Emdog

"...they struggle to pay back debts owed to the 20 richest countries in the world." Well, the poor countries would have a difficult time borrowing from other poor countries, ya think? Paying off one's debts used to be considered expected behavior, but it seems that has gone by the by In defense of poor countries, I wonder how much of that debt went to paying off whatever general was in charge at the time for some wasteful white elephant project that made the rich richer but did little to improve average person's life "Small is beautiful" just doesn't deliver on the bribes like building a new dam

I do have delusions.... you caught me! My excuse of sorts is that I didn't look at the dates of the articles.... my bad

My guess is political inertia... power of Cuban exiles in Miami. And the US sugar cartel does not want cheap sugar to come in to US markets. I agree it has been more than long enough.... if embargo hasn't worked after 60+ years, maybe time to take a different approach. I know Obama tried to open things up, but then Trump came along. Had some US friends who went to Cuba maybe a year ago, but don't know their means of getting in.

The time it would need to take might be 15 minutes, IF the useless police commanders got off their backsides and leaned on their inferiors... it's not a lack of cops, but you have to pull them from their safe aircon havens and put them to work. "But there's no payoff for us, chief!"

How do these connect to the missing German? Different German name, age, looks.... The Thai woman arrested is 41, not 24. Help me out here....

So what? "...a place for gays to have various sexual activities and not for fitness." Who is the victim here? What about the massage shops nearly everywhere? Is there a "happy ending" to this story?

I wonder how many of the commentators here that push for throwing him in a deeper and darker hole, he broke the law and deserves the worst, yada yada.... are the sort that brag about paying off a cop who pulls them over for drunk driving? "Yeah, no nanny state here... just pay the bribe and you're on your way". Which would a sane person consider a greater threat to the public?

Officials urged citizens to generate more garbage in order to more fully employ these expensive trucks

Good strategy by China. US loads up Taiwan, so China loads up Cuba Tit for tat

Long beaches in Jomtien. Could they give us a bit more info as to the location?

Lived in Thailand since 2001, started coming to SE Asia in 1982. So, yes I have been to Asia. How about you? I avoid resorts, "starred" hotels: might as well be in Salt Lake City.... maybe decor a bit different. Spend the big bucks, get maximum insulation from the people. I prefer homestays, small family owned guest houses. Get to meet the average person, closer experience to the real culture.

Yep, cops doin a bang up job. Wasn't that cop (with escorts) goin around Walking St etc other day to somehow show area safe for tourists. Should fire all the cops and start from ground zero. As useful as teats on a boar

Never heard of "Centara Grand". Resorts and such: that explains it. Avoid them like dengue fever

Should not be hard to hunt down if attack was result of disagreement over rental... one would think... But... photo shows him sitting on motorcycle with sidecar.... IS that how he gets around? AND he has Alzheimer's Am I the only one who thinks might lead to traffic accidents, etc?

Like the two Burmese who were framed for murders on Koh Tao? The police had to show them what moves they had to make to kill the two English tourists And I thought that reenactments were banned a few years ago... Barbaric, pointless, denial of the most basic rights but, hey, gives cops a chance for a photo op

Hmmm sounds like a bunch of "snow" "flakes" were there

I get that, but from a legal viewpoint, from a sovereign nation viewpoint, there is no basis for these laws. Think of the Taliban: if they said any citizen who drank beer or wine anywhere in the world would be lashed 100 times. Would that be okay with you guys? Drinking alcohol seems to be a bigger offense than having sex with children (How old was one of the brides of Mo? 6 or 7.) Again I am totally against pedophiles and all that, lock them up forever by the nation where the offense took place I smoked some big O on first trek back in 1982. I could have been given "not more than 20 yrs in prison" for that (Schedule II drug). "House rules" apply in your house. Not your neighbors house, or country

I seem to recall over last couple of decades Thailand would quite often use photos from other countries to promote tourism. Is my memory faulty in this regard?

Horrible man, horrible crimes. He should still be rotting in a Cambodian prison IMO BUT.... now he is being charged in USA with "..enough to slap Cline with five counts of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place". FOREIGN PLACE: not the USA. How the hell does one logically and legally explain the issue of jurisdiction claimed by US feds regarding crime committed in sovereign nation of Cambodia? How can they bring him to trial in US when he has already been convicted and served time in Cambodia. Wouldn't that be a form of double jeopardy? "Oh, but he didn't get enough prison time in Cambodia" some may say. It's their country, their laws, and they determine punishment for breaking their laws. I recall seeing large banners up in Pattaya years ago paid for by US announcing "Do the crime here. Spend the time in prison in US". Imagine if you were a Malaysian and legally smoked pot while visiting Oregon, USA. You come back to KL and are tossed in prison and put on trial. " Recreational use of cannabis under Malaysian legislation provides for a mandatory death penalty for convicted drug traffickers. Individuals arrested in possession of 200 grams (seven ounces) of marijuana are presumed by law to be trafficking in drugs" You don't have any drugs when reentered Malaysia, but you had pot over in US, "a foreign place".

Many 7/11s have picnic tables right out front of the store for patrons to sit at and drink freshly bought beer or whatever. I guess the difference is that the 7's food is not high quality enough to be designated a food shop?

"The percentage of adults in the U. S. between the ages of 25 to 64 with college degrees, certificates, or industry-recognized certifications, has increased from 37.9% in 2009 to 53.7% in 2021.." from Forbes. Don't know how many took out loans, but must ask why should 47% of adults without degrees have to pay off debts of those who got degrees, and allegedly higher income as a result? What might be fair is for Congress to pass a bill giving every high school graduate a $10,000 grant towards further education. Could be used at technical/trade school. non degree ed as well as traditional colleges. High school diploma just isn't enough in today's world. I have a BBA and a masters. I never expected the government to forgive my debts. However, that was a long time ago and the $125 a term would now be $903. Figures for in state tuition/fees per years (Oregon) are now $24,000+.... ouch! college tuitions by state

Seems most of those crashes were due to factors the airport had no control over: terrorist attacks, equipment failures while in flight (maybe ground crew problem, there... I don't know). Crashes coming in for landing: pilot error or poor air traffic controllers? 1980 weather related crash: fault of the airport? Without more info on results of investigation as to cause and blame (if any), the stats seem fairly meaningless

Is that the best you can do? (below from article you cite) "Biden said the Republican party is "dominated, driven, intimidated by Donald Trump" and his supporters, calling it "a threat to this country." "They refuse to accept the results of a free election. And they're working right now as I speak in state after state to give the power to decide elections in America to partisans and cronies, empowering election deniers to undermine democracy itself," What part of that isn't factual? Look at how speaker Kevin is getting hammered for saying perhaps Trump isn't best candidate for Republicans. Why such fear of speaking one's mind? Because you dare not have one but fall in lock step Surely you must have heard all the insults and horrid accusations by Trump towards Democrats, the press, judiciary.... anyone or institution that does not bow down to him

If the fire don't get cha then the extinguisher will...

Trump said “People are not happy. What was he thinking?” but I think punctuation is off: should be: "What? Was he thinking?" Seems anyone who thinks their own thoughts and expresses own opinion is a traitor in Trump's eyes. Why do Republicans put up with this? If some party boss etc told me not to voice my view, I'd tell him to "take a flying f*** at the moon"