Hi, kids! Today's lesson is about compassion and empathy.
There is sadly no Bahasa Malaysia word for empathy. The Kamus Dewan Inggeris Melayu lists empathy as 'empati'. Meanwhile, compassion is merely listed as 'belas kasihan', which is a totally different thing.
Meanwhile, the Chinese word for it is 'Ci bei (see bay)' which seems like 'cibai' or vagina.
Is this why Malaysians are so heartless?
I dunno.
What I do know are Thai prostitutes. I love talking to Thai prostitutes as I find them smarter and more pleasant than the average Malaysian. Most of this boils down to high EQ demonstrated with an abundance of compassion and empathy.
Thai prostitutes also demonstrate a lot of social or communal perspective.
I often goaded and prodded them into talking about their country and how to make it better. A social experiment, you see.
A lot of them say, "In order for Thailand to become a developed nation, I hope prices of food would go up."
I was perplexed. Isn't one dollar for a gallon of soda the hallmark of a well-developed country? Isn't obesity the sign of a prosperous people?
The Thai Prostitutes then explained to me that they are the daughters of poor Thai farmers. And yet they sell their bodies to mostly farmers from France, Germany, the UK, Australia and other countries.
"Why is it that farmers in Europe make so much more money than farmers in Thailand?"
These Thai hookers are so much aware of their society, that I sometimes feel ashamed. They have empathy and compassion. When I talk to most Malaysians about these things, they either don't understand the meaning of the words, laugh at me because I was being 'uncool', or simply go climb back up a tree and start flinging shit all over the place.
NEXT: How political bullshitters lobby for your support
