Bangkok Animal Market

[Butters]

Am in Bangkok now. Today I went to the market and there were lots of animals there in little cages. A bit similar to this video

They had regular animals like cats, bunnies and mice. But also crazy ones. I've seen at least:

• Wild cats (Lynx? not sure) 
• Sugar glider
• Many different reptiles
• Giant turtles
• Opossum 
• Raccoon (seriously, who wants this as a pet?) 
• Capuchin Monkey (sad)
• Many puppies (more sad tbh) 
• Capybara
• Many exotic birds
• Squirrels 

Probably way more. I could have swore I heard a tiger growl at some point but that was probably just my brain playing tricks on me. Although if you ask enough people I'm sure they can get you one. Most of these animals didn't look like they should be caged but what you gonna do. Also saw cockfighting roosters yesterday lol. 

[OmniNaut]

Welcome to Asia. An animal life is not worth much here, only food or entertainment.
When I was living in Cambodia my gf's dog was stolen, which happens quite a lot, exported to places like Vietnam where they eat dogs.

It's a different world here, as animal lover it can be quite challenging to see how they are treated here. 
I have pigs seen kicked and heard their throat being cut, and screaming slowly quiets down. In the Philippines roasted pig (Lechon) is a national celebration dish during Christmas or Easter. Lots of them are being bred, come into the island a few weeks before the celebration and killed on the day. Every time I walk past them I'm thinking only xx days of living for you my friend.

How a nation/culture treats their fellow human and animals is a direct indication of their consciousness development.
When I visit a new country it's one of the first things I research to get an indication of their development level.

Edited 10 hours ago by OmniNaut

[Butters]

24 minutes ago, OmniNaut said:

When I was living in Cambodia my gf's dog was stolen, which happens quite a lot, exported to places like Vietnam where they eat dogs.

Holy shit! That's crazy. About dogs: I've seen many strays here and they look rough but I think the locals take care of them. But still, the one that lays in front of 7/11 at night looks like he's been through some tough times and his fur is all messed up. The stray dogs lack a certain curious warm persona that regular domestic dogs have in my eyes. 

26 minutes ago, OmniNaut said:

I have pigs seen kicked and heard their throat being cut, and screaming slowly quiets down. In the Philippines roasted pig (Lechon) is a national celebration dish during Christmas or Easter. Lots of them are being bred, come into the island a few weeks before the celebration and killed on the day. Every time I walk past them I'm thinking only xx days of living for you my friend.

But I think in Europe slaughterhouses are horrible places probably but you don't typically get to see it. Honestly doesn't bother me that much. 

 

27 minutes ago, OmniNaut said:

How a nation/culture treats their fellow human and animals is a direct indication of their consciousness development.

I've been thinking about development level a lot since I got here. People are very warm and welcoming, I love it. People seem to have (much) less individual ego than people in the West. I wonder if this was the same in Europe 100 years ago when the Church still laid out the moral rules of society. 

[LordFall]

6 hours ago, Butters said:

I've been thinking about development level a lot since I got here. People are very warm and welcoming, I love it. People seem to have (much) less individual ego than people in the West. I wonder if this was the same in Europe 100 years ago when the Church still laid out the moral rules of society. 

When the group is all you have, you tend to be more communal. You should see how they treat those that don't fit into their societal norms. Usually not too well. Individual ego comes with self-reliance and ultimately freedom.

6 hours ago, Butters said:

 

• Capybara
• Many exotic birds
• Squirrels 

 

Capybara should be at the top, he runs the whole market.

 

[OmniNaut]

6 hours ago, Butters said:

Holy shit! That's crazy. About dogs: I've seen many strays here and they look rough but I think the locals take care of them. But still, the one that lays in front of 7/11 at night looks like he's been through some tough times and his fur is all messed up. The stray dogs lack a certain curious warm persona that regular domestic dogs have in my eyes. 

The dog nappers want good fed and special breed dogs, usually strays don't make that much money. So they target the high value ones.

Yes, it's quite common to feed the stray animals, they will keep cats and dogs as pets. The general rule is, if the animal has a collar then it's owned by someone. They generally can love their pet on the same level as in the West. The difference (and this also still can happen in the Europe/ the West) they see cats and dogs separate from animals that feed them. A cow, pig or chicken is less conscious then a cat or a dog, it's a way of protecting the hypocrisy thinking that is going on.

Asia is a big place with different cultures so it can vary per culture and of course when talking about culture there will be individual exceptions.

6 hours ago, Butters said:

But I think in Europe slaughterhouses are horrible places probably but you don't typically get to see it. Honestly doesn't bother me that much. 

Yeah, for me as a vegetarian it is a terrible thing to witness.

In the Philippines they also do cock fighting, held in special arenas called Cockpits. The local guys (it's always guys) will feed there hen special food and give them all the love they need to hopefully slaughter the other hen, to make them a lot of money because there is a lot of gambling involved in cockfighting.
 

6 hours ago, Butters said:

I've been thinking about development level a lot since I got here. People are very warm and welcoming, I love it. People seem to have (much) less individual ego than people in the West. I wonder if this was the same in Europe 100 years ago when the Church still laid out the moral rules of society. 

Yeah, it's one of the benefits of SD Blue, being part of a group you will be included. Being a European (I don't know what skin colour you have) but if you are white people will adore you. The positive racism as a white male preferably with blonde hair and blue eyes is huge. 
Western countries have lost something with the SD orange individualism, this is what Green tries to correct, but is not always successful. SD Green in Asia is really sparse, maybe you can find some small groups in surfer communities or something.

The problem with SD Blue and especially in Asia is something called Saving face. Many of the Asian countries have it, they will always put on a smile but flat-out lie to you or gossip behind your back. The more direct approach of communicating like we have in Europe, is not done here.

Example if you ask for directions, they will point you in a direction even if they don't know, just to safe their face. Saying no directly to someone is almost considered rude. That's why they go around the topic to indirectly say no. If wastes a lot of time and energy just to say the same. This is more of a SD Blue vs Orange clash. Social cohesion vs. Efficiency and Effectivity.

I remember my Nepalese ex told me, that the first time she started dating foreigners she was shocked by the directness. It took her some time to getting used to, but she prefers it now. When communicating there is no (or at least not so much) second guessing or looking for hidden agendas.

If you want to learn more: 

It takes some time to really unravel the social dynamics of Asian cultures. And because you are an outsider, sometimes it's almost impossible to know what the truth is.

Edited 2 hours ago by OmniNaut