Homeless Boys

[goji]

Dodger, as you are the O.P. of this thread may I ask what you did to help the 3 boys you noted in your opening post?

The answer is contained within Dodger's opening post.
Also, it's a little inconsistent to keep asking questions about other's spending, whilst not explaining one's own personal contribution.

[Zebedee]

so why haven't these guys moved on? What are they waiting for - things in Pattaya aren't going to get better for at least another year, if ever. Have they been told otherwise and are waiting it out? I don't know what their individual home situations are like but why haven't they gone home? At least they'd have food and shelter. Where are their sponsors?

You raise some very valid questions, but in reality some boys simply don't have homes to return to as described earlier in this post. For them, places like Pattaya become their support-system...sub-community...new home. Asking why they just don't leave their homes to find work elsewhere is also a valid question, but only when being asked from a western perspective. Asking why they came to places like Pattaya when they were 15 years old to work as prostitutes in the first place would be an equally valid question.

Thai boys, like some of the more unfortunate ones being discussed here, are uneducated, haven't the foggiest clue what "Planning" means, learned to survive on the streets as a necessity, and often lack self-confidence when faced with some of the alternatives you mentioned. leaving their support-system which has kept them alive for years to work in a canning factory in another city makes perfect sense to you and I, but to boys like this, the fear and uncertainty attached to this is simply more than some can handle.

Where are their sponsors? You're guess is as good as theirs.

Your understanding and empathy for the boys lives and the difficult situation they are in, is like a breath of fresh air compared to some of the recent posts on this forum where they are thought of as nothing more than a resource to be used and taken advantage of whenever the opportunity arises .

[Dodger]

Dodger, as you are the O.P. of this thread may I ask what you did to help the 3 boys you noted in your opening post?

Sure you can ask.

Oh...did you want me to answer that now? If that's the case, I gave them money.

Now, before you come back and ask me how I knew that the money I gave them would actually be spent on food, and not on drugs, whiskey, internet games, or lotto tickets, - my answer would be "I don't know"...but my instincts told me they were hungry and that's all that matters.

[Manforallseasons]

goji...” The answer is contained within ”

QUOTE=Manforallseasons;268535]Several weeks ago food lines for the poor were common in Pattaya bars etc. contributed, a massage place I like near Tukcom gave food to the needy I gave the boss 1000 toward her good deed as well as some money to boys in need.
This lines are no longer common as most who were able to return to families appear to have done just that.[/QUOTE]

Good for you Dodger I hope your act leads others to generosity with money in lieu of words!

[Dodger]

Sglad raised an interesting point. Migrant workers from neighboring countries are permitted to enter Thailand (with 14 days quarantine). But there should be enough unemployed Thais to fill these jobs now? And I think Thailand needs tourists more than migrant workers, but why are tourists not permitted? For 30 days permission to stay it would not make sense to submit oneself to 14 days quarantine, but with a longer visa, I would jump at the occasion to return.

The problem with having unemployeed Thais filling the jobs of migrant workers is possibly due to the fact that the majority of migrant workers (4-5 million) support the agriculture industry, and this new generation of Thais don't want any part of toiling in the hot fields all day for lower than minimum wages. Most sizable farms in Thailand are deeply in debt to the bank and unable to pay minimum wages which further exasperates the problem. Exploiting migrant workers for this purpose, unfortunately, has always been the solution.

We started seeing this in the fishing industry as well starting about 4-5 years ago. I used to love watching the young Thai fishing boys unloading their catches every morning on the docks in Bang Saray - and now, all I see are old toothless migrants manning the nets. This trend can also be seen in the sex industry, specifically, the gay scene, where we see declining numbers of Thai boys being attracted to this type of employment because the money just isn't there any more, where migrants from Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam gladly fill the seats. Pre-Covid-19, the economy was also picking up providing more jobs for the younger generation which also contributes to the decline we see.

The government may see less risk with migrant farm workers than they do with foreign tourists, due to the fact that farm workers, (following their 14 day quarantine), are typically employed in more remote areas segregated from the mainstream. If an outbreak of the virus were to occur, they may feel that it would be easier to contain it, thus presenting lower risk. Foreign tourists, as we all know, are all over place, sometimes impossible to track, and fully integrated in the mainstream.

[goji]

The problem with having unemployeed Thais filling the jobs of migrant workers is possibly due to the fact that the majority of migrant workers (4-5 million) support the agriculture industry, and this new generation of Thais don't want any part of toiling in the hot fields all day for lower than minimum wages.

We started seeing this in the fishing industry as well starting about 4-5 years ago. I used to love watching the young Thai fishing boys unloading their catches every morning on the docks in Bang Saray - and now, all I see are old toothless migrants manning the nets. This trend can also be seen in the sex industry, specifically, the gay scene, where we see declining numbers of Thai boys being attracted to this type of employment because the money just isn't there any more, where migrants from Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam gladly fill the seats. Pre-Covid-19, the economy was also picking up providing more jobs for the younger generation which also contributes to the decline we see.

It's the same in Europe. Locals don't want to do some of the jobs, so loads of migrant workers come in to do them. A process aided by generous social security benefits for those who prefer to sit on their arses at the taxpayer's expense.

Have to say I'm quite happy to see immigrants filling the positions in the bars. A higher percentage of young Thais are overweight these days and it looks to be even worse in the next generation. I'm not interested in sumo wrestlers.
Also, pre-covid, I don't really thing the money had disappeared out of the bars. Tips have increased at least in line with inflation and probably well ahead of inflation in Bangkok. I doubt there's any faster way for them to earn 1500~2000 than a short time off in Bangkok. It's just that their alternative career choices are probably better than before.

[a447]

A process aided by generous social security benefits for those who prefer to sit on their arses at the taxpayer's expense.

Same situation in Australia.

Despite tens of thousands being unemployed, overseas fruit-pickers have to be asked to come and do the job. Meanwhile, the lazy locals collect their monthly cheque from the government.

I never bothered about where the guys in the bars came from - the more variety the better. But the language barrier was often a bit of a problem.

[francois]

[QUOTE=a447;Meanwhile, the lazy locals collect their monthly cheque from the government.

[/QUOTE]

An over-simplification of the situation.

noun
noun: over-simplification
simplification of something to such an extent that a distorted impression is given.

[a447]

An over-simplification of the situation.

noun
noun: over-simplification
simplification of something to such an extent that a distorted impression is given.

How so?

Where is the "distortion"?

[arsenal]

The West has become so bloated with the populace and their expectations of what the government should provide for them.

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury."
Alexander Fraser Tytler.
attributed.