NoshowJones

"Where do they find these clowns?" Thailand didn't find these clowns, these clowns found their way to take it over forcibly, through the barrel of a gun, and they are still there, unelected and against the will of the vast majority of the Thai people, and leading the country to ruination.

"and the teetotalers are mostly gone from these threads". I am a teetotaler, and I fully disagree with banning alcohol in restaurants. and the teetotalers are mostly gone from these threads.

Prerequisite for a Prime Ministership should be that he was never any part of the Military.

I don't know much about communism, is it not something like the opposite of capitalism? I would have thought that the unelected PM and his generals were so rich that they had most of their money in off shore accounts. So where does the communist thing come in? Wait a minute! is it not that the ordinary Thai people are commies, and the unelected PM and his lot are capitalists?

"Only five musicians are allowed and they must all wear face masks all the time except the vocalist". When I played in a country music band back in Scotland, it was a 4 piece band, three of us including me, did lead vocals and harmonies. The vocalists changed in every song, I can just imagine us with our masks on off, on off, all through the gig. We would need to take a small break after each song, in my case having long hair, I would need to take the time to put the mask behind my ears through my hair. Watch your wife or GF putting her mask on and you will get my drift. ????

I'm surprised that there are not lots more crimes reported, especially robbers with weapons holding up shops and emptying the tills when everyone is wearing masks. You are not allowed to go into a bank wearing a motorbike helmet, but you can wearing a mask.

"99%+ chance your daughter will be fine." So in a school with 500 children in that age group. five of them are going to be affected in a negative way. That is five too many, especially where children are concerned.

"Expats and returning tourists are going to get rinsed." Returning tourists?? How many is that going to be? Tourism was dwindling rapidly before the pandemic even started. Does anyone really think that the unelected PM will be bothering about making up for losses while the country was shut down after it opens back up? I would doubt very much if his personal fortune was affected during this pandemic. What I think you will see is ways to screw any expats and tourists for more money to enter Thailand. Don't think it will just be a case of paying for your flight, turning up at the airport, flying out to Thailand, going through immigration, then heading for a taxi. Or it could be a certain amount added to your plane fare to be collected by the unelected military government.

This was in Nakhon Sawan so you may well be right, that was interesting, thanks for your input.

A Chinese God?

I was referring to the years leading up to the pandemic, I have not been in Bangkok since then.

I saw a food delivery guy next to me at traffic lights. he was on a brand new Honda Forza which would cost about more than 3 times as much as an ordinary bike, surely he would need decent wages to afford that.

Being a regular visitor to Bangkok and in that area, I have definitely noticed a lot less of white westerners there even before the pandemic.

I was staying in a hotel in Pattaya and was walking past the bar on my way to my room. I don't drink, I was stopped by a well mannered well dressed German guy, I stood talking to him for a few minutes as I found him very pleasant. I then said goodbye and went up to my room, a few minutes later someone knocks on my door, it was the German guy, he said he was short of money, and before he could go any further I threatened him with violence and he walked away very quickly.

I hope my interest in young girls, though not underage, is still very much there when I'm 80, I would never approach a lone woman, even an obvious prostitute, though if any of the latter approach me I will be nice to them, but make it obvious I will not be going with them. No guy at any age should approach a young girl unless he is given obvious encouragement. If I am aged 80 and sitting in a shopping mall and young adult girls dressed in a short skirt walk past, yes I will look at them, any normal guy who says that he wouldn't is a liar.

I did come to Thailand to find a wife and settle down here, but if I knew that there would be a coup and there would be all the negative issues that this unelected ex soldier caused, I would have found another country. It is only my loving wife, house and possessions that are keeping me here now.

Just imagine it, the guy is slim, handsome, not well off financially, the wife is much older, unattractive, overweight, though well off financially and owns her own home. Does anyone really think there is a scenario like that in Thailand?

When I got divorced after 12 years of marriage, my wife tried for half of everything, the sale of the house, car, money in bank, furniture etc, no kids, hardly ever worked, drank like a fish and smoked like a lum (chimney) she was forced to accept £500 while I got everything else.

I do know that in the 2 or 3 years leading up to the pandemic that if you walked up or down Sukhumvit Road between Soi 3 and Asoke, you would see very few Westerners, day or night, which would tell you that government issues as well as it being harder to find well paid work have prevented many longstay tourists and expats coming to Thailand. ,

That is a very good answer, I never looked at it that way.

Those of you who have lived here 15 years or more, how do you compare it then and now? We now have an unelected PM, educated at a Military Academy, no experience at all in politics, but manages to stay in power for the last 7 years. Will there ever be a democratically elected government in Thailand in the near future? How many expats came to live in Thailand in the 7 years leading up to the 2014 coup compared with the 7 years since? How many expats have left Thailand for good since the coup compared to the 7 years before? Your thoughts.

What has happened to this afternoons Newsletter? It is nearly 5PM and again still not here. do I have to keep on and on at you?

Interesting, but I'm in Central Thailand. I've never seen it in Makro, I will have a look next time I go there. Any beef I've had has been far too chewy and was given to the dog.

Up here it is between 110 and 120 Bt per liter and it's the dearest cooking oil.

"There's no fatties in our village." I find that very hard to believe, I see plenty of them everywhere I go, and I live in a small town/village up country.