Guest lazyphil Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 <<There is deep rooted racism from Thais towrd hilltibes of all types, esp occurs in the north>> Which did make me chuckle when WYD drew comparison to cultural banter with Essex girls and the point in discussion regarding Hill Tribes I think there is a vast difference between harmless jokes about Essex girls and the plight of the Hill Tribes who it seems are ostracised by the most of Thailand for whatever reason :: I will have to call my friend seven miles away over the border in Saffron Walden (Essex) to get his latest view on Essex girls and how much social justice they have and access to facilities (be them meagre) other Thais receive. My friend has lived in Essex a long time and I know it quite well and haven?t just back packed there for two weeks . Although to get more insight into the archetypal Essex girls to which the jokes are about one needs to go deeper into South Essex to Basildon and such places..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 If one does not understand something, the one doing the act must be superstitutious. This definition is just not true. Superstition is if one doesn't understand something but can't admit it and searchs for an "mythical" explanation. A la: this lightning killed you because you were an evil person. Superstition is if one understands something but can't accept it and searchs for another "mythical" explanation. Most religions are build on superstition (because it is an easy way to control people). Not to exclude that "angels" could exist, isn't superstitious. But the way how you explain angels could be superstitious. The example about thai tellers who know things is similar to mind reading. (Which could be explained for example with the help of quantum physics : But all these phenomena weren't prooved or explained till now, and so they fall in the category of possible but not prooved phenomena. (Unless you experienced yourself such a phenomena and you weren't a superstitious person.) Best regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 [color:"blue"] Which could be explained for example with the help of quantum physics ) [/color] Perhaps not comprehensive enough, but hen there is Fractal Mathematics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 Perhaps not comprehensive enough, but hen there is Fractal Mathematics On the contrary, it is comprehensive enough, but a "beautiful" theory doesn't have to be true. And there are just no experimental facts about mind reading. Best regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 I find superstitions one of the most entertaining subjects in every culture. It is entertaining... as long as you don't have to suffer from it!!! Best regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 Now, to be fair, when ones form a nation, ones must have a common means to communicate, with a common language intact, then people can speak, write or read any dialect they want. Ones have to be able to communicate. But it would be better to have forced the isaan people to learn thai and the thai speaking people to learn lao. By the way there are many countries where there are more than one official languages. Best regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJsushi Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 Says pattaya127: after all we are only speaking of completely stripping a people of their culture and written form of communication ------------------------------- what form of communication. What culture? More than a few families in Issan still have ties across the border, still speak lao, so do the khmer Issan south, who speak cambodian. Incidentally, tell me what happened in these 2 countries in the last 30 years, massive communist blanketing of the countries, genocide, people dragged into wars, having to choose side, losers becoming refugees or interned in camps (and before that , it was big brother protectorat from the french). What culture do you talk about? Go to Laos, go to Issan and tell me how Issan seems so depleted of ancient culture that laotians have not lost too. Half of my books on thai culture are about cultural behaviour in Issan and brands of Buddhism practiced there that were quite vibrant even 20 years ago. Sure they have lost, but like they have lost in the french countryside, and so many countries where old ways gave way to modern consumerism. An Issan not integrated fully in Siam would have been up to grab by the french, because that's what they tried to do off and on thru Chula's reign and it took him real diplomatic skills and a staff of european advisers to fend them off, plus land anyway (Trat, Chantaburi I believe). that means Pol Pot could have ruled west of the Mekong too, maybe. How about Chiang Mai and the North, cultural genocide too? Sure things do change, and not for the better always, and diversity loses everytime, but you making it sound like a cultural genocide, that's what i respond to. Cordially When you are forbidden to write in your own language and have to systematically accept the ways of your conqueror, that is cultural genocide. Nowyou are spinning this into a romantic tale of kings of yore, Colonialism, unification of a great nation,neighboring wars, a sense of destiny,etc and all to justify the fact that the Thais forced the Isaan people to accept their ways. I am not debating the right or wrong of it because it is a process that has been done ever since you have had the conqueror and the conquered. Yet, I am not going to say that it was for the "good" of the people and all that other romantic stuff, which is what you portray in your history lessons. Bottom line is that if you want to assimilate a people and make your culture the dominant one then you have to kill off most of the other. This what the central Thais did and continue to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 That the country united and learnt Thai is good, disunity is bad for a country. As if it is important to have only one official language to unite a country!!! Such a nonesense! Best regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 [color:"red"] By the way there are many countries where there are more than one official languages. Best regards [/color] Really? Jasmine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted October 3, 2003 Report Share Posted October 3, 2003 [color:"red"]As if it is important to have only one official language to unite a country!!! Such a nonesense! Best regards [/color] Perhaps nonsense to you but I don't know enough to contradict the King Rama the 5th, ok? Most Thais accepted and look at Thailand, surviving the colonization which none of the neigboring country could. Now, mind you, I will not debate on the King or colonization, do you understand? Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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