Dear Hillary,
I don’t know if you have time to sit down with your champagne and chocolates to watch the soap movies in the evening. As I read my book and my lady friend is watching these movies I can’t help but notice how these movies give the wrong or may be the right impression of Thai people in the land of smiles. They are nearly always screaming at each other or slapping one another around the face and very vindictive. Are most of the Thai wealthy people this callous and two faced, if they are they have a lot to learn. I hope the young children who watch these movies don’t think this is the way of life. I do enjoy your Heart to Heart column and if I am able to save a few baht I will send you champagne and chocolates. Best wishes,
Ian
Dear Ian,
I am definitely on your side, Petal. The Thai soaps are all the same, melodrama, over-acting and display a side of Thailand I do not want to see. The only Thai wealthy people I know do not watch the soaps, they are far too busy making money! It is more the “ordinary” people who watch the soaps for the never ending dramas, to brighten up their lives. The danger is that young children will grow up thinking this is “normal” behavior. And when enough of them think that way it does become “normal”, but not a “normal” Thailand wants or needs. Thank you for thinking about saving up for champers and chocs for me, but I’d rather you sit down and enjoy them with your lady friend!