Midweek rant: The Right to Rant – it’s not bashing Thailand to criticize

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Midweek rant: The Right to Rant – it’s not bashing Thailand to criticize

 

File photo

 

One thing I really hate.

 

Those people who think you should keep your mouth shut about things if you are in a foreign country.

 

“You are a guest in their country”, they spout. “You have no right to criticize”.

 

What a load of nonsense.

 

Who gave them the right to tell other people what to do? Eh?

 

And why do they think you even need rights to speak up about things that are wrong, about injustice.

 

I couldn’t care less if someone wants to bash the country of my birth – Britain.

 

Why should it be any different in the place where you live, Thailand?

 

Even if you are just a visitor.

 

I am not even saying that you have to have lived in a place five, ten or fifty years before you somehow gain these “rights”.

 

I see no reason why the tourist off the plane should not have their say immediately if that is what they want.

 

Countries can learn a lot from their visitors – it’s called perspective.

 

Sure people look a bit silly if they bash based on no knowledge of the reasons, whys and wherefores for the problems.

 

But who says you have to be informed before you rant?

 

The Rant Police?

 

I may have spent most of my compos mentis life in Thailand but I think that everyone has the right to their opinion.

 

Sure we must all keep within the law, even if we disagree with it.

 

But why should foreigners be silent when they see things they disagree with?

 

Obviously being fair is important, being informed a distinct advantage.

 

Having a valid point helps.

 

Who doesn’t hate those Thai bashers who abound on forums like Thaivisa who are neither fair, informed or have a point except to troll or incite.

 

But there are many of us who care passionately about Thailand.

 

We want to see it improve – just like the Thais do.

 

We care enough about it to criticize. We care enough to comment. We want things to be better.

 

So don’t tell me I can’t rant.

 

To paraphrase the song:

 

It’s my party and I’ll rant if I want to.

 

Rooster

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-08-17

[Thian]

Mate if you don't like it here you know where Swampy is now don't you?

 

I hate that line...

[lamyai3]

Indeed, nothing more tedious than to hear the line "if you don't like it here, go home"... usually uttered by the sort of person who would have made a great traffic warden back in their own country. 

[Oziex1]

"Mate if you don't like it here you know where Swampy is now don't you?"

 

The above argument is flawed, I live in Australia I like it but do I have some complaints and criticisms of the Government. Heaps

[zzaa09]

Critiques usually follow the line of Western comparatives, which isn't logical.

[vadid]

The ways Thais react to the merest criticism of their country shows an underlying deep lack of confidence in the nation. 

[impulse]

Still, I think some people would be happier if they didn't live in a place where they hate the culture, hate the people, hate the government and think they're all idiots.  

 

The ones that I get a kick out of are the ones who hate everything about Thailand, but live here because it's so much better than the life they left behind. 

 

And I suspect the locals would be pleased to see a lot of them go- so they can stop being treated like toe cheese and errant children.

 

Edited August 16, 2017 by impulse

[JLCrab]

I like living in Thailand. I have a great time in Thailand. I accomplish a lot due to minimal distraction of life in Thailand.

I do not care PASSIONATELY about Thailand. Makes life living here a bit easier.
 

Edited August 17, 2017 by Maestro
Removed nonsensical part of the post.

[rkidlad]

Saying stuff like "it's my culture" or "it's what I believe" is never an excuse to be a c***. 

 

Self-loathing 'farangs' are the most detrimental thing for foreigners here. The ones who always slag off their own country in some mad idea thinking it will endear them to the locals. It doesn't. If you want people to respect you, you have to respcet yourself first. 

 

I have full and frank converstions about all walks of life with my foreign friends and my Thai missus. Nothing is taboo. People talk and share ideas. No one is preaching hatred, etc. We are merely talking openly like adults. 

 

If you can't talk openly and freely, you're not talking. You're just blurting out meaningless words to appease. Guess who benefits from these inane words? Not you. It's someone or something else that has a more sinister reason for not wanting to be talked about. 

 

Bad ideas die in a society that ridicules.

[Thaiwrath]

1 hour ago, impulse said:

Still, I think some people would be happier if they didn't live in a place where they hate the culture, hate the people, hate the government and think they're all idiots.  

 

The ones that I get a kick out of are the ones who hate everything about Thailand, but live here because it's so much better than the life they left behind. 

 

And I suspect the locals would be pleased to see a lot of them go- so they can stop being treated like toe cheese and errant children.

 

Even better are the ones that lived here, liked it, but for one reason or another, had to go back to their home country (finances, broken relationship etc....).

A lot of these, who declare they now hate Thailand with a vengance, seem to spend every free moment on here, saying how bad it is, and trying to convince themselves that they made the right decision, to return to the place they left originally, because they hated it !

As someone quoted on here the other day...............'you can take the farang out of Thailand, but you can't take Thailand out of the farang !'  

[MekkOne]

What a bunch of BS, the post and most of the comments...


This is an acceptable signature (hopefully)

[Raymonddiaz]

I am amused to see how foreigners like to be called " Farang or alien ?" . We are called Farang to remind us that we don't belong here and we should shut up or go home......

I always tell my thai friends that I was born in a country with freedom of speech and free to say what you think. Background is important to know to understand someone's mind. There's no moral in Thai culture me think.....

[impulse]

2 minutes ago, Raymonddiaz said:

There's no moral in Thai culture me think.....

 

It's different than the moral code where I come from, but there's a very strong moral code in LOS.  Not necessarily better.  Not necessarily worse.  But different.  

 

Problem is that many foreigners think that the codes their Moms taught them are universal truths.  They're not.

 

[maewang99]

the sounds of 6AM and earlier.... pervasive ones...

chickens and other birds
clacking sounds of mortar and pestle (not a complaint)
empty stomach vomiting sounds (not a complaint)
 

but that last one is a sign of something. I believe. 

is that a rant?





 

Edited August 17, 2017 by maewang99

[Bob12345]

2 hours ago, vadid said:

The ways Thais react to the merest criticism of their country shows an underlying deep lack of confidence in the nation. 

Exactly, I have some Thai friends who try to come back at me making fun of my home country (they lived in Europe for a decade so know a bit about European countries) but in all those years they have never been able to say anything that really lands. The reason is simple; they either misunderstand what is going on, don't understand the background, or they are right and I admit they are right.

 

The size of my ***** is not influenced by how others perceive my native country.

[johnnybgood]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lamyai3]

10 minutes ago, maewang99 said:

the sounds of 6AM and earlier.... pervasive ones...

chickens and other birds
clacking sounds of mortar and pestle (not a complaint)
empty stomach vomiting sounds (not a complaint)
 

but that last one is a sign of something. I believe. 

is that a rant?

If it was a bit shorter, I'd have mistaken it for a haiku

[Kadilo]

the sounds of 6AM and earlier.... pervasive ones...

chickens and other birds
clacking sounds of mortar and pestle (not a complaint)
empty stomach vomiting sounds (not a complaint)
 
but that last one is a sign of something. I believe. 

is that a rant?





 

I stay in Issan so get the early morning Dogs, chickens et al, the village chief broadcasting to the Nation, mama shouting and the passers by popping in.
Could easily turn into a rant depending on mood but tbh it's all part and parcel of life here.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[YetAnother]

3 hours ago, Oziex1 said:

"Mate if you don't like it here you know where Swampy is now don't you?"

 

The above argument is flawed, I live in Australia I like it but do I have some complaints and criticisms of the Government. Heaps

agreed; 'liking it here' and addressing select issues are very different things; thailand is a 3rd world country; those of us that come from advanced countries have perspectives and references that point out the many failings here;

so often the 'dont like it leave' is an attempt by the person saying it to conclude a conversation; after those people are at their logical end

Edited August 17, 2017 by YetAnother

[hansnl]

3 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

Indeed, nothing more tedious than to hear the line "if you don't like it here, go home"... usually uttered by the sort of person who would have made a great traffic warden back in their own country. 

Do we get a rant about traffic wardens?

What's wrong with traffic wardens, you don't like them.

Obviously.

[rkidlad]

17 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

It's different than the moral code where I come from, but there's a very strong moral code in LOS.  Not necessarily better.  Not necessarily worse.  But different.  

 

Problem is that many foreigners think that the codes their Moms taught them are universal truths.  They're not.

 

There 'are' universal rights and wrongs. People can hide behind their cultures all they want. I've never once played the culture card. I explain myself. 

 

See, in a debate you would bring forward your ideas. If you can't explain your ideas or justify them, they can't be very good ideas. If you're afraid to debate someone with your 'good ideas' then again, you're hiding behind something else. Debates aren't about being right or wrong - they're about showcasing the best ideas through reason and rationale. This isn't owned by any particular culture; this is common sense. 

 

I believe in equality for all, fairness, honesty and open and free societies governed by laws that can be debated and criticized by anyone. There is no perfect society. After all, we are animals with selfish needs and wants. What we do have is education. We can build on that and constantly keep learning from our mistakes by talking, debating, ridiculing and satirizing. 

 

Never be afraid to criticize bad ideas. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[George Bowman]

I complain. Why? Maybe, I am just getting older. Or maybe it is because of paying millions of Baht in taxes throughout the years. No place is perfect. I even complain when back in the states. So does my Thai wife...

Edited August 17, 2017 by missoura

[MadMuhammad]

The only problem I have is it's the same old whinge about the same old rubbish that hasn't changed for years and years. 

Mans the ill informed complaints about how 'difficult' the extension of stay/visa system is when it's actually cheaper and easier than a lot of places. 

If people made an intelligent argument/complain ratcher than complaining about something for the sake of it I'd be open to listening. 

I don't tend to respond to rants for that reason.

[Pilotman]

My first advice to anyone coming to LOS on holiday or to live is to leave their western head, western judgement and western culture at home.  This  place is different, isn't that why you are here? 

[edwinchester]

In Thailand the right to rant has limits.

Attitude adjustment, defamation suits or 15 years loss of liberty are just a few of the pitfalls.

[impulse]

25 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

There 'are' universal rights and wrongs. People can hide behind their cultures all they want. I've never once played the culture card. I explain myself. 

.....

Never be afraid to criticize bad ideas. 

 

Railing against the Eastern culture while living in the East is a little tiring and pretty fruitless for me.  When in Rome...

 

Edited August 17, 2017 by impulse

[overherebc]

3 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

Indeed, nothing more tedious than to hear the line "if you don't like it here, go home"... usually uttered by the sort of person who would have made a great traffic warden back in their own country. 

Nah. Some traffic wardens you can actually talk to.

?

[hawker9000]

3 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

Indeed, nothing more tedious than to hear the line "if you don't like it here, go home"... usually uttered by the sort of person who would have made a great traffic warden back in their own country. 

I disagree.   It's usually the recourse of some over-invested expat whose got his savings, his business, his life, etc., tied up in Thailand and can't afford the thought of ever repatriating/relocating (or maybe burned all his bridges and just can't afford it period).  It's a miserable prospect to contemplate, but human nature to go into denial and seek validation from others in the same predicament and similarly motivated to not want to admit their misadventure.  They see members logging onto the forums here to comment on negative experiences as further devaluing their own decisions and their own declining circumstances.  So naturally, they react badly to negative commentary and want above all to keep it under wraps and well away from public view.

 

The better course would be to allow it all into the light, and at least give readers the sense that they're getting both sides of the story with everything being freely and fully discussed.  It speaks volumes that the confidence level is so low that the inclination is instead to try to hush up and suppress, trivialize, and marginalize the bad stuff.

[rkidlad]

2 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

Railing against the Eastern culture while living in the East is a little tiring and pretty fruitless for me.  When in Rome...

 

Speaking openly and frankly with my foreign friends and Thai missus is thoroughly engaging and fruitful for me. I talk the common talk with locals when out and about.

 

Your body and brain are muscles. You stop using your body and it withers away. It's the same when you stop using your brain. 

 

There's a huge difference between observing something and 'railing against' something. I have no dog in this fight. Let good ideas shine and bad ideas die. After all, sunlight is the best disinfectant. 

 

 

[oldhippy]

8 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

Railing against the Eastern culture while living in the East is a little tiring and pretty fruitless for me.  When in Rome...

 

When in Rome... throw a christian to the lions.