Quasi-journalistic American blog the Huffington Post is known for going to tremendous lengths to fill its content hole, but in an article posted yesterday entitled “10 Things Americans Can Learn From Bangkok” the website reached a new apogee of strained credibility. While we appreciate this American web behemoth paying attention to our fair city, we must take issue with several of their assertions.
“10. Infrastructure matters” – Right, infrastructure does matter, which is why we find it hard to believe that anyone in his or her right mind would hold Bangkok up as a sterling example of infrastructure done right. Yes, we have a Skytrain. We also have a laundry list of abandoned infrastructure projects and a nearly impassible clusterfunk of snaggle-toothed streets.
“9. Respect your elders” – Well okay, Thailand pretty much has the USA beat on this count. Moving on…
“8. Democracy is a verb” – Again, holding Thailand up as a sterling example of democracy done right shows at least a less-than-nuanced understanding of the country’s politics and at worst a severe misunderstanding about the role that bullets play in the democratic process. Huffpo said that protests here are “overwhelmingly peaceful”…? Tell that to the dozens of people who were killed in 2010.
“2. The customer is always absolutely right” – In this blurb, the Post somehow manages to romanticize the sale of endangered species and fake Buddhist antiques. How dare they! Plus they call it “Chaktochak Market.”
“1. Fuss over food not about it” – “…pretention is not a major part of the foodie culture in Thailand.” From overpriced gimmicky restaurants to molecular gastronomy to Dining in the Dark to the latest hi-so wine/Belgian beer/craft beer/single-origin-drip coffee trend, we beg to disagree. At the Bangkok street level, sure. But in Thonglor and other similar trendy hoods, pretention is served up in hefty doses.
