Responsibility Of Being Social

Lets look at our retards first……twatpackers as is the modern word for adventurers. We are not back in the 1970’s or 80’s any more, the world now is not just a smaller place but a much less safe one too, many more situations that put us at risk. I for one still believe that as humans we are generally inquisitive and for the most aspect friendly. However off the beaten track is not only harder to find, but more extreme.

Its to be encouraged that give and take opportunities to travel, as they say travel broadens the mind, and what was considered exotic 50 years ago is now everyday common event. I would still say if you get the opportunity take it and learn from it, but don’t expect others to pick up the tab. At 17 I upped and jogged off to France for the summer with a friend, my room was a tent and spent a very enjoyable few months working on vineyards, driving tractors, and meeting many young people from other nations doing the same. I still had money in my pocket and travel insurance…. being a grown up is being able to look after yourself and not expect others to pick up the pieces if it went wrong.

Today we I’m sure there is a different mentality with people, not just younger ones, but many in general. Naffing off for a few months and not even remotely prepared for the what could happen. We see some now begging on the streets for money to continue their trips ( Fuck Em) sponging of others to supplement their life is wrong, and irresponsible as well as anti social and immoral, Also we are often encountered with the sad fact of accidents and the need to get medical assistance and then back home….. Hello, that is what travel insurance is for, and if a company won’t insure the trip then there is a reason. Now being a parent myself, I hope that I have made it bleeding obvious that travel insurance is the first cost of any holiday, not the last or an after thought, if anything went wrong, then you at least have a chance. And why so many lose the plot when they are away with a couple of drinks and sun on the back… what ever happened to personal responsibility, if your to stupid not to plan for these trip then don’t go.

Ok now on to the very touchy subject of life here in Thailand. Nothing in many cases that Darwin award contenders are seen everyday, however lets take everything into context. Thailand is a wonderful place to live, but accept is not a first world nation, its not emerging either, its developing, the outside world is asking a country to jump several eras or decades of history in a few years its not possible, there is such a conflect of interest and also the fear of losing its own identity which would be an issue for all. We have  nation of very proud people with some amazing culture, which could easily be swallowed up by the globalisation of so called progression, just look at Europe for a prime example, an area rich in culture being forced to drop all its own identity to become a union of 300 million clones!!! The great thing about Europe was the vast difference in culture in such a small space. In history Thais have been very smart, they saw all their neighbouring countries being swallowed up or even conquered by then European superpowers, so faced with impending prospect of being next in line, they adapted many European methods and cloned themselves in to something like a European run country, invited in limited number of visitors and just carried on…. Now if that’s not clever what is?

There is much ridicule of the educational system, part of which is justified, education is not a party trick and neither a “lip service project to the people” give your people good balanced education with the objectivity to learn and ask difficult questions, challenge the now as that is how we make progress, its not a cash cow for school owners and neither is a place where you can not be exempt from failure. To fail and learn is a critical factor in learning and developing, every major achievement was preceded by thousands of failures. The whole system needs change, not tinkering and erasing foreigners, but fine tuning the right people in the right positions, then pay a decent salary (don’t think for a moment a good teacher is cheap) support the teachers, allow them to teach not drag them down in politics or petty games…. in short do it properly or don’t do it at all.

Our languages are different, I find Thai ambiguous, it can mean what both receiver and deliver wants, good for not losing face, but bad for clear communication, it needs to become a living language (adapt to the circumstances translate well into other languages at the moment it does not) otherwise it will fade and die. If there is confusion people will ignore it, We expect from our top people guidance, respectability, honesty and commitment to serve the people, well we joke about how that is not a politician from the west, dirty fingers and dirty toes in every pie you can find, its an ugly profession, and was once said if anyone has ambitions of power, then they are the ones to be kept furthest from it. It s not for me to comment on those here and neither would I want to, apart from it not being good for my health, its none of my business……however there are observations, willing obedience is better than forced obedience, dictators drive their slaves whilst rulers lead by example.

If just if there was going to be a step in the right direction, more of credibility maybe its best to appoint someone who can deliver a speech with credible information , say as you wish to your own people, that is your duty to boost the moral of the nation, but Internationally you hear and see it every week and think……… ” Really WTF!” and if I’m thinking that and I’m a nobody, you can only imagine what other international leaders must be thinking.