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Follow the law
Editor;
In my country it’s illegal to bribe or offer a bribe to the police or
elected officials. What is the law in Thailand? Should I pay the police when
stopped for a traffic violation? Is it always the foreigner’s fault and he
pays when involved in an accident with a Thai? Are police involved in any
traffic offense other than riding a motorbike without a helmet? How about
making a u-turn in the middle of traffic? Crossing two yellow lines to pass?
Speeding? Just what is the speed law?
Driving in Pattaya can be very dangerous; many people are injured or killed
by drivers who do not obey the law, causing hardship on families, insurance
increases and a bad reputation for Pattaya. I have driven in most large
cities in Thailand and Pattaya is by far the worst. In Chiang Mai people
obey the law, motorbikes drive on the left of traffic and traffic flows much
more civilized. Would it be possible for someone in authority, preferably
the police chief, to answer these questions?
Jim
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Employees are entitled to 13 paid public holidays
Editor;
Re: Despite 53% wage hike, construction workers mark Labor Day with gripes
over low pay (PM Friday, 10 May 2013) - The comments from Khun Ekachai are a
concern as the Thailand Employment Act says employees are entitled to 13
paid public holidays each year but chosen from a list of 16 holidays
published by the Thai government and that must includes the National Labor
Day. If these workers are not getting the paid Labour Day holiday I imagine
they are day labourers (informal workers) which make up 61% of the country’s
39 million-strong workforce.
John Le Fevre
Living in Farangland
Editor;
Re: A test in cultural geography? (PM Hillary Friday, 10 May 2013) – I have
to agree from experience; it is very difficult for many Thais to live in the
U.S. etc. even if there is a large Thai community. In my 33 yrs. of Thai
experience I have never met one farang who has married a Thai and taken her
to farangland, and stayed married even 2 yrs. - besides myself and wife, now
married 13 yrs. with 6 spent in the U.S.
My wife never worked or knew anything of the bar business and spoke no
English. While not a country girl I had to take her to the Thai Cultural
Community Association in L.A. to assure her I could not legally beat, sell
or enslave her. The large Thai community in Thai Town Hollywood looked to
only take advantage of her, as they knew she was new to the U.S. She was
shocked at how unfriendly her own people were to her.
We lived in a neighborhood of a number of schools. With her not speaking any
English and her small size, I warned her about going out alone while I
worked, as she would be stopped by school police for hooking school. I made
laminated cards with my cell # and our address should she become lost if she
did go out alone. She did only once.
I made sure she had access to anything Thai she needed, and took her to a
Thai temple in Long Beach which had an older congregation of Thais who took
care of the 12 monks, and befriended her. She spent her days with the Food
Network and learned to cook everything farang.
For yrs. the only contact she had was me and when I was able to take her to
see friends she knew from here. She wanted to work, it was difficult to make
her understand that Thai businesses would not hire her because she was
legal, and her lack of English eliminated everything else.
I took her to buy the supplies she wanted and she began to make and sell
jewelry. Then as she began to know my co-workers she began catering Thai
food for work functions. I am a retired LAX police traffic officer, and with
800 officers there was almost always work for her.
I took her to school for English as a second language 4 hrs. every day, then
to the beach to study together for another 2 hrs. We saw some difficult
times, even once when I was about to lose my job, she claimed she was
staying with me even if we had to live in my truck, and her parents would
add room to their house for us.
As time went on she learned her way around Thai Town, and found ways to send
$$$ home cheaper than by my bank. It wasn’t much, 3,000 to 5,000 THB a
month, but her parents didn’t really need it.
In the last 4yrs. before I was able to retire we came back twice a yr. for a
month or 2 at a time. And just as I told her from the start, we had a plan,
we stuck to it, and are now living the life I promised her. We are best
friends and have never spent more than 3 days apart. But I do remember a few
of her friends upgrading husbands once legal in the U.S. even to the extent
they wanted me to introduce them to co-workers, which I refused to do. I
wouldn’t be a part of them leading someone I know to ruin. So it does work,
with the right person.
Dill Pickles
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It is very difficult to live in the US
Editor;
Re: A test in cultural geography? (PM Hillary Friday, 10 May 2013) - Yes, it
is very difficult to live in the US and unfortunately many Thai people in
the US are not very helpful. I experienced that first hand. A few weeks ago
I backed my car into someone else’s car, God forbid a Mercedes, but no
visible damage (a rear bumper). To make a long story short, she took me to a
garage that operates by a Thai owner claiming that he is more honest. The
guy told me that it will cost at least $600 to fix plus the Thai owner wants
me to pay for her rental car while her car is in the shop. So at that point
I had it, I just called the police to come see the conditions of both cars.
I had him recorded the incident, then called my insurance company. The whole
time, the friendly Thai woman was trying to tell me not to work through my
insurance company, and this is “for my benefit”. She worried for me that my
insurance premium will go up.
I have been married to my (American) husband for 25 years, and yes it is
very difficult for Thais or any nationalities to assimilate into a culture
that is not their own. We have our own cultures and beliefs that most of the
time do not work well with the host cultures. It takes more than love to
keep two people from very distinct cultures to stay together. It is hard
enough even for people that speak the same language.
I have been in the US 25 years and have not lived near a Thai community
until this past few years, and glad of it. I do not find many Thais to be
helpful. I am lucky to have met a good man and his parents and siblings have
been wonderful to me, but I also made my own luck.
I worked hard to take care of my husband and children and to assimilate into
American culture. Dill Pickles said something that is very key to a
successful marriage, he said that he and his wife are “best friends”. Yes,
you really need that in a marriage. You need to be able to talk, to fight,
to depend on each other. I love Thailand and will always come back to visit
but I do not want to come back to live anymore. It is true about the saying
that you can never go home again. The reason I feel this way may come from
the fact that I did not come from a wealthy family or family with high
social status. The US gave me the equalizer that I could not find while
growing up. People treated me different, now that I can afford to spend
money like a fool when I am back in Thailand for a few weeks visit.
Actually, it did not make me feel good, it made me feel sad. It takes hard
work and determination to make a marriage work. Your friend from the USA.
Nida
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Why does anyone
rent a jet ski here?
Editor;
Re: Jet ski scandal surfaces again (PM Mailbag Friday, 03 May 2013) - I
can’t understand why anyone uses a jet ski here, there has been so much bad
publicity. The only answer is to avoid Pattaya beach completely.
Adrian
Disagrees with
harsh penalties
Editor;
Re: Only harsh penalties will prevent future crashes (PM Mailbag Friday, 03
May 2013) - I disagree; there is no evidence that in Thailand ‘harsh
penalties’ influence behavior. What is needed is compulsory education of the
Western type that emphasizes ethics, logic, set theory, and grading without
corruption.
Dana
Sad state of Soi Chaiyaphun
Dear Editor;
Re the disgusting state of the road surface in Soi Chaiyaphun, city hall
should be ashamed at the number of times they have attempted to fix it and
the money wasted. It’s either a flood or a dust storm. I would like to
invite city hall mayor to have a drive down [dodging the potholes], park the
car for a few hours then check the amount of dust on it. It should be
renamed Soi Dustpoon.
Regards TG [tax payer]
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