Comments on: The Fallout of the (sometimes)Truth https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/ Stories, rants & observations about expat life in Asia's craziest city Thu, 17 Nov 2016 15:48:25 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 By: Greg https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-530 Sun, 23 Jan 2011 02:53:09 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-530 Great to hear Cod's side of the story on this, and he's right – it's easy to take what someone writes and layer it over them as their personality, when it could be anything but. Lost Boy nails it as well – as writers, taking one tack a bit too far is what we do; it's creative and it's fun, and it rarely speaks towho we are in reality. Just ask any of the stay-at-home Moms who write erotic fiction for Penthouse as a part-time job. 🙂
At any rate, all that can be said has been said, so I think I'll just close the comments now. Thanks for reading, folks.

]]> By: Lost Boy https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-529 Sun, 23 Jan 2011 02:48:10 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-529 I see the article as trying to make a point, but I just don't think it makes that point particularly well. I also see little merit in over-analyzing the piece. If it is some kind of social commentary then surely it could have been angled so as to not be such a direct attack on "Bangkok's women" from a "self-described ladies man". Articles like this pop up frequently — I should know because I wrote a couple myself when I was wet behind the ears — and the reactions are always the same. I just feel there are much better ways to take jibes at the status quo than by resorting to sexist generalizations.

But ultimately, there's no need for this to be blown out of proportion.

]]> By: Cod https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-528 Sun, 23 Jan 2011 02:10:58 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-528 Well, we've probably taken this whole article as far as it can possibly go, with all the comments (Hey even Kitty commented on something i wrote) and discussion and witch hunting, so this is the last time I'm going to comment on the issue and it'll be my semi attempt at self defense. When Karla approached me to do the article she said, "write something the boys will love you for and the women will hate." Well a couple threats and potential lynchings later, i think this is more or less done, heck even some men have come up in arms over this. Yes the article is exaggerrated, hyperbolised and probably in bad taste, but hey at the same time its also generated a massive amount of discussion and HITS which is what CNNGo were looking for. What I don't understand are the people making assumptions about my personal life. This article, while exaggerated admittedly, draws on the experience of myself AND others including someone else who has posted on this blog, do I think this is an accurate depiction of all women, HELL NO! And anyone who read that and thought it was maybe needs to read a little harder into the sarcasm. To be quite honest this article probably says worse about Thai men than it does the women but hey thats a point lost on so many people who actually posted on the article. As for myself I feel blessed that the women I date are all smart, intelligent and independent whether THai or foreign. So if you have a problem with the article, great, thats why it was written to offend and generate views. But please stop with the personal assumptions because its almost in as bad a taste as the article.

]]> By: Greg https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-527 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 16:58:14 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-527 Nail on head Kaewmala, although I will say that I used to think the phrase "Women (or men) from X country are Y" was ridiculous until I started traveling. While people are people the world over, those from different countries do obviously have their own unique cultural foibles. When filtered through the lens of some of the uh, colorful, stories and lifestyles in a particular region, they may end up simplified as 'All people from X are Y' when it should more properly say "Some people in X country act in Y way because Z."
Or maybe I'm just talking out my ass, which is very likely the case.

]]> By: kaewmala @Thai_Talk https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-526 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 13:02:14 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-526 The matter is quite plain & simple as some commenters have already mentioned: people are people, good and bad, and yes, women, Thai or otherwise, are people too – not a whole different species. And when you start off with a premise that Thai women aren't like the rest of humankind you've dug yourself a hole. My first comment on Cod's article (made on Twitter) was: if you don't like cookie cutter airheads, then don't keep dating them. I should have added "crazy," "bitchy" and "greedy" in front of "airheads" but they didn't fit in the 140-character space. 🙂 Sure, such women exist, in great or small number I can't say for certain because as far as I know no one has ever done a bitchy-looney-airhead national census in Thailand – or anywhere else for that matter.

All I know is that there are plenty of Thai women who don't fit that type. Thay's why I also told Cod to get himself a pretty, level-headed girl with whom he won't have to pretend being a (rich & slimey) moron to keep her happy. I don't stalk my man. I don't think most of my girlfriends do either but then I never pry or stick my nose in their personal business. The women I count as friends are mostly gainfully employed and aren't preying on men as a potential meal ticket, though I don't think any of them would be affronted if the man turns out to be rich.

Unfortunately Cod's type of article has long been a staple (with slightly varied but consistent themes) on places like Stickman's or Thai Visa. In my view writings along that line often say more about the men who wrote the articles than the Thai women they purport to impart knowledge about.                    

]]> By: Kitty https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-525 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 05:35:43 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-525 When it comes to Cod, pretty much everyone in our circle knows how I feel. But this was the first time I didn't feel so pissed off reading something written by him. And then also I felt a little bit satisfied that he never got a chance to experience the other kind of Thai girls, the one your girlfriend belongs to. Of course I like your take on the matter better 🙂

]]> By: Greg https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-524 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 03:20:49 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-524 Jack, very true.. when you strip away cultural quirks, I think most people would be startlingly similar. Most, but not all. 🙂
Megan, you're right, if a guy threw a photo album at a girl's head, he'd be a wifebeater (the guy, not even talking about the shirt he was wearing). And yes, good and bad people are everywhere. Canada certainly had its share of doucehbags (I know, right? Crazy!) so this little treatise is only my relatively narrow take on it. Although a similar one from you on Thai men would be epic. Ready? 3, 2, 1, go! 😀

]]> By: Megan https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-523 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 03:12:42 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-523 I read the article after reading your post here…kind of gross, but it doesn't surprise me. The thing is–there are crazy women everywhere, just like there are crazy MEN everywhere. Yeah, why isn't there anything written about the crazy men who do stuff like this? Oh right–because that's called domestic abuse.

Uhhh…not sure where I was going with that. Point is, there are good and bad people everywhere. Go to Missouri and you'll see a lot of women like Cod described. And your girlfriend is lovely–you're a lucky man!

]]> By: Jack https://www.gregtodiffer.com/the-fallout-of-the-sometimestruth/#comment-522 Sat, 22 Jan 2011 02:47:52 +0000 http://gregtodiffer.dreamhosters.com/?p=174#comment-522 Excellent and very balanced perspective Greg…..To say that Thai women are all this and that sparks of male chauvinism …Women are as different as we are in their choices, likes and dislikes…

We as human beings needs to be treated as individuals with respect not bunch them together painting them with one brush as we see them…this is unfair…How about if someone generalize the same about Thai men or farangs…we are all individuals not Thai or American or Chinese…the same is true with women all over the world..

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