God How I Hate This Place

Everything about it drives me crazy.

For instance…

I can't own land. How crazy is that? If I want to pay my hard earned money, why won't they let me buy land? What difference does it make if I am a foreigner or not? Isn't my money as good as theirs?

I can't vote! I've lived here for years, and I'm smarter and better informed than most of the locals. So why can't my vote be counted?

But come to think of it, why would I want to waste my time voting? Democracy here is a joke. Democracy? What democracy? People here vote like sheep, like buffalo, for the party that promises them the most goodies.

Freedom of the press? What a joke! The papers here spout off such nonsense they are only good to wrap yesterday's fish and tomorrow's garbage in.

And I have to carry an ID at all times. Can't do anything without it. Woe to me if the police stop me and I'm without it. The police are ruthless with foreigners here.

Don't even get me started on double pricing. Every place you go there's one price for foreigners, another for locals. Some museums (not that I ever go to them) let the locals in for free while we foreigners get soaked.

Speaking of getting soaked, have I complained yet about the high price of alcohol? Amazing! Double or triple what I pay back home, and the price keeps going up every year. Why do I even bother going out to drink? It's not like the service is any good!

The service! Crap! No one cares. The waitresses ignore you. Too busy chatting on their iPhones and sending messages to their friends. They should spend less time on Facebook and more time paying attention to customers.

And the girls! The bar girls charge an f'ing fortune. You'd think their insides were lined with platinum. And the ones that don't charge an arm and a leg just want you to buy them drinks. Buy me a drink, they cry, buy me another as soon as the first one is downed.

And they're getting fatter and uglier by the minute.

So I stay away from bar girls. But regular girls? Another sad story! They want to bleed you dry. They want a condo, they want cash every month. Buy me a car. Give me a credit card! But do they want to cook and clean house? Absofukinlutely not. They don't want to get their pretty hands dirty. Might make it harder for them to play Candy Crush.

Christ things were better years ago. Oh for the good old days when it was great to live in Singapore!

Take care,

Professor

The above sub was written as one man’s protest against the many people who come to Thailand, experience a new culture for the first time, and think that Thailand is different and special. Having lived in 8 countries over the last 30 years, and visited 90 more, I can assure you that Thailand is no different than anywhere else.

For example…

Most countries in Asia don't allow foreigners to own land. In Singapore a foreigner is only allowed to buy in a building with at least 6 stories.

Same about voting. Even a permanent resident who has lived in Singapore for 20 years can't vote. I don't believe any country in the world allows non citizens the vote.

Democracy? The same party has won every vote since the country was founded, and the current PM is the son of the country's founder.

Singapore's press routinely gets extremely low marks for independence. Everyone knows it is simply a mouthpiece for the government.

Everyone is required to carry a photo ID at all times, and you must produce it to get anything accomplished.

Double pricing is everywhere, with Singapore citizens getting reduced rates while foreigners get soaked. This is true of every country in Asia, and, by the way, I was in Italy recently and certain historical sites were free to Italians only.

A bottle of beer costs at least $10, and can be up to $15 in some places.

Service is dreadful. Singaporeans won't wait tables so all the waitresses are Philippinas and they routinely ignore you.

Girls! A typical bar has Philippine girls who are not allowed to go home with you. They only make money from bar girl drinks which cost, I kid you not, $60 each. Alternatively you can pick up a Vietnamese who speaks no English. Short time is $200 up.

The purpose of this sub is not to pick on Singapore. I am trying to show that the things people bitch about Thailand are in fact almost universal. So rather than complain, why don't we all enjoy Thailand for its good things?

I have a lot of respect for someone who moves on. Pattaya Gary, for example. Didn't like Thailand, moved to the Philippines. Right or wrong, the man took a decision and acted on it. I have less respect for people who gripe and gripe but do nothing.

Additionally, there're a lot of comments on this site about the good old days. You know what? The good old days were never as good as people remember them. Besides that, they're gone. The good old days will never come back. People should live in the present.

One man’s rant.

Take care

Professor