roquefort

On 8/5/2023 at 12:25 AM, soalbundy said:

Yes, there isn't a great deal at stake here. Democracy is an over rated word anyway, most people will go their whole lives without being confronted by constitutional matters or having to speak with their MP. As for 'Western democracy' if we take the UK as an example, there is no proportional representation in government, just winner takes all and an unelected House of Lords and a huge disparity in the distribution of wealth. More important than parliament is an Independent judiciary (providing you can afford a lawyer) and a free press but the media is owned by the elite. The majority of people get by just fine under a benign dictatorship or a pseudo democracy like Thailand, a little excitement only happens at election time but soon calms down and life goes on in its own chaotic way.

Totally agree. The UK, like other western 'democracies', is becoming more authoritarian by the day. Witness the debanking scandal (which is much wider than Nigel Farage by the way), where faceless bank bureaucrats can make someone a non-person just because they don't like their opinions, or the censorship of any views which contradict the official narrative on Covid 1984, climate change, Ukraine etc etc.

A benign dictatorship like Singapore, where the people give up marginal freedoms in exchange for prosperity, no corruption and a well-managed economy is preferable to a pseudo democracy like Thailand, where corruption is rampant and most of the country's wealth is controlled by an all-powerful elite.

12 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Well, although you only quoted the first sentence of my comment, I believe that if you pay closer attention to the tenor of my comment as a whole, you will know my thoughts about climbing Everest.

 

So, to clarify...

 

a. Stepping on the bodies of those who have climbed Everest and died as a result is no skin off my nose. Those bodies would not have been there if the users of those bodies had been more thoughtful before making the ascent.  They must have known that they would be stepped on, or stepped over, if they petered out along the way.

b. I have read a lot of accounts of climbing Everest, K2, and other high peaks, and I find the psychology of it fascinating. For example, what must it have been like to call your wife, back home in the USA, while dying on Everest above the death zone during a gale?  It must have been quite a conversation.

c. I do not like the fact that there are now traffic jams on Everest, just as you are about to go up the Hillary Step, caused by idiots who rely on Sherpas to carry them up; I mean the non-climbers who have no business being there in the first place, mucking up the climb for the very few who do deserve to be there.

d. As a first step in the right direction, I would like to see a COMPLETE BAN on all oxygen tanks above base camp.  Without oxygen, only the strong and talented climbers would attempt the ascent.

e.  Sherpas should be banned from stringing up ropes and ladders, especially the ladder at Hillary Step should be removed.  If you want to summit, then do it like a man, not a mouse.

f. The rope which is strung up to the ladder needs to be removed, and the anchors should be removed.

g.  All the climbing aids to assist weak climbers of Everest must be removed.  Otherwise, it cheapens the accomplishment of Norgay and Hillary!!!

 

Just because one has money, one should not be allowed to buy their way to the summit. Do it alone or with a friend.  And do it without oxygen. It's time we separated the men from the little boys.

 

 

 

 

For once I completely agree with you.

If you read Jon Krakauer's 'Into Thin Air', a great account of the 1996 disaster when a dozen climbers died, you'll see that one woman was totally unsuited to take on such a challenge but the expedition company took her money anyway. Another was on his third attempt and because his guide (Rob Hall) knew that the client had set his heart on reaching the summit, he went on against his better judgement instead of turning back when conditions got too rough. They both died. 

Money distorts everything. If someone wants to put their own life on the line, that's up to them. But endangering the lives of guides and sherpas who accompany them for financial reasons is another matter.

8 hours ago, herfiehandbag said:

The inclusion of McMurdo Station in Antarctica (!) and Kai Tak which has been closed for 25 years rather reduces this reports credibility!

Not to mention Barra International (!) at No.2 - landing on a beach in the Hebrides, and Lukla at No.5 - landing on a 100yd strip hacked out of the side of a mountain at 8,000 ft up in the Himalayas!

By comparison Don Mueang is a walk in the park.

What a sad life some people must lead if that's their main concern.

Collar up on Polo Shirt - Why?

Why not?

5 hours ago, happysoul said:

US and Thailand had joint military training lately, no ? And the saying goes "my friend is your friend". So could we conclude that US and China are now friends thanks to Thailand ?

 

I thing I'm missing something here ????

Seems like a sensible policy. Play one side off against the other and keep some leverage over both. Why should Thailand be forced to align itself with one side or the other? It should do what is in its own best interests.

3 hours ago, FruitPudding said:

Having an entire month dedicated to you worldwide is often a sign of oppression. ????

Or obsession.

1 minute ago, billd766 said:

If evidence is also provided to the contrary, is that not a fact also?

 

Take all of the facts for Covid and what do you come up with?

 

Covid is true or false?

 

If doctors claim it is true and other doctors claim it is not, Who do you believe?

 

That's a good point. You can find evidence for almost any conclusion you want to come to. Science itself is not settled, as some would have you believe. 

At the end of the day you have to sift through all the evidence and make up your own mind. That will be your version of the truth.

On 5/19/2023 at 6:20 PM, placeholder said:

unbiased left wing University

Isn't that an oxymoron?

12 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

don't be silly, you probably haven't even got a handicap 

10.8. What's yours?

7 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

If anybody wants to know how vote buying works successfully, I recommend this book:

 

Guns, Girls, Gambling, Ganja: Thailand's Illegal Economy and Public Policy: Phongpaichit, Pasuk, Piriyarangsan, Sungsidh, Treerat, Nualnoi: 9789747100754: Amazon.com: Books

 

Politicians are smart enough to find ways that people actually vote for them to get (more) money.

Thanks for the recommendation. The book is from 1998, the year I first came to Thailand, but I'm sure most of its content still applies. Very little seems to have changed in the intervening 25 years.

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

i really enjoy watching LIV and friends that watch it also enjoy it, we find PGA boring now, except majors. PGA seems flat

If you know anything about golf you'll know LIV is entertainment, not sport.

26 minutes ago, vandeventer said:

 You would think the UN would have stopped this by now.

The UN has no power to change the laws of a member country. It can't even fulfill it's principal mandate which is to prevent wars.

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

How could the submarine crew have known it was mainly Allied prisoners instead of Japanese soldiers/sailors aboard their target?

They couldn't know, although the article suggests the allied governments knew the risk and were prepared to sacrifice those men to the war effort.

3 hours ago, Thomas KH said:

Unbelievable stupidity. Why would you declare the Malaysian events on a UK visa application?? Do not declare it. There is no record of it in Thailand or in the UK. Not even in the EU or Interpol.

 

She's in bad hands with someone like you. Over-honest and paranoid.

As the OP said, it's all over her passport. Do you think they're not going to notice?

A life well lived. Congratulations sir.

43 minutes ago, Artisi said:

Please don't complicate things and spoil their fun, they are only simple singular minded people. 

You'd think even a simple so-called journalist would be able to use Google.

3 hours ago, mrfill said:

The actual UK Government advice is "The public should remain vigilant, but not be alarmed"

What utter BS. They feel the need to tell us there's a severe risk of terrorist attacks, but it's ok, don't be alarmed.

When are we supposed to get alarmed.........when the bombs start going off?