bradiston

Been here 7. I've had it on a number of occasions, before and after my one and only jab 2 years ago. It's not that serious but can be very unpleasant. Everybody starts sneezing round about Christmas.

I'm a bit out of touch with the latest COVID jab palaver. What's the latest? Have they brought out updates? I'll ask as I go, but worth knowing what's what prior to making a choice, if there is one. I've had 4, the last back in January, a Moderna.

Two years ago I got one at Jomtien Hospital for 500 THB. Anyone know where to get one this year?

I googled it and got no information at all. Just 15% Fett whatever that is. Ah, ok, it's fat. What's the other 85%?

I use their half cream as mentioned above. 115 THB. Can cook with it and make shakes. And great in coffee. But, no nutrition facts. How many carbs etc.

Not sure either. I've no idea what the minimum temperature would be to maintain a safe environment inside a house. I wonder if solar alone could do it, but the set up costs might prove far greater than the running costs on the grid. I've always had problems finding people to check on my house, keep it swept out, and ventilated. Now, I just lock and leave, and visit every 3 months or so. In the rainy season it's rare not to find a leak somewhere. I have a lot of wood on the top floor for instance. You just live with it. The idea of setting up a management company which would house sit, and allow owners and families to take a worry free break, come round regularly. Amongst friends it works well. But further than that, it gets complicated.

In the UK fuel bills are set to double, and 2 or 3 year fixed rate mortgages ending in the next year or so, jump from ~1.2% to ~6%. That's just for starters. If they can I'd suggest renting out and taking a 12 month sabbatical.

I leave my house empty in Trad and live in Pattaya. Bill for 3 storey empty house, CCTV, water pumps for garden watering system etc, ~250 THB pm, bill for 1 bed condo, no AC, in Pattaya, ~750 THB pm. So I won't be flying west any time soon!

If it's dairy based, surely it's not going to last long outside the fridge? What is it exactly? You can buy full cream powdered milk here in Foodland for instance, and online. That will last outside the fridge, but still best stored in it. It's ok in coffee and tea. I think some of the products mentioned here fall into the category of non-dairy creamers, for me to be avoided at all costs. *Woke alert!* Palm oil and sugar, massive deforestation worldwide, bad teeth, diabetes, etc, etc with the destruction of habitat and native land. But I suppose you could say the same about dairy production.

Really? After renewing twice, after 59 days must apply for an ACR. Not quite a 36 month visa.

The letter the Thai ambassador refused to deliver to Washington was a declaration of war. A notable example of a diplomat taking matters into his own hands. Similar I guess to the current situation with Myanmar and "their" UN ambassador. "Although the Thai ambassador in London delivered Phibun's declaration of war to the British government, the Thai ambassador in Washington DC, Seni Pramoj, refused to do so. Accordingly, the United States did not declare war on Thailand. With American assistance, Seni, a conservative aristocrat with well established anti-Japanese credentials, organised the Free Thai Movement in the United States, recruiting Thai students to work with the United States Office of Strategic Services (OSS).[11] Seni was able to achieve this because the State Department decided to act as if Seni continued to represent Thailand, enabling him to draw on Thai assets frozen by the United States." https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thailand_in_World_War_II

Link please

Much more in the Kremlin and Beijing sphere of influence than Thailand.

NATO hasn't made any pronouncements on the war in Ukraine I don't think. More's the pity. But this thread's about holidaying in Thailand as a way to save on your fuel bills back home. Bizarre. As has been pointed out, cost of same, just flights and accommodation, is probably worth a year's fuel bills. And impossible to switch off heating in an empty house. Still needs to be kept well above freezing.

We'd have to start another thread, maybe there's already one, along the lines of "Should the West be involved in the Ukraine war?" to answer those questions.

Link broken

My reply was to someone urging Ukraine to unconditionally surrender. I asked him if that is what he would do in similar circumstances. That's all. Nothing to do with "our" participation, assuming we are from the same country, or continent even.

Yet another council of despair, urging Ukraine to capitulate. Where are you coming from? Maybe you're a Russian? Who knows? How else to account for your proclamations? And don't tell me it's just common sense. Not going to war might always appear as common sense, but faced with the Third Reich or the Japanese empire, or the newly revived soviet menace, does common sense dictate capitulation? And of course it can be reversed. And enlarged. You're just repeating what Putin has said. Unconditional surrender? You're not the first to advocate Ukrainian surrender. Mostly it comes from people who won't fight for what they believe in. Or they side unquestioningly with Putin. Would you fight to defend your country, wherever it is? Or would you just give up? Here, take what you want. You think it would end there? Nobody is recognising the seizure of the 4 Ukrainian territories, and Crimea, as legitimate, except maybe you, North Korea, Syria, and Iran. Nice company you keep.

But I think it is. The Ukraine army is struggling to repel an extremely hostile, aggressive army. Amnesty as far as I can see nowhere suggests they intentionally used occupied civilian buildings as cover for gunfire. They might have drawn fire from the Russians to neighbouring civilian areas, but this is war, and the Russian armaments are old and inaccurate. Ukraine did not start the war, and Russia must be held solely to blame. Ukrainians are simply trying to defend themselves and their people. Maybe mistakes are made, but I do not believe they would intentionally put their own innocent civilians at risk. You have to believe in something, and I believe that. I have believed right from the very outset that Putin was and is an extremely dangerous man. Europe got caught fast asleep. How all this affects Thailand heaven knows. If they want peace, I don't see them offering any plan for moving in that direction. Xi won't lean on Putin, which he obviously could do. So, where's the off ramp, for anyone?

But ultimately, aren't you just playing devil's advocate? I mean, would you go and fight in Putin's army? Seriously?

This is the link to the article referenced way back in this thread to the two women academics who seem to know what they are talking about. It is a lengthy but well informed well written article about Putin and his aims. There's a lot more than meets the eye according to them. Essential reading I'd say. I hope it's not too far off topic. I hope it's broad coverage of a variety of global perspectives on the Ukraine war merits inclusion here. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/russian-federation/world-putin-wants-fiona-hill-angela-stent?utm_medium=promo_email&utm_source=lo_flows&utm_campaign=registered_user_welcome&utm_term=email_1&utm_content=20221017

I followed all the links and read most of the articles they dishe up. But I don't see anywhere Putin being quoted as saying I'm attacking because of NATO. Because of Nazis (Zelensky's Jewish), genocidal attacks on Russians in Donbas and other utterly spurious self serving trumped up charges, yes, but NATO? And the irony is of course, he has driven Ukraine right into NATO's arms, and what can he do about it now? He leveraged Donbas and the baseless Nazi accusations to justify what he really had in mind, which I believe is zelomplete take over and control of European oil and gas supplies, access to the Black Sea and grain and fertilizer shipments to the West. Ie food, fuel and transport. He's pretty much achieved those goals, but now he has to secure his position, and already it's all starting to fall apart. It's a very long front he has to defend, and hence the conscription. 300,000 troops to hold the line. For how long? Zelensky won't give up. And if the US has the will neither will they. As for Europe, they really need to deal with this. It's really they who are over a barrel.

https://m.dw.com/en/the-civilian-toll-of-russian-attacks-on-ukraine/g-62950661 https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/un-mandated-inquiry-concludes-war-crimes-were-committed-ukraine-2022-09-23/ Etc etc etc

Iran lies some distance west of Thailand, as does Moscow, and what sway, if any, does Iran have over Thailand? And what interest would Iran or China have in the Thai vote? China does not approve of the Russian invasion, although it won't openly condemn it. The war has gifted them huge bonuses in the cut price oil from Russia, and maybe even the use of invasive tactics against a neighbour, and the powerlessness of any opposition. But there's no way the voting is going to seriously upset trade deals between any of the in favour or abstaining voting nations, except for Russia and its allies, all 4 of them. North Korea, Syria, Nicaragua and Belarus.

Some of you need a history lesson or two. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prelude_to_the_2022_Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine So many people now peddling the Moscow line. Are they perhaps in Russia? They should be! Maybe they'd volunteer to go and shoot their grannies in the Ukraine, yeah?