Swiss1960

I meant more the idiots that always talk in pigeon English even to their own kind.....guys that flap their arms around and bellow out at the top of their voice trying to explain the simplist thing to their rented girlfriend, those that wonder out in the road then act like a traffic cop putting their hands up as someone nearly runs them over...the list is endless......they just seem to be everywhere...and all look the same, bald head, beer belly, few bad tattoos, singha vest, you know the sort.

Sounds like German tourists in the US... or US tourists in Germany... or Japanes tourists in Switzerland... or Russian tourists in Egypt... so what has this to do with Pattaya and "attracting the worst"???

I also know that in my family its the heart that fails first, but at relative high age.

Sorry for sounding sarcastic... but with most people it IS the heart that fails first at relatively high age ;-)

Reminds me of my girl friend turning left on red... which was not allowed at that time of day... was asked 500Bt but - as she owns several massage shops - offered a free Thai massage in her shop and got off the hook - all she said to me was "That's Thai way..." :jap:

You might want to investigate in ladyboy bars... they might know more

Well, if you want to "rule out anything serious" and know about your heart condition, I would suggest a hospital - starting with a consultation with a doctor for less than 1'500 Baht and he will tell you what test he would do - maybe including heart checks like ECG - and you will know about the cost and times also.

Suggest either Bangkok Pattaya Hospital or Pattaya Memorial Hospital, I know both of them from personal experience and would be happy to go back there anytime.

I think there are many things to consider when we talk about such cases:

1) The main question is whether the country where the fugitive is held, does extradite his own citizens to other countries. Switzerland as an example never extradites Swiss citizens if the Swiss citizen does not agree in writing.

2) The second question is whether an extradition is possible under various circumstances. Switzerland extradites other fellows only with exceptions and restrictions, i.e. if the alleged crime is also punishable under Swiss law, if it is not politically motivated or when Switzeland has guarantees that their will not be a death penalty imposed / seeked on the fellow to be extradited.

3) The third question is whether a court procedure is possible, if the extradition is not granted. Swiss criminal law clearly states that Swiss courts DO investigate alleged crimes in foreign countries if not otherwise possible (i.e. extradition is not possible). The foreign country will need to cooperate with the Swiss federal or district attorney and the court hearing will be held in the district where the fugitive is residing / has been captured.

So really the question is whether Thailand does extradite their own citizens even if they object (they obviously do, otherwise their would be no court hearing) and if the will decide against extradition, the second question is whether they will pursue the criminal complaint from the Australian government in a Thai court.

Lee Aldhouse has one more problem... even if the British court will not extradite him to Thailand (maybe for humanitarian reasons...), the family of the US citizen can of course submit a criminal complaint in a US court... which would mean that there will be a second extradition request that then might be granted, if the US will commit to not pursue the death penalty...

On my last visit, I brought a Nespresso Coffee machine (small, 4kg of weight) as hand luggage and just walked through customs... even though they did know it (as they do X-ray all luggage when you leave int. arrival), they did'nt say a thing... however, speaking of 20kg... this is more of a business machine you are looking for, right?

Don't understand you guys... if you fly in so regularly, why don't you have a fixed taxi company picking you up? When I arrive, I ask my friends in Pattaya to send me the driver... he waits in front of exit door 4 on arrival level... with a sign with my name on... carries my luggage to the car... waits till I finished my first cigarette after arrival... knows where to stop on the way to Pattaya (the service station with the Starbucks...)... and drops me in front of my hotel for a 1'000 Baht including all highway fees...

Oz doesn't do much electing in empanelling a jury. You get say 50 people lined up in the back of the court. One by one they walk up to the bailiff for swearing in. All the lawyers know is name and what they do for work. So it's pretty much pot luck and electing 12 intelligent, fair minded people, free of anti anything in any country are not easy to find. Juries also look at how people are dressed, how they talk, how they answer questions etc etc and a persons ethnicity is surely all part of that.

However, on the flip side what is to stop any juror being PRO asian and therefore holding out for a not guilty. Don't forget oz has a majority verdict, all 12 must agree one way or the other othewise it's a hung jury and off we go again. It goes both ways.

It isn't perfect and it isn't easy to to get a verdict either way. The system certainly reduces the chances of someone not guilty being found guilty. But I much prefer the system in oz and the uk as opposed to any other process.

Since January 2011, all Swiss jury courts have been dissolved. Main issue was that the probability of bias in a jury could never be resolved. Now, all trials have to go to a court of professional judges.

Seems that if you are white, male and heterosexual you have to apologize to everyone for everything.

Well... you SHOULD appologize for being heterosexual... you are discriminting the whole gay world... you deny them the chance to sleep with you ;-)

But... reading through this forum, I can't help but think that most farang here believe that all Thais should appologize for being lazy, corrupt and racist... of course only if they are not Democrats

Once again Thailand want things their own way and applying the typical double standards to this case as they do will everything else. I truly hope that justice is done however I am not holding my breath for Thailand to do the right thing.

...

And all this... can be said about Switzerland as well... so before blaming and bashing the Thai, look at your own country...

....

Please tell me what happens with refugees that try to get into other countries? How are they treated?

As my last sentence - which seemed to be overlooked - cleary states, Switzerland is none better than Australia... having a very right wing party called SVP which is (much too) close to the brown soup and having almost 30% of the popular votes in the latest elections and trying to close down the border for EVERY foreigner, trying to cancel the Schengen contracts, trying to cancel all contracts we have with the EU etc...

I did'nt intend to to Oz bashing in particular but just showing that before you guys put all the blame on Thais and their "double standards", you should at least admit that some standards (i.e. no extradition of your nationals to other countries) also exist on your own turf and that xenophobia is not a Thai invention...

If we commit a crime in Thailand we pay the price in Thailand same same applies.

Yes... but if you commit the crime in Thailand, flee to your home country and get caught there, the chance of being sent back to Thailand is nill... 'cause your lawyer will do the same that the lawyers of these Thai do... claim that you would be treated unfair, that racism exists in Thailand against farang, that you would be punished too hard and that you should be sentenced by your native courts...

So where is the difference???

Once again Thailand want things their own way and applying the typical double standards to this case as they do will everything else. I truly hope that justice is done however I am not holding my breath for Thailand to do the right thing.

Just not true... Most countries in the world do not extradite their fellow countrymen to other countries for trials, if the accused does want to have the trial in his homecountry. Most countries for example do not extradite anybody to the US for crimes that could be punished with execution. If I as Swiss would be accused i.e. for drug smuggeling in Thailand and be caught in Switzerland, Swiss courts will never extradite me to Thailand.

For the other side, when caught in a foreign country, whether being Australian or Britisch or Swiss... too bad luck for you guys, cause every country will try you in their own courts for crimes committed in their country and NOT extradite you before the ruling of their own court. Few years later you might be allowed to return for the rest of your jail time...

And finally... for all of you who think Australia is such a nice country... read a bit what Amnesty International thinks about racial discrimination in Australia, read about what Australians do with the native people (Aborigines), read about plans Australia has with refugees (sending them back without hearing them or locking them on an island hundreds of miles from their coast...) and then tell me again that all is good within your country... or read about the border protection policy of your fellow "The Nationals" politicians...

And all this... can be said about Switzerland as well... so before blaming and bashing the Thai, look at your own country...

That happens so much here in the UK, be an illegal, get caught, no passport means no deportation?? Is this also the case in Switzerland? I thought it just happened under barmy EU rules, which the Swiss are not a part of.

This has nothing to do with EU rules... this has to do with whatever country (UK, Switzerland, Germany etc.) being able to prove to the country of origin, that the crook is their legal citizen and that they must take him back. If they can't (no passport...), why should any African country be interested to take somebody back who they know is a crook? They only do when they get money... Switzerland is paying dearly on the many contracts they have for returning those crooks to their home countries...

EU rules (rather Schengen rules which do not apply to the UK) only deal with asylum seekers that must be dealt with by the first country where they crossed the boarder / entered their first asylum request.

Any answer to the real question? Rate is going up, which is good for me but then I wonder when it will stabilize? If I exchange USD from a rate like 30.50 and then 2 weeks later if rate become 31.00 I will feel like a dumbass. For small amount of money, it doesn't matter but imagine you buy a condo / house and transfer some hefty amount of USD from offshore!

Well, there are many reasons (economy, trade with US etc.), but I guess - from the analysis I see within our bank - that a majority of FX dealers go out of the Euro and are looking for another safe currency. And since it looks like the US currently does not to bancrupt (unlike in July where the $ dropped to an early low), $ is back on the table for buy...

It was nice to have Swiss Francs to exchange in July / August, before our National bank decided to put a lower limit of Swiss Franc 1.20 to the Euro... Exchange rate dropped from 41 to 34, as FX investments into Swiss Francs got less lucrative...

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung, who is in charge of the government's narcotics suppression initiatives, gave his assurances in response to concerns expressed by the United Nations in which they stated that they fear that the government's anti-drug campaign could lead to human rights violations or to extra-judicial killings by police.

Always interesting when people bother more about the human rights of the crooks than of the victims...

If there is no judicial process, are they crooks or victims?

They get caught with drugs, they are crooks. They don't care about the lives of ther "customers"... all they care about is money... it is no human right to sell drugs for money... it's a crime. of course their shall be a judical process, but it should be a short one NOT bothering too much about their human rights.

Look what happens here in Europe: Small dealers - mainly Africans for example in Zurich - sell drugs, get caught... first time they get 6 months on probation... second time one year... third time maybe 2 years... but of course, they are asylum seekers... "lost" their passport during their travel to Switzerland... can't be sent back to their home country... don't even remember what nationality they are... and of course, they learn fast... they only collect the money but don't carry the drugs... they use their underage children (<14y) to carry the drugs and do the exchange... because they know their children can't be punished...

F*** their human rights... build a prison, throw them in and keep them on minimum food, no TV, no books, no visits, no work, no salary... until they remember where they came from and decide to go back home on their own. I love the US states where a crook gets life in prison when he gets caught doing the same crime for the third time...

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung, who is in charge of the government's narcotics suppression initiatives, gave his assurances in response to concerns expressed by the United Nations in which they stated that they fear that the government's anti-drug campaign could lead to human rights violations or to extra-judicial killings by police.

Always interesting when people bother more about the human rights of the crooks than of the victims...

R.I.P to the young man and condolences for his family

But blaming the Thai or the full moon party is obviously bullshit... IF the young man died from drug abuse or alcohol - as many do - then it is his fault only and there are similar events and places all over the world...

Street Parade in Zurich / Switzerland.... nice and quiet and clean country.... Statistics from this year:

- 500 people treated for alcohol and drug abuse... 100 of them under age

- parties and after hour parties for 24h in a row...

- 50 people caught driving under influence of what ever and loosing their licences

AND... the health department every year sets up special stations where young people can go with their various pills the bought and have them check for content... that is the government stating their defeat in the war against all the small time dealers selling their drugs during this event... they can't fight the dealers so they at least try to help the kids buying the drugs to make sure they consume "clean" drugs...

Amazing Switzerland... Amazing Thailand... Amazing Mallorca... Amazing Cancun.... where you find young people, you find drug and alcohol abuse... that is fact and has nothing to do with Thailand.

And... I remember another article few days ago about the new Thai governments plans for fighting drugs... and did see the comments about "hope the human rights of the dealers will be respected" F*** their human rights. Put them in prison for 5-50 years without possibility for parole or early release...

Well, if those idiots would not have invited "onlookers" as it says in the article, they might never have been caught... there are enough ways to hide the original IP where the stream comes from and they could have continued for years...

But aside them being stupid enough to get caught... by an "anonymous tip"... meaning somebody who did not get paid well enough...

I like the way the Thai deal with mobsters the catch... full picture and names in all newspapers... shaming those crooks and their families... wish we could do the same here with all those drug dealers, rapists, child abusers...

I have seen that guy few weeks ago when I was in Pattaya. Most of the day, he did sit behind Central Festival on second road and tried to borrow cigarettes from every falang he did see... and told everybody about his story and that the police allowed him take showers in their stations... and that of course, he got ripped and it is all not his fault... and that the Brit gov is treating him so badly...

And don't judge him by the picture. He looked like shit when i saw him beginning August....

Lot of open questions within that message... but having checked the homepage of the Embassy here in Switzerland, I do not see any change for tourists from Visa excempt countries.

I would therefore also assume that people who need a Visa and stay with friends, will need an invitation letter as they did before...

But then again... typical Thai way... issue new rules with immediate effect.... but don't be precise... and specially do not let the people know who must deal with it (consulates etc)... otherwise all the fun would be gone from issuing unclear rules

Too bad for him... but my lawyer told me two things about buying property which I think this guy did not follow

1) Never believe in the lawyer of your partner, always hire your own lawyer to double check, officially translate and have official photocopies

2) Never let your Thai wife have the papers of your property, whether land or appartment, even if in her name, as that is exactly what you end up: She sells it away and you end up on the street with nothing in his pocket...

The Thais should implement laws preventing foreigners owning anything. That will then stop stupid foreigners investing here and then ultimatly getting ripped off and loosing everything!

You should not be that harsh with ALL foreigners :-) There are those who just want to spend their life in this beautiful country and will adhere to ALL laws when buying property and who will have their own lawyers check that all requirements under Thai laws are followed... and then there are the others who will do everything for profit, also buying illegal property... and hope that they will never get caught as long as they fill the right pockets with parts of their profits...

But I am wondering... wondering about all the activity that those local officers suddenly show... either they want to impress the new government of their provinces by their investigations and secure their future jobs... or somehow some foreigners stopped to fill their (the officers) pockets after the election, as they want to take out the most possible and "disappear" before then new government will clean the mess on their own ;-)

Interesting... Thai brands should not be faked... but all the good copies of all foreign brands that are sold officially on every other street market can continue to be copied and sold

In UK, Noooooooooo refills.

and yes, you really do need to get out more.

Never got a free refill anywhere in USA that i can recall.

The better question might be why does McDonalds charge about the same price in Thailand as they do in the USA when they pay a USA worker about $8 USD/ 240 baht an HOUR and in Thailand I doubt they pay them that in a day. And i would also guess the typical Thai rent is a fraction of USA. My guess is the answer as to why is because they CAN. Somebody is making some very nice profits on McDonalds in Thailand unless there is some unseen cost of doing biz that I am not aware of....

Same in Switzerland, never got a free refill for anything (neither coffee nor coke).

And yes, they charge because they can. And they charge, because there are enough tourist who are "afraid" of eating Thai food from the streets and what do they do? They see the McDo sign and drop in there... as they have been promised by this company to have the same food with same quality worldwide... So pricing of McDo in ANY country I have ever been (i.e. Malaysia, Philippines, Ukraine etc.) are ALWAYS prices for Falang in that country.

Even in Switzerland, tourist places boom with McDo on every street corner and Falang in Switzerland (mostly from UK and USA) tend to go there cause they are suspicious of the local food...