KhunHeineken

You post that your lifestyle on an aged pension in Australia is better than that of an Aussie expat living in Thailand, on the same aged pension. It's BS. If that was the case, all these Aussie expats on an aged pension would be living back in Australia. When asked for examples, your only examples were cheap cask wine and Medicare doctors. It's laughable.

So why bother posting on here? You live, full time, in Australia. What relevance do your posts have for expats in Thailand?

Can you imagine the insider trading? American politicians buying stock just before a contract is awarded. Of course, it would be a family member or trusted friend. What about the "lobbying" which is basically corruption, by buying political favoritism. The money involved is massive. War and oil. Big business.

When it's all added up, across ALL of it, it's massive, and the billions of USD involved is mind blowing. I'll be dead, but the next generation, possibly the one after, will have to deal with a country who will have around 400 million people by then, who has been the superpower for decades, dealing with a country with well over a billion people by then, that is catching up quickly, who have visions of global dominance, either through guns and bombs, or money. The money thing is already happening. This tells me, the west will have to make a move before they gain the capability to not only withstand invasion, but to counter invade. As I said, we are leaving a big mess for our children and grandchildren. If only we could all stay in our own backyard, but global politics and domination is not that simple.

I agree. What you describe very well may be the way it happens. Perhaps an end of calendar year total deposit document from your Thai bank/s, and that's the figure they use, and here's your biill. Easy money collection for them. if one wants to prove assessable / non assessable, DTA's etc etc, then they must gather all the paperwork and go through Thai bureaucracy to pay less or no tax. Good Luck doing that.

War is happening somewhere on the planet, everyday. Usually in more than one country / region. As World War 2 followed World War 1, World War 3 will follow World War 2. Ideology. Religion. Land. Energy. Politics. Economics. Humans can't help themselves.

See above post. It's all the outsourcing that I included, and called it an "industry."

Perhaps I should have stated "employer" rather than "industry" in relation to the figures I posted. More on being the biggest employer in the world, although Wiki has the Indian defense slightly higher. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_employers https://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-military-is-the-largest-employer-in-the-world-2015-06-17 You do know the US Department of Defense outsources a lot of work, don't you? That means they are not counted as employees, but they are certainly part of the defense "industry" in my book. Does a company called Halliburton sound familiar to you? Dick Cheney was the Vice President of Halliburton. Funny that. https://www.corpwatch.org/article/us-halliburton-moves-among-top-grossing-us-defense-contractors "The war in Iraq is fueling demand for services by Halliburton's KBR unit, which supplies everything from housing to daily meals for the 150,000 U.S. troops stationed there." The dollar figures are staggering. https://web.stanford.edu/class/e297a/U.S. Defense Industry and Arms Sales.htm " Lockheed Martin Corporation, based in Bethesda, Maryland, is the world’s largest defense contractor. Among Lockheed’s many claims to fame, it is also the largest military aircraft manufacturer in the world and the prime contractor on the largest defense contract ever, the $250 billion Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program." " Northrop Grumman Corporation, based in Los Angeles, California, will become the world’s second largest military contractor, after a recent $8 billion purchase of TRW propels the company up from the number three slot. Although Northrop Grumman is the world’s largest shipbuilder and the sole builder of the US Navy's aircraft carriers, it is more famous for being the manufacturer of the most expensive plane ever built, the $1.2 billion apiece B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber." I had a quick look at who makes ammunition for the US Military. This is one company. https://aollc.biz "American Ordnance LLC (AO) is a premier manufacturer of ammunition to the United States Military. " I could go on and on and on. Everything from R & D to the uniforms worn by the troops. Speaking of uniforms. https://www.propper.com https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propper#:~:text=Propper's core product has always,firefighters and emergency medical personnel. "Propper's core product has always been the current standard issue U.S. military uniform." Spend. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_highest_military_expenditures Three time more than its nearest rival, China, and nine times more than number three on the list, Russia. I simply put all of these together and called it an "industry." Perhaps my bad.

Simple article in today's online news about tax time, but it has an interesting line in it. https://www.9news.com.au/national/tax-return-2024-australian-taxation-office-warns-australians-not-to-rush-tax-return/e0f6d965-bad9-4202-8330-1f4018ebfc58 "Most information from employers, banks, government agencies and health funds usually load into your tax return from late July, Thomson said." "Government agencies" "load into your tax return." Mmmmmm.

Why are you even posting on this thread? What is the point of you posting? You have minimal connection to Thailand.

Sydney, Australia. Like you said, you are new to the thread. You have no idea how much BS this member posts.

No public doctors. I maintain private health insurance in Australia, should a catastrophic illness / injury happen. Eg. cancer. I'll return to Australia for private treatment, with the insurance company paying. Once again, you are living on a shoe string budget in Australia, but passing it off on here as a great lifestyle. I think your lifestyle would be better in Thailand on the pension, like so many other members here, but your Thai missus is wearing the pants and you are locked into Australia.

Yes, I agree. Definitely living the dream. Why would anyone actually want to live in Thailand when there is $9.99 cask wine in Australia?

More deflection from you. Go on the record, rather than criticize. I have never put a date on it. I have always kept an eye out for the proposed changes at May budget time, and have posted the good news here when they have not been mentioned. For a long time I used the term "If / when" but after reading Labor were still going ahead with the proposed changes, it basically became "when" and not "if." If Labor binned them, they would have to wait for the next Liberal government, but Labor didn't bin them, and I have posted a link showing this. For how long will either party continue to hold onto 90 year laws with all the loopholes? It's only a matter of time before they are modernized, but I have never put a date on it.

So it's private then, is it? You just said "private banking still available." No, just part of Swiss cheeseboard now.

War will materialize, that's for sure. Then, where's the rest of the things you mention going to be?

Ok. So here it is. Just one of many on the front page of a Google search. It confirms what everyone knows, except yourself. I mean, not only is defense the largest employer in the US, it's also the largest employer in the world. When YOU Google it, get back to us. https://www.worldexcellence.com/the-6-largest-employers-globally/ Table of Contents Largest employers in the world today 1. The US Department of Defence: 2.86 million people 2. Walmart: 2.2 million employees 3. People’s Liberation Army (PLA): 2.185 million 4. McDonald’s: 1.7 million 5. China National Petroleum Corporation: 1.5 million 6. Indian Armed Forces: 1.45 million employees

You are a 128 post troll. No doubt banned before, and back with a new username. Did I say android boxes are illegal???? No. The article just showed that "fully loaded" often means illegal streaming, as the other member alluded to, and the article shows that sometimes the people getting paid for the streams are arrested, and when they do, there goes your "fully loaded."

Maybe the OP didn't know android can run on a PC. Maybe when he found out, the OP thought, "Wow. I'll just put Kodi on my everyday PC and run a HDMI cable to my TV." Got that? Never suggested otherwise. 1400 baht boxes wouldn't offer much by way of OTA android OS updates, where as Windows can run emulators pretty much until death. 1400 baht is not mid range. It's rubbish range. No obsession. Mini PC's have come down in price to the point they can compete with android boxes, but offer a lot more. Simple as that. However, if one can only afford 1400 baht, then fine. That's why it's called an internet forum. For the exchange of information. Maybe the OP didn't know a mini PC could run android. Maybe the OP didn't know how cheap mini PC's are now. I merely suggested a mini PC as an option to consider.

So, if the OP has an old laptop laying around, repurpose it and save 1400 baht. After all, why pay even 1400 baht?

What type of "manufacturer" do you think you would get for 1400 baht? Surely they would offer OTA updates until Android 20 for 1400 baht.

Good for you. I have a mini PC and an android box because sometimes I run two sports streams at the same time, on two different screens in my lounge room. I have never said "don't buy an android box." I merely suggested a mini PC and another member criticized the suggest, for nothing other than "4x, 4x, 4x,4x." 4x of not much is not much. It's laughable.

The whole user experience.

That about sums it up. As I said, you get what you pay for. If someone's budget is only 1400 baht, fine, but I rely on my electronics to stream when I want, uninterupted, as well as other things. A 1400 baht android box can't deliver to performance I require. I merely suggested a mini PC, because for a bit more money, you get a superior device, and the other member has been like a dog with a bone ever since trying to sell his 1400 baht boxes.

Hardly. When it comes to electronics, you get what you pay for. Some may like to put up with buffering and having to restart all the time, but not me. I pay a bit more, because I want a better experience. Simple as that.