In the past famines were more common. It is a fact that the oil in brown rice goes rancid fairly quickly making the rice taste terrible and then becoming unhealthy. White rice will remain edible for years when stored. it is true that white rice is devoid of the B vitamins found in brown rice causing beriberi in people who don’t get enough other nutrients in their diet. The B vitamins lost in white rice are replaced in modern white rice. Although I am sure there are other micronutrients that are lost in white rice this does stop people from getting beriberi. On a non nutrient note it’s easy to add tasty flavors to white rice that the brown rice flavor would interfere with. Many South Americans survive mainly on beans and rice while many Asians do the same with rice and fermented soy products – both with many other vegetables.

That’s the beauty of being free from a collectivist mind. The motion of the world is swayed by the ingenuity of American individualists.

That’s silly. Americans do have a distinct history, and the Chinese have plenty of “non-distinct” history; I mean, what is the distinct history of the Malaysian Chinese, Singaporean Chinese or mainland Chinese? Its all pretty meaningfully different. But there’s still an effort, even if its lip service, to consider the impact of the self as a member of the community. Because ultimately, we’re isolated cells. We’re all fish inside the larger stream of society, and our actions impact more than ourselves.

Its one of those things which seems almost ridiculous silly to argue with AaronB with, as he pretty obviously has nontrivial knowledge on this.

“What do you think about the idea that people should care about others and not just themselves?”

In part because of the social media explosion, in part because the Democrats and Republicans within the past decade have been coarser within their own ranks as well as against one another, and in part because of the decline in religious I faith are factors why I believe that there has been a significant decline in why people are neglecting to look out for one another. It seems to me it’s increasingly becoming a “me” world.

“I think it’s healthier and more ethical for people to look beyond their selfish desires and care about other people and not just themselves. Do you agree?”

I was channel surfing this past weekend. I came across on old episode of the Dick Cavett Show. Lauren Becall, F. Lee Bailey, Robert Vaughan, Roy Wilkins, a Republican Congressman, and two others discussed racial tension, the Vietnam War, and economic slowdown–all calmly, reasonably, and civilly.

“I think that right now in America people care only about themselves. For instsnce, wealth is increasingly concentrated in the hands of a tiny few, and companies no longer guarantee employment for employees and employees are no longer expected to remain loyal to their companies if a better offer comes along. CEOs make decisions based on short term profits even if this harms their employees in the long run.”

No argument from me.

“One of the themes I’ve noticed about your comments here Corvinus is that you strenuously oppose any effort to get white people to start caring about each other the way other groups in America and across the world do.”

I strenuously oppose when white people call other white people “race traitors” or “cucks” for not looking out for their own kind. If white people want to form groups and ensure the ways of their race, more power to them. But just do not expect other white people to join in, nor demand that they not call into question the motivations behind it.

It’s almost as if white people caring about each other is a personal threat to you….

“Why do you think it’s such a threat to you that I suggest white people start caring about each other like the Japanese or the Chinese or the Jews do?”

Because white people are NOT the Japanese, Chinese, or Jews. White people are heterogenous. They are a race. The Japanese, Chinese, and Jews are ethnic groups with a distinct history compared to American or European whites. American whites generally do not refer themselves as “Anglos” or “Europeans”. Must they in order for them to be “accepted” by the Alt Right?

It’s very strange…

I’m not alt-right, Corvinus, and I think white people should be caring and kind to all people on earth, including non-whites. I just think white people should start caring about each other, which they’re not doing now. Charity starts at home, they say.

I would think my position is pretty benign and uncontroversual, even in keeping with the ethical notions of most of mankind….and yet for the life of me I can’t shake this feeling that you’re opposed to it, and I just can’t figure out why…

Thanks for your links, corvinus, I will look into these important matters.

What do you think about the idea that people should care about others and not just themselves?

I think it’s healthier and more ethical for people to look beyond their selfish desires and care about other people and not just themselves.

Do you agree?

I think that right now in America people care only about themselves. For instsnce, wealth is increasingly concentrated in the hands of a tiny few, and companies no longer guarantee employment for employees and employees are no longer expected to remain loyal to their companies if a better offer comes along. CEOs make decisions based on short term profits even if this harms their employees in the long run.

Conatrast this with Japan.

One of the themes I’ve noticed about your comments here Corvinus is that you strenuously oppose any effort to get white people to start caring about each other the way other groups in America and across the world do.

It’s almost as if white people caring about each other is a personal threat to you….

Why do you think it’s such a threat to you that I suggest white people start caring about each other like the Japanese or the Chinese or the Jews do?

It’s very strange…

I’m not alt-right, Corvinus, and I think white people should be caring and kind to all people on earth, including non-whites. I just think white people should start caring about each other, which they’re not doing now. Charity starts at home, they say.

I would think my position is pretty benign and uncontroversual, even in keeping with the ethical notions of most of mankind….and yet for the life of me I can’t shake this feeling that you’re opposed to it, and I just can’t figure out why…

Nice interview, thanks. He does a good job of giving you time to develop your points.

You have the most interesting fantasies.

You’ve actually seen a child derive glee from this activity, or is this colorful SWiPpLe imagery?

Great article Linh. I have a strong interest in Southeast Asia with a current focus on Thailand and Vietnam, so I have really been enjoying your recent columns.

Just as a man who claims to love all women, loves no woman …

Truer words have never been spoken.

Do you get a certain glee from being excruciatingly tedious? Like a child gets from smelling his own farts?

Only three groups have iconic power in America. Jews, blacks, and homos.

You say this like it’s a bad thing.

Hey Linhho; our conservative president is doing his job and PROTECTING OR BORDER!

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50299574/more-than-40-cambodians-deported-from-us-arriving-today/

“It’s such a defect that Asian societies are rapidly becoming wealthier and more powerful than ours while managing to modernize without developing our social ills.”

That is patently false. Asian nations are beset with similar problems.

https://asiafoundation.org/2014/01/22/the-critical-issues-affecting-asia

” the American myth of individualism”

That is patently false. Please educate yourself on this important matter.

http://www.hooverpress.org/American-Individualism-P635.aspx

-fuddled
Granted that centuries of ingrained knivery is a practice that can achieve some material gain in the short run and the current culturally accepted practice of intellectual theft from the west is I’m sure widely praised within the collective.
The fact that they do not have the intellectual and creative abilities to develop their own disruptive technologies is a testament to depredations of collectivist thoughts.
They’re able to steal and manufacture like a good worker ant but the mind in the collective is barely able to perceive anything not enjoined by the collective. A progressive dementia that leaves the victim in a state of constant fear; have I satisfied the collective today?

Actually, individualism thrives when culture and shared assumptions provide a principle of unity and overarching sense of safety and common purpose.

British culture fostered eccentricity and character when it also offered everyone a sense of safety and security through shared cultural norms that acted as an umbrella for the development of individual character.

Today, I am struck by the character and eccentricity of the Japanese and Chinese people I meet – they are full of humor and quirkiness and a refreshing contrast to the enforced blandness and conformity of Americans. Americans, lacking a unifying cultural principle, cannot afford eccentricity or quirkiness.

British and Europeans who still preserve some semblance of cultural unity also display a refreshing individuality and quirky humor.

Americans are the true bland conformists.

Stop thinking in simplistic binary terms – the American myth of individualism is a compensation fantasy for what we cannot afford to have, lacking any unifying principle.

“In the course of my life, I have seen Frenchmen, Italians, Russians, etc.; I am even aware, thanks to Montesquieu, that one can be a Persian. But, as for Man, I declare that I have never met him in my life. If he exists, I certainly have no knowledge of him.”

-Joseph de Maistre

The thing is, individualism can work – but only in homogenous societies where the vast majority of people subscribe to individualism. In diverse societies where every other group except yours is tribal, individualism amounts to unilateral disarmament.

I hear you, Felix. It’s such a defect that Asian societies are rapidly becoming wealthier and more powerful than ours while managing to modernize without developing our social ills, and Asians within our country are becoming an elite by collectively promoting their group interests.

But at least you are a special snowflake – a unique individual –
possibly even a genius – beholden to no one, and not an insect-like Asian grind.

My compassion extends infinitly wide when I remember what harms me. I don’t need acceptance in a collective to extend compassion.
The propensity of Asians for a large scale collective, whether emperors or communists, is certainly a defect due in no small measure to its native religions.

In Buddhagnosa’s classic text “the path of purification”, which is a standard text among several Buddhist denominations, the very first exercise in developing compassion for others is to first develop self-love and self-compassion.

Compassion is a widening circle outwards.

There is no true love without self love. If the telos of an individual is complete assimilation into some collective that self hatred will manifest itself in its hatred for other collectives. Organic collectives free of governmental coercion; the goal.

Thanks for your comments. I never heard Thais say much about the Japanese when I was there.

About the second war. There is a book called “Consul in Paradise”. The author, a British diplomat, who spends 174 pages talking about how interesting and pleasant it was to live in Thailand says in the introduction

“It has been suggested to me that I should write something about the part played by Siam in World War II. I cannot bring myself to do this. I have long since forgiven the injuries that were inflicted on me during that painful period, and my only desire now is to forget them.”

And does not discuss the matter again for the rest of the book.

Inscrutable Occidentals.

Suntorn,

thanks for the link to Wikipedia. Cut Linh some slack, he was reporting about Thailand but he give his experiences from many countries, we should be polite to him.

The link was interesting because when I was in Thailand there was this weird tendency towards homogeneity. I would have a conversation about religion and many people would say “all religions say that we should be good and avoid sin”. I am paraphrasing but everyone would use almost exactly the same words. Another example that sounds odd, I would go to buy a bowl of noodles and all noodle sellers would have their materials organized in exactly the same way on the shelves of their carts. This sounds petty but I was there for four years. There was a right way to organize everything down to the most petty details.

Happy to hear that Linh’s Vietnamese contacts there were happy. My impression was that Thais found the Laos comical and stupid, but there was no real bad feeling. They would tell stories of Vietnamese boiling rice by burying three children up to their necks into the ground so they could use their heads to support the rice pot.

Ok, fair enough, your position seems reasonable. And yes, skillful diplomacy did play a role. Credit where its due.

But I still think you guys are too sensitive about this stuff, and it’s unnecessary. I think Thais are experiencing too much stress these days, and this adds to it.

Anyways I have no beef with Thais. I have always been very warmly and hospitably treated on my visits.

Not an accident of history. As you said so yourself, skilled diplomacy played a major part in Thailand remaining independent. Could Thailand have been defeated by a European power? Yes, but they weren’t. Could the Japanese have defeated the Thais? Yes, but they didn’t.

And for those who still want to insist that Japan defeated Thailand in WW2, it didn’t happen that way:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_invasion_of_Thailand

Thais don’t get upset when others claim that the Japanese defeated Thailand because of delusions of grandeur. Thais get annoyed because it’s simply not true and then people who can’t be bothered to learn the history want to argue that it is.

The pride is misplaced, because Thai independence is an accident of history and they could easily have ended up as any other country in the region. To allow this to become a source of touchy sensitivity and a sense of threatened superiority as reality continually collides with inflated self image is doing no one any favors, least of all Thais.

You Thais have a tremendous amount to be proud of – one of the world’s great distinctive cultures with a high level of aestheticism and sophistication, one of the world’s great cuisines, and a very respectable level of economic developement even if comparisons to Europe or Japan are silly. Do yourselves a favor and let go of the misplaced pride which creates a totally unnecessary level of mental stress among Thais themselves.

You exaggerate, but within your hyperbole there are kernels of truth. Thais don’t think they are a superior race. Thais are extremely proud of their history of independence but Thais understand that they have been the lesser power in many instances and it was this knowledge that allowed Thais to swallow their pride and make concessions that were in their best interests.

50 Poupon Marx > White rice is like white bread, relatively tasteless and just starch.

white rice, like white bread was invented for only one reason – to enable production of a product which would VISUALLY DISPLAY whether there had occurred an insect infestation

You city people are a barrel of laughs

It’s true, for most people love of group is the highest love they can know, and if you break it down they don’t start loving all of mankind but only loving themselves. Another example of the best being the enemy of the good.

Take away love of group and people just become selfish individualists. And in fact love of group probably predisposes one more to love of mankind than selfish individualism.

It’s clear now the end of nationalism is moral regression, not moral advance.

48 MikeatMikedotMike > and my observation was that about 95% of the local females

my observation is that you’re not very good at asking a girl where she’s from

Most (at least today) working girls in the white-tourist red-light-districts are NOT Thai nationals

Thailand has a fairly respectable economy going on. Even young girls from the Hill Tribes areas of up north, can come on down and get a job in the regular economy.

Working-class Thai girls do sometimes try to make an extra buck on the side. They can afford the bus fare to Singapore, where a piece of ass goes for 20 times what it does back home.

I think that you have either misread or misinterpreted the comments that I’ve made to you. Understanding that Thailand was once a fascist country doesn’t mean that I am equating nationalism with fascism. One can be a nationalist without being a fascist but you can’t be a fascist without being a nationalist. The reforms made in Thailand under Phibun’s fascist rule radically changed the nation. You can’t understand current Thai nationalism without understanding Thailand’s fascist past. The very name of the country, the idea of a unified Thai people, and how Thais see themselves today all have roots in that time period.

Since you’ve written an article about Thai nationalism, I would hope that you have a genuine interest in where those feelings of nationalism stem from. I would encourage you to read these very short articles:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Thailand_(1932%E2%80%931973)#Fascist_Thailand

And from that era of fascism, came the Thai cultural mandates. These have had the greatest effect on changing the country.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_cultural_mandates

Thais have a myth that they have never been colonized because they are a superior race whose only peer in Asia is Japan, who also was never colonized. It sounds insane, but I kid you not, this is how they think – and they are extremely touchy and sensitive about it, because the obvious realities of their international position don’t support such an inflated self image.

By saying Japan conquered Thailand you are putting severe strain on their mythical self image and forcing them to confront a reality they would rather avoid.

In reality, Thailand was not colonized because the British and the French preferred to have a buffer state between their respective colonial empires and because Thailand skillfully submitted to western demands and expectations – a talent for political pliancy it displayed again after ww2 when switched sides again. This didn’t stop the French from seizing Laos and the British from annexing some southern Thai provinces into Malaysia, which the Thais are still bitter about.

Once you understand Thais self perception you can better avoid these controversial subjects – they genuinely see themselves as the master race of SEA. Its better to avoid these subjects with a smile – inwardly, of course. Thais are a cool people – we can forgive them their silliness.

Linh,

I think that the situation in Thailand in World War Two was ambiguous, as I said before. It is interesting that you are getting such a strong response as you are someone who drifts through countries and relates your experiences. I don’t always agree with what you say (e.g. your remarks about the World Trade Centre terrorist in Barcelona) but you do not present yourself as an all knowing expert on anywhere that you visit. Saying that Thailand was a victim of the Japanese Empire reflects better on the Thailand than saying that it was an accomplice. Some people need the internet to pick fights, or you may have inadvertently shown something about Thai nationalism that I did not know before. I do remember reading that when they commerated events in the South, there were reports that the Thai military displayed indiscipline towards the Japanese.

I am glad to hear that the Vietnamese you knew are not the subject of bad treatment from the Thais. Perhaps the place has changed for the better from when I was there.

all the best

The only references to fascism in the comments have been about Thailand’s government during and before WW2. Thailand was considered a fascist government during that time period by its contemporaries. Thailand modeled itself after fascist Italy. Thailand’s leader, Phibun, was a fascist dictator. These facts are not really in dispute, yet for some reason, you want to apply your particular 21st century views onto the historical record and insist that Thailand wasn’t fascist. Would you then argue that Italy wasn’t fascist?

Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram, locally known as Chomphon Por, contemporarily known as Phibun in the West, was the longest serving 3rd Prime Minister of Thailand and fascist leader of Thailand from 1938 to 1944 and 1948 to 1957.

Linh,

Three points:

-you are being very restrained and polite about Thailand in the second war. I think that it is difficult to say exactly who is right here because the situation was ambiguous and it was in the Thais interest to keep it so. They did not want to end up on the loosing side.

-One of the products of Thai facism was pad Thai. They wanted a national dish.

-when I was in Thailand there was a lot of bigotry towards Burmese and Vietnamese (called yuan, a very insulting term). Did the people you talked to know that you are Vietnamese ?

A most fascinating example of this are the Jews of Kaifeng, China. There at least a thousand years, they are indistinguishable from other Chinese, yet still consider themselves very much Jewish. Some have emigrated to Israel.

Bloody hell! If the Chinese had any sense they’d be deporting the rest tomorrow.

Decent people (as well as the 0ther sort) can disagree about the degree to which it was caused by either side, but the disorder and suffering created by the existence of a wilfully distinct jewish identity group within western societies cannot be denied. A China that supposedly takes a much longer view than the European derived societies would surely take action now to root out any such possibility.

Quite a few errors. “Since 1912, Thailand has had 21 coups d’état and 29 prime ministers,” Siam was an absolute monarchy until 1932. The coups started later.
Thailand never fought China, quite the opposite. Chinese merchants, statesmen and diplomats were welcomed.
The stuff about King Taksin, a Chinese from Tak, western Thailand, who drove out the Burmese in 1767, is just silly. “…high-tailed to the Himalayas”? Rumors of insanity led to his assassination, sandalwood club over a silk hood.
Disappointing piece that makes me wonder about the writer’s other work. Having lived and worked as a journalist in Thailand for the last 30 years, I’d judge this fiction and not very good.
In closing, when this piece is picked up by the Thai authorities, Linh Dinh will probably be blacklisted for false reporting and insulting the monarchy, and rightly so.

2 Topolcats > This whole article is just a piece of ill informed commentaries with have no real relation to Thailand

perfect for Ron Unz

Let a thousand barbarians blossom!

The Article is STUPID ..

You had to know it was coming right?

“Barbarism is the natural state of mankind. Civilization is unnatural. It is a whim of circumstance. And barbarism must always ultimately triumph.

— Beyond the Black River, 1935”

How many RMB per comment do you get paid?

am very certain that “cruel assholes” reflects the extent of your education. Please grow up so that we can have an intelligent discussion… oh I’m sorry you are “special”…

but with multiculturalism replacing the melting pot as an ideal

No, multicuturalism isn’t the new idealism.

The West is now all about vanity, celebrity, fame, fortune, glitz, and razzle-dazzle.

So, most cultures and peoples get no respect in the West. They are considered boring, lame, and dull by attention-deficit-affected Westeners. Also, the immigrants and their children fall under the spell of what is ‘cool’ and ‘hot’ and, soon enough, they imitate whatever dominates pop culture.

So, the result is neither multi-culturalism(where every culture is deemed to have equal value) nor melting pot(where all peoples meld into the basic foundational template) but more like Magnetic Altars. Most groups, lacking iconic value of their own, gravitate toward the iconic groups in either adulation or imitation.

So, if we look at Viets, Laotians, Cambodians, and other Southeast Asian types in the US, they are NOT defined by their own histories and cultures but by imitation of black culture, worship of homo culture, or (if they enter the deep state) service to Zionist power. Linh Dinh is an exception than the rule.

Look at these SE Asian kids in the video below. Their culture is little more than imitating black culture. They gravitate around the Magnetic Altar of blackishness.

Only three groups have iconic power in America. Jews, blacks, and homos.
Blacks because they dominate sports and pop music. Also, there is now global obsession of the ‘twerking’ black booty and the black dong.
Homos command much of style and pop culture. And they are the most narcissistic and self-worshiping people, which can’t hurt in the Age of Vanity.
Jews got the media to promote themselves. They also push the Shoah narrative as religion.
But Jews are now vulnerable in one area in which they were very iconic: Comedy and Wit. With PC making so much comedy impossible and with Jews now serving as the Establishment at war with irreverence — NO Jokes about trannies!! — , there is a war on wit, and this is bound to hurt Jewish iconicism. Would people like Woody Allen and Mel Brooks have gotten far in today’s climate? Even milder Jerry Seinfeld gave up the college comedy circuit.

Whites are a strange case. They obviously do have iconic value because other races find both the men and women attractive. Even though white men lose to blacks in sports, their facial features are still more preferred. And white women still dominate fashion.
But whiteness must be a silent iconism that can’t declare itself. It exists to be taken and enjoyed by other groups.

technically vietnam had a “pro-Japanese “French” government during WWII…” as it was still a colony of (Vichy) France. but the Japanese got rid of the French in March, 1945. So for a few months it was “independent”–at least from westerners….

It’s true, multiculturalism is a failed endeavor.

https://ronaldthomaswest.com/2014/10/09/liberals/

But perhaps not for reason of stereotype…

LMFAO!

Lihnjo, you spend more time arguing back and forth with your readers than all of the other columnists COMBINED.

Linh,
You’ve given me so much over a decade writing about your travels.
I haven’t sent you money because I’m one of the deplorables-I’m poor-but i owe you my sincere thanks.
I dreamed often of sending you money to visit me so you could write another postcard at the end of Amerika.
I suppose that will never happen.
Ha! Fine dog and chief air Marshall. You’re a great wit and a patient man to respond to so many idiots.
Amerika is less now that you’re gone and you will not be replaced my friend.
The country is unfit when a person of your talents isn’t making a very nice living and opts for se Asia but i hope you and your family happiness and prosperity.
I saw your YouTube video this am of you with your nephew. I had forgotten i subscribed to you.
Wow, you’re a great singer too. So many talents.
You should post a video doing an Elvis classic. That would be a real treat that would make the King proud.
Take care Linh.
A fine dog and chief air Marshall bahhhhhaaaa.
You really know your dogs.
Please please please drink some beer for me.

I went on R&R to Bangkok in the fall of 1969. I went to a lot of movies then, and marveled at the spectacle of the King being displayed on the screen, while the national anthem was played. I then realized that Thais are inherently civilized. I could only imagine the same scene in an American theater if Tricky Dick had his picture on the screen, while the American National Anthem was played. I would have expected a hail of popcorn and drinks flying at the screen.

When I was in grad school, my university had a pipeline to the best Thai schools, since a number of department chairs were personal friends of the Thai Royal Family. So, a fair number of my classmates were Thais. They were always rugged individualists, and had great senses of humor. Some of them were high ranking bureaucrats over here to get their PhD degrees.

I am told that Bangkok would not be recognizable to me now, because it is mostly high rises. I had a great time there, taking some tours, and eating food from street vendors, and even in a Thai restaurant. I learned about Thai hot sauce the hard way.

That’s all you’ve got? You can’t offer a rebuttal because you seem to know absolutely nothing about the topic. You’ve contributed nothing to the conversation and your only goal seems to be winning Linh Dinh’s approval. Your weak attempt at insults reveals your obviously low self-esteem.

Linh Dinh,

Are you concerned that this may be your last visit to Thailand?

Sampling a few lurid streets in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket or Chiang Mai, foreigners come home with tales of live sex on stage and ladyboys, but Thailand is no more of a brothel than the Netherlands, although each Dutch city, not just Amsterdam, has its red-light district. Most Thais are conservative, rural people, and during my visit to Namtok Phlio National Park,

But the character of a nation or civilization is defined by what is most sensational, popular, ‘idolic’, or iconic. So, it doesn’t matter that many Thais are conservative rural folks. What defines Thailand in the world is that it’s a Whore House nation… and with full blessing of the urban elites.

It is a foul and vile nation.

So, after all the leftist rambling, you agree with Trump!

Without borders there is no country.

I saw your stupid and irrelevant replies to Linh Dinh.

However, continuing re. your ridiculous claims of gunpowder having been banned in Japas, , battery was dead, so was not able to fin.

Any of the surviving castles in Japan and the only one I know of that is faithful and careful reconstruction, all have slits for firing muskets. The ferro-concrete monstrosities, like Osaka castle, maybe not.

I would caution other posters against paying any attention to your assertions, you seem to love to saying things that are simply not true, as if fact.

Would advising other posters to taking anything you are saying less than seriously.

Seeming to me, you are an odd type of troll or propagandist.

You are not credible. You have posited generalities with no support or references. Your tone and comportment is like that of a college freshman who just took a general and survey course of a subject and knows it all. Your Gestalt is adolescent-like and repugnant. I am not impressed.

“Dweezel” is a descriptor that comes to mind. The same with the loutish and churlish Twatcat, or whatever he calls himself

Yawn. That’s supposed to be proof?

Reads like laughable ‘holocau$t’ survivors tall tales.

There’s also countless “eyewitnesses” to witchcraft too.

I sense you’re grasping desperately.

You forgot to add that every Chief Executive must be infatuated with the effete plutocrat game of golf.

Trillion dollar budgets should be hastily accepted, and the contents therein NEVER examined- lest one second of a two week golf orgy be sacrificed while the very existence of our nation hangs in the balance.

Betterness at being outed as a person with limited Knowledge about Thailand is understandable. Especially when fabrication are concerned. None the less I commend you on self reflection in response your anger problems. That could be a Future path in curbing your obvious intellectual, or lack of it, Dishonesty

IOW, you cannot refute their arguments, desperately you appeal for help.

You’re in over your head.

Yes, Thailand was an axis power.
Same as Italy? Depends on one’s criteria. See below.

I see you predictably dodged my questions, but I’ll answer them for you:

Now, did Thailand declare war on the US & Britain or not?
– Yes, absolutely.

Did Thailand assist Japan or not?
– Yes, absolutely. Thailand provided ships, men, materials, and allowed Japanese bases.

AFAIK Vietnam did not declare war on the US & Britain, now did they?

You continue to use strawmen.

Quit digging.

Better a troll than a Dunce like you !

Yes, the Japanese were cruel assholes, even to their allies. It’s no secret that the Japanese wanted to dominate all of Asia and saw themselves at the top of the hierarchy, much like the Germans saw themselves at the top in Europe. During the war, Thais thought the Japanese were trying to run their country and the Japanese thought Thais weren’t obedient enough. But after the war, relations between Thais and Japanese were good. To this day, most Thais have positive opinions of the Japanese.

Expansionism, in of itself, is not fascist, but when I say that Thailand was a fascist country, I’m not being figurative. It literally was a fascist country, as in that was its form of government at the time. It’s important to point out that Thailand was a fascist country because, in many ways, it mirrored other fascist countries of the time like Italy and even Germany. A sense of ultra-nationalism and wanting to redress earlier humiliations and losses is what helped bring Phibun to power. The fascism was incidental and a product of the era. Claiming to want to unite all Thai peoples was a convenient excuse because, ironically, many of the territories that the Thais wanted back weren’t even inhabited by Thais. Only the Shan states and the area of Laos west of the Mekong were Thai lands. Though most of Laos could be argued to be Thai, that wasn’t attempted to be reclaimed.

Never argue with a fool, other people can’t tell the difference.

Yes, Thailand was an Axis power. In fact, Hitler called Thailand, “Japan’s Italy,” (though he meant that disparagingly). In reality, Thailand’s role would be better compared to Hungary in WW2. Thailand had its territorial ambitions and allied with Japan to achieve its own goals. After the fall of Singapore, Thailand formed an official alliance with Japan and Thailand was allowed to invade and annex the northern Malay states that they had lost to Britain during the previous century. If Japan did not see Thailand as an ally, why would they give Thailand territory?

Vietnam was part of French Indochina, so it wasn’t even an independent country at the time. It’s not comparable. Thailand actively fought in the war, mostly for their own benefit. They were not a passive participant. It’s true that Japanese used Thailand, but the Thais also used the Japanese. Thailand would never have dreamt of invading Burma and Malaysia without an alliance with Japan.

Thailand’s role in WW2 is misunderstood by many outside of the country but it’s worth learning and discussing because it’s difficult to contextualize Thailand’s current nationalism without understanding that time period.

Troll

Thailand was a fascist country at that time. This is not disputable. So, of course, it had something to do with fascism. The name change of the country from Siam to Thailand was part of an ultra-nationalist vision to unite all Thai peoples. If you are unfamiliar with Thai history of this time, you should read about Plaek Phibunsongkhram, who modeled himself after Mussolini. Because of their role in WW2, Thailand maintained good relations with Japan after the war, unlike many other countries who held resentment towards the Japanese.

You guessed wrong!..Just like your uninformed comments about Thailand!

Yes, that is what I am been trying to say. Being covered up in the Sun is not about modesty. I also referred to the fact that being called someone from a Rural area is insulting middle class urban Thais.
Because as you wrote: ” (being dark) which is associated with lower class field workers, but an obsession with being white skinned since that’s associated with being a member of the pampered upper (ruling) classes. Sad but true, as for me I like them darker or lighter it just depends.

But I do know many many Thai’s and other Asians that will not ever have sexual relations with darker skinned girls. As far as I am concerned that is entirely their hang up.

If you are a travel writer? I suggest you give up!…. You’re hopeless!
Try working for Fox news or CNN where people can report on Fake news on a daily basis!

In your case IGNORANCE is bliss!

So all those Issan girls with limited funds that live the rural farms in Thailand go to Bangkok to do what exactly? Selling one body wither you are a Bangkok freelancer or a darker skinned girl from Issan does not have the same stigma as it does in the west. Freelance girls do the sex trade for all sorts of reasons. But yes to deny that many rural farms girls from Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines go to the big cities and not end up in the sex trade is deluding only yourself. Yes, I can speak some Thai and Filipino…Also I can refer to you in Veitname as Bui Doi & it would fit.
Tiga provincia kaba? Anong gagawin mo so Manila? Mag trataboho ako sa massage parlour po.
I don’t have to tell that to Thai Bangkok people, that rural girls work in the sex trade. Its pretty well common langauge..Doh!

I know it wasn’t true because I know Thai history. What have you got? Complete ignorance of the subject. If you want to learn more about Thai history, you know you are on the internet at this very moment. Thailand was a fascist, expansionist country that initiated a war with colonial France all on their own. Japan didn’t make them do this. Japan helped broker a peace agreement between the two countries. During those peace talks, the Japanese worked out an agreement with Phibun, the dictator of the country, to pass through Thailand to invade Malaysia.

This is not hidden history. It’s just not well known to you and others because you likely had no reason to study Thai history. Not a big deal. There are plenty of countries out there whose histories I am not well versed in. One thing I wouldn’t do is try to argue from a place of ignorance. If you doubt anything that I have written, do your own research.

said:
“It’s you who’s dragging out strawmen. I never said anything about Thailand’s role in World War II. All I said was they surrendered quickly after being attacked by Japan.”

Yet previously you said:
“Are you actually saying Thailand was an axis power, similar to Italy?!

So yes, you DID say something about Thailand & WWII.

Now, did Thailand declare war on the US & Britain or not?
Did Thailand assist Japan or not? Examples are easily found.

I recommend that you quit digging.

loved it..laughed out loud..keep em coming.

I see this thread has brought out all the Thai nationalists 🙂

It’s one of the funniest and most ridiculous things I used to run into when I did business for my company in Thailand.

Thailand is a fantastic and funky little country with lots of atmosphere and fantastic people, but one of the most absurd things about it is the touchy and sensitive inferiority/superiority complex. To be fair, all such complexes make people silly…but Thailand, of all places! I mean, how oblivious can you be already about your place in the world… 🙂

Be careful, Lin Dinh. You’re gonna run into this a lot! Smile a lot and go along.

Thailand has every reason to be happy and satisfied with itself without these silly little fantasies and absurd self-comparisons with East Asian and European countries….

Bangkok is an even more fascinating city than Saigon, you’ll love your long random walks through weird neighborhoods…I used to do that all the time. Indian cultural influences are more obvious than in Vietnam and you end up in these random bazaar like neighborhoods with statues to Hindu gods..

The street food is probably best in the region, if not the world…

Haven’t been there in ages, I’m due for a tour of Asia….

Some fun:

From my lived 30 years in Berlin perspective:

I found most South East Asians fairly easy to get along with, unless they were Cambodians and you just assumed them to be Vietnamese because most generic asian restaurants in Berlin are run by Vietnamese and they typically find it nice if you say “Xin Chao” to them. Definitly cuts down on delivery times.

Well yeah, those were actually Cambodians and damn the stares I got were pretty cold.

From what I get, the Viets and Thai in Berlin get along with each other (they disagree on who is the proper overlord of Cambodia and Laos, but are in full agreement that both Cambodia and Laos need some “paternal or brotherly” guidance).

Laotians are perhaps more pro Chinese because being a vasall to a large somewhat distant power which has better/more important things to do then to interfere with your daily lifes beats being the sole vasall of a medium power next door.

Thanks for that article by Braeman. It seems no longer to be available there, but it can be read on Wayback:

https://web.archive.org/web/20060622113029/http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/jala/25.2/braeman.html

According to Braeman, Beveridge was correct in saying that there was a great deal of nonsense written about Lincoln; but when he cleared it away, he still didn’t arrive at a clear picture of the man. Lincoln seems to be a difficult study, due to the complexity of his personality.

If Lincoln statues are ever torn down — and I’m not looking for that any time soon — I don’t think it will be over dark scandals: there seem to not have been any (although the circumstances of his murder are very curious indeed). It will begin with the fact that he was Anglo.

As everyone knows by now, any number of flimsy and meaningless arguments can be dreamt up to support the toppling of anyone. It’s the winners who write history, after all.

You are trying to hard to impress, of which I am not. For such a strident tone and denotation I see no references, not even second hand information from a friend, family member, documents, interviews.
In other words, for a guy like me who made decisions involving large physical projects, millions of dollars and the very lives of people, I know what verification and reality are, and the channels into which information is judge reliable.

I would say to you, like a crummy rock band of little quality and artistry, you have compensated by using noxious extreme volume rather than sourced material of any quality. Ho hum. Humbug.

They appealed for forgiveness, claiming that they hand their hand forced by the Japanese. This wasn’t true, but it became the narrative, which is why today many outside of Thailand still claim that the Thais were defeated by the Japanese.

How do you know it wasn’t true? This would be very hard to nail down as beyond doubt. History is looking at something that happened with a foggy, scratchy and frequently distorted lens. I believe that you and others would be better advised to use qualifiers such as “I believe…” or “It seems…” rather than just state outright what you do not completely know and cannot prove.

Linh made a simple statement backed up by a reference. What have you got?

At 18, he became king only after his older brother had died, from a bullet that may have been fired by Bhumibol himself, accidentally.

It is rumored that the former king of Spain, Juan Carlos, shot and killed his younger brother.

In East Asia, you just don’t touch an adult’s head or buttocks

In Japan and South Korea, it is common for children to stick their fingers up the behinds of adults. Countless foreign English teachers have been assaulted in this manner. The act is called kancho in Japan and ddong chim in South Korea.

This only applies to WHTIE RICE, which is stripped of fiber and nutrients. Brown rice beats a whole baked potato in almost every category, save calcium, I believe. White rice is like white bread, relatively tasteless and just starch. There are other types of rice, e.g., basmati, Japanese Sushi Rice, and other variations. The American hybrid, “long grain white rice”, is garbage like Kellogg cereal.

The beauty of SE Asian countries is that most allow foreigners to stay long-term whether they are needed or not. You simply have to be self-supporting. Visa rules vary widely by country — your nationality, or being over 50, or married to a local, or receiving a pension can make it even easier to settle. Pick a few countries and see which ones will let you stay with the least amount of hassles.