The press in Bangkok is commercial. Everything is for sale. A stroll down Sukhumvit Road road lands you in the hornet’s nest of merchants hawking merchandise from fake Polos to particular PEDs.
Minding your manners with a simple no thank you does little to fend off the vendor who like one of unsound mind continues to mumble to himself.
“100 Baht!”
“OK 50 Baht!”
The unilateral negotiation continues even after the disinterested customer has marched well past his mobile kiosk.
As day gives way to night, the solicitation takes on a darker form as the proprietor stops pushing products and starts peddling sex.
Caught in the crossfire of the trade are young, innocent girls who have been sold into a lifestyle of submission.
Perhaps more shameful than the local pimp is the shameless global consumer who misconstrues the stamp in his passport as a visa to act disgracefully.
The pervasiveness of sex tourism in SE Asia does not make its existence any less deplorable. While patrons of the trade would like to pretend their participation is nothing out of the norm, curiously these pathetic persons make a concerted effort to avoid eye contact with those who may judge in the alternative.
Everything may be for sale but that on its own isn’t a reason to buy.
