I HEAR YA !

Don't make 'em richer !
You CAN'T make em richer !
They don't deserve to be richer !

Simple: Take back what the rich stolen from the poor. Secondly clean out the 3 Somdach bank accounts and share it evenly among the 14 millions.

taabarang wrote:

quotidian needs

quotidian = pretentious

flying chicken wrote:Simple: Take back what the rich stolen from the poor. Secondly clean out the 3 Somdach bank accounts and share it evenly among the 14 millions.

Flying Chicken,

Wouldn't you be one of the Khmer who would be enriched by your share
of the 15 billion dollars ?

Did you notice that so far we have Brits, Aussies, Yanks, and Japs saying
NO. NO. NO. YOU AND YOUR COUNTRY MUST NOT GET MONEY !

If we continue on there are Cambodia government ministries and local
powerful business interests who will join in the NO NO NO song.

The Prime Minister may be the only one who will help you get your share.

And he is the guy who SAVED Cambodia from meltdown and destruction.
Appointed by the King Father, elected by the Cambodian people, he is
the national hero.

flying chicken wrote:Simple: Take back what the rich stolen from the poor. Secondly clean out the 3 Somdach bank accounts and share it evenly among the 14 millions.

very true...they did this in Russia and Poland....kick them out and take their houses...

so the ones who take from the elite to redistribute the wealth will adopt the practices of their predecessors?

flying chicken wrote:Simple: Take back what the rich stolen from the poor. Secondly clean out the 3 Somdach bank accounts and share it evenly among the 14 millions.

1. This would be okay if the poor were people worth giving the property to.

2. Even if there were $100 billion if those accounts (fat chance), then that's $7,000 to each Cambodian. How much do you want to bet that is going to impact anyone's life in any meaningful way?

i.e. The Vietnamese government is extremely corrupt and hated too and has been for quite a some time now, but the country is moving on regardless. Still needs a lot of work, but go to any rural town in Vietnam and then compare them to here, difference is night and day.

As much as I hate corruption, it's still the people's fault that they are poor.

This is a good news thread.

No one loses any money.

Whenever you refer to "the people" meaning cambodians in general,
they are assumed to be great and wonderful people who deserve the
best the world can offer them.

My idea is to increase the size of the pie, so there is more to go around.
There is hidden value in Cambodia. Unlock this value and the whole country
is richer.

Thank you, very much.

^^I agree that there are great hidden gems in Cambodia as well, honestly. I know a few, and they're great people hand on heart as I say that.

Problem is trying to increase the pie itself, if it's made bigger by just being given to them, then it's not going to help much. There's a lot in this world that can be offered to people, it just has to be pursued after. I am in the same boat as many "rich officials" when I say that there is a lot we're willing to offer the people who are willing to try (and I know I can say this because I know many high up people personally). I have trained several dozen mechanics (albeit Vietnamese ones) free of charge and have offered them all my secrets in terms of "tricks of the trade", I have financed several nephews through their schooling (still do now), I've sponsored one of my relatives to the states for education, and I've met and offered advice to anyone willing to seek it out whether in mechanics, business ethics/tactics, or whichever.

I promise that I'm not entirely alone and that a lot of the rich people (or at least those not poor), are willing to offer a lot because we understand the same thing you say. We understand this very well because, at least with me, my life was changed by those who were willing to help me out. I was homeless when I was 17 and had to beg my way to work illegally (half the minimum wage, I made $2.50 an hour) because no one would hire me officially. I swept the pathways, mopped up the floors, and wiped windows and was ridiculously destitute (in my manager's words). I showed up at 5:30 and washed my clothes in the bathroom sink with handsoap and hung then inside the handicapped bathroom stall to dry. However, I was always anxious to learn what was around me. I picked up pamphlets of the products the store sold and took genuine interest in learning about them. One day (after maybe 8 months of $2.50 wages), one of the salespeople whom I befriended (and who always handed me some breakfast in the morning), began talking about the products they were selling (automotive parts and detailing supplies) and was amazed I could keep up with the jargon and terminology. This lady offered to put in reference for me to be hired officially as a salesman and I soon got a "real" job. It was a crap job, but it paid better and allowed me to find a place to live (outside of the janitor's closet). Maybe a year later after selling auto supplies, the shop foreman (body shop) took interest in me and trained me on body and detail work. From then on I went into advanced repairs and then machining. 6 years later I was a foreman of an entire mechanic shop (I was also the younger guy there) and a year later I was the general manager of 3 shops, age 24.

I'm not saying any of this because I want to brag (if I did, I wouldn't do it on an expat forum in Cambodia, sorry guys), and I'm not saying this to try and inflate my lacking self esteem because frankly, I don't really care. Many who know me can vouch for this (and my work history).

The key point though is this...none of it came to me, I went and searched for me. I was hungry (literally and figuratively) and I realized that nothing would come to me if I waited. I had to search and continuously look for it, and it was only then when people started to respond. I've been given more than I can express thanks for, but now being on the other side, I realize that there are people willing to give extremely generously to those seeking a path to a better (not handout). And sadly, having dealt with several hundred poor and destitute people here, I've come to the conclusion that those that want to get out already have. Those that are stuck in their squaller and mess are only there because they couldn't be bothered to pick up their feet and walk the path.

AK,

You are one of the smartest people on the board.

And you have learned that helping people is a thank-less pursuit.
So you want to quit.

Fair enough.

But no, don't quit. Keep trying to help because that is the kind of
good person you are.

And it won't cost you any money.

Help me explain my idea. If it is a good idea, someone may see it and
implement it.

Cambodians will be 15 Billion Dollars richer but we will not be thanked.
And thats OK.