The concept of bad language

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Brody
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Brody »

explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am In Western culture we tell people if they say or do something we don't like. Cambodians don't. People say and do whatever they like, and normally nobody says anything.
I see grains of truth in this. I think Cambodians give more allowances for behaviors than in the west. People are quicker to call others out on their bullshit or boorish behavior in the west. Whilst in Cambodia there's the ubiquitous smile and unruffled demeanor........until that fatal tipping point when things go from 0 to 100.
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 amIf Cambodians don't like you, they wont say so. They just put on a fake act of being nice to you, but say bad things about you behind your back.
Surely this is not limited to Cambodians.......more like people the world over.
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Anchor Moy »

explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am If Cambodians don't like you, they wont say so. They just put on a fake act of being nice to you, but say bad things about you behind your back.

A lot of things we consider unacceptable, Cambodians consider acceptable.
Are you saying that in the west it is considered unacceptable to be polite and friendly to people that you don't actually like ? And that westerners never talk dirt on people behind their back ? This is just a Cambodian thing then ?
Frankly, I don't get where you are coming from.
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:19 am
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am say bad things about you behind your back.
As the saying goes, sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me.
One thing Cambodians do a lot, is talk about people. If one doesn't like you, all of their friends wont like you. So you may not have any friends.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Freightdog »

Care to elaborate?
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John Bingham
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by John Bingham »

explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 9:58 am
hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 9:55 am Sometimes I hear word “Choy” used as an exclamation. Is it the same meaning as english “..ck!”
No
What does it mean then? As far as I ever knew it means fuck. Joy my means fuck your mother or something close. I hear all sorts, even old ladies saying it.
Silence, exile, and cunning.
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by hunter8 »

explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:34 am
hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:19 am
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am say bad things about you behind your back.
As the saying goes, sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me.
One thing Cambodians do a lot, is talk about people. If one doesn't like you, all of their friends wont like you. So you may not have any friends.
It’s ok. I don’t believe in friendship unless it’s been running from the time both friends went to kindergarten together. Especially I don’t believe in friendship between a westerner and asian locals. But i noticed the word “friend” is used often in SEA for any person one occasionally would chat with longer than 5 minutes.
explorer
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

Anchor Moy wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:33 am
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am If Cambodians don't like you, they wont say so. They just put on a fake act of being nice to you, but say bad things about you behind your back.

A lot of things we consider unacceptable, Cambodians consider acceptable.
Are you saying that in the west it is considered unacceptable to be polite and friendly to people that you don't actually like ? And that westerners never talk dirt on people behind their back ?
Westerners do talk about people behind their back. But if someone does something another person doesn't like, Westerners often tell them. Westerners often avoid people they don't like, or tell them they don't want to associate with them.
Anchor Moy wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:33 am This is just a Cambodian thing then?
It is not just a Cambodian thing. It happens in most non-Western countries.
Anchor Moy wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:33 am Frankly, I don't get where you are coming from.
To really get it, you need to spend a lot of time with Cambodian people in their environment, or have a thousand examples.

One example:

Many Cambodians burn rubbish, including plastic. In the West we wouldn't do that. But let's say you are really poor, and live in a place where there is no rubbish collection, so you do burn rubbish and plastic. Westerners would try to pick a time of the day when the least people are around, so they don't have to breathe the smoke. Cambodians don't care. They burn when they feel like burning. It is often a time of the day when a lot of people are around, and have to breathe the smoke. They just do what they feel like. They don't think about others.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Freightdog
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by Freightdog »

hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:44 am
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:34 am
hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:19 am
explorer wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:07 am say bad things about you behind your back.
As the saying goes, sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never hurt me.
One thing Cambodians do a lot, is talk about people. If one doesn't like you, all of their friends wont like you. So you may not have any friends.
It’s ok. I don’t believe in friendship unless it’s been running from the time both friends went to kindergarten together. Especially I don’t believe in friendship between a westerner and asian locals. But i noticed the word “friend” is used often in SEA for any person one occasionally would chat with longer than 5 minutes.
Unlike the AmeriEngliFacebook word, Friend, meaning almost anything, but rarely friend.
explorer
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by explorer »

hunter8 wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:44 am It’s ok. I don’t believe in friendship unless it’s been running from the time both friends went to kindergarten together. Especially I don’t believe in friendship between a westerner and asian locals. But i noticed the word “friend” is used often in SEA for any person one occasionally would chat with longer than 5 minutes.
That is one of the sad things about some people in Western society.

Cambodian friends often care about each other a lot. They share their food, and help each other when the need arises. If you make friends with good Cambodian people, they will be really good friends.
## I thought I knew all the answers, but they changed all the questions. ##
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Re: The concept of bad language

Post by hunter8 »

Freightdog wrote: Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:57 am Unlike the AmeriEngliFacebook word, Friend, meaning almost anything, but rarely friend.
Good point. People feel better about themselves when their social status is higher. It’s same world over.
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