Buzz’s Journal---A Small Example of Thai Corruption and Lawlessness

Cement trucks begin to arrive
Bangkok, Thailand. 02 September 2010. After suffering through years of all-night noise from illegal outdoor bars on soi 11, I moved to quiet soi 10, quiet, that is, for about 90 days until construction of the hotel across the street began one year ago. Today, after a relatively quiet construction site during the morning and early afternoon, when I came home from school at 17.30, there were 10 cement trucks lined up in front of my condo building ready to start their work day. It is rumored that there are laws in Bangkok prohibiting construction after 20.00, (some people say the cutoff time is 18.00 or 18.30), but obviously they are not enforced. It is well-known that between 20% and 30% of the cost of any construction in Thailand goes to graft and payoffs (near the lower end for private construction and near the upper end for public projects). There is no way that mere individuals or condo associations can get the police to halt illegal construction after the cutoff time, because they have already been bought. In fact, Thais are so accustomed to the system that they don’t even try. Last night, construction halted at about 03.00. As for me, I lost most of a night’s sleep, but did get some rest by wearing Bose noise cancelling ear phones before going to bed, and ear plugs thereafter. While a big help in dimming the racket, they were far from a complete solution. In fact, I was wide awake when the 06.00 morning shift began.

Construction workers buy delicious meals from street vendors for about US$.80