There are many, many examples of this. I’m not exactly sure why it happens so often in a country with so many English-speaking inhabitants and visitors. It must be a matter of pride. A situation where the boss speaks “perfect” English, and no one will challenge his or her interpretations. Maybe. I don’t know.

One of the funnier examples of this sort of mis-translation was seen by Richard Lair at the Elephant Conservatory. I was not able to obtain photographic proof, but Richard claimed that he saw a fresh-faced teenage Thai girl wearing a t-shirt that screamed “Fuck You, You Pricking Fuck!”