Thailand-USA Information Portal and Hub

The United States of America Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton made a diplomatic and humanitarian visit to Thailand on November 16 and 17, 2011. Following this text is an embedded video clip including speeches by both Clinton and the Prime Minister of Thailand, Yingluck Shinawatra. Read more »

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This first weekend of July, 2011 is an important time for both Thais and Americans alike. Read more »

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Upon learning that a sequel to the Hollywood blockbuster, the Hangover was being filmed in my then-residence Bangkok, curiosities arose. When you’ve lived in Thailand’s capital for the better part of a decade, you pretty much see it all and it doesn’t take long before one becomes jaded amid the cosmopolitan wonder of a city which [international] name’s pronunciation resembles a ludicrous action. What follows is a part-film review, part-social-cultural perspective and critique, and represents the sincere opinions of the author.  Read more »

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Following are images taken in Denver and Thornton, Colorado during the period between the months of February and March of 2011. These images–random and intentional snaps of typical, ordinary, daily life in the United States–were taken with a Nokia smart phone, model E63, which camera’s resolution is less than two mega pixels. For web optimization, the photos have been reduced to 25 percent of their original size. Read more »

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Since departing stateside last on December 31, 2003, the Siamerican Wanderer’s February, 2011 return to the fatherland marked some 85 months habituating the land of Thai straight through; having anticipated a long-due return to his birth country, the dual-national, Siamese-American hybrid had diligently been preparing himself mentally and physically for several months leading up to his most recent Asia-exodus flight, knowing all-to-well he would be at high risk of ‘culture shock’ when re-exposed to the multi-cultural tessellation commonly known as America. Read more »

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I know I have a record for two misdemeanor charges in the state of Colorado from 2003 and I wanted to see what exact results would show using an instant pay search service. After verifying payment to the website, I was shocked to see the results:

No Records Found

This post is to report a service review. On Saturday, December 11, 2010, I,  [name omitted] an American citizen engaged the online services of the the following website: http://criminalbackgroundrecords.com  whose parent company is identified as INFORMATION ENTERPRISES, INC. I  purchased a Colorado instant background check on myself  for $24.95 USD using Paypal to pay them.

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The following entry is from a guest submission who has asked to remain anonymous:

Towards the end of last year, I was involved in a few flings. Taking the initiative to use preventive contraceptives (condoms), in the heat of moment of passion on two separate particular instances with two different partners, I allowed myself to become vulnerable and naive to the moment, abandoning the initial safety measures for the sake and convenience of natural yin yang exchange.

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In tourism Thailand–from the grimes of Kao Sarn road to the sleeze of Patpong, Pattaya  and Patong–you’re certain to run into public drunks staggering around with an open bottle in hand. Foreign holidayers and some misguided expats have mistaken the streets of Thailand for some hippie festival–a 365 day/24 hour party. Mindful locals and expats who have either inherited wise common sense or have earned it with a hard lesson of bad experience know better. Every now and then, an incident happens which reminds us of what not to do. The following report is of a Thai who had to fatally learn the hard way. Unfortunately for him, there will be no second chance.
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Following is a (nipped down version of) reflective essay by Neaw, a 2nd year Thai University student who visited the USA in the summer of 2009 on a travel-work program. The essay was composed for Intercultural Communications  course at Thammasat University. For the sake of readability, the Literature Summary part has been ommitted:

Is self more important than society? In regards to intercultural studies amidst the age of globalization, this is perhaps the most commonly addressed question. Last summer, I traveled to the United States, having the opportunity to work at a popular amusement park in Vallejo, just outside of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area in Northern California. The pace and style of life over there was all new to me, much different to what I was used to in Bangkok. During this brief yet enlightening experience living and working overseas, I gained valuable insights about not only American culture, but my own Thai background in comparison. Here I present a narrative of my experience, highlighting the manifestation of the cultural values of individualism apparent in the US, contrasted with collectivism in Thailand, respectfully. Read more »

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Similar to retailers’ initiative to reduce plastic bag distribution in places like Germany and Holland, major retailers on the tropical Thai island of  Phuket plan to start  charging customers for  bags in hopes of tackling the island’s infamous waist dilemma. Frankly, a ‘start’ is all that such a decree can qualify to be.

While arguably an initiative for some consumers to start developing a sense for reusing, revenue seeking fractions of such two-fold environmentally capitalizing legislation is only starting to tap the tip of this iceberg’s much larger problem. Even more worrisome and urgent than retail packaging waste is an over-neglected burden of food packaging.

Walk into a 7-11, Family Mart, 108 Shop, or any other mini mart or supermarket in any part of the country, and the only way you won’t walk out without at least one bag, no matter how small your purchase was, e.g. a pack of gum, bag of chips-crisps, etc., is if you outright declare to the clerk, “No bag, please! Mai Tawng Sai Tung krup (ka)! ไม่ต้องใส่ถุงครับ (ค่ะ)”
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