Slog
News & ArtsFriday, November 11, 2011
International Meanwhile in Thailand: More Massive, Fatal Flooding
Posted by Brendan Kiley on Fri, Nov 11, 2011 at 9:06 AM
From a friend who lives in Thailand, about how the flooding has raised the water level so that crocodiles are escaping from their pits and swimming around Bangkok:
These are the types of emails I get these days:
"When I asked Khun about the reports of crocodile sightings, he said that it is fairly common for chicken farms to have one or more crocodiles in a pit. Khun mentioned that chickens that can not be sold for human consumption are thrown to the crocodiles, and it is these crocodiles that, in some cases, have 'escaped' from the chicken farms."
Things are getting worse for poor people. Disease is the thing that I am worried about with so much standing water.
Looters are supposed to be going out in at night in boats and raiding abandoned houses. True or not, things are tense for the folks out of home. The supply chain is breaking down a little bit, with food and water getting a little scarce on the store shelves... I guess you are going to see a 10 percent increase in the price of hard drives in the next year as 1/3rd of the hard drive manufacturing is in Thailand.
- Wikimedia Commons
1
Crocodile escapes, Disease, and no drinkable water....but not a price jump in hard drives!! First world problems.
2
Man. These poor people can not catch a break.
I agree with #1. Highlighting the possible hard-drive price was crass. It's reminds me of when the Japanese Tsunami hit and the Media (the Stranger included) was "OMG! Go buy your radiation pills! Oh No! Prius's will cost more!"
Seriously you guys. You're part of the problem.
I agree with #1. Highlighting the possible hard-drive price was crass. It's reminds me of when the Japanese Tsunami hit and the Media (the Stranger included) was "OMG! Go buy your radiation pills! Oh No! Prius's will cost more!"
Seriously you guys. You're part of the problem.
3
I've been getting a lot of crazy pictures and videos from friends of mine in Thailand. A bunch of them walled up the gateways to their house (most houses in Thailand have gates and cinderblock walls around the property) to try to keep the water out, lots of people have left their cars on the elevated highways or else wrapped their cars entirely in giant sheets of plastic, etc.
4
Get off your high horses, folks. Our Slog correspondent was just pointing out how the floods are affecting people in his corner of the world and how they will affect people in the rest of the world.
There's no "OMG" in his email, or arguing that the price of hard drives is more important than the disaster he's seeing around him—he's just noticing things.
There's no "OMG" in his email, or arguing that the price of hard drives is more important than the disaster he's seeing around him—he's just noticing things.
6
@5
No OMG? Really? Then maybe he shouldn't have linked it and bolded it. I noticed he didn't link and bold the line about Disease getting worse. I'm sure there are things he could've "noticed" there?
Look. Brendan I'm certainly willing to give you guys the benefit of the doubt and I'm sure it was an innocent misjudgment. But would it kill you to admit when you guys do dumb things and maybe just try a little harder to do better?
How about think about it and fixing it - may be with a bold link to a story about how it's affecting the Thais. Instead of just reacting to criticism and singling me out.
No OMG? Really? Then maybe he shouldn't have linked it and bolded it. I noticed he didn't link and bold the line about Disease getting worse. I'm sure there are things he could've "noticed" there?
Look. Brendan I'm certainly willing to give you guys the benefit of the doubt and I'm sure it was an innocent misjudgment. But would it kill you to admit when you guys do dumb things and maybe just try a little harder to do better?
How about think about it and fixing it - may be with a bold link to a story about how it's affecting the Thais. Instead of just reacting to criticism and singling me out.
9
His numbers are a little off -- it's more like half of the world hard drive production, and fully 70% of the world's supply of the little motors in hard drives are from Thailand, and those factories are under thirty feet of water. The price is going up by a lot more than 10%; try DOUBLE. Everyone's scrambling to find supplies, and it's hitting lots of people in ways you wouldn't expect. I work at a non-profit and adding $100 to the price of a computer is not a joke given our current budget disasters.
Nothing remotely as serious as crocodiles or starvation, of course, but not trivial or crass either. The economy of the world is an interconnected thing.
Rising sea levels connected to global warming are going to create more incidents like this in the future, but this one is apparently entirely the fault of the Thai government, which had ample, detailed warnings about the risk of flooding and chose to ignore them.
Nothing remotely as serious as crocodiles or starvation, of course, but not trivial or crass either. The economy of the world is an interconnected thing.
Rising sea levels connected to global warming are going to create more incidents like this in the future, but this one is apparently entirely the fault of the Thai government, which had ample, detailed warnings about the risk of flooding and chose to ignore them.
10
Then how about some "informational" links about the spread of disease? How about some information about what's happening to the Thais?
You're just being needlessly defensive. If this was not a valid criticism you could have ignored it. But I hit a nerve. Because you know I have a valid point. But I'm not going to debate you anymore. You want to talk sometime over a beer? Fine. I'm just up the street.
You're just being needlessly defensive. If this was not a valid criticism you could have ignored it. But I hit a nerve. Because you know I have a valid point. But I'm not going to debate you anymore. You want to talk sometime over a beer? Fine. I'm just up the street.
11
@9
Not you too. My god you might have to do with older used computers at your non-profit! The horror! If you have problems finding inexpensive hard-drives, contact me. I will help you.
Look, first off computers SHOULD cost more. The costs of making and powering computers and server farms and wireless networks is what is contributing to global warming. And unless we can figure aout a way to make them without using increasingly rare strategic minerals (or find a cost effective way to recycle the ones we have) they *are* going to cost more, eventually.
And doubling of hard drive prices will not cause massive economic disruption. That is a ridiculous statement and you know it.
But the repeated destruction of rice fields and and farm lands in a densely populated impoverished area of the planet WILL cause massive economic disruption.
But hey. Let's go back to talking about how this will effect us and our ability to record and download more movie from iTunes.
Not you too. My god you might have to do with older used computers at your non-profit! The horror! If you have problems finding inexpensive hard-drives, contact me. I will help you.
Look, first off computers SHOULD cost more. The costs of making and powering computers and server farms and wireless networks is what is contributing to global warming. And unless we can figure aout a way to make them without using increasingly rare strategic minerals (or find a cost effective way to recycle the ones we have) they *are* going to cost more, eventually.
And doubling of hard drive prices will not cause massive economic disruption. That is a ridiculous statement and you know it.
But the repeated destruction of rice fields and and farm lands in a densely populated impoverished area of the planet WILL cause massive economic disruption.
But hey. Let's go back to talking about how this will effect us and our ability to record and download more movie from iTunes.
12
@11, oh -- I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were a delusional asshole.
Everybody wants non-profits to get "older used computers", because they have no idea what we do with them or what the challenges of managing them are, because YOU KNOW NOTHING. So shut the fuck up.
"Massive economic disruption"? Where did I say that? It's significant; it's notable. WORTH NOTING, you know?
The fact that Brendan wrote a different article than the one you want to see has nothing to do with Brendan, and everything to do with you being a twat.
Everybody wants non-profits to get "older used computers", because they have no idea what we do with them or what the challenges of managing them are, because YOU KNOW NOTHING. So shut the fuck up.
"Massive economic disruption"? Where did I say that? It's significant; it's notable. WORTH NOTING, you know?
The fact that Brendan wrote a different article than the one you want to see has nothing to do with Brendan, and everything to do with you being a twat.
13
@11 Oh you.
Well who woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.
Look Steve, you're going to have a stroke going off like that.
BTW. I should tell you I know you. As in we have met. We have a few friends in common. I know you're prone to these little temper tantrums. So I can ignore that.
And I know you have anointed yourself Monarch of this virtual fiefdom of yours and see everybody as some kind of challenege to virtual authoriti, but calling me names is not making your or Brendans point anymore valid.
I can tell you I too have worked with and for non-profits. Though it's certainly likely you know more about them. However your blatant and angry call to authority is a bad argument, a huge derail, and not about me. Clearly, NP work is stressful.
I'm sorry your having problems managing your NP. I suggest less time on Slog would help with that? And I was completely serious about helping you find inexpensive hard drives. I was.
Yes. I am a little overly hard on the Stranger. It's true I have Twatness. You're right there. It's from love. All about the love.
Well who woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.
Look Steve, you're going to have a stroke going off like that.
BTW. I should tell you I know you. As in we have met. We have a few friends in common. I know you're prone to these little temper tantrums. So I can ignore that.
And I know you have anointed yourself Monarch of this virtual fiefdom of yours and see everybody as some kind of challenege to virtual authoriti, but calling me names is not making your or Brendans point anymore valid.
I can tell you I too have worked with and for non-profits. Though it's certainly likely you know more about them. However your blatant and angry call to authority is a bad argument, a huge derail, and not about me. Clearly, NP work is stressful.
I'm sorry your having problems managing your NP. I suggest less time on Slog would help with that? And I was completely serious about helping you find inexpensive hard drives. I was.
Yes. I am a little overly hard on the Stranger. It's true I have Twatness. You're right there. It's from love. All about the love.
14
Um, tkc, I'm pretty sure you're the one who woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Shut the fuck up.
16
@fnarf, the floods are not "ENTIRELY" to blame on the government. It has been demonstrated already that this year's rain fall has been WAY more than usual. That is not to say there is a lot of stuff that has gone wrong with the response and actually in the years leading up to (blocked spillage pipes, housing developments on drainage fields due to lack of government oversight or caring) these floods, but it is not entirely the fault of the government.
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