Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are asking: "Do Retirees in Thailand enact privilege over the locals?" I will tell you how I came about this and we will go from there. I found this small excerpt from a larger article which I urge folks to go read, the Pattaya Mail, pattayamail.com, the article is titled: Pattaya can no longer rely on elderly retiree expats. Then this small excerpt, quoting directly: "Journalist Sarah Scuzzarello describes this group as "elderly retirees enacting privilege over local people because of their superior wealth." Now I did a really deep dive to try to find this journalist and to find the direct source material. We are going to go through and throw this on screen. I want folks to see that this is a quote from this article.

But it got me thinking and the purpose of this video is "do elderly retirees enact privilege over local people?" I have got to be honest with you, I don't see it. Now I can understand there are and I have done videos on this, the notion of a difference between Immigrants and Expats there are different labels that are used when describing. I have always considered myself an immigrant to Thailand I came to Thailand. Yeah the first year, two or three if you want, I was kind of just your casual Nomad if you will looking around but I started a business here. I basically said "yeah, I am going to put down roots", and I got an immigrant mindset. I do kind of understand there is that inherent difference in terminology which is kind of strange, Expat versus Immigrant. So I can understand where the concern comes from but if anything, I have never really witnessed elderly Retirees in Thailand enacting any privilege and I don't even know what “enacting privilege” is. I know what privilege is in the context of the attorney client privilege; I don't know what privilege is in terms of enacting it over locals. I don't mean to laugh at this because this terminology just gets bandied about and sometimes I often wonder if it has any substance to it at all or if it is just people saying things almost to be provocative. But the reason for the video is this: "are retirees enacting their privilege on the locals?" I don't get that impression. One thing I will say for Thailand and I am rather proud of it about Thailand, is Thailand takes a nationalistic approach. It can be very protective if its economy especially when it comes to outsiders who wish to participate in that economy. For example Work Permits, Visas; these are requirements on foreign nationals that are not incumbent on Thai nationals and even those with a Work Permit there are a number of restricted occupations that a foreign national cannot engage in here in Thailand. 

So the crux of this video, yeah maybe a Westerner looking in without any context to Thailand might think that "Well, it is really strange that "farangs" from all over the world come to Thailand and then they live in Thailand and just retire there and Thais provide services and things like that to these foreign nationals". Yeah well the Thais are doing business with these foreign nationals. They run restaurants and they run bars and not just that. They run all sorts of golf courses, saunas; I mean the list goes on and on of the services provided to Retirees in Thailand. Healthcare providers here in Thailand that provide a number of services to foreign nationals. I think in my opinion I think the relationship between foreign retirees and local Thais is pretty equitable. Now there is some disparity in terms of national wealth with respect to the citizens of certain other foreign countries and folks that are here in Thailand. That said, that isn't in and of itself evidence of anyone “enacting privilege” over anyone else.