Is it true that most Thais believe that foreigners come here because LOS is amazing?

[EnlightenedAtheist]

It seems that many Thais believe foreigners come here because Thailand is amazing. Is that true? This was stated at least 2 times to me by Thais in the last week or so. Not much of a stats to be sure, but still ... I want to know. If this is so, maybe Thais need a reality check. How many foreigners find the 90 days' reporting amazing?

The truth is that most of us are here because it is cheaper to live here than in our home country. Our currency goes a whole lot more here than it goes in our country of origin. (Of course, this would depend who you are with and what you are doing here, but ....) Like many countries and cultures, Thailand and most of its people are nice, but like many countries and cultures, Thailand is not so nice. It is not "amazing"! No country is amazing. All countries and cultures have their annoyances. Most countries have government workers who follow laws that don’t make sense, that are way too rigid. Most of these people feel that they can be rude and force people to be polite to get the most reasonable things. These workers are annoying, but they are so in most countries. One of the most frustrated annoyances (negatives) in Thailand is the inability of the culture and most of the people to accept criticism and to criticize openly. This is true of many countries, but the Thai culture has evolved to prevent people from telling what annoys them. There is difference between voicing an opinion, giving an advice, expressing a concern and criticising. How can progress occur if no one complains about anything, if it is not acceptable to complain?

If foreigners sometimes get angry, it is because some rules and some laws do not make sense. That is what some of us do. To simply be of the opinion that this is a primitive manner to react to things is clearly not seeing the result of that culture.There is a limit to what people can take, unless you have been brainwashed to think that one should always accept low standards or behaviour. If Thais prefer to not get angry, stay calm, then, maybe they could be considered responsible for the driver who will be causing a major accident on the road, for not telling the companies that burned the fields of corn waste and kill many people with diseases. Being calm is sometimes the easy way and the selfish way. If no one has grown to take criticism, then it is much harder to accept them later on, even when they are justified. How can one determine that one's behaviour or work is substandard, unacceptable in such a culture? If the feedback is so hard to apprehend, isn't it surprising that the behaviour and the work will continue to be like the one before.

Many countries have negatives. Many cultures have. I want to stress this. However, a "losing face" culture is a big negative in my opinion. Of course, changing this is like trying to move an elephant. I realize this. However, IMHO, it is preventing certain cultures from progressing. No? Maybe I am missing something.Thais are smart people as far as I can tell and as smart as any other human beings. I like many aspects of their culture. I like, for instance, the way motorcycles can merge into traffic or intersections without anyone going nuts. The smaller must mind the bigger rule is a good one as far as I can tell. No nanny state here. But. if you cannot tell drivers that, in your opinion, they are driving disrespectfully, that they are tailgating, that they are drinking and driving because you might be offended, then this is not a matter of losing face, it is a matter of losing lives. If one cannot even hunk to let people know, this is not fair to the driver and to the potential victims, of course. This is not just about driving though. It is also about selling food that will not make anyone sick or more. It is about offering air that will not cause strokes, cancers, diabetes, obesity. Yes, there are research that links bad air, pollution to those diseases. People need feedback. Of course, there are nice ways to tell someone, but no feedback is dangerous. NO? The "mai pin rai" is not a negative so much when there are small issues. We think that this is great. It is the other side of the not losing face culture though. Is tailgating a "mai pin rai" if it causes a deadly accident?

Life in Thailand would be much better if if foreigners did not have to fill so many forms so many times to stay. It could be that some Thais must do the same when you come to our country. But, we do not set those rules. Please do not retaliate. We do not like to do this anywhere. I know you don't too. Why do I have to present my passport once to get a visa, at least 4 times to get to your country, one more time to pass immigration in Thailand, and to stay, I must do this every 90 days. No foreign country imposes this kind of unnecessarily unfriendly rules. This is indeed amazing for a country that is so-called so easy going. Why is your "mai pin rai" stopping for foreigners? Why do you not understand that we do not like to "lose face" too. to be treated like criminals? How many years do people must do this to prove that they are not in Thailand to cause problem? Do you know how many documents one must give to get a driver’s licence when one has one from our country? It is insane.

And some of you will say that if we don't like it, we can live. Some people in our country would say this too. But, that is too easy to not look at your culture, at your country, at your behaviour. You could be so much better. Any culture, any country, any people that can take criticism is an amazing country.Thailand is not amazing. It is just that you think it is. I wish some of you could travel and find out. No country is amazing. Ours included, but we don't pretend it is. Participation ribbons are not medals. Where is the evidence in the field of science or math that you are amazing? Sorry! Okay! I hear you do well in scrabble and badminton. My bad. I hear that you are champions in deadly accidents. Thaaaaaaaat is amazing! Why though?

[Berkshire]

Most Thais (who don't work in the tourism business) really don't spend much time wondering about why foreigners come to Thailand. In fact, it would be safe to say they spend zero time thinking about it.

[BudRight]

Thailand is really not cheap anymore.

[HooHaa]

What i am reading is an indignant sense of entitlement, an inability to accept that you are not in kansas anymore, a refusal to make cultural compromises and an unwillingness to accept that you need to satisfy a bureaucratic process to be able to stay here.

im amused that you say you and the majority of foreigners are here because it is cheap then have the audacity to expect everything to be the same.

you must often be disappointed in restaurants.

as for thais being proud of their country, good for them, it is better than apathy or indifference.

Edited July 8, 2016 by HooHaa

[Bunnychow]

Most Thai's believe most male farang come to Thailand to boom boom dark Isaan ladies

[KMartinHandyman]

I stopped reading after paragraph one.

[manarak]

Most Thai's believe most male farang come to Thailand to boom boom dark Isaan ladies

and they would be mostly right... many Thais are surprised at how many foreigners also like Thai boys and ladyboys...

[BudRight]

What i am reading is an indignant sense of entitlement, an inability to accept that you are not in kansas anymore, a refusal to make cultural compromises and an unwillingness to accept that you need to satisfy a bureaucratic process to be able to stay here.

Yet again, for the ten thousandth time, the problem is not that Thailand has a bureaucratic process, it's that it has an arbitrary, capricious one designed to discourage presence in the Kingdom.

Regarding cultural compromise, let's pretend we were in Kansas and you overheard an immigrant lamenting such bureaucratic hurdles. Would you criticize "a refusal to make cultural compromise," or would you consider they may actually have a point?

Edited July 8, 2016 by BudRight

[squatncrunch]

I don't get how or why people bitch about 90 day reporting. It's pretty painless.

[Bunnychow]

I don't get how or why people bitch about 90 day reporting. It's pretty painless.

People bitch about it not because of the physical act of having to report its more of a case of perceived superiority some people have over the "natives" in other words they are bitching because it case of "how dare the natives make the whities report their address every 90 days, dont the natives know their place "

[JingerBen]

What i am reading is an indignant sense of entitlement, an inability to accept that you are not in kansas anymore, a refusal to make cultural compromises and an unwillingness to accept that you need to satisfy a bureaucratic process to be able to stay here.

im amused that you say you and the majority of foreigners are here because it is cheap then have the audacity to expect everything to be the same.

you must often be disappointed in restaurants.

as for thais being proud of their country, good for them, it is better than apathy or indifference.

Good points... from the first to the last.

The OP sounds like someone who hasn't lived long-term in too many other countries.

[Gulfsailor]

Been in Thailand a little over 11 years. Still find parts of it amazing; the weather, the Mai pen rai attitude, the nature, the driving, etc. I come from a very regulated and by the book European country, which considers itself liberal but is far from. Boooooring. Thailand is amazing and the few days a year I have to spend on burocratic processes in order to stay here are well worth it. Oh, and live is quite a bit more expensive where I live now than where I used to live. But then again now I live on a tropical island!!!

[MissAndry]

its more of a case of perceived superiority some people have over the "natives" in other words they are bitching because it case of "how dare the natives make the whities report their address every 90 days, dont the natives know their place "

If I didn't believe I had actual superiority over the 'natives' I'd hop over a balcony right now.

But in the case of most male foreigners I see in Thailand, I wouldn't have let them into the country in the first place.

Edited July 8, 2016 by MissAndry

[MissAndry]

you must often be disappointed in restaurants.

I'm only ever disappointed with a restaurant once.

[joeyg]

its more of a case of perceived superiority some people have over the "natives" in other words they are bitching because it case of "how dare the natives make the whities report their address every 90 days, dont the natives know their place "

If I didn't believe I had actual superiority over the 'natives' I'd hop over a balcony right now.

But in the case of most male foreigners I see in Thailand, I wouldn't have let them into the country in the first place.

Point! Match!!! 5555

[daveAustin]

Can someone paraphase the OP for me ?

They don't think Thailand is amazing.

You'll get no joy here, op; they won't have you berating their beloved adopted homeland. And, to be fair, they'd be right. You don't have to be here, do you? Things can be infuriating, but simply vote with your feet; there's no point in digging your heels in lest you want to have a heart attack.

In answer to your question, I have heard many times the locals bigging up their country across virtually all walks of life... well, it is drummed into them after all. Many also believe we're just here for the girls and they generally think we're all tourists and that we will never be regarded as equal even though one may have roots here and be a 'citizen'. But who cares, just think yourself lucky you have the option to live here despite having to jump through the odd hoop.

On its perceived amazingness, once the honeymoon period has worn off, it tends to lose its appeal and the niggly little things can start to get to us. But on the flip side, it also manages to produce a bit of magic on occasion and feels remarkably free compared with most of your over-regulated home countries where, let's face it, there is very little magic any more.

Bon soir!

[swissie]

Since Kindergarden, Thais are told that Thailand is the greatest country in the world. (An ongoing process).

This is supported by the fact, that every year 24 million people come to visit Thailand, escaping hellholes like Europe and the US.

What amazes educated Thais most is that some of those refugees from hellholes like the EU / US are actually investing money in Thailand.

Only the TOT and some "hard core Farangs" think Thailand is amazing in an overall positive way. Educated Thais are not part of this equation

Cheers..

[IMA_FARANG]

I stopped reading after paragraph one.

------------------------------

I did not get that far.

Not worth bothering to read it.

[Marcel1]

Thailand is amazing, in its own way. Its up to each person how to intrepit this.

I think every country is amazing in its own way but for me Thailand is very clear.

I wanna invest, build or start anything or buy land..... I cannot.

I don't care since I don't have that wish. If I would wanna buy some land, I would have to move to a country where that is possible.. Simple as it is

[gerry1011]

Thailand is amazing.

Thai people are amazing.

Thais may well believe that I am here because their country is amazing.

If not, I will make them believe it.

15 years ago I came for the first time to Thailand by coincidence, and ended up staying. Amazing.

Amazing country.

Amazing people.

[cyberfarang]

It depends on what the OP means by foreigners? He is probably referring to Farlangs.

I would like to bet that more Thais go to live abroad each year then the numbers of Farlangs coming into this country for settlement. I know there are thousands that have made the UK their home, married Brits and there are now Thai restaurants spread all over the UK. I would think the amount of Farlangs staying in Thailand is probably very few compared to the Thai communities in our countries.

Unlike Thais that settle in our countries and are real immigrants, we are here strictly by the courtesy of the Thais, so they don`t consider us much as anything because we are few in numbers and not imposing to them.

[starky]

what is there to be proud of exactly?

Can someone paraphase the OP for me ?...i stopped reading after the second paragraph and the thread seems to be going along the lines of another whinging farang with a sense of self entitlement

You made it to the second paragraph. I'm impressed. I got as far as the second sentence before I quickly realized it wasn't worth the time to read.

Yet funnily enough though you and other posters who derided and wereso bored by the OP took the time to read all the associated posts and then comment as well. Typically TV if I don't agree with someone they must be wrong also known as the if you don't like it leave syndrome.

[TimTang]

I don't get how or why people bitch about 90 day reporting. It's pretty painless.

It's really annoying, it doesn't really serve much of a purpose, and you get punished if you forget.

[canuckamuck]

It is amazing here, but partially because it seems like a live action Fail Video.

[geronimo]

I think the Thais watched the repetitive "amazing Thailand" TAT offensive too much, and it kind of stuck.

[Deepinthailand]

I think it a great place to live so yes that amazing6

[sturdyd]

I don't get how or why people bitch about 90 day reporting. It's pretty painless.

It's really annoying, it doesn't really serve much of a purpose, and you get punished if you forget.

I agree.

Sure, it's relatively easy, but it really does seem pointless. Back in the US many years ago there was a requirement for aliens to report their address once each YEAR. Currently, the US alien registration card (Green Card, not too difficult to obtain) is good for TEN YEARS. Okay, the rebuttal is, "BS. Apples and oranges. Thais can do whatever they want. Go home!"

While I agree that Thais can do whatever they want, that doesn't make the 90 day reporting any less silly. That's twice as often as I get my teeth cleaned!

[KittenKong]

I dont find Thailand amazing at all. It is really quite similar to other Asian countries.

The 90-day reporting is a minor inconvenience, though completely pointless. My yearly extension is simple, quick and cheap and is a major attraction for living here as few other countries offer anything very competitive.

Some things are cheaper here (mostly things that have a lot of labour/service associated with them like eating out or accommodation or repair work) but most things that you can buy in a shop cost more here than they would in Europe. And warranties and customer service barely exist here so you can end up spending a lot on crap that doesnt last. This includes the cheap repairs I mentioned.

But I can live here quite legally without paying any income tax anywhere and that goes a long way to counterbalancing the higher costs of shopping and the general inconveniences of traffic, humidity, noise etc.

[Deepinthailand]

I don't get how or why people bitch about 90 day reporting. It's pretty painless.

It's really annoying, it doesn't really serve much of a purpose, and you get punished if you forget.

I agree.

Sure, it's relatively easy, but it really does seem pointless. Back in the US many years ago there was a requirement for aliens to report their address once each YEAR. Currently, the US alien registration card (Green Card, not too difficult to obtain) is good for TEN YEARS. Okay, the rebuttal is, "BS. Apples and oranges. Thais can do whatever they want. Go home!"

While I agree that Thais can do whatever they want, that doesn't make the 90 day reporting any less silly. That's twice as often as I get my teeth cleaned!

I would much rather have 90 day reporting rolled out in UK. You think Thailand has a problem with overstayers compared to the UK it's peanuts. It takes me 5 mins on line to do it. I'm happy to do it if I had to report in person every 90 days I would and have been happy to do it. Get over the fact you seem to think farangs are a special case for some reason. If I have an accident and through my ID card and the 90 day report can find my family and tell them it is worth it for me.

[EnlightenedAtheist]

Thank you all for your comments.

It looks like some had a tough time managing more than 2 lines of my OP, which might have been the reason why you did not quite get to the more balanced, nuanced part (or the part when I talked about Texas).* However, you did look like you were very smart pigeon-holing me. Btw, I did stop reading your remark after the 2nd line too, but then there were only 2 lines., so it is a moot point. LOL Of course, if you only read the headline, the thesis, are you really giving the writer a fair chance? Are you not from Texas, yourself? "War and peace" could be written by one of those extremists. "Oh! No!" Are you really as open-minded as you pretend to be, going on chastising people so quickly, which is something that you probably are opposed to. Who is the guy (or the woman) from Texas. really?

Btw, I have lived in many countries and consider certain traits of certain cultures as a nuisance in the sense that they tend to artificially legitimize and entrench questionable behaviour, like speeding, tailgating, smoking up the region for 2 months, disturbing your neighbour with a barking dog at 2 a.m.,..The mai-pin-rai culture, the not-losing-face culture, do(es) exactly that. If taken to the extreme it becomes silly. That is what my thesis is. Btw, there are cultural traits from Texas (and not just Texas LOL) that need to be eradicated or smoothened too, at least. Shooting your neighbour over a barking dog at 3 a.m. is perhaps one of those behaviours. Spitting everywhere like some people do is high on most Thais' don't-do-don't-like lists. Insulting your neighbour's mother over a piece of paper that landed in your yard is another one of those. In other words, the middle ground of choosing to honk at someone to let them know that they are speeding like a dork (drunk or not) is a better course of action than just accepting it (with the possible and dire consequence of seeing body bags 1 km away). How are they supposed to know that they are dorks? Or "dorkettes" (who drive so slowly it becomes a hazard)? Sure, I can put up with a lot of spitting and lung damage, but at the end of the day, a culture, people of any culture must look at their own behaviour as a collective and ask themselves if it is that smart to do. Do Thais like to see their children go to the emergency for cancer of the lungs? Please tell me it is so. Over-compliance or patience is counter-productive in certain situations. When it comes to excessive tailgating, drivers cutting people off, or drinking-and-driving because, even though it is annoying to some, if no one does or says anything until there are 3 people dead ... in their immediate family, perhaps, then it is counter-productive. If you find the course of action of doing nothing the right course of action, I hope it does not happen to you. Wait! Dying is part of life. Right? LOL

Thank you for voicing your opinion though. Some of you made some good points. Yes, many foreigners are here for sexual reasons or love, but we all should know that most places in Thailand are much more affordable than Paris or London or New York (and even Texas), unless you like to live under a bridge, that is. Don't tell me that is not one major reasons some of you are here. Maybe many Thais do not wonder why we are here. However, I am sure officials (in the tourism industry or anyone who must "deal" with foreigners) do, as one poster mentioned.

* No, I am not from Texas or hold any extremist convictions, but it is convenient to pigeon-hole someone after reading a few lines, isn't it? LOL

Edited July 9, 2016 by EnlightenedAtheist