Number of drinkers in northern region highest in Thailand

[inThailand1]

I doubt AA (alcoholics anonymous) would help, because of the reliance on God. I think if there was something like AA, but using the Dhamma teachings of the Buddha, it could save a lot of Thai lives from alcoholic misery or death.

[rosst]

The rate of liver disease due to the rampant consumption of Lao Khoa is very sad in my village.

Very sad, needs a program to try and reduce consumption during the day and moderate night consumption.

It is cheaper than beer and very bad for the health.

[kristophon]

it always gives me a bit of a chuckle when NON drinkers have a pop at people who drink... drinking is fun.. you cant beat a beer on a hot sunny day...

missing the point, are we?

consumption of a beer (or two) is NOT the same as drunk.

drunk = vomiting, fighting, crying, falling, pissing your pants, talking loud/nonsense, thinking u're 20 and athletic when u're actually 65 and hugely overweight, etc.

drunk = believing that a 22 year old cute bargirl actually fancies you (a 65 hugely overweight farang).

btw. me thinks you can't beat a glass of cold soda water on the rocks with a slice of lime on a hot sunny day. De gustibus...

lol... i think i`ll have a beer, on the rocks, with a slice of lime in it.... you can keep the soda water.... cheers!!

Edited June 29, 2013 by kristophon

[kristophon]

One thing is absolutely for sure. There is not much else to do up here.

Unless you're a monk. At least then you can sit creatively.

Whilst watching the rice or the rubber trees grow.

and drink soda water with a slice of lime...KAB POM...

[Just1Voice]

I stopped my "serious drinking" many years ago because it was getting me into more trouble than it was worth. For the better part of 20 years I didn't drink anything stronger than coffee or iced tea. Been living in Chiang Mai for 5 years, about half way between Mueang CM and San Kamphaeng. I'm 64, Thai wife is 54, and boredom / drinking are not factors in my life. I have a small group of farang friends who have the same interests, such as jumping on the bike and running over to Lampang, or down to Tak, or maybe up to Chiang Dao for lunch, and the pure joy of riding. And I'm not talking about "scooters", but what the Thai refer to as "big bikes", which I find somewhat amusing. One friend doesn't drink or smoke. The other is like me. He smokes, and at night might have a Leo before bed, but that's about it.

We're lucky in that we have "educated" our wives in "Farangness" in regards to our love of bikes, and riding just for the pure enjoyment of it, so now, if we throw some stuff in a back pack, kiss them "good bye" and take off, either alone or with each other, they accept it as being a part of us.

As for those who live in the smaller villages, where things move at a much slower pace, and there's less to do, my only comment is that you made that choice, so accept it and live with it, or get off your ass and change it, but constantly complaining about it, especially when you are half drunk yourself most of the time, makes you sound like a pathetic old fool who never had a life to begin with IMHO.

As for the Thai and their heavy drinking? Hate to sound cynical, but not my problem.

Edited June 29, 2013 by Just1Voice

[sawati]

Mai mao mai sanuk!!!

Thai proverb

[stickylies]

As for the Thai and their heavy drinking? Hate to sound cynical, but not my problem.

true, until they run over you with their pick up or u get hit by a lost bullet...

(the last happened behind my corner 2 weeks ago after some "local" dispute. 1 girl who had nothing to do with it got hit and died).

[jambodave]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

I get plenty stimulation in the village I live in and I only drink at the weekends

[Issangeorge]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

You must hang out with all the drunks. The last drink I had was about a month ago, although I usually get together once a week and have one large, sometimes two Leos woth my mates. My mates don't drink excessively either.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Rorri]

What exactly is the supposed reason for adding insecticide to moonshine? I'm trying to wrap my head around that one.

You can drink and kill mosquitos at the same time.

[BrianCR]

I assume the survey didn't include foreigners/expats or else those numbers would change.

We should be included as well! I believe with a little effort we can win this competition for Bangkok!!

No, no mate, Bangkok is in the beginner class compared to us in the North, we've held the championship for years and the prices are lower too! Fancy a drink?

[habfan]

The rate of liver disease due to the rampant consumption of Lao Khoa is very sad in my village.

Very sad, needs a program to try and reduce consumption during the day and moderate night consumption.

It is cheaper than beer and very bad for the health.

My village as well. A big bottle of Chang 44bht that same bottle of Chang filled with lao khoa 25bht. Now I enjoy a good session of beer's with the boy's as well as the next man but the loa khoa sessions practiced by my Thai neighbors( all good blokes by the way) are more about dulling the pain of day to day life at an affordable price.

[robertson468]

it always gives me a bit of a chuckle when NON drinkers have a pop at people who drink... drinking is fun.. you cant beat a beer on a hot sunny day...

missing the point, are we?

consumption of a beer (or two) is NOT the same as drunk.

drunk = vomiting, fighting, crying, falling, pissing your pants, talking loud/nonsense, thinking u're 20 and athletic when u're actually 65 and hugely overweight, etc.

drunk = believing that a 22 year old cute bargirl actually fancies you (a 65 hugely overweight farang).

btw. me thinks you can't beat a glass of cold soda water on the rocks with a slice of lime on a hot sunny day. De gustibus...

Have you not read the latest health warnings about soda?

[Emdog]

My take on chronic drinking: when people have no control (or think they have no control) over their situation they 'self medicate" to avoid facing the situation and maybe even deciding they need to do something about it. Thai culture abhors confrontation, agreed? So lower class know they are getting screwed by the rich here, but to raise a stink and try to change things leads to a quick trip to cremation temple. Better to stay drunk and burble "mai pen rai".

[spidermike007]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

You must hang out with all the drunks. The last drink I had was about a month ago, although I usually get together once a week and have one large, sometimes two Leos woth my mates. My mates don't drink excessively either.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

You must hang out with all the drunks. The last drink I had was about a month ago, although I usually get together once a week and have one large, sometimes two Leos woth my mates. My mates don't drink excessively either.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Well, I am very encouraged to hear that. Yes, I am sure it is the crowd that I have met up in the provinces. Nice to hear there are some sober minded farengs up there. Keep up the good work!

[OldChinaHam]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

don't u think these people were already drinking a lot before they came to the provinces. as a non-drinker i agree getting drunk is boring. people rarely come up with great ideas when drunk, in fact quite the opposite. drunk and stupid (behaviour) go hand in hand.

Yes, they probably did drink before. But. they become like fish, when they hit the provinces. It takes a certain amount of creativity to remain amused, and avoid boredom when little is happening around you. Most of these guys simply do not seem to have that.

Maybe I'm the exception but I basically stopped drinking when I moved from Chiangmai to the sticks of Lampang province. Unfortunately I make up for it every 90 days when I come in to Chianger to do my report.

So I am curious to know what is it that Farang people can do up there when they are almost drunk all the time, as you say? Do they just hold down some sort of field office and only report back to headquarters by email so that their phone calls will not give them away, that they are sloshed? It seems to me that with the heavy imbibing, efficiency must almost drop to about zero during binges.

Edited June 29, 2013 by OldChinaHam

[stickylies]

Have you not read the latest health warnings about soda?

who said i drink water out of health reasons?

[stickylies]

My take on chronic drinking: when people have no control (or think they have no control) over their situation they 'self medicate" to avoid facing the situation and maybe even deciding they need to do something about it. Thai culture abhors confrontation, agreed? So lower class know they are getting screwed by the rich here, but to raise a stink and try to change things leads to a quick trip to cremation temple. Better to stay drunk and burble "mai pen rai".

Agreed, and as said in previous comment, the day those people stop drinking this country will burn.

Thailand never had an Industrial Revolution ergo Thailand never had the (IR related) social effects.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution#Social_effects

[slipperylobster]

It occurred to me that the pesticide in the moonshine would inhibit mosquito bites, thus lowering your odds of getting Dengue Fever. Anyways...its a good excuse to get wasted.

[lee b]

Bring it on Chiang Mai !!

[Bagwan]

it always gives me a bit of a chuckle when NON drinkers have a pop at people who drink... drinking is fun.. you cant beat a beer on a hot sunny day...

so what if folk die from it... its like.. if you dont drink you are going to live forever!!??!!!..

sorry NON drinkers... I`ve got news for you.....

Are you in your cups? The point is about people drinking to excess. Nothing wrong with a daily tipple in moderation. I'm certainly not a killjoy. Didn't some guy yonks ago turn water into wine?

I am not prissy about drunks. I feel sorry for them that they didn't have the backbone to meet all the adversities that they encountered, that they didn't have the inner strength to make the best of their talents, however burgeoning or sparse they may be. They have made themselves the dross and casualties of life.

I'm bored = lack of imagination. Why not do something proactive by getting as many of the village or local kids as you can and help them with their education because they're not going to get one at the local school. Even the dumbest farang can teach basic arithmetic or help them to speak at least basic English. Even some of the adults might want to enlist in your classes. Give small prizes to those who excel in tests that you set, and then explain to those who dipped out that if you want the rewards that life has to offer, then you have to work for them. Success is not something that comes out of an ATM or as matter of luck. You'll be surprised at how many new friends you acquire if you take the time and trouble to pass on whatever knowledge and skills that you have.

Think of the childhood games that you played and show the kids how to play them. My father took the centre section of the dining table out and on the underneath side made a shove ha'penny board; we kids played for hours and many a meal was postponed until the game in progress was finished. I get the family's kids playing hopscotch, and much to their amusement, join in. Their pleasure is enhanced by beating the Papa Farang at something. We play a game not dissimilar to baseball or rounders, but using just a stout stick and a tin can and get real fun out of it. At such times I harbour thoughts about enjoying my second childhood to the maximum.

You have a PC. Why not use it to further educate yourself? I, and I guess many others, trawl the Net for information and guidance on matters of interest to them. I research many subjects and have lost count of the times that I have thought, 'Wow! I never knew that. Now I understand.' It is time profitably spent in my view. When I retired 22 years ago I decided that I would work to reach University entrance standard in French and German, and to learn how to play the violin. I've been so busy that I have not made a start of any of those things. There are lots of things that you can do to enrich your life and to make you feel better about yourself, rather than sit in a bar swallowing copious amounts of a depressive poison, swapping improbable and highly exaggerated stories. If ever the phrase 'Get a life' had meaning it applies to heavy drinkers wasting and shortening the time they have left, and emptying their pockets at a rate of knots. How good do they feel the following morning?

Some of the hard of thinking brigade might be thinking 'what right has this prat got in critcising my life style? Smug b*****d'. My response is that somebody needs to point out the futility of seaching for contentment or a sense of fulfillment from a bottle. I view this as a positive suggestion and if only a few give deep consideration to my words then it has been worth my effort. You can choose to ignore my words, after all, it's your life. You will stand or fall by your own decisions. Don't be surprised if further down the road that you choose to travel I refuse your entreaty to part with a few baht because 'you are down on your luck'. One of my mantras is that God helps those who help themselves, a practice that I, and others who are in touch with reality, follow.

[HOOD Robin]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

Well, i dont have pitty on them.... WHY the heck they go live there !? Cheap Charlies ? Or just to please the gal so the family can "take care" on everything..? Poor blokes...

There is nothing to do upcountry than drinking ? BS !! If they would do an effort to get a laptop and an internet connection (with satellite you can get it in the bush bush) then they have things to do for 24 hours !

But no, most of these guys have a lot of excuses and then the only solution is the booze.... very sad !

[mrfill]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

I say your 'boredom' hypothesis may have some weight, but that is a symptom and not a root cause, IMHO.

I cite the environment and that particular Thai culture (indigenous native) as the two primary root causes.

Did the American colonists, when faced with a similar isolation in the newly-colonized North America resort to alcohol as an escape mechanism from what could have been a similar boredom?

NOTE: I offer the above as a rudimentary hypothesis, as opposed to any kind of formal theory. I have purposely limited my time in remote Issan settings for fear of ... boredom due to the huge cultural gap between me and the indigenous (native) population, not to mention a host of other issues.

I have personally observed a similar cultural gap between indigenous people/culture (Piute indian) and caucasian (farang) farmers and settlers in northern Nevada. I'll spare everyone the details, but drinking among the Piute community was definitely a factor.

Can I just point out that the 'American colonists' were actually British.

[mikemac]

I don't trust those soda water drinkers, you never quite know what they are going to do next.

[slipperylobster]

Can I just point out that the 'American colonists' were actually British.

That would not be totally correct. Many were Dutch(New Amsterdam), German(Pennsylvania), French(Displaced Acadians) etc. I prefer not to give the British too much credit.

[ginjag]

In a red village maybe you have to conform and drink. !!! 55555 what else do you do with your rice money ???

[mikemac]

Says a lot when someone states their best friend is their laptop, but like they say "the first step is admitting there is a problem".

[ginjag]

Can I just point out that the 'American colonists' were actually British.

That would not be totally correct. Many were Dutch(New Amsterdam), German(Pennsylvania), French(Displaced Acadians) etc. I prefer not to give the British too much credit.

You forgot the Irish and the Chinese who did all the laundry for good business,

[slipperylobster]

Can I just point out that the 'American colonists' were actually British.

That would not be totally correct. f tMany were Dutch(New Amsterdam), German(Pennsylvania), French(Displaced Acadians) etc. I prefer not to give the British too much credit.

You forgot the Irish and the Chinese who did all the laundry for good business,

lol...yep the irish and the chinese did the laundry....but most of those irish guys ended up being policemen. the chinese are still doing the laundry.....

[jpeg]

Every foreigner i know, who lives in the provinces drinks alot. I think it is about boredom. There is nothing to do. Especially in the villages. No stimulation. They all get drunk or drink alot. How very boring in itself, if you ask me.

don't u think these people were already drinking a lot before they came to the provinces. as a non-drinker i agree getting drunk is boring. people rarely come up with great ideas when drunk, in fact quite the opposite. drunk and stupid (behaviour) go hand in hand.

I always thought I made my best decisions while drinking. Like most of my car purchases have been made while under the influence. And then there was that decision about changing all the living room tile because I did not like the colour one night and I pre-paid for the tile to wake up the next morning to remember my slate pool table had to be moved. Then there was the time I made the wise decision to build a swimming pool while having a bit of a drink at which time I arranged for the back hoe to be there bright and early the next morning. ha ha. All plans were followed through with but I did have second thoughts.

It's all to do with the QUALITY of the booze. Good quality booze in LaLaLand is too expensive for the average Thai.

Hindsight being 20/20, what would you have decided on after a shot or several of Lao Khao ?

Edited June 29, 2013 by jpeg