I'm little late to jump into this conversation...  I didn't get a chance to read everyone comments regarding this particular topic.

Prostitution is the quickest way to earn the $$$ and perhaps enjoy the pleasure at the same time:-).  I'm not condoning this line of work either.  When majority of the people are poor and living standard is below poverty, people will do anything to survive...  Which means selling their body and soul, if they have to.   It is sad thing to see..

WantLaosToBeIndependence, You're entitled to your opinion but we're doing just fine.

I don't think the western world is so perfect! I also think that guy live in the hut may not wish to have the same life as we have in the West! what we have to go through each day. I have received this poem send to me since 1999 by an unnamed person and I keep it and stick in my office wall to remind me. The world that I have is not that perfect!

We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers;

Wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints;

We spend more, but have less;

We buy more, but enjoy it less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families;

More conveniences, but less time;

We have more degrees, but less sense;

More knowledge, but less judgment;

More experts, but more problems;

More medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much,

Smoke too much,

Spend too recklessly,

Laugh too little,

Drive too fast,

Get too angry too quickly,

stay up too late,

get up too tired,

read too seldom,

watch TV too much,

and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom and lie too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life;

we've added years to life, not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back,

but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.

We've conquered outer space, but not inner space;

we've done larger things, but not better things;

we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul;

we've split the atom, but not our prejudice;

we write more, but learn less;

plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait;

we have higher incomes; but lower morals;

more food but less appeasement;

We build more computers to hold more information,

to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication;

we've become long on quantity, but short on quality.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion;

tall men, and short character;

steep profits, and shallow relationships.

These are the times of world peace, but domestic warfare;

more leisure and less fun;

more kinds of food, but less nutrition.

These are days of two incomes, but more divorce;

More of fancier houses, but broken homes.

These are days of quick trips,

disposable diapers,

throwaway morality,

one-night stands,

overweight bodies,

and pills that do everything from cheer,

to quiet,

to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the show window

and nothing in the stockroom.

Indeed it's all true.


I hope you will stop and think about it. Are we really that happy than people living poor in Laos.

Are we???????????

Hi Admin

I agree with you on this point! Most Laos in the Country side is a lot happy than people in the city. They don't have to be stress like us people in the city. Rent or mortgage to be pay each month. Phone bill,electricity and water bill........ Traffic, parking. wearing mask to talk to each other each day. worry about what to wear,what to eat. to many choice making us confuse about what we want in life. We forgot what our root and where did we came from how get to be what we are.....

As I have mention on the other post before this one. It seem to be we have more than them. We have the freedom more than them. but looking deep inside...are we really have all that?

Buk Hoo Kee wrote on 1^st Feb, 2010 at 12:13am:


You Data is too old to be make any judgment here. 2004. When I was there that wasn't many car and motorbike yet. They isn't must building build and the Highway 13 is not complete yet. The bridge(Loas -Thailand) in Savannakhet is not build yet. Seno, special Zone for business is still in the drawing board, The asean Game didn't not even in drawing board. 2009 is the year Laos finally have show the the world we try to get better like most of the world.  Many thing have change since you las visit mate.

Talking about prostitution is not only Laos problem Every where specially where you are now. you have to stop the people that paying for the service too. In USA is prosecute the people soliciting the prostitute as you aware of that already. 

Each country in this world all have their own problems. you can never stop prostitution as long there is a need It will be always with us...... don't tell me ,every real man will stop having sex and using the 5 fingers to do the job from now on.....

Let stop criticis the government and hope they will see it.  I don't think so... because if they do see it...This site will be block and being ask to shut down already.  The last time,I asking (yesterday)my friend in Laos checking this site is till online.....  but I am sure they is many local Laos is reading about this site now. the way we criticise the govenment they would agree with us but they also will think we are abandoned them and look down on them and thinking they are stupid. I just hope we can pointing to the problem what Laos has and hopefully They Young and future Laos see it and at least finding solution to those problem when they become the future leader.

I am going back to Laos(3 years) to retire and rest in peace. I will start some kind of business in Laos. right now I don't  know what I will do yet.

I don't want to argue with anyone and I think we have all been good in understanding each other and having a clean and adult like debate. I think all our intentions are good, we just have different views of what we "think" is "good". We all have different standards and I do realize that Laos is still a 3rd world country and their standards may not meet ours in the west. Living comfortably to us in the west means that we can make our own decisions. If we choose to live in the country and do farming and live off the land, we can choose that life. If we want to live in the city and work at a job, we can also choose that life here in the west. I can choose what I want to buy cause I got choices here. It is true that we have to pay for all these choices like having a cell phone along with the bills, having internet/cable along with the bills. Live in an expensive house, have high mortgage payments, live in a cheap place then have a low rent/mortgage payment each month. We can control these things cause we have the choice.

For the people in Laos that are deprived of these choices, they can only accept their fate that is handed to them. If you are born into a poor family that lives in the country, how do you change your fate? You don't even have access to good schools to educate yourself out of poverty, can't go work 2-3 jobs to save up more money cause there are no jobs, you may only have land to grow food to eat day to day and if there is a drought or flood like Ketsana, then what do you do, starve? Got no choice unless the outside world helps you which they have been doing so the Laos gov't just ignores the problem, those UN suckers will do it.

80% live in the country, that means 20% live in the city. So doing fine must only apply to the 20% livng in the city, if even that. When I was there in Laos, there was this family that lived in the house I was staying at and basically they were the live in housekeeprs or "mae bahn" who cooked and cleaned for everyone. They got paid $80 US/mth and that was considered "good". They were from the country and came to the city to find "work" and each month, they would send money home. The mother of this family cooked and cleaned while looking after her kids, the father couldn't find work, just odd jobs. To me, this is not "doing fine", this is "surviving". Lots of the kids can't afford to go to school, that's why I see them running around during the day all the time.

I knew of another guy that had to pond his $300 US car so his wife could get medical treatment at the hospital or she would die. All of the people I know there go to Thailand for anything medical related, and this is in the city, I wonder how bad it must be in the country.

A monk told me something very wise a while ago. He said for someone like me to go live there it would be okay since I have knowledge, english and choices, not to mention some money. For someone that was raised there, they don't have that advantage and thus have no choices but to struggle to make ends meet. We have the tools, they don't. Have you ever tried to do something but realized you don't have the right tools to do it? It's the same thing here, I don't blame them for not having the tools, that choice was never given to them.

On another note, I know of a family of 3 who went back to Laos. They lived in Canada for a few years and decided to go back. They used to rent an apartment and work at labour jobs here in Canada. Now they make $350 US/mth and have a house in Laos and live comfortably cause he has knowledge of road construction that he used to do in Canada, not to mention the english skills necessary to understand the paperwork. Can some average Laos person born there be able to make $350 doing the same thing? Would they be given the same choice/opportunity? I bet not, that's why the chinese have to come in and build the Sea games stadium and other infrastructures. Give the Laos people the choices/opportunity, control their own destiny.

Last of all,

I like you guys comments ( BLBG, BHK )
I also like your poems,Tee.But one thing I disagree with you " Let stop criticize the Govt" My words would had said " F- the Laos Fake-ass Communist" ( Corruptors,one party rules Communist party only)

Let me fix some of your poems:

"we have a big house and smaller families"
Have a big house is better than a little sack hut with huge families
"more knowledge but less judgment"
Have more knowledge is always better than less or lack of knowledge, but less judgment is also better than been judged by the Communist Laws(guity before prove) there are many innocent ppl are been lock up behind bars in Laos without trial.

You have the right and entitled to disagree with my opinions so to all commentors.