55Jay

There's a handful of posters who seem to be practically hyperventilating over this subject

LOL, some of them even suggest it's the Trump supporters who need to "keep their shirts on".

Gotta love that Fascist demagogue monster pose.

But not this one.

"Over see"? Another poor choice of words by NNT, which is not unusual.

He's going for a look-see, as he rightly should. Probably the most worthwhile thing he'll do all week.

Anything to enhance capacity and secondary reserves, as a layered defense against flooding, and out year droughts, is favorable, and they need to be busting their <deleted> to get it done now while they can. If the weather guessers are right, La Nina should piss down rain on us this season, god knows we need it up here.

Reminded me of this:

Soon as we see a few of those "rain bugs", as we call them, we shut the doors and windows and turn out the lights.

I actually open the windows and turn on a bright light 100 meters from the house (we are on a large lot)

That gets the bugs about halfway to the neighbors house. When my house is clear...I even turn that light off, and they continue on to the neighbors property (they have all their lights on).

Have to keep our home dark, but I have the aircon bedroom sealed off and just run a bug light and a laptop

Two hours later...all clear.

We had this problem for a week...and then just an odd day.

Ha ha, good strategy! Sometimes I leave one exterior light on then sit and watch the geckos and big Tokays line up for the buffet.

There's a pretty good sized pond out back the house, lots of big catfish and Pla Nin in it, and an old, wooden frame house perched over the edge of the water. Couple years ago during one of these rain bug events, put a bulb w/ extension cord onto a long bamboo pole, and hung it out over the water. Bugs swarmed around the light bulb and started dropping into the water. Man, it was like a Tuna boil on a school of sardines, fish were well fed that night.

My daughter lives in the states and she bought a special pouch to keep her chipped cards in after reading reports that thieves with special devices can steal the information off your card while it's still in your purse or pocket. The pouch is made of a material that blocks the devices from reading the cards chip. Anyone else heard of this?

Those (are supposed to) protect RFID enabled cards from pocket skimming - like the proximity payment cards, "touch and go", etc., which is different than the visible Smart Chip.

My elderly mom in the US got somewhat taken in by the marketing for these protective card sleeves. She wasn't "scammed", she just didn't know any better.

I looked at all her cards (and IDs) during my last visit, and couldn't find any indication they were RFID enabled. She said she never asked the bank for a new card, and hadn't received any new cards in the mail with "touch and go" type payment capability.

She then pointed to the visible Smart Chip on a Wells Fargo bank card, "Well, what's that?", and said she assumed that's what the card sleeve was designed to protect.

Mention of bank books earlier.

Thailand is fascinating like that. Internet/mobile banking, OTP protections, on-line transfers and statements, chipped cards, but I had to chuckle when they gave me a bank book upon opening my first (and subsequent) accounts here.

Do you also chuckle at the thought of the rest of the fascinating world's banks when they send an equally traditional piece of paper through the post with your latest transactions on it, I think it would be called a statement? Banking systems worldwide are fascinating like that.

I saw you down the bottom earlier. Thought to me self, Scouse is going to extract some faux offense at the mention of Thailand in a realistic yet slightly unflattering manner, triggering his reflex to defend and apologize on its behalf.

Yes, I would also chuckle at bank statements being sent through the post. A chuckle followed by one of these.

Soon as we see a few of those "rain bugs", as we call them, we shut the doors and windows and turn out the lights.

Mention of bank books earlier.

Thailand is fascinating like that. Internet/mobile banking, OTP protections, on-line transfers and statements, chipped cards, but I had to chuckle when they gave me a bank book upon opening my first (and subsequent) accounts here.

One hand on the next 21st Century bar, one back on the 20th.

They will take a deep breath, shut their eyes and swing that other hand forward in time. I remember being very anxious and skeptical when we were being forced off typewriters and our comforting banks of filing cabinets chock full of important reports and file folders, in favor of computers. It was a hard thing to wrap your head around.

BBL has been offering chip cards for a while. But they would work only at BBL ATMs, that why I declined. Will they now work at all ATMs across banks and even countries?

---------------------------------

i have have a Bangkok Bank Be1st Debit card for over 3 years NOT a Credt card a Debit card......and i have sucessfully used the card to withdraw funds in Malaysia, Singapore. and Vietnam.

From local bank ATMs in those countries which have an agrement with Bangkok Bank to honor Be1st cards.

That was one of the reasons I applied for a Be1st card. when i opened my account.

My current card i still one of the old type with the magnetic strip......but next month i may switch to the card with a chip.

Even if it costs me 200 Baht to convert.....it is worth it.

I resisted the BB chip card for a year or so then finally gave in. TBH, it hasn't posed much of an inconvenience and the additional security of the card is reassuring; at least until we find out the crooks have figured a way round it.

Retinal scanners and fingerprints will be next I reckon.

Without joking, Hillary did suffer a concussion in in 2012 that was so severe it took 1/2 a year of recovery, and people have commented that she suffers a condition from it that doesn't allow her to focus on any mentally-challenging work for more than about 15 to 20 minutes at a time without having to rest for quite a while. I've seen it stated that that's why her campaign appearances are always very brief. I don't know how much truth there is to any lingering mental health issues due to her concussion, but it if true, that seems a dangerous mental state for anybody in a position of such potential responsibility.

That may or may not be true, but try this:

Listen to a recent stump speech or victory rally where Hillary is speaking. Try listening for more than a minute (I know that's tough for AD Republicans). Even a determined Hillary hater would have to admit she's sharp-minded. She has convictions and can put legible sentences together. Something tells me you're not going to listen to anything Hillary actually says. It would interfere with Trump fans' fixation on hating everything about her, even though they know very little about her, except excerpts from the Republican Attack Machine. Mussolini would be grinning knowingly.

Hillary's qualities are sorely missing in Trump's stumps. Not only is Trump a confused, uninformed grandstander, ....he has trouble putting a legible sentence together. He has the sentence structure and vocabulary of a dim-witted 9 yr old bully.

Oh, don't get me wrong. I'm not a Trump fan -- can't stand him. But I believe Hillary is dangerous, corrupt and compromised, whether or not she's mentally competent. It's a no-win situation for US citizens regarding politics (once again).

I'm a fan of seeing the status quo challenged, and Trump has awoken that spirit, but the guy is certainly the wrong person to be President.

That's a fair statement.

If being a good person, or having others think you are, is the metric, then Hillary's way behind the power curve.

Plenty of accounts of her being a bitch on roller skates in real life and following her previous campaign meltdown, an ineffective leader and manager.

I had the opportunity to sit and talk on two occasions with a retired S/S agent who was on the Clinton detail and the stories he told me line up with what's out in the ether.

I'm not a Trump "guy" but I'm not buying the false front HRC puts up either.

http://nypost.com/2015/10/02/secret-service-agents-hillary-is-a-nightmare-to-work-with/

I'm not a Trump "guy"

It seems I may have overlooked your posts criticising Donald Trump cause I don't remember any. All the same, I'm sure they exist. Well, I think they exist. Maybe. Perhaps. Somewhere.

So rather than scroll through your posts at your profile I'll look forward to seeing your continued posts criticising Donald Trump as well as your many posts of a negativity toward HRC.

Although I might have to face the likelihood of continuing to come up dry in this respect.

Suit yourself.

Just opinions, of course, but here are two conflicting views.

Nothing inherently mad about credit cards. If you take it out of your wallet and lay it on the table, it just lays there, like the inanimate sliver of plastic that it is.

Wow, that Hitler comparison is gnarly. Note, in the closing frame it shows Trump's name four times, with the over-sized T's forming a swastika. The campaigns are going to roll in the mud from here until Nov. 8. Every time Trump gnashes his teeth with anger about such political antics, he will want someone to lash out to, someone or some group to blame. All he has to do is look in the mirror (which he probably already does, 200x a day).

It's Trump who has pulled the campaigning down to the gutter, so he shouldn't be surprised when there are responses to match.

To me, he resembles Mussolini more than Hitler, so let's not be surprised if there's an upcoming comparison there, along with Brown Shirts compared to Trump's quick-to-violence supporters.

Quick to violence protesters.

Maybe you didn't see, there's a video of two protesters at a Trump rally. They're seated in the very back bleachers, so they're not blocking anyone's view. They're not making any noise, not even talking. All they're doing is sitting quietly while holding small self-scribbled signs at chest height. Yet those two benign (one could say 'wimpy') protesters were brusquely handled by Trump thugs, and kicked out of the venue.

They're luckier than other peaceful protesters. Some are sucker punched while being led away. In other words, their arms are being held, and a Trump thug winds up and lands a blind-side punch on the protester's face. The puncher is not detained. Indeed, he's probably cheered by the crowd. "Yay, you hit a man in the face who couldn't see you, and who had both arms held tightly by bouncers. What a hero! Go Trump!"

No, didn't see that. Saw the second one. About 1,000 times by now. He was there to instigate and disrupt. He was a Bernie or Hillary Supporter I imagine. Does that make all Hillary and/or Bernie supporters disruptive instigators? Of course not.

U.S. foreign policy veteran warns Trump would make world less stable

"Donald Trump's foreign policy proposals would make the world a less stable place,

former Secretary of State James Baker told a U.S. Senate hearing on Thursday as the Republican presidential candidate met elsewhere with party congressional leaders."

"Baker said the world "would be far less stable" with a weaker NATO or if more countries had nuclear weapons as Trump has proposed."

"We've a got a lot of problems today, but we'd have a hell of a lot more if that were the case," Baker told a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing,

adding that U.S. commitments around the world "promote U.S. security."

James Baker, the architect of Bushism.

Most of the problems in the world today stem from the Bush interventions in the Middle East...doesn't lend you much credibility quoting from the author of these policies.

Christopher Hitchens also got Iraq wrong. But he wrote lots of brilliant sharp stuff. Kagan has a lot of things to answer for. But this article isn't one of them. He captures the craziness of the Trump support. The belief in a strong leader even when that leader makes proiposals that are mutually incompatible. I had one person today insist that Donald Trump is a good person. What has he done in his life that makes him some kind of moral exemplar?

If being a good person, or having others think you are, is the metric, then Hillary's way behind the power curve.

Plenty of accounts of her being a bitch on roller skates in real life and following her previous campaign meltdown, an ineffective leader and manager.

I had the opportunity to sit and talk on two occasions with a retired S/S agent who was on the Clinton detail and the stories he told me line up with what's out in the ether.

I'm not a Trump "guy" but I'm not buying the false front HRC puts up either.

http://nypost.com/2015/10/02/secret-service-agents-hillary-is-a-nightmare-to-work-with/

Wow, that Hitler comparison is gnarly. Note, in the closing frame it shows Trump's name four times, with the over-sized T's forming a swastika. The campaigns are going to roll in the mud from here until Nov. 8. Every time Trump gnashes his teeth with anger about such political antics, he will want someone to lash out to, someone or some group to blame. All he has to do is look in the mirror (which he probably already does, 200x a day).

It's Trump who has pulled the campaigning down to the gutter, so he shouldn't be surprised when there are responses to match.

To me, he resembles Mussolini more than Hitler, so let's not be surprised if there's an upcoming comparison there, along with Brown Shirts compared to Trump's quick-to-violence supporters.

Quick to violence protesters.

More like truthiness.

Anyone who seriously thinks the Trump movement is a normal political movement should have their head examined.

Former Republican presidents get that. This is a what did you do in the war daddy moment. All decent and sane Americans will resist this rise of fascism.

According to the material you've been binging on that's got you and your CAPS Lock worked up into a froth.

I wouldn't worry about it, JT. These crazy things have a way of working themselves back to the middle.

Trump's empty administration: As presumptive nominee takes first steps on transition, GOP policy veterans say they're not interested.

"Top Republican political leaders aren’t the only ones shunning their party’s presidential nominee — a vast number of highly skilled managers and policy experts,

veterans of recent GOP administrations who would normally be expected to fill key positions for a new White House, are also vowing to sit out a Donald Trump presidency."

“I would never serve in a Trump administration,” said James Capretta, a former Office of Management and Budget official under George W. Bush.

“The person at the top is unfit for the presidency. He’s made that very clear with his behavior.”

Added Matt McDonald, another Bush OMB veteran: “I wouldn’t vote for Trump, much less work for him. I don’t agree with half his ideas,

and the other half I don’t really believe what he said.”

“The bottom line is Trump will be able to fill these jobs because there is a whole class of people who want these titles so badly it doesn’t matter who is president,

said a former senior George W. Bush administration official. But these are B- or C-level people. They are honorable, but not very good.

The A-level people, and there are not that many of them to begin with, mostly don’t want to work for Trump.

He will cut the A-level bench of available policy talent at least in half, if not more.”

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/donald-trump-administration-transition-222944#ixzz496oodu5r

I don't blame them. He's like the plague...

Oh yeah, the self-proclaimed "A Listers" will stand on their convictions alright. Not.

A super PAC with longtime Republican ties is funding an ad comparing Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler:

Well, the Wall Street Funded, Flip-Flopping Bloviator did like to keep a volume of Hitler's speeches at his bedside.

Looks like he did some frequent late night reading...

Desperation.

When Reps don't like the message, they attack the messenger.

When the messenger delivers fascism/nazism as it's message, it becomes a propagandist.

I have been following U.S. politics all my life. Sure republicans and right wingers have been called fascists before by the left. That is nothing new. But Trump IS something new. The Trump movement is being properly labelled a FASCIST movement by MANY more very credible people than I've ever seen in the American political context. Not only leftists but very MODERATE people as well. It's EVERYWHERE, and globally too. I say, pay attention, this is REAL this time. Don't ignore the threat. Real American patriots (not the fascists in the trump hats) will mobilize against this incredibly dangerous rise of a horrific DEMAGOGUE and while many or most will have to hold their noises, Hillary Clinton is the ONLY choice to stop him.

Over the top hysterics.

^

Gee, imagine that!

A far left wing newspaper with a story negative to The Donald!

It reeks of fear too.

Korat, IMO, is a very Thai city with a light sprinkling of "farang" type offerings. There are knots of foreigners in a few areas, contingent of English teachers, etc. Others are spread throughout the surrounding countryside, some live pretty far out in the boonies.

It has a mall with a Freshmart supermarket, but sadly no Tops or Villa. Terminal 21 and Central Plaza are under construction at the moment, will broaden the selection. It has the normal offerings as well - 2 Makros, 2 big Tescos, Big-C, large outdoor markets around the city, Klang Villa and an IT Mall similar to Tukcom Pattaya.

No operating commercial airport so it's a 2.5-3 hour drive down to BKK. You could drive up to KK or Buriram and fly down I suppose.

It's ok living up here, wouldn't want to stay forever but there are many long-term residents.

I live up North a ways, outside metro, cash/carry is the norm. I've used c/c a few times at the small Tesco Express in my town, they look at me like I'm from another planet. New employee didn't know how to do it last time, had to call the manager over.

After being out of the US for 5 years, so ingrained in the ATM/Cash lifestyle, I got up the first morning and drove dutifully to 7-11 to get cash out of the ATM. After a day, realized/remembered we could use our credit cards virtually everywhere for most anything. The Capital One cash back cards got a work out, it was great!