impulse

As if you or I are qualified to look at an epidemiological study, evaluate the results and how they compare and conflict with the dozens of other studies on the topic. But there are people who do that for a living. We call them doctors and nurses.

3 of my doctors and a couple of my nurses. Why do you figure they'd lie to me?

Good info. Was that while you were employed, or after your employment and you were paying into the program?

Was that in Thailand, or back home?

To the OP... Please do a lot of us a favor, post back and close the loop once you figure out your answer. Several years ago there was news that moonlighting was okay as long as you had a valid WP. But I'm not going to claim to know the details and whether that's worked for anyone, much less in your particular situation. Then I guess there's the question of how (if?) you paid tax on your side gig, and whether that will figure in the case in front of you. In any case, please follow up. No guesses, please.

The real benefit of paying in is the Gub'ment health insurance, which you can keep as long as you keep paying in a few bucks a month. Probably not as good as a $500 a month plan with a Euro health insurance company, but good to have if you need it.

If you're in Bangkok, get off the MRT at the Wat Mankon (sp?) stop in Chinatown and walk down the spooky alley across the street from the MRT station and you'll find dozens of kiosks, each with a dozen or so different green teas. Some in bulk out of burlap sacks, some pre-packed in vacuum sealed bags. Wat Mankon is the first stop after Hua Lampong. That entire neighborhood is fascinating for the food you can find. Also, about halfway down that same alley, there's an amazing spices shop, famous throughout Thailand. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of different spices at very reasonable prices. Stuff I never found anywhere else, and with English on the labels along with the Thai. I bought the ingredients for my home- made Italian and Cumberland sausages from there and they turned out amazing.

Just in time to send millions of ballots to dead people so they don't have to expose themselves to to Covid in order to vote blue. They're going to have to hold a gun to my head if they want me to get another jab. 2-1/2 years later, I still haven't recovered feeling on the left side of my face, my balance or my energy that I lost a couple of days after my 2nd Pfizer. When I first presented, the doctors said they didn't know what caused it, but it definitely wasn't the jab. 2 years later, they finally admitted it's a commonly reported side effect.

It's not just the baggage claim delays. On some flights, the cost of checking an additional bag can almost double the cost of a ticket.

Don't know. Wasn't there. And the videos (if there are any) never start until after SHTF. So we rarely know what really caused the kerfuffle. Edit: And to answer your question, I've helped many shorter people stow and retrieve their overhead bags.

Personal circumstances have sent me on over 20 flights this last 6 months, most of them between Thailand, Singapore and China. I can't think of a single time that someone else's excess cabin baggage has had a deleterious effect on the quality of my life. And when I do find myself irritated by that lady with 6 bags, that knot is in my stomach, not hers. I've actually been over the weight limit myself now that all battery operated equipment is banned from checked bags. Between a higher end (heavy) laptop, a tablet, a power brick, bluetooth speaker, etc, I'm close to the weight limit even with a backpack that weighs less than a pound.

Health care and/or insurance costs for the aged. Euro's and American and Canuck retirees have gub'ment paid health care (even if it sucks). My friends in their 70's are paying $1000 USD a month just to get insurance cover in Thailand. If they can get it at all, given pre-existing conditions. That may be the single factor that keeps me from retiring to Thailand, since I have some pre-existing conditions. During my prime earning years, there was no such thing as a digital nomad or an influencer, or working from home in a corporate environment. I think the interweb and AI are going to play a huge role in shaping the next generation of expats. Thailand can either capitalize on it. Or not.

Much more dated than that. Closer to 45 years.

Maybe 1% of tourists become expats. (to use your own number for passport bro's) Tourists aren't committing anything beyond a week or 3, before sleeping back in their own bed in their own country. That's a very different decision from picking up your entire life and moving it to a different country.

Lost in the clutter is the HUGE difference between tourists and expats.

Gosh. Who would have thought that they'd discourage firing up "skunkweed" in common areas? At least, that's what we used to call it. My guess is that someone did complain.

My forecast: The next generation of expats will be even fatter. And more American men will become passport bro's. Saw an article the other day that Korean Air will be weighing passengers for a couple of weeks to rejigger the country's weight and balance tables for airline safety. The most disturbing paragraph was the last one that said the average American woman weighs 170 lb. That's truly scary. The article was on RT and I'm not going to provide a link because I suspect it's frowned on as a source. Easy to find, though. And CDC data matches pretty closely...

There's really no indication the the guy misbehaved in Thailand. Perhaps the reason Germans get more attention than Brits is because Germany's more diligent about extraditing their wanted?

Would have been nice to see some before and after photos...

Late to the discussion, I know. But I wanted to relay my experience hauling my 2 kayaks on top of my pickup. I was pulled over several times and asked to leave to motorway by police pointing out that hauling stuff on top my pickup wasn't allowed on the motorway. I was also denied entry to the BKK-Pattaya motorway and had to turn around at an entry tollgate. Getting to Pattaya without using the motorway was impractical so I did something different that weekend... I was also pulled over at a police checkpoint on my way back from Kanchanaburi, told by the cop to exit the expressway because cartopping a kayak wasn't allowed. (Edit: My kayaks were securely tied down to a proper roof rack, not flopping in the breeze) Never had a problem on any sideroads, but that rules out a lot of Thailand. YMMV, but a nice inflatable is how I'd go. I ended up buying a 14' KaBoat skinny inflatable and powered it with a 5 HP Yamaha. Worked great. I tried a 15 HP Yamaha clone and scared the crap out of myself on the River Kwai.

Why waste their time when they don't have enough votes to override the inevitable veto?

We'll never know. (Unless he foolishly pops up somewhere) Even with fingerprints and DNA, we'd be depending on some gub'ment entity for the identification. One with a dog in the fight...

Usually refers to .45 ACP = 11.4mm

Did you hear that? The collective tightening of thousands of sphincters when they read this and realized that they weren't out of the woods hiding in Thailand. That's why these articles are valid. Cautionary tales... Great if it stops a few of them for buying a ticket to hide out and continue their antics in Thailand.

If you'd actually read the article, they're already at 454,000 HK arrivals for the first 7 months of 2023, anticipating a full year at 700K. Not too much of a stretch to believe they can get to 1,000,000 with some targeted marketing and cajoling the airlines to offer up more seats. They mention a limited flight schedule coming back from Covid as a hurdle. Once the flights resume a full schedule, I hope they get there. Anyone know if HK is visa exempt or visa on arrival?