nausea

Not so sure, myself, if this is really about combatting and deterring; experiences, related to me by both Farang and Thai acquaintances, point towards revenue generation as a major motivation in some, at least, of these drug sweeps.

Well, it is a bit like having a neon sign over your head saying "Rob Me". Having said that, I can understand why some asian guys might think it apprpriate. Farangs (in Asia) get a free pass in the status stakes, asians (in Asia) not so much.

Let's throw in Vicky Nuland, just to bring some gender equality to this thread.

Keep your pet dogs inside folks, fireworks and dogs don't mix; lost one of mine New Year's Eve; eventually found, but only after a lot of hassle and trouble, and luck.

I'll leave the traditional afterlife to others, since it's faith, and not logic, based, and hedonistic descriptions fall on the rock of " too much of a good thing", even the most exquisite experiences become boring after a while. I was, however, recently reading about the positive and negative effects of intense meditation, eerily similar to the the effects of psychedelics by the way, which I reckon is probably the closest we get to any kind of documented heaven here on earth, enlightenment and all that, and it quickly became obvious that one man's heaven is another man's hell. Personally, I think it's all very subjective, and a bit Yin and Yang'ish; you have a bad toothache and it's hell, it goes away, and you're in heaven for a moment; similarly, for a lot of Western guys, you're sex starved and in a sort of hell, you come to Thailand and think you've arrived in heaven, but once you become adapted to the ready availability, you revert to your normal state, whatever that might be.

As with most things, "dosis sola facit venenum" (Paracelsus 1538) - the dose makes the poison. I believe some natural sunlight is essential for good health, so c. 15 mins a day for me here in Thailand . Always wear a hat (shaved head). My back doesn't like the sun, I put that down to it getting sunburnt a lot when I was a kid in the UK. My Dad had this ridiculous maxim (knowing what we know now) that you have to get red before you get brown. Definitely ages the skin, I only have to look at the back of my hands to verify that.

Yeah, there's kind of a push to blame current woes on Brexit. This poll sorta fits in with that. Convenient scapegoat, I suppose. Whatever, we're circling the drain. As is Europe. So I don't see that Brexit matters one way or the other.

Yeah, cornflakes are pretty much considered a junk food nowadays. Was always a shredded wheat or weetabix man myself. Don't know if they're much better.

It doesn't really matter what you guys think, the rest of the world looks and says "Banana Republic". Moral high ground lost.

Don't get colds here, too much sunshine, I guess.

For me, it was a good decision to come late. Women on tap, status on tap, I'd have been totally ruined if I'd come earlier. Probably depends on your personality. I'm very lazy, I had to be forced to work hard, develop a career, all that stuff, and I still needed a little bit of serendipity. There's a reason visas to the West were so sought after, the opportunities were just so much greater. Times change, though, it has to be said. Haven't been home (UK) in a long time. Like someone said, as a member of the boomer generation I just had to be alive to make money. I understand things are very different now - The times they are a-changin'.

Looks beauriful in the photo. Maybe a hidden gem. This article will be the kiss of death.

As a very analytically minded friend of mine once said, when you drill down, every guy is here because of the women. We were both quite open about why we initially came here, but it would annoy him that guys would claim all sorts of high minded motives. Live and let live I say, you're here cos of the culture and temples, or whatever, sure.

As I understand it Pita represents the urban elite and Thaksin the rural poor. Both leaders seem to want a more western oriented policy, something that is resisted by the powers that be.

Very true, protesting is a young man's game.

The mild and meek garland sellers are quite quaint, and fit right in. This type of aggressive behaviour is a foreign import we can do without. Won't last long, I suspect, given the hair trigger tempers of some Thais. There's a reason, in a country where knives are ubiquitous and guns not uncommon, that people tend to be exceptionally polite and non confrontational; except when they're drunk or high, of course, and social norms break down.

As with any nationality, a lot of the more questonable characters end up here, like moths to the flame.

Too many of these "crane" incidents, someone needs to take control. Like once is bad luck, twice is coincidence, 3+, you have a bit of a problem, methinks.

Krathom trees grow wild here, even in urban areas, and many Thais know exactly where they're located; good luck with trying to control its use. Anyway, it's a pretty mild stimulant, never heard of anyone going Krathom crazy; my SO uses it when she has some particularly onerous physical task to perform.

It happens, nothing special about being a monk, the laws of physics don't care.

Thailand should stay well out of it. The gunship option doesn't work anymore, these guys are battle hardend. We're playing catch up. It really needs a total rethink of our strategy. I won't hold my breath, given the stranglehold the MIC has on things.

It just doesn't make financial sense. Having lots of kids is a moral thing. Personally, i'd do this if I saw a better world ahead. To put them into a world of hurt seems stupid. Nevertheless, my extended family does their thing. Talk about birth rates, it's like exponential. Attractive guys and seductive women will so their thing.

Crazy, most of us are trying to get out.

Never came across this. Suppose, it exists. Only experience I had was with a college girl, we had nothing in common. Like them around 25'ish.

Gotta be a joke right. That time has long passed. I still have some kudos, but it's fading fast. Who fu**ed it up, I can't say. The Ukraine project didn't help.