Latest sporting disgrace reflects deeper problems: Thai editorial

[Robi Schwab]

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

[Robi Schwab]

I'm failing to comprehend the idea of blaming Mr. Thaksin OR the Isaan voting population in any way. I mean, two private individuals, sportsmen, get stuck-in to each other and WALLA, the entire Government are to be blamed therefor. Does'nt make ANY sense to me. Please enlighten me you guys, would you? However, the utmost final LAST two word in this comment can't be argued away. I wholeheartedly agree with THAT specific part of this comment made by angsta.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

This is her fault is it? Surely you should blame Thaksin or maybe the poor of Issan for voting her in?

Go home.

[Dap]

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

Ii's quite possible that if you and angsta kept up on current news you would be more informed as to what chooka was refering to.

Then again, I could be wrong

[ginjag]

and all because someone hid a shuttle cock

I hope mummy and daddy remember to buy them more Lego this Xmas. Spoilt brats . Think they have been watching too many soap opera's on Thai T.V.

[Robi Schwab]

I absolutely agree with you here hey. However this fact you're stating here doesn't render us humans the right to behave in this manner OR to reckon behaviour like this acceptable in society.

It shows that people sometimes have very thin skin and see little shame about reacting with violence over a tiny personal issue.

[Robi Schwab]

Dap. No, you could very well be CORRECT, I do accept that possiblity. Therefore then, would you be kind enough as to enlighten me in this regard please? I'd love to be informed so that I would NOT make a fool of myself regarding my participation in this matter. With gratitude, sincerely yours.

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

Ii's quite possible that if you and angsta kept up on current news you would be more informed as to what chooka was refering to.

Then again, I could be wrong

[moe666]

The real disgrace is how Thai coaches and managers were powerless to stop the chasing and running and to step in between quickly. They did nothing as is customary in Thailand.

Go back and view the video there were several of the staff trying to stop the fight they could not catch these guys. This incident caught the staffs of both sides by suprise

[johnlandy]

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

Robi, are you trying a bit of a wind up here with "great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister" because with a statement such as you have written shows that you are a real dreamer and that is

the kindest thing that I can summon to say about you. Now if you were serious 'that is another matter entirely' and there are few words in the English language that I can bring to mind to adequately describe you

[rbrooks]

Professional sportsmen are human too.

I don't recall pros sportsmen beating on their team members, closest to mind maybe a boxing match, football, wrestling, or Muay Thai? This was an international competition of badminton. Probably the most non contact sport on the planet.

Edited July 27, 2013 by rbrooks

[ramrod711]

There can't be too many disgraces worse than that.

This was the phrase that caught my attention. In Canada you see much more violence in hockey than this, however i will apologize in advance if i am off topic. Are they joking, no disgraces worse than this? How about the red bull kid, no jail, how about a fugitive running a country by proxy and the police going to see him for the pinning on of his stripes. What about the state of the transportation system? This altercation, and all the time on the tv news that it's getting looks like a huge diversion from what really matters.

[wellred]

Professional sportsmen are human too.

I don't recall pros sportsmen beating on their team members, closest to mind maybe a boxing match, football, wrestling, or Muay Thai? This was an international competition of badminton. Probably the most non contact sport on the planet.

I was referring to one losing their rag and doing something out of the ordinary. Eg Mike Tyson biting Evander Holyfields ear, or how about Lee Boyer and Kieran Dyer fighting when both playing for Newcastle? Or how about Joey Barton giving Aguero a dead knee? Happens all the time. Any sport at professional level can be emotional. The fact that badminton is a non contact sport means nothing.

[Dap]

Dap. No, you could very well be CORRECT, I do accept that possiblity. Therefore then, would you be kind enough as to enlighten me in this regard please? I'd love to be informed so that I would NOT make a fool of myself regarding my participation in this matter. With gratitude, sincerely yours.

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

Ii's quite possible that if you and angsta kept up on current news you would be more informed as to what chooka was refering to.

Then again, I could be wrong

I do not believe k. chooka was "slandering" P.M.Yingluck at all, but rather highlighting her recent (media published) request for all Thai's travelling abroad to promote "Thainess" wherever they might be. These Thai athletes have exhibited somewhat less than stellar "Thainess" and certainly nowhere near the examples P.M. Yingluck wished to portray internationally (or anywhere for that matter). It was valid and absolutely related to the subject at hand and had "absolutely nothing at all" to do with Thai politics.

[RickBradford]

Even more unusual is former playing-partners attacking each other at an international tournament. There can't be too many disgraces worse than that.

Thailand is hyper-sensitive about its image overseas, as befits a third-world country which thinks very highly of itself.

So, to put lipstick on the pig, they get all bent out of shape about a couple of sportsmen having a barney, or a couple of teenage females dancing topless on trucks, when they might be better advised to address the myriad problems which really are serious -- the organised crime group which is the BiB, illegal cutting down of forest to build resorts, useless schools, wasting billions of dollars on neo-Marxist agrarian schemes, wanton pollution from factories and the subsequent execution of people who complain, ingrained corruption, child abuse, sexual abuse, shooting people in bars who have made you angry, drug-crazed bus drivers, Mafia tour operators, the filthy state of the country.....

[amykat]

I do not believe k. chooka was "slandering" P.M.Yingluck at all, but rather highlighting her recent (media published) request for all Thai's travelling abroad to promote "Thainess" wherever they might be. These Thai athletes have exhibited somewhat less than stellar "Thainess" and certainly nowhere near the examples P.M. Yingluck wished to portray internationally (or anywhere for that matter). It was valid and absolutely related to the subject at hand and had "absolutely nothing at all" to do with Thai politics.

I agree with your post, but I just have to mention, "stellar Thainess" ...while we all joke around/speculate about what is "Thainess" the addition of "stellar" to the mix, well ...are there stellar qualities that are uniquely Thai? My definition of "Thainess" only includes things with negative connotations, because even the qualities that might SEEM good at first, can usually be found to have a root in there, that is basically a negative, as far as my own cultural conditioning.

I would argue that the badminton player, did an excellent, perfect job, of displaying a big aspect of "Thainess" !

This one aspect of Thainess, has a huge effect on our lives here, or should have, if you know what is good for you! It would be great if tourists could learn this before arriving here too.

While I wish the attacker would have been arrested, for once, and have to face real consequences, which would have been publicized in Thailand ...he should maybe be thanked for showing the truth about Thainess ...however, most observers, outside of Thailand will have no idea that his behavior is so typical here. So lesson lost for everyone!

[zydeco]

Thailand. Badminton. This is peanuts. Nobody anywhere else likely paid any attention at all. Heck, it's badminton. It wouldn't have mattered if China, Russia, and the US were all involved in a brawl at the same time. You see bigger fights than this in some Asian parliaments.

[Dap]

I do not believe k. chooka was "slandering" P.M.Yingluck at all, but rather highlighting her recent (media published) request for all Thai's travelling abroad to promote "Thainess" wherever they might be. These Thai athletes have exhibited somewhat less than stellar "Thainess" and certainly nowhere near the examples P.M. Yingluck wished to portray internationally (or anywhere for that matter). It was valid and absolutely related to the subject at hand and had "absolutely nothing at all" to do with Thai politics.

I agree with your post, but I just have to mention, "stellar Thainess" ...while we all joke around/speculate about what is "Thainess" the addition of "stellar" to the mix, well ...are there stellar qualities that are uniquely Thai? My definition of "Thainess" only includes things with negative connotations, because even the qualities that might SEEM good at first, can usually be found to have a root in there, that is basically a negative, as far as my own cultural conditioning.

I would argue that the badminton player, did an excellent, perfect job, of displaying a big aspect of "Thainess" !

This one aspect of Thainess, has a huge effect on our lives here, or should have, if you know what is good for you! It would be great if tourists could learn this before arriving here too.

While I wish the attacker would have been arrested, for once, and have to face real consequences, which would have been publicized in Thailand ...he should maybe be thanked for showing the truth about Thainess ...however, most observers, outside of Thailand will have no idea that his behavior is so typical here. So lesson lost for everyone!

Ahhh, mea culpa k. amykat. To what was otherwise a straight reply, I simply needed to add a

bit of comic relief purely for my own enjoyment. As you will recall, the P.M.'s initial statement

was rather absurd, so ... difficult to treat it all that seriously.

[jvs]

Isn't it one of the main jobs of the coach to make sure there are no struggles in his team?He is supposed to make the athlete ready for competition ,both physically and mentally.

The players are not the only ones who should fear for their position.

[Lobo4819]

Thainess at its best - no, worst - no, usual.

Edited July 27, 2013 by Lobo4819

[rametindallas]

This comment surely just has to be viewed as totally invalid and unrelated to the subject at hand. I mean, what does a sportsmen FIGHT between two LOSERS got to do with the Thailand Prime Minister? Or even with Thailand's Politics? Absolutely NOTHING at ALL. The understanding that I'm to gather from this comment renders me completely certain that there appears to be many very unhappy individuals living here in Thailand and THAT nobody can change. But all logic teaches us humans a very valuable lesson in life. Should we find ourselves discontented with our living conditions in our residential country we're completely FREE to do ourselves ONE massive big favor and move to another country where we could find real and true HAPPINESS for ourselves. Statements that slanders great individuals like the honorable Madam Prime Minister ONLY reflect bad on oneself and not at all in any way whatsoever on the GREAT individuals we're slandering.

Is this the Thainess that P.M Yingluk wants to promote abroad. Lucky they weren't allowed to take their guns with them.

Please, let me explain it to you. I'll type slowly so you can understand.

It's called 'Irony'. Very recently the honorable P.M., Ms. Yingluck, asked for all Thais abroad to be ambassadors for Thailand so the World would see how exemplary Thai people are. Then, these two idiots display really bad behavior in front of a World audience to show the World that Thai people (at least not all of them) are not exemplary. No one is holding Ms. Yingluck responsible. chooka is pointing out that these two failed to honor her request.

Take that chip off your shoulder and it will help you understand that not every time a Shinawatra is mentioned is someone blaming them.

Edited July 27, 2013 by rametindallas

[rametindallas]

I just read that Bodin got two years suspension because he admitted he started it. His coach got a six months suspension. Maneepong and his coach each got a three months suspension.

[Robi Schwab]

I'm unable to find this video. Could you kindly post the URL or other info where I could view it please.

The real disgrace is how Thai coaches and managers were powerless to stop the chasing and running and to step in between quickly. They did nothing as is customary in Thailand.

Go back and view the video there were several of the staff trying to stop the fight they could not catch these guys. This incident caught the staffs of both sides by suprise

[metisdead]

I'm unable to find this video. Could you kindly post the URL or other info where I could view it please.

The real disgrace is how Thai coaches and managers were powerless to stop the chasing and running and to step in between quickly. They did nothing as is customary in Thailand.

Go back and view the video there were several of the staff trying to stop the fight they could not catch these guys. This incident caught the staffs of both sides by suprise

You will find the video here:

VIDEO: Thailand's former Olympic badminton team brawls at competition, acts like children

About comments on "Thainess" you need to read this topic:

[louse1953]

The real disgrace is how Thai coaches and managers were powerless to stop the chasing and running and to step in between quickly. They did nothing as is customary in Thailand.

Yes, you are fully correct. Must be a real big problem in Thailand... Losing face aspect I mean... Coaches sits there

doing nothing, never goes in between problem and sort them out......Disgraceful really...

Glegolo

Coaches did not just sit there.You expect them to chase these quick lads all over the stadium.When they stopped running people jumped in to pull them apart.Also Bodin was the only one bleeding,maybe from a first strike.

[GentlemanJim]

The real disgrace is how Thai coaches and managers were powerless to stop the chasing and running and to step in between quickly. They did nothing as is customary in Thailand.

Yes, you are fully correct. Must be a real big problem in Thailand... Losing face aspect I mean... Coaches sits there

doing nothing, never goes in between problem and sort them out......Disgraceful really...

Glegolo

Coaches did not just sit there.You expect them to chase these quick lads all over the stadium.When they stopped running people jumped in to pull them apart.Also Bodin was the only one bleeding,maybe from a first strike.

The only physical aggressor in this incident was Bodin. If you watch the video's concerning the matter you would see very very clearly that the only 'first strike' was by Bodin on his opponent. Bodin picked up his bleeding ear after about 5 secs after his first strike, when he was chasing the other guy, who tried to swipe him away with his racket in his hand. The incident was entirely a result of Bodins physical aggression. No matter how much there were verbal taunts from the opposition it holds zero excuse for Bodin to deliver the ABH/GBH which he inflicted on the other guy. If verbal abuse was a defence for giving a good beating then John Mcenroe would never have made it alive past his first international season.