Reader Submission: Open letter to Rob V.
Dear Rob V.,
On 28/5 you asked the readers of Thailandblog if they are interested in your contributions about human rights, history and democracy in Thailand. Of course I can only give you my point of view on this. First of all, I want to let you know that I have a very warm heart for you. You seem to me to be a very socially committed and idealistic man and you show a special commitment to the Thai population.
I agree with many of your points of view. But sometimes I do wonder, although it is actually not for me to judge, whether you are not taking too much on your fork and putting too much energy into articles and comments on Thailandblog. Last week, for example, an in-depth story was published by you with a Thai human rights activist and 3 lessons in reading and writing Thai script while you responded extensively, and in my opinion also knowledgeable and often with source reference, to a number of articles on Thailandblog.
Partly because of your call, I have also consulted myself whether I should always respond to articles, all the more so since I am not active on any other Social Media. For myself I have decided to limit that as much as possible from now on. I came to the conclusion that I am wasting valuable time and it is of little use to discuss with, in fact, total strangers about elections in the Netherlands (FvD) and in Thailand, state pension benefits, whether or not to live in Thailand, etc.
Of course I will continue to follow Thailandblog, I am interested anyway in the experiences of our various Belgians and Dutchmen residing in Thailand, as well as the expert answers by many permanent experts, including yours on IND issues, of countless questions from contributors to Thailandblog. Current affairs in Thailand, tourist information and to some extent history also have my attention. But now your question of whether or not to continue with your aforementioned bits.
Although it is of course completely up to you to decide, it is true, as you yourself noted, that hardly any Thai will see these pieces. Writing your stories and continuing to put them on the agenda will probably also have minimal effect on the improvement of civil rights in Thailand that you and I want. Whether it makes sense to invest your time and energy in that is actually a question that only you can answer yourself.
Perhaps any responses to this letter to you can help you with that. In any case, I wish you all the best and I will continue to read your contributions on Thailandblog.
Submitted by Leo Th.
Rob V.'s writings have added value for me. As stated before, as a Belgian I do not have the ambition to get involved (interfere, say quatons) with the country's government, in the Netherlands or in Thailand. In Belgium, that is more than enough task 🙂
For me, Rob V.'sc's writings and the reactions they provoke provide more knowledge of, and hopefully understanding of, Thailand … and to a slightly lesser extent of and for the Netherlands.
I do not find his humanistic principles objectionable, on the contrary. Of course, the French Revolution and the values of the Enlightenment are not Asian (Thai) in origin. They are and remain international basic values for humanity. To Rob V.'s credit, he actively tries to propagate this.
I read Rob's articles with great interest. They provide welcome information. I don't respond much, because I think a response should have added value. Many others will think so too. This of course makes it difficult for a writer to decide whether his efforts are appreciated. At least because of me!
Rob V.'s contributions and reactions are without a doubt the best on this blog. Always relevant and well-founded, with references to sources. I like to read them.
Read them with great interest. Keep going! HG.
I enjoy reading them and are greatly appreciated.
I am not someone who reacts easily myself, but the pen fruits of Rob V. are very much appreciated by me. I, and probably many Thailand visitors, belonged to the hippie generation. Make love no war! Apparently our conscience has been put to sleep with the passage of time. Rob's activism and idealism are thought provoking again. Very interesting Bob. Keep it up.
I think it's fine that Rob V. continues with it, assuming that if you have a different opinion than his, you will not immediately be dismissed by him as racist, facist and such expressions.
Sorry, but that happens quite often with people on the left. By the way, I'm not right either, but that aside.
It is up to RobV himself to determine whether or not he will post articles on Thailandblog. Both on which subjects and on which frequency. We don't have to wonder about that. He is occasionally in full regalia on this blog, and guess what: RobV is a grown man who, given the content of his articles, absolutely knows what he is doing, how far he can go, and what he thinks he should do . Have fun doing it this way. Why? Because the articles and reactions of RobV encourage readers of this blog to inform themselves about another side of Thailand. This impetus is apparent from the content and the number of responses to his articles. So it makes sense and is useful, is it relevant, and interesting too.
There are 2 groups to whom all this applies: the pensioners, a number of whom decide to go or stay in Thailand. Reasoning that house, tree, animal, girl and especially a beer should form the main ingredients of that stay is much too simple. Why? Because a main ingredient of life for Thai people is lack of freedom, completely contrary to what pensioners come to TH with.
A second group are the tourists. For them, they can safely realize that because of their wealth they experience the white beaches, nightlife and "honey for money", while for many Thai people who often realize all this, only poverty is the motive.
But even more important is this: a hard battle is being waged in Thailand. Attention must be paid to this, and it must be viewed critically. If we do not set an example for sex, how can Thailand live up to its name? See also the answer to Leo Th here. It is not about the time and energy of the individual. What matters is that many individuals form a collective, groups and groupings and ultimately public opinion. Public opinion in turn brings about change in the long run - sometimes for a very long time. It happens eventually. A Thailand blog like this and RobV's articles contribute to (influencing) public opinion.
RobV should therefore be praised: not only for the above, but also for his knowledge of “Schengen”. It's also good that he shares his Thai language progress.
There are those who believe that RobV propagates left-wing ideas. A crazy thought. In NL, and especially in BE, the government is closely monitored on a daily basis, their words and certainly deeds are weighed on gold scales, and if necessary the government is presented with the bill. Is that left? I do not think so! You cannot live carefree in TH, it became clear to me in many reactions. Someone reported it unsurpassed: you might receive an invitation. Precisely! Don't want to know anything, don't look back, sit on your own m². Fortunately, RobV does not. You should not be led by fear, because if you do then you are not left, not right, but lf (fill in yourself). Why crackle on NL/BE, and not on TH?
I think there is quite a lot to be said about this response. Here someone who decides for the Thai how he lives, speaks that he is not free. That the legislation in Thailand is different from ours, and that, for example, the monarchy is interpreted in a different way, that is of the Thais. Of course you can think something about that, and I do too. But the wise of the country, the honor of the country, and despite all our stories, the Westerners keep proclaiming that their finger always points the best, that democracy (do we in the EU still know what that represents?) is the best thing for the world .
I think that in the coming decades we will see the West slowly disappearing, and Asia, China, India will decide what the world will look like in the near future. Thailand is busy implementing the Chinese model, command economy, limited democracy, and you can't always maintain that these are wrong choices. I refer to, among other things, the welfare in Singapore.
It is advisable for many farang to come out of their Western "cocoon".
I also read Rob V elsewhere on the net and he makes a valuable contribution to knowledge and discussion there, and to the blog here. And, Sir Charles, human rights are supposedly supposed to be 'a leftist hobby' in name, but in practice that 'left' lets go as soon as it affects people in person…
I really enjoy reading all of Rob's stories and they are highly appreciated. His Schengen visa file, which has allowed me to receive my girlfriend here 5 times without any problems, is invaluable, for which I thank you very much and keep up the good work.
Rob V is a phenomenon and authority on Thailandblog and I hope he stays that way. Rob is honest, selflessly places excellent responses and advice to strangers, also in an area that many have no knowledge of. Who does that? Especially Rob V and with him many others in a very varied field, that's Thailandblog anyway. Rob, you are smart and firm enough to judge for yourself what you are doing.
I would like to say thank you to all those who contribute, you enriched Thailand blog considerably with its eels.
No, Rob, stay who you are, what you do, with deep respect.
Sjaakie
In my opinion it is never wrong to raise concerns and maybe there is something to learn from it. On the other hand, copying what is common in the Netherlands or Belgium is naive or even contemptuous of a culture for me.
Thai are not stupid and they know very well that a change has to come and that can only be done from within.
The pieces on this blog are pretty good in my opinion, but if someone criticizes someone's comment that is not correct, it is often not posted, which is strange.
Just read the comments above as an example.
The hippie generation that I also count myself under have done well when I read like this, you could also say that you have spoiled things, that is why we fled to Thailand.
It's always nice to have self-mockery haha that might make people more fun.
Changes from the inside are never possible without input: gaining knowledge, following training courses, sharing experiences, experimenting, taking feedback seriously, evaluating, setting goals, entering into discussions, debating, staying in touch, admitting, seeking consensus, working together, recognizing the other as equal, etc..
But if the need for change is held back, we are talking about processes other than those mentioned. Labeling these processes as arising from left-wing ideas is crippling. And what culture is meant when we talk about a junta?
It paints a picture as if it were North Korea, but for now everyone has the opportunity to have an opinion and vent it within the rules.
The idea that you can say and do anything is not an accepted phenomenon in every family and a country simply consists of many families and therefore has a logical consequence.
It should be known that the country is also influenced from abroad because customers make demands on, for example, working conditions and the prevention of exploitation in the fishing industry. In addition, there are also the many observers who keep an eye on things and do their work behind the scenes.
Is it so hard to accept that changes in a polity take time and are accompanied by last convulsions?
Please continue to share information.
If you don't want to read it, you can scroll through.
A surprising entry. Let me say that the blog benefits from the diversity of topics. And that certain standards are set by the editors for both pieces and responses to maintain quality. I do my best to tell people about Thailand-related topics and no, I am not going to change the world or the country, but if it gets people thinking for a moment, that is enough. And yes, I just like to read substantiated submissions from others, I don't think it's wise to wallow yourself in a club of 'own right'. Nice and thanks for the compliments, but if there are readers who find my work worthless or pointless, that's fine too. They can then politely let loose on the keyboard or scroll through. 🙂
It is nice to read that the majority of the responses praise Rob V. and that his contributions are highly appreciated. He deserved it, in my opinion. Wish the readers a pleasant weekend, in terms of temperature it looks like it will look a bit like Thailand in Belgium and the Netherlands.
The effort is certainly not in vain and I understand that there is a preference for subjects. It certainly makes you think, but finding it worthless or pointless is different from looking at it differently.
In my opinion, some subjects such as politics are viewed too much through a Dutch (I assume) glasses and that does not automatically have to work that way for another country.
Something like proclaiming that the Dutch and Flemish should start including pla ra in their daily diet because it improves the taste of the food.
Quote:
'In my opinion, some subjects such as politics are viewed too much through Dutch (I assume) glasses and that does not automatically have to work the same way for another country'.
Rob V. does not look through Dutch glasses. He tells the story of Thai people about Thai conditions. He might be looking for some specific Thai 🙂
You should only know how many Thais think the same about politics and human rights as the Dutch.