Comments on: Quirky Farang Suicides

By: Bombed German

Bombed German — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:27:05 +0000

[...] then again, talk about quirky suicides in this promised land. How many balcony doors are locked from the inside after another expat with [...]

By: Carradine Reality Check

Carradine Reality Check — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 02:40:06 +0000

[...] Or try it yourself. Tie up your genitals, neck and – most importantly – hands behind your back. Running into troubles? Just another quirky farang suicide. [...]

By: expatudon08

expatudon08 — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 20:21:09 +0000

Farangs seem to drop like dead flies in Bangkok. There have been lots of bodies found naked.

Instantly put down to kinky sex, our drugs. But I would bet money on murder in many of these cases.

i love Thailand but learn the culture or you may come to harm big style.

By: fouse, gary c

fouse, gary c — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 18:39:46 +0000

I just don’t get it. How can a man die by masturbating in Bangkok? Why is a man in Bangkok masturbating for in the first place?

I say call in the FBI.

By: BangkokDan

BangkokDan — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 09:14:29 +0000

Let’s add Carradine’s unintentional Suicide by Masturbation:

http://thailandjumpedtheshark.blogspot.com/2009/06/grasshopper-death-of-david-carradine.html

BangkokDan

By: Robert

Robert — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 12:17:39 +0000

I guess the combination of alcohol and recreational drugs can have some impact on the numbers. Farangs treating their “girlfriends” like shit might also play a part but no doubt the men in brown are quick to write off suspicious circumstances as to not scare away potential tourists.

Interesting post!

By: Mr. Wrigley

Mr. Wrigley — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 02:11:19 +0000

Well, in Thailand I don’t rule anything out. This guys story could be totally legit, yet in my days in BKK, I have met scores of people who I would say have “serious issues” and tell stories of the most unimaginable sort. He could people an attention seeker or a speed junkie all spun out. But again who’s to say they are’t all true – mix “crazy” person with Bangkok and you are likely to get an output that is off the charts. In a sort of perverse way, it is these type of stories and people that make BKK the fascinating and scary place it is.

One wonders though, if the guy is so freaked out that the mafia could be after him, why is he publishing on YouTube his upcoming itinerary? And what’s with a tuk-tuk driver just happening to have a news article in his back pocket that matches his story? Coincidence or just part of the make believe world he lives in? Maybe he wants to leave evidence in case he really gets whacked. Anyways, in any country, if you hang out with speed dealers then you are setting yourself up for trouble, and even he admits that.

By: geomark

geomark — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 06:30:35 +0000

I would love to see you put together a comprehensive list of quirky farang suicides in Thailand. Over the years I have seen lots of obviously bogus stories. I wish I had saved them because it would be quite a tale. It’s also amazing how many farang commit suicide while the police are visiting them.

By: chang dek

chang dek — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:14:49 +0000

Never has the suspension of disbelief worked so well.

By: Jaded

Jaded — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:49:08 +0000

Some of the suicides are probably genuine. It’s well known that the suicide cluster phenomenon depends on copycats. It’s for this reason that Western media often plays these things down. You can rely on the competitive Pattaya press to cover these sad events though I have noticed that the Pattaya People has surrendered its lead in chronicling the Pattaya crime wave recently. Competition between the four papers being what it, is I am not too surprised to see that Pattaya Today seems to have abandoned its long held policy of not reporting violence and started to cover this sort of thing a bit more. The thing about a suicide story is that it’s outside the unofficial but enforced quotas on reported violence which gives the stories a wider distribution than a suspicious death would be likely to get.

Whether or not individual cases are actually suicides, I agree with you that defenestration has long been a traditional cover for murder. An interesting point for relationship insurance is that while it is illegal to own a house in your own name, unless the house is very tall, it’s difficult to guarantee a terminal leap. Calculating partners may decide that if you are dumb enough to buy a house you are dumb enough to continue to be exploitable in the future. This may encourage them to let you have a future. Dealings with the kind of cynical farang who insists on owning their own property are likely to be less rewarding and therefore more frustrating. The homicidal impulse is very close to the surface in many Thai people. It’s an ill-advised person who ignores this fact of life in the LOS.