I despise watching the news in the USA. Please think about the questions being asked the next time you see a newscaster interview someone. “Sir, how did you feel after you lost your life savings in the Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme”…”uuuhhh, great. Super happy that years of hard work are gone just so Bernie could buy a bedazzled Mets jacket”. Really probing stuff!

Please think through the stories you are watching and ask yourself if you are gaining any- and I mean any- useful knowledge. Of course not! If you were, more people would be watching, TV newscast ratings (along with newspaper distribution) wouldn’t be falling. We all use the Internet to find the news relevant to our lives.

Oh, but not here! Thai TV News- I love it!

Why? Three reasons.

One- I can come home, pull back a few Singha’s and watch the news, not understanding a word that is being said, and make up my own stories. So fun!

Two- After pulling back a few Singaha’s this scene came on the news where a white man in a bright Hawaiian shirt was handcuffed, sitting in a chair surrounded by police. The scene went on and on and then all the police pointed at him. Oh the joy! Please tell me he was being arrested for horrid fashion sense. Yes and no. He had been arrested, but not for his fashion sense.I later found out from my neighbor that this is common, a criminal is paraded in front of the camera’s as an example. Oh the peer pressure. The fear of ending up on the nightly news, handcuffed with everyone pointing at you. Oh, this is wonderful, pass the Singha, I’m not going out until the last nightly news is over!

Three- There are good stories on the news, like real, good stories about nice things that happen in everyday life. The Thai news isn’t chalk full of crime reports, murders and ambulance chaser information, but filled with news about Children’s Day, water festivals, school events and community based happenings. Okay, okay, there are stories with criminals being pointed at and politics and political protests. But, the news is not dominated by reports attempting to sensationalize death, domestic drama and natural disasters.

So refreshing.