Things we learned from Lamyai, the (latest) dirty dancer

1. We are all hypocrites. If something is “obscene”, it’s supposed to repulse us. You may argue that many of the tens of millions who have  viewed Lamyai Haithongkham’s clips are fans who don’t find her shows offensive, but that still doesn’t explain the huge numbers.
Of course, some viewers could merely have been curious. “I watched the clips just to see if I should admonish her or not,” a friend of mine said. Nice try. If you genuinely object to obscenity, you don’t go anywhere near anything deemed obscene, period. If my friend’s remark tells us anything, it’s that everyone has his or her own definition of obscenity. In other words, one man’s porn may be another man’s art.
A few days ago, just around the time Lamyai became a national controversy, a Thai female golfer rose to No 1 in the world rankings. But Ariya Jutanugarn, Thailand’s pride, joy and inspiration, has generated a pitiful number of YouTube views compared with Lamyai.
2. Prayut Chan-o-cha should have known better. Overnight, the prime minister’s public criticism turned an ordinary singer who relied on provocative dancing to stay afloat into a mega-star. He should have stuck to criticising Thaksin Shinawatra and pushing political reform. He also should have been aware of the power of negative publicity to stimulate awareness of a previously little-known product.
3. The social media should have known better, too. Again, if you think something is repulsive, stay away, don’t share, and don’t talk about it. The opposite is happening – on a grand scale.
4. Lamyai is not the first and surely won’t be the last. Comparisons are being made with Michael Jackson, but there’s someone closer at hand. About six years ago, the same tornado was whipped up around “Ja Turbo”. Both were young and relatively unknown, until their “dirty” dancing caught the eye of outspoken critics in high places who became their unwitting promoters.
Ja Turbo and Lamyai gave the same answer when asked about their dancing: “I have to earn a living.”
Born in the Northeast province of Roi Et to a poor family, Lamyai was one of those little girls who touted peanuts, fruit and candies around restaurants. She started singing and dancing at a young age, working for an unknown, struggling band. A combination of good looks, sexy moves and smart cosmetic work propelled her to fame.
Exactly how Lamyai came up with her provocative dancing style we may never know. The only pertinent information I have comes from my younger brother, who used to play in a pub band. He explained that when bands audition for contracts, the first thing prospective employers demand of female singer-dancers is that they be scantily dressed. The dirtier your dance, the better your chance off getting the job.
You don’t have to play like the Scorpions or Queen, my brother told me. “A pub-owner’s main requirement is near nudity in your show.”
Like Ja Turbo, a storm of criticism has whipped up around Lamyai. And as with Ja Turbo, that storm has blown her from relative anonymity to national stardom. 
5. When we blend male chauvinism, hypocrisy and misguided conservatism, what do we get? The answer is Thai society.
Thailand is a male-chauvinist society. There’s no doubt about that. Things get a bit complicated, though, when we add what happens in Patpong and Pattaya, and how the money the girls in such places make furnishes brothers back home with new pick-up trucks and rural temples with new roofs.
And the complexities don’t end there. Many prostitutes have reported they prefer “sincere” commercial exploitation to the moralistic or political attitudes that surround their trade. They point out that many people oppose prostitution simply because the self-righteous stance makes them feel good. The working girls meanwhile don’t really care about feminism or sexism. They just want to survive.
It’s up to the rest of the society to ask why men can behave far worse but manage to get away with it thanks to an accident of biology. This is not to say that Thai women should misbehave. I am merely asking why Thai men don’t receive the same social penalty for the same actions.
6. “Taste” is more subtle and slippery than morality. You can always bend the rules when it comes to ethics, but there are also clear lines that cannot be crossed. For taste, those lines blur. Some people find the slightest hint of cleavage unacceptable yet on occasion might consider total nakedness art. 
So, who decides what is good taste and what is bad? One man? The majority? Ourselves? Or simply nobody?