Culture and politics forum

More than once. My wife was at a bar here when a dispute over nothing ended up in a dead guy in the parking lot. My cleaning lady from Vietnam had a friend who was killed in their apartment when one guy didn't like the way he said "excuse me" to get past where this small group was drinking / eating (they were drunk of course). He was stabbed to death. On my street two guys got into a fist fight which quickly escalated into a shooting. At the Mukdahan fair kids from two neighboring villages got into it, the smaller group fled in a car, they were chased down by a larger group of kids armed with pistols. The car crashed into the wall at Mukdahan School, and the kids on the motorbikes got off and cooly shot each passenger before he could get out. Killed all four. There's more violence here than the wild west and almost always over nothing.

Well China, actually Thailand is not a dangerous place to travel providing you are polite and friendly. There is a ton of violence here, but it's mostly caused by passion. The reason most people who visit here don't realize that the level of violence is high is because of all the smiles and the friendly nature of the people. That is mistaken for cool headedness and kindly nature. People here are friendly, but when they lose it, they really lose it. We don't fit into their system, so as a result we usually get a pass. Occassionally you see a foreigner yelling at a local, but it's pretty rare. Most people here on vacation want to have fun, and most people who live here know better. So for your average tourist, this place is quite safe with that caveat.

South and Central America, on the other hand, have a lot of poverty based violent crime. That's a whole other kettle of fish as a tourist is an easier target and probably has more money on him than an indigenous person.

Have to agree with you Madmac. Don't make them lose "face".

goonistik
It certainly was 'road rage' but I always thought people in these parts accept and expect stupid driving.
Madmac
With respect, how do you 'embarass' someone by being an idiotic driver?
I suspect it was something the boy said which made him lose control NOT the imbecilic driving, since if it wasn't for the quick reaction of the driver they would have all died without a doubt.

Atleast in asia, it usually involves an interaction between people. In the states you have to wear body armour to go out to eat. Some clown pissed off at his wife may walk in dressed like Rambo and decide to kill 30 people.
Sayadian.... "expect and accept stupid driving" LOL I know I do.

I wasn't saying it isn't Madmac. But from what I have seen, there is usually a reason involving people behind it, unlike killing innocent strangers. Even Thailand has it's ocasional whacko but you can read about it almost every week happening in the states. America is my home country, like yours and it's sad to see.

Neosho,
Absolutely. These are almost always crimes of passion with the occassional business murder thrown in.

China
Gun violence, not homicides. Thailand is the only country listed here though - coming in at number three. If they had numbers for it, I am sure Somalia would be higher.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_wit_fir-crime-murders-with-firearms