Drying Rice in Thailand

I certainly agree that the elite must shoulder responsibility for setting prices so low that the farmers are unable to make a living - which their sons and daughters see as very valid reason for turning their backs on the traditional Thai family values. I'm not so sure that it will evolve on it's own (like a self-levelling flooring screed!) Traditionally, a working daughter has a baby that is looked after by grandma, and then grandma is looked after by whoever is left at home. If daughter has her baby in Bangkok or another glamorous city, she must either cease work or find a babyminder, or rely on her husband to provide for them all. Sadly, the badly educated have difficulty finding work that pays enough, and grandma becomes ill. Answer? Find a Farang??? I doubt that there are enough of us... and so the whole thing collapses for a very large number of former farmers' daughters and sons.

It has a certain parallel with this:

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In what way have the elite made it unprofitable? As I recall Yingluck introduced a plan for farmers to keep their rice for a few months, with a guaranteed price of around 20bt/kilo given. BUT, that would mean no immediate money, no lao khao, so they sell immediately after harvesting at 8/9 baht/kilo. Throughout August and September my local rice mill was offering 16-17baht/kilo. But there were no queues lining up to sell. It had all been sold months earlier, by the uneducated and those not prepared to listen.

So many of the young today, Thailand or elsewhere, are just lazy. They want easy money, which is not available, so many just do nothing, and resort to crime. They would not be seen tending to paddy.

Todays young will inherit the paddy fields from their parents, but in the main it should be sold for similar use. Much agricultural land is however currently being sold for industrial use, or housing, against the law, but seemingly sanctioned by local amphurs, no doubt with big sweeteners provided. So much has to change here in Thailand, but nobody shows any interest in doing anything. A totally corrupt country, benefitting only those above the breadline.
 
Prakhonchai Nick said:
So many of the young today, Thailand or elsewhere, are just lazy. They want easy money, which is not available, so many just do nothing, and resort to crime. They would not be seen tending to paddy.

Todays young will inherit the paddy fields from their parents, but in the main it should be sold for similar use. Much agricultural land is however currently being sold for industrial use, or housing, against the law, but seemingly sanctioned by local amphurs, no doubt with big sweeteners provided. So much has to change here in Thailand, but nobody shows any interest in doing anything. A totally corrupt country, benefitting only those above the breadline.
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That's the spirit, Nick. Great stuff. f**k Thailand, heh. :rolleyes:
Don't forget to share with your family, friends and neighbors.

Oh yeah, you're a Permanent Resident. Good on you. ;)

(Did you enjoy a G&T prior to sundown ? :sunglasses: )
 
I have to agree with Nick from what I have seen in my little eco system, if Memsahib's village is anything to go by. Everyone is now 15 years older than when I first arrived and the older generation can no longer farm the fields. The younger generation that inherited the same have sold off the paddy lands to finance a new car or pay off some debts. Few remain in the villages having migrate south to the big city life and industrial centers. Only the old and their offsprings's offsprings populate the villages for most of the year. Then twice a year, New Year's Eve and Songram, the 'deserters' hit the roads to return home and party for 4 or 5 days.
 
Coffee said:
That's the spirit, Nick. Great stuff. f**k Thailand, heh. :rolleyes:
Don't forget to share with your family, friends and neighbors.

Oh yeah, you're a Permanent Resident. Good on you. ;)

(Did you enjoy a G&T prior to sundown ? :sunglasses: )
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C'mon. Coffee!! Not f**king Thailand Making a point about the young in general and corruption, which sadly is more prevalent in Thailand than most western countries.

Do you walk round with your eyes closed?

Not time for G&T yet, but what I wonder have you been on :D
 
Rice said:
In this case @Merlin this is not change for the sake of progress or even one for greater profits, but a social evolution with the young deserting the farms, all because the elite have made it unprofitable to remain. It does not have to be this way.. It is a man made problem that is going to evolve all on its own. It is going to be interesting times watching the government trying to prevent the boat from going over the falls. It will sort its self out and there will be a lot of losers. Even the elite will suffer as exploiting the farmers will cease.
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I would suggest that it was always unprofitable as a result of an imbalance in supply and demand - and the mafia cartel controlled by the merchants/millers. I seriously doubt that farming could support, say 9 children (in the case of my missus’ family) - especially when tv’s, cars and iPhones are elevated to necessities rather than luxuries.

It is not surprising that many offspring head for Bangkok and other industrialized centers. Even sitting doing bugger all in a bar or massage shop will be viewed as far more attractive than sitting in the village chewing betel nut. That is just those with basic schooling - add education, and a potential desire to improve oneself, and you can see why relativity few youngster want to ‘farm’.


This is not exclusive to Thailand. In the UK I saw offspring of farmers going through university and opting for professional careers rather than become involved in family farming enterprises. Farming is perhaps a calling, rather than an attractive career path.

Combine ignorance, stupidity, greed and envy with a market that is over-supplied (and manipulated against the small player) and you have a recipe for subsistence at best............ oh wait, subsistence......isn’t that what the Thais have been good at for centuries ?
 
Prakhonchai Nick said:
So many of the young today, Thailand or elsewhere, are just lazy. They want easy money, which is not available, so many just do nothing, and resort to crime.
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That's correct Nick.
I told you to share this with your family, friends and neighbors.

You made your point.
It's exactly how I will begin [in general] to think about the "youth" of today moving forward.
Yup, always best to build a wall , just in case I ever open my eyes

It's exactly how each generation thought about the next and so forth. Maybe it's time to inquire how the youth views "OAPs" in Thailand and elsewhere.
 
Prakhonchai Nick said:
So many of the young today, Thailand or elsewhere, are just lazy. They want easy money, which is not available, so many just do nothing, and resort to crime.
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Ivor, as to my reply to Nick's post which part of Nick's "Thailand or elsewhere" did you not understand ?
 
Coffee said:
Ivor, as to my reply to Nick's post which part of Nick's "Thailand or elsewhere" did you not understand ?
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I (believe) that I understand all of your last sentence about OAP’s in Thailand or elsewhere and what I was trying (& maybe failing) to suggest s that the ‘Yuff’ here know next to nothing about what is going on outside their own bubble.
If you need to ask why I feel like this, please ask?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Eanto said:
I’ve tried to open up the world to my teerak and, maybe it’s my presentation, but she’s not bothered
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Eanto said:
I’ve tried to open up the world to my teerak and, maybe it’s my presentation, but she’s not bothered
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I opened up the world to my eldest daughter this morning. She asked me if I would like some coffee and I replied 'Yes please, standard NATO'. Of course I had to explain what NATO was, where it was, about my life in the RAF and why I had asked for standard NATO. LOL!
 
nomad97 said:
I opened up the world to my eldest daughter this morning. She asked me if I would like some coffee and I replied 'Yes please, standard NATO'. Of course I had to explain what NATO was, where it was, about my life in the RAF and why I had asked for standard NATO. LOL!
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Did you get your coffee?
 
nomad97 said:
I opened up the world to my eldest daughter this morning. She asked me if I would like some coffee and I replied 'Yes please, standard NATO'. Of course I had to explain what NATO was, where it was, about my life in the RAF and why I had asked for standard NATO. LOL!
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And, that’s a lot of information to digest
 
Ivor the Engine said:
I (believe) that I understand all of your last sentence about OAP’s in Thailand or elsewhere and what I was trying (& maybe failing) to suggest s that the ‘Yuff’ here know next to nothing about what is going on outside their own bubble.
If you need to ask why I feel like this, please ask?
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Surely Thai kids can draw a map of Thailand and draw a picture of the late HRM Bhumibol.
As for the balance of the world and other world leaders they would have to google and hit translate...which would probably cause additional misunderstandings.
Hopefully they could copy the map but would remain relatively clueless as to where another country was if not a part of ASEAN...and probably could find England, China, Australia and the US on a global map.

That has nothing to do with Nick's post , "So many of the young today, Thailand and elsewhere, are just lazy. They want easy money, which is not available, so many just do nothing, and resort to crime..."

So perhaps Ivor, you are in full agreement with Nick's sentiments, yes ?
 
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