Welcome to Amazing Thailand, it's the Land of Smiles and supposedly this year will be our Miracle year.
The furious reaction to Lady Gaga’s fake Rolex tweet may have been blown a bit out of proportion.
It is a land of history, culture, world-renowned cuisine, pristine nature and some say that right now we have one of the most resilient economies.
It is not a country where fake goods can be openly bought on the street. Where prostitution is rampant. Where an illegal labour force is exploited, or where politics can disrupt airports, shopping districts or management issues at airline companies.
It is also most certainly not a place where you can say anything bad about anything or where the truth (especially if it is less than pleasing) is greeted with open arms.
We do have some excellent, high-grade, fake Rolexes though.
That was a joke by the way.
It was probably a joke when the queen of controversy Lady Gaga said it on her Twitter page as well.
Some of Thailand's more patriotic population, however, are up in Rolex-less arms, declaring that the influential pop star who makes a living out of wearing meat for clothing has done nothing but tarnish Thailand's global image.
Quotes in the Bangkok Post from angry fans claimed that "she came to our home, but instead of admiring us she insulted us" while DJ Surahit Siamwalla tweeted "we are more civilised than you think".
Some fans, who had already purchased tickets for the show, claimed that they would boycott the performance.
Permanent secretary for commerce Yanyong Puangraj has been especially vocal about Lady Gaga's tweet that read; "I wanna get lost in a lady market and buy fake Rolex."
Mr Yanyong used the opportunity to go on record as saying Thailand is not a producer of fake goods. He later posed this question to Lady Gaga, "Where do the fake goods come from? In the past the US copied Thai jasmine rice and renamed it Jasmati."
He also insinuated that the comment may have stemmed from anger over fake copies of American artists' CDs being on sale, thereby forcing musicians like Lady Gaga to go on tour as a way of making money.
A negative reaction to these comments is not unreasonable, but when the permanent secretary starts comparing a tweet to the ever-sensitive "rice wars", things may have been blown just a little out of proportion.
As a kid growing up in the UK, when people found out I was Thai they would always, without fail, ask if I knew any prostitutes or if I had ever accidentally kissed a ladyboy (I never did accidentally). They would ask also ask if Taiwan was a nice place to visit.
People coming here on holiday constantly ask me which markets are good for fake goods (I don't know) and if they will get ripped off buying counterfeit products at MBK (MBK does not sell counterfeit products).
Are these people tarnishing Thailand's image or are they simply commenting on what they believe to be true about the country? Worst case, they are just ignorant racists with a poor sense of humour.
Admittedly this is not the same as a global mega star tweeting her thoughts to the world, but the perception is the same.
Does it tarnish the image of Thailand? Maybe a little bit. But ignorant comments based on unflattering prejudices made by non-native Thais will not stop tourists from coming here, businesses from operating here and the world from turning.
Arguably, however, ignorant comments from politicians and over-the-top internet rage might stop the Lady Gagas of the world coming here.
Sadly, this feels like a case of bad parenting on our part. Thailand's tendency to avoid speaking out on negative or sensitive issues has left Thais unable to take criticism from outside sources as well.
Like a parent who shelters their child, we have been left unprepared for the outside world. We lash out at people who do not agree with us and make even more inappropriate and spiteful comments instead of just accepting that they might be making a joke, be idiots, or heaven forbid, they might just actually be right and we are the ones who are a little gaga.
Arglit Boonyai is Multimedia Editor, Bangkok Post.