take On Thai Cartoon Uproar

[chainarong]

The standards set by this newspaper are strange to say the least, at $60 USD Hr, I will come down and teach everyone at the paper how to speak, read and write english properly, I will also allow a spell check, you must be prepared for at least ten years of tuition, and learn that I is before E except after C.

[candypants]

Definitely written by a native English speaker, attempting to 'hide' that fact.

That kills it for me.

are you simple?

the "native english speaker" you refer to has a clear byline. His name is Tulsathit Taptim, and it is clearly printed at the top of the article.

[waxon]

Wasn't the idea for everyone to know it was fake, or am I the only one that can understand these post?

Come on people, use your imagination a bit, I think it was a good article. If you took this as someone "trolling", then you have been too long at TV.

people here are generally quite thick and cannot recognize a simple literary contrivance no matter how ham-handed the attempt.

the prostitute personna would have come off much better had the attempts at poor grammar been abandoned or at least not mixed in with colloquial english like "off the chart", or terms like uproar and ideology.

That said the point is somewhat valid and it is a fair pokee at the hypocrisy and cynicism which governs thailand.

It was a worthy comment lost by the authour's fear of taking ownership of his argument.

Very true. All the discussion is whether the letter is real or not. The points made are overlooked and ignored. The author should have used a different style.

[geriatrickid]

Make of it what you may, there are some very nice points made.

At the cost of denigrating the people of Thailand?

If the Nation wishes to criticize the PM outright, I support its right to do so.

However, I draw the line at the use of hurtful racist articles that the editors know will be misunderstood or misinterpreted. It's not journalism. A responsible journalist can make his/her point without resorting to guttersnipe behaviour. I'm sure the folks at the Nation stood about giggling and patting each other on the back on just how smart they think they are.

denigrating the people of Thailand?

hurtful, racist articles?

not sure what you read, but i see nothing racist or hurtful. Please do show me what exactly you are referring to.

As for the the folks at the nation stood about giggling, they should be ashamed that they had a valid point to make but diluted it with nonsensical rhetoric.

The typical prostitute in Thailand doesn't talk "Tinglish" in this manner. My last in depth discussion with a prostitute with 20+ years in the trade was approximately 1 year ago in respect to her ovarian cancer. We spoke at length about her treatment and whether the pain meds she was taken were adequate. Throughout the discussion she did not speak in the dialect that the Nation has used. My point is that the Nation has used a condescending approach adopting the vernacular that is more commonly used by the foreign males that ridicule and mock the women they solicit. Why didn't the writer use a male prostitute, as many of the Nation's angry bitter readers would probably identify more with such a person.

Oh sure, you will say, I'm off on a tangent, but the fact is that the Nation has done very little to advocate on behalf of the poor or those that are in the sex trade. It is therefore incredibly arrogant and an illustration of the self importance of the editors of the Nation to offer up a contrived stereotype of a prostitute as a means to launch an attack on the PM. If the Nation wants to make a point, then it should consider doing so in a coherent opinion piece. Professional journalist don't splash about in a sewage klong like this. I can guarantee you, that this article will be considered offensive by many Thais, including those that dislike the PM. It's rude and outright trash.

[arthurboy]

Did it for me.

Sardonic, ironic, mocking and, ultimately, utterly telling.

He's making a point - among others - that although many prostitutes are apparently uneducated, their English, albeit grammatically incorrect and strained, is wholly functional.

The message his character is conveying is clear enough.

[GrantSmith]

C'mon chaps... Surely a working girl after being with multiple farang would invariably pick up the odd english nuance

Besides, there's no prostitutes in Thailand... Aren't they all waitresses in bars and restaurants whom you just happen to chat up in said establishment, the whole money changing hands is simply your gentlemanly graces acting up in order to make sure the lass gets home safely

[KBTexas]

They can come up with any truth-lie alchemy for all I care

Personally, I thought this was one of the best descriptions of politics and politicians I had ever read!

KB

[Morakot]

Speaks volumes about the Nation.

Please compare Veera Prateepchaikul's opinion piece in the Bangkok Post.

Please note: In accordance with Forum Rule 31 no quotation or link to the article is provided.

Prateepchaikul2013.pdf

Edited May 8, 2013 by Morakot

[hellodolly]

The article is trying to jangle peoples' subjective bells. It sounds contrived to me. Prostitute can be a noun or a verb. As a verb, it means, 'to sell one's services in a demeaning or questionable manner.' Prostitution is like the inverse of religion: we pretend disdain for prostitution, but we privately lust after it. On the other hand, we pretend we like going to church or temple, but we would rather slip in to the broom closet with some delectable sex object.

Using it as a verb it could put many honest loving house wives in the profession. Also the odd man.

As a noun it just is the name given for people in a specific trade.

[geriatrickid]

Speaks volumes about the Nation.

Please compare Mr Veera Prateepchaikul's opinion piece in the Bangkok Post.

Please note: In accordance with Forum Rule 31 no quotation or link to the article is provided.

Bingo.

[hellodolly]

Wasn't the idea for everyone to know it was fake, or am I the only one that can understand these post?

Come on people, use your imagination a bit, I think it was a good article. If you took this as someone "trolling", then you have been too long at TV.

If you take this as trolling then you would be saying trolling is condoned by web fact he posted it.

[HerbalEd]

Re. this article's writing "style" ... and I use the word loosely here. It's obvious ... at least to some ... that the author is "trying" ... rather poorly ... to imitate the poor and broken English of a Thai prostitute.

[harrry]

Show me a politician

BTW, the so-called letter from a prostitute (above) was written by an English speaker. Just one of many proofs: In the last sentence, it mentiones; 'closet insulters.' No Thai, whether an English teacher or whatever, ever uses the word 'closet' as an adjective. They simply don't know that nuance of the Eng.language. Same with the phrase 'gender issue' used earlier in the fake letter.

Ok, I googled the name 'Tulsathit Taptim' and see he's a writer for the Nation. When the writer said he/she was a prostitute, I believed him. Just goes to show, you can't believe what Nation writers write. Also: though he tries to write in a such a cutsie crude style, he fails. Satire works when it resembles the object or person it's mocking. His fake letter is so contrived and off-base, that it's neither witty nor effective in trying to convey his message. Sorry Tulsathit. Try again, but don't try so hard to be cute.

So is not Tulsathit Tapin a Thai?

If if one thai can use it is your statement true...or a ....

[carken]

I doubt if any one at the Nation was trying

to make any one believe this article was a

for real prostitutes letter. They weren't

trying to fool anyone,

This is simply a "comic/cartoon political

text statement" backing up and the same

as the "comic/cartoon political graphic

drawing statement" on the same subject

Looks like obvious political cartoon text spoof

went over the head of many. Lighten up guys

If you take everything so seriously you miss

out on a lot of life's little joys and many things

will mess up your hair as they pass quickly

overhead. Also be careful of the flying pigs

they are out in force this time of year. They

can do a lot of damage to your hair/scalp

At least that's the poop told to me. Not even

gonna talk about the Fhoe birds when they

poop on your head, Some of you might even

know the story / history of these deadly

creatures of the sky poopers. Just be careful

of what goes over your head

[konfuzed]

Definitely written by a native English speaker, attempting to 'hide' that fact.

That kills it for me.

I agree with red card above... the usage of certain nuances and phrases such as "in my book" and as well as "spin" ...

the bad grammar is a poor attempt at camouflage... If it was written by a copy-writer from a "prostitute's perspective" with input then yes it would be miles better, but this is just embarrassing.

[spermwhale]

This is written by the paper's managing editor Thulsathit. He's not a native English speaker but he's well educated abroad. I worked for him before.

Lame as always. Loves to hear himself write but has no idea how to run a newspaper.

Edited May 8, 2013 by spermwhale

[Mole]

Initially I was fooled into thinking it may be genuine, but when reading more and more, although the English is seemingly poor, many advanced topics are mentioned and then the sudden odd technical term correctly spelled even. This made me suspect it can not be real.

This letter is ironic in that it assumes that this is the best English a typical Thai prostitute would ever be able to write.

The author of this fake letter himself is looking down on Thai karis.

I'm pretty sure a real prostitute would never ever use the word "kari" ever.

For them, this is the ultimate derogatory word.

Another irony is that he claims that prostitutes would rather have "peace in the silence", but then write this letter….

Edited May 8, 2013 by Mole

[spermwhale]

Show me a politician who doesn't prostitute his/her position, and I'll show you a municipal bridge made of cotton candy.

BTW, the so-called letter from a prostitute (above) was written by an English speaker. Just one of many proofs: In the last sentence, it mentiones; 'closet insulters.' No Thai, whether an English teacher or whatever, ever uses the word 'closet' as an adjective. They simply don't know that nuance of the Eng.language. Same with the phrase 'gender issue' used earlier in the fake letter.

Ok, I googled the name 'Tulsathit Taptim' and see he's a writer for the Nation. When the writer said he/she was a prostitute, I believed him. Just goes to show, you can't believe what Nation writers write. Also: though he tries to write in a such a cutsie crude style, he fails. Satire works when it resembles the object or person it's mocking. His fake letter is so contrived and off-base, that it's neither witty nor effective in trying to convey his message. Sorry Tulsathit. Try again, but don't try so hard to be cute.

I can only concur................Thank You

If you have read Tulsathit's columns before, he likes to do this, assuming the persona of someone else. It's a technique he uses, sometimes effectively. But as mentioned in an earlier post, he's one of the top dogs at the paper.

[candypants]

Re. this article's writing "style" ... and I use the word loosely here. It's obvious ... at least to some ... that the author is "trying" ... rather poorly ... to imitate the poor and broken English of a Thai prostitute.

one who sells her body to foreigners

[candypants]

Make of it what you may, there are some very nice points made.

At the cost of denigrating the people of Thailand?

If the Nation wishes to criticize the PM outright, I support its right to do so.

However, I draw the line at the use of hurtful racist articles that the editors know will be misunderstood or misinterpreted. It's not journalism. A responsible journalist can make his/her point without resorting to guttersnipe behaviour. I'm sure the folks at the Nation stood about giggling and patting each other on the back on just how smart they think they are.

denigrating the people of Thailand?

hurtful, racist articles?

not sure what you read, but i see nothing racist or hurtful. Please do show me what exactly you are referring to.

As for the the folks at the nation stood about giggling, they should be ashamed that they had a valid point to make but diluted it with nonsensical rhetoric.

The typical prostitute in Thailand doesn't talk "Tinglish" in this manner. My last in depth discussion with a prostitute with 20+ years in the trade was approximately 1 year ago in respect to her ovarian cancer. We spoke at length about her treatment and whether the pain meds she was taken were adequate. Throughout the discussion she did not speak in the dialect that the Nation has used. My point is that the Nation has used a condescending approach adopting the vernacular that is more commonly used by the foreign males that ridicule and mock the women they solicit. Why didn't the writer use a male prostitute, as many of the Nation's angry bitter readers would probably identify more with such a person.

Oh sure, you will say, I'm off on a tangent, but the fact is that the Nation has done very little to advocate on behalf of the poor or those that are in the sex trade. It is therefore incredibly arrogant and an illustration of the self importance of the editors of the Nation to offer up a contrived stereotype of a prostitute as a means to launch an attack on the PM. If the Nation wants to make a point, then it should consider doing so in a coherent opinion piece. Professional journalist don't splash about in a sewage klong like this. I can guarantee you, that this article will be considered offensive by many Thais, including those that dislike the PM. It's rude and outright trash.

we have said much the same thing on this article, however i still don't see the racism.

It is a lousy and perhaps cynical attempt at making a point that could have made a good opinion piece.

Also, i dont see the harm in in offending readers, specially thee thai middle class. they are far too complacent and could use a poke with a sharp stick -- unfortunately this was not that stick.

[sawadeeken]

The underlying premise is wrong. The PM has not sold the country. Not one inch of Thailand has been sold.

Heck, they are having trouble just selling rice.

"The PM has not sold the country" Come on now, you must be kidding or you are living with (and influenced by) a lovely 'Issan' lady whose family is 'red shirt' and been bought (for a small amount) into believing that the Shinawatra's are 'good people'. The truth that even most blind people can see is that they (Shinawatra's) are all out to 'feather their own nests' only ( as in the Savanaphumi Airport land acquisition), and will do so at the expense of those 'poor' people who love them best - those 'poor' people (with such good hearts) are being 'used', and for lack of education, they can't see it. That, at least in my opinion, is how the Shinawatras got their foot-hold. They knew the cheapest way to buy the largest number of votes was to target the 'poor people' and those farmers who never had an opportunity to get an education. A little money or 'benefits' will impress them easily, then they are on your side and at a cheap price.

[Thaddeus]

Even yingluck wouldn't have been able to write that. Her english is terrible. Not sure what that makes her but stupid, or as her brother would say "I am not care".

How many foreign PMs or Presidents speak good Thai?

At a guess, probably none, speaking Thai is not generally considered to be a requirement for non-Thai PM's.

Edited May 8, 2013 by Thaddeus

[Rimmer]

One racist slur removed also a quoted reply

[Docno]

Even yingluck wouldn't have been able to write that. Her english is terrible. Not sure what that makes her but stupid, or as her brother would say "I am not care".

How many foreign PMs or Presidents speak good Thai?

At a guess, probably none, speaking Thai is not generally considered to be a requirement for non-Thai PM's.

And why should the PM of Thailand be faulted on her English? Why should faultless Engish be a requirement for her job? Have you heard how well the typical leaders of China, Japan, and S Korea speak English? (Most of the time, you won't even hear them attempt it -- they'll use a translator).

[johnlandy]

... Is this a joke??

No joke and she is right on the button. It is a land of hypocrisy populated by hypocrites.

'Land of the free' my ass!

Edited May 8, 2013 by johnlandy

[brd199]

Even yingluck wouldn't have been able to write that. Her english is terrible. Not sure what that makes her but stupid, or as her brother would say "I am not care".

How many foreign PMs or Presidents speak good Thai?

At a guess, probably none, speaking Thai is not generally considered to be a requirement for non-Thai PM's.

And why should the PM of Thailand be faulted on her English? Why should faultless Engish be a requirement for her job? Have you heard how well the typical leaders of China, Japan, and S Korea speak English? (Most of the time, you won't even hear them attempt it -- they'll use a translator).

Do they have advanced graduate degrees obtained using English?

[NCFC]

Nation if you have a point to make, just make it and don't try to get smart with this clumsy and embarrassing "style". We, well most of us, can understand a straightforward point.

[Artisi]

This so called letter from a working girl can best be described as rude, crude, senseless, stupid, idiotic, pointless, ridiculous, waste of time, condescending, of no value - that's just for starters, sure there as many other apt descriptions to describe it.

[mca]

Wasn't the idea for everyone to know it was fake, or am I the only one that can understand these post?

Come on people, use your imagination a bit, I think it was a good article. If you took this as someone "trolling", then you have been too long at TV.

If I was editor at the Nation, I'd give the writer a 2 month sabbatical without pay. ....

Or transfer them to the Pattaya Daily News or Coconuts Bangkok for a year as penance.

[Tatsujin]

So hang on, a writer at The Nation wrote this article, pretending to be a prostitute? If so, how xxxxxx up and "wrong" is that?

Edited May 8, 2013 by metisdead
Profanity