Thailand ahead of the pack
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Re: Democratic ideals do not need to be written, Letters, July 11
Vint Chavala asked a question which included the phrase: “Why don’t we copy the United Kingdom?”
It is a curious question as Vint Chavala seems to be an intelligent, informed individual and yet not aware of one basic fact – no country can successfully copy another country – so perhaps Vint Chavala is pulling our collective leg and simply baiting us with a non sequitur.
It is common for Americans who first travel outside the US to ask that same type of question, naively thinking that all that others have to do is to simply copy the US and thereby solve all their problems.
After a few years of observation, however, it becomes obvious that countries like Thailand have developed cultures of the unwritten types alluded to by Vint Chavala that far surpass, and are light-years ahead of, those of the US, UK and others who are supposedly “advanced”.
Long-time foreigners in Thailand are constantly trying to get Thais to see the true superiority of Thailand and Thai culture, as we have been around the block a few times and can speak from experience, so I would ask: Why not let the UK (or US, etc.,) copy Thailand?
Please believe me: the great Thai culture is far ahead of the rest of the world.
Foreigners like me choose Thailand over all of the other places in which we could easily reside because of the magnificent Thais who, ironically, think so little of themselves sometimes.
Humility, like all else, has its limitations.
Guy Baker
Bangkok
