Delete or not delete?
Oct 16th, 2006 by Lillian
Inspite of my post with a list of ”the things that make me angry.” I love living in Thailand. Thai people are friendly and I really enjoy being with them. And yes, believe it or not, I have Thai friends.
Writing that post has made me vulnerable… people are probably going to keep commenting… I’m not proud about the things that upset me. I would use the word upset today.. not angry.
But thats the thing with this blog. I write very much ‘in the moment’. I don’t react the same way to the same situation every-time. Depending on the day I’m having. Something I wrote last year might not be true for today. So should I go back and delete that post? I’m tempted because I don’t like the negative comments. I find some of the comments quite harsh. I’m going to leave it and am so glad that not all readers judge me so harshly.
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Well, you know my opinion on this topic.
People should be able to express their opinions even if it is a negative opinion. After all differences in opinion are what the makes the world go round. Don’t delete your post because that’s how you felt at the time of writing and there’s nothing wrong with expressing yourself.
It’s never easy living in a country that’s so different to your own culture. I know that Thai students studying abroad have plenty to complain about western culture etc… It’s human nature after all.
A few years ago I learnt the very hard way that saying things in public can get you into trouble. My other half and I were humiliated and exposed on a very popular website, mearly for expresing an opinion contrary to that blogs readership and we had to take our joint blog down, delete our email address’ and restart, some months later, completely anonymously. To this day, there are relatively few people who actually know us, or have met us. Even now I ensure my flickr account and suchlike contains no photos of me / us or direct pointers to us.
The fact is this: if you want your words, your thoughts, your face and your family out in the public domain, you have to live with the consequences. It’s the price you pay. You get freedom of speech and so does everyone else. When you begin to question this, it’s time to re-evaluate what it is you are doing.
And if you think you are having a hard time, all’s I can say is that you should be grateful that all you have to deal with is a couple of people who think you are a little wrapped up in yourself because it can be a lot, lot worse.
Lillian: Keep the post. Like Baba says, many people who are living in a foreign country almost always have frustrations. It is just up to you whether you want to express them in public or private.
Him: Holy crap is all I can think to say. Just another good reason to blog anonymously.
Lil, I’m sure there are annoyances in any culture and I can understand yours. I am not in Thailand yet but I experience these daily frustrations in my current place of residence. Being a minority is difficult. Learning new ways can be difficult. You have the perfect right to express it in a blog. Don’t delete. Just understand that there is always a portion of the population who will take things personally or become defensive. I recently got pilloried as an “anti-American b****” because I expressed non-mainstream opinions. As someone said, it is part of the price of blogging. Sobeit. Hope to continue to see you posting your experiences, on either side of the fence.
Thailand Gal
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Lillian:
I actually dropped a comment of your previous blog about things that make you angry, and personally I think you should keep that blog as it is. Why would you want to delete it? It is your blog and in my opinion, you can say whatever you wish. I know you probably didn’t start blogging to win some kind of popularity, and heck, there are so many million things that make me mad, and I don’t need anybody to try to understand me since, for example, you’ve already made it clear that they are something that make ‘YOU’ mad..maybe not others.
Believe me: if I ever make a list of what makes me mad, only God knows, there are probably a size of a country who disagree with me, and post mean comments on my blog. But I will not delete. Who cares. (I live aboard, and there are trillions things that make me mad on the daily basis.) By the way,you’ve got a nice blog!
Thanx Pondering, Thailand Gal,Bangkok Pundit,him,Bab,Elemmaciltur.Oakley for all your comments I REALLY , REALLY appreciate it… I need to hear ALL that
There are many things that I don’t like in my own country and of course in my host country. Nothing is perfect. I tend to be positive and I try not to express my frustrations nor post anything negative about my host country. People are very nationalistic. They can criticize their country and they generally do but they have a hard time to accept it from a foreigner.
Let’s be fair. We also avoid to criticize when we are invited in someone else’s his house…
That is the way it is. You have the right to say it but you need to be careful. There might be people who are not very tolerant. See what is happening with the Muslim community. One bad word and they would kill you immediately for that…
Keep it!
Don’t delete it…