Kerryd

And this is from an "ASEAN Briefing" dated 12 Feb 2024: "Receive income inside or outside Thailand via: Income from employment (wages, salaries, remuneration, etc.) assessable under Section 40 of the Revenue Code; Income from business operations is assessable under Section 40. Passive or property income (interest, dividends, rental income, goodwill, etc.) based on Article 41 paragraph 2 of the Revenue Code. (I assume that covers "pension income" without them actually saying it. Goodwill includes "gifts" and "donations".) Thai citizens and foreigners who are permanent residents will be subject to income tax, if they earn annual income at the following rates: (I'm guessing they changed "permanent residents" to "tax resident" at a later date.) 0 to 150,000 baht (US$4,177) is exempt from income tax; More than 150,000 baht (US$4,177) and up to 300,000 baht (US$8,354) are subject to a 5 percent tax rate; More than 300,000 baht (US$8,354) and up to 500,000 baht (US$13,923) are subject to a 10 percent tax rate; More than 500,000 baht (US$13,923) and up to 750,000 (US$20,884) are subject to a 15 percent tax rate; More than 750,000 (US$20,884) and up to 1 million baht (US$27,846) are subject to a 20 percent tax rate; More than 1 million baht (US$27,846) and up to 2 million baht (US$55,683) are subject to a 25 percent tax rate; Over 2 million baht (US$55,683) and up to 5,000,000 baht (US$139,201) are subject to a 30 percent tax rate; and More than or more is subject to a 35 percent tax rate. Now remember - if your pension is taxed in your home country, they are not supposed to be allowed to tax it again in Thailand regardless of how much you get (dependent on the clauses in your tax treaty - if any). But it still counts towards your "total income". AND ! If you have "other" taxable income, if it's less than 150,000 baht there's no tax. However, this is Thailand. I'm guessing if you have 300,000 baht in "total" income that is "taxable" - they will tax the entire 300,000 baht and not deduct the first 150,000 that should be exempt. This is also where they get you with the "total income" business. Just like in Canada, they total all your income and use that to determine the tax rate. Then you get to take off deductions and exemptions. But even if the total "net income" remaining would put you in a lower tax bracket - you still get taxed at the higher rate. That will no doubt cause a lot of confusion between the accountants, lawyers and low-level officials in the Thai Revenue Department who have to review the returns. By rights, lets say your total income (pensions, rental income, digital nomad work, interest/dividends, etc) is 850,000 baht. Your tax rate would be set at 20%. But then they would (legally) have to deduct the amount that is "pension income". Lets say that's 750,000 baht. Which leaves you with 100,000 baht in taxable income at 20% (20,000 baht). Except ! Amounts up to 150,000 are supposed to be exempt. So theoretically you shouldn't pay any tax at all (in Thailand). So now the beancounters and tax officials have to work out if they are allowed to levy the tax based on the entire total, or if they have to deduct (up to 150,000) baht from that total and then tax the rest. That is going to cause a lot of headaches for years to come I suspect. And when they realize how little they are actually making from it ? (I doubt they'll even notice if a flood of pensioners suddenly leave the country - and probably wouldn't care all that much either.)

From a (newspaper) article dated 6 Sept: "Expats in Thailand, meanwhile, have raised questions about tax treatment of pension income from past employment when that money is brought into Thailand. If this money is taxed in their home country and that country is one of the 61 that have agreements with Thailand to prevent double taxation, in theory there should be no problem. But debates about interpretation of the law are ongoing." They have a link to a legal website that discusses the "ongoing" matter. In the article from 24 June 2024 they note: Last year, the Thai Revenue Department (“TRD”) issued Departmental Instructions No. Paw 161/2023 and Paw 162/2023 concerning foreign-sourced income. According to these instructions, any Thai tax resident with foreign-sourced income will be taxed in Thailand when such income is remitted into the country, regardless of when you remit it. "The proposed new rule will affect both foreigners working in Thailand for more than 180 days and Thai citizens who are Thai tax residents working abroad. A key question is whether this new rule will affect Long-Term Resident (LTR) Visa holders. The answer is: “It Depends”. Currently, the interpretation is issued as a guideline. The LTR rules will prevail based on the hierarchy of laws and the principle of lex specialis. However, if the TRD chooses to amend the Thai Revenue Code, the new rule will likely take precedence. Nonetheless, the government is unlikely to do this, as the LTR is designed to benefit LTR holders."

The way it works is, you are expected to report ALL income you make outside (and/or inside) of Thailand. Pension income that is already taxed in your home country still counts towards your total income even if there is a Tax Treaty between your country and Thailand. However, Thailand wouldn't (legally) be allowed to tax that portion of your total income. They would then total all your income, subtract the "personal deduction" and tax you on the balance (at whatever rate). It's unlikely you will get any deductions for charity donations or medical expenses or anything else you would normally be able to deduct from your taxes back home. However, if you also have to do taxes back home on the same income and Thailand has charged you more than your home country, you can (in some countries at least) claim the difference as a credit on your home country's taxes. This is a link to the Government of Canada's list of Tax Treaties: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/programs/tax-policy/tax-treaties.html Most of the treaties are virtually identical and include clauses for things like pensions taxed in one country can't be taxed in the other. For the Phillipines: Pensions and Annuities 1. Pensions and annuities arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the Contracting State in which they arise. (Then some gibberish about "periodic pension payments".) For Thailand: Pensions 1. Pensions and other similar remuneration, whether they consist of periodic or non-periodic payments, for past employment, arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident or the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned State. (Canada does not have, nor is negotiating a tax treaty with Cambodia so technically you could be fully taxed on all your income in your home country and in Cambodia.) Also note: Tax treaties do NOT confer ANY "rights" to the person being taxed. "No Taxation without Representation" is an "ideal" and "principle" - not a law.

Found a Channel 7 and a Pattaya News article (on Line). Seems it was 6 "kids" (late teens) all on "scooters". Not a motorcycle club and not "crotch rockets". But - one story says they'd gone to drop off a friend in Huay Yai and were riding home to Bo Win, while the other articles says they'd gone to Sattahip to "visit the sea". So yeah, probably had a few beers too many and were racing on the highway on the way home. One guy does something stupid and 4 guys end up crashing.

In the initial reports they said the "500,000 baht" (or equivalent) did NOT have to be in a Thai bank. (About 11,200 GBPs, 13,300 Euros or 14,800 US). So if you could show a balance of (whatever equivalent amount in your home currency) in a bank (with your name on the account) that was supposed to be good enough. Kind of like the only thing you needed to qualify as a "digital nomad" was a "letter of employment" (or contract or whatever) from your employer. (Or mom or cousin's boyfriend that works part time at a Copy shop.) I'm sure there's a lot of "virtual" employers out there and how is anyone in Thailand or at an Embassy going to check or verify them ? This DVT sounds way too good to be true. And it's not a "border run every 180 days". It's a 180 day stay, extended another 180 days at an Immigration office for 1,900 baht and THEN a border run to get a new 180 day stamp. Rinse, recycle and repeat for 5 years, then get a new Visa. If you already have the money in the bank and don't need it, then the DVT isn't much of an option. Still have to go to Immigration and pay 1,900 every year. Still have to report every 90 days. But don't have to do a border run once every 359th or 360th day. For those who've had to use an "agent" to help them meet the requirements though, this could save them a lot of money. Just sign up for Somchai's School of Thai Cooking, soon with branches in every beer bar in your area that has a propane tank and grill ! You can learn to cook, eat and drink beer while watching footie on the tele at the same time ! (I can just imagine it. Couple years from now, a line of old, fat, white-haired geezers standing outside of Immigration trying to Extend their DVTs and having to prove they've actually been in a cooking school by demonstrating what they've learned on a row of charcoal grills lined up down the street.) And there's a thought. You get the DVT from an Embassy outside the country. Say you're in Oz or America or Germany. How are they going to verify that Somchai's School of Cooking and Short Time bar is an accredited school when you are applying for the Visa ? How are they going to verify that you've actually been going to classes ? If you are living in Pattaya and do a border run to Poi Pet when your 180 day Extension is up, who's going to check if you actually have been going to cooking school ? And 5 years down the road, when you go to an Embassy (outside the country) to get a new DVT, same thing. How are they going to verify anything ? Remember when they had to crack down on the Language schools because people weren't actually attending them ? They could do that because you were renewing your extension locally - not from another country - so they could actually check the schools to see if people were actually attending classes. Going to be interesting to see what happens with this over the next couple of years. Right now it seems ripe for abuse.

Twas and is in some places. Couple years before Covid. They announced that anyone who left their "residence" and stayed somewhere else for more than a day was required to report themselves to the local immigration office or police station. If you were in a "good" hotel, they'd report you so you didn't have to. For example, you leave Pattaya and travel to Chiang Mai for 2 days and stay at "mom's" house. Technically on day 2 you are required to notify Immigration of your location. Then you go to Pai and spend 2 days there. Again, unless you're in a hotel that reports for you, you are supposed to notify Immigration on day 2. Then you go to Petchabun for 2 days. Same deal. And then when you go home, you are supposed to notify Immigration again within 24 hours. Jomtien was one of the first places to say - "not required so long as you return to the same address already on record". I recall that people were saying in other places, they did expect you to report in. But that was years ago and they may have let that one slide to the "too much work - just ignore it" pile like it seems they've done with the "Bank Book" check 90 days after getting a new Extension of Temporary Stay.

Can't find the original article. A lot of "motorcycle clubs" make afternoon trips to places like Sattahip or some place in Chonburi and ride home after dark. I've ridden back from Rayong and Sattahip after dark a few times with different groups of friends. My very first "group ride", back in 2008, I almost died. I was the last person in the group riding up Highway 36 and just as I was passing a transport truck, a huge tarp blew off and "sailed" onto the highway in front of me (near where that huge reclining Buddha is now, just off the highway). As luck would have it, a gust of wind blew it over my head and it landed on the highway behind me. Looked back in my mirror and it had landed flat on the road in the lane behind me. Had that happened in front of the lead motorcycles it would have been a catastrophe. One of the big dangers of riding in a group is the bikes behind the leaders have to trust the lead riders to be aware of everything happening - or likely to happen - so they can slow down or give warning to the people behind them. Which often doesn't happen here. I've been riding along at the back of a group and suddenly a bike ahead of me swerves to the side, the bike behind him hits the brakes and he swerves and BAM ! There's a dead dog (or piece of debris like a part of of a blown out tire) or other obstruction in the road right in front of you. Because the lead bikes saw it, never slowed down, just leaned a bit to the side and went around it, leaving it a surprise for everyone following. Riding back in a group from Sattahip at 1:30 in the morning, I'd say most of them had a few "wobbly-pops" at wherever they'd been before riding back. Trying to find a Thai news article about it with no luck though.

So they think nearly 40 million people every year are going to go to the e-Visa website, register, go through an annoying menu system and provide who knows what information, to get a (digital) code - 24 hours before flying here ? The vast majority of arrivals every year are likely from "Visa Exempt" countries. So now they want to make it even more complicated for them. And this "ETA" will be verified at every airline check-in counter of every airline at every airport that has flights to Thailand ? And people who don't have it will be denied boarding ? And what happens to all the people who arrive having no idea what this ETA thing is ? Will they be denied entry and forced to sit in the Arrivals area (or detention center) until they can get a flight home ? And what about the border runners ? Will they have to get an ETA for their "10 minutes in Cambodia and then back into Thailand" trips every 60 days ? My buddy tried using the e-Visa site and got so frustrated with it he gave up and just arrived on a 30 day stamp last year and then did the "30 day extension" and "border run" routine a couple times. The new 60 day Visa Exempt stamp was going to eliminate the need to go to the e-Visa site. I guess they don't want to lose business so they found a new way to force people to go there.

What often happens is the cops bust a "minor" drug dealer and search his phone/tablet/etc and then track down the people he/she was in contact with often. Sometimes they pretend to be the dealer and arrange a "meet" so they can bust the buyer. Sometimes they try to arrange a meet with the supplier to buy more drugs. And a lot of foreigners here arrive with good intentions, spend all their money, hawk their passport/plane tickets, maybe borrow too much from family/friends and find themselves stuck in Thailand with no means of support. On my first trip here in '93, I ended up getting to the airport with 35 baht to my name, then finding out there was a 500 baht "departure tax". Almost no internet back then and no ATMs and no "bank" at the airport. I got lucky and was able to get on the flight. I'm guessing a lot of foreigners aren't as lucky. They spend all their money, burn all their bridges and then have no way to get home and no source of income to live on. So they wind up doing whatever they can to get by and hope that "something" happens (and that they don't get caught in the meantime). Which is why it seems so many of them get busted with drugs I guess. Probably the easiest way to make money - without having to do "that" stuff. I just hope I never end up in the same situation.

In Thai law - even if you've been convicted of murder - or for arranging someone's murder - if you are charged with anything else like say - fraud or defamation - you can apply for bail and be released to defend yourself against the new charges. And then simply disappear so they can't send you back to prison. Just don't try hiding out at mom's house in your home village as they may actually think to go look there.

Keep in mind four things. Cockroaches can fly (but normally don't). Cockroaches can fit through spaces a quarter the size of their bodies. Cockroaches can't swim (not for long at least). Cockroaches don't like the light. So, they will enter your home through open doors, patio doors and windows and scurry for the first dark place they can to hide. Or they will come up through drain pipes, especially if there hasn't been a lot of water down those pipes recently. Simple solutions. Get a plumber (if minor plumbing is beyond you) to install what we call is a "goose neck" in your kitchen/bathroom sink drain pipes. Relatively simple and be done use plastic, "flexible" pipe or solid PVC pipes. The "goose neck" is the same idea used in toilets. There is a large curve between where the water enters and where it leaves. That fills with water that just sits there. When you flush the toilet, the water in the gooseneck is flushed and replaced with clean water when your toilet bowl fills again. For floor/shower drains, most hardware stores (even the little ones) sell drain inserts like these: Though you made need a handyman to install. The shallow channel around the outlet hole along with the "cup" on the underside of the cover form a kind of "goose neck". Water fills the channel and the edges of the cup sit in the water, preventing creep-crawlies from coming up the drain. Most have flanges on the cover so you line up the cover with the notches then turn it an inch to "lock" it so it can't be lifted off by "anything" coming up the drain. I had a problem with roaches coming up the drain pipe from my laundry machine as I'd set it up (originally) to drain completely after every use. I re-jigged the hose to attach to a hard PVC "elbow" that fits perfectly into the drain hole. Now the drain pipe runs along the floor for a bit then rises up to the PVC elbow. This creates a kind of "gooseneck" as the portion of the hose on the floor is full of water so the roaches can't crawl up it. And whenever I do laundry, the "new" wash/rinse water flushes the "old" water down the drain. No critters and no bad smells. Belows is the current pic of my laundry drain hose set up. It looks a little nasty now as this was the first crack at it. Had some issues match hoses to fittings when I added the drain hoses from my ice maker to the laundry drain. But it's working great ! No leaks, no odours and no bugs ! (There's a long story about how it all ended up like that but it would be a "long read" even on a computer.) If I ever need to redo it, hopefully the lessons learned will still be floating around in my mushy grey matter and the next set up will look a little better. (I prefer function over fashion so I'm not too fussed how it looks as long as it works.)

Keep in mind who controls the money. Thaksin is still a (billionaire ?) even if a large hunk of his money wasn't earned "legally". (i.e. the profits he made when he divvied up his shares of his telecom and distributed them to his family, maid and chauffeur to sell to an "offshore" company in defiance of the law stating he wasn't allowed to sell his company to a "foreign entity" for national security reasons. (As in, he handed over the satellites that carried the military's communications to a foreign power.) By divvying his shares and having his family/staff sell them, he avoided billions in taxes. That was literally why he ran for office in the first place ! He was told he wasn't allowed to sell ShinCorp to a (Singapore-based company I think it was) for National Security reasons. So he ran in (bought) the next election so he could become PM and change the rules, as well as doing a few other shady things. And then he had to flee the country when his attempt to bribe a judge - using his lawyer at the time, Pichit Chuenban (same guy that Srettha tried to appoint to Cabinet as a reward) - failed and Thaksin faced a prison sentence. Chuenban was disbarred and sent to prison for trying to bribe a judge with 2 million baht inside a school lunch box. While Thailand froze Thaksin's assets - inside Thailand - they couldn't freeze the billions he had outside the country. You don't buy and sell things like Manchester City football clubs on credit after all. Or spend years living a life of luxury in Dubai while jetting around the world secure in the knowledge no one will even try to arrest you. And you can bet one of the main reasons he's back and his daughter is now PM (without being elected) is to get back all that money in the accounts that were frozen. Just a coincidence that Thaksin returns to Thailand, gets the super VIP treatment after being on run for 8 years, gets released from the probation terms he never followed and then his former lawyer suddenly gets appointed to a high level Cabinet position (also without being elected). I'm guessing the latest Shinawatra PM won't last as long as the previous 2. The politics here are literally designed to be abused from top to bottom. Unelected people getting PM and Cabinet Level positions. Courts that can, seemingly on a whim, disqualify actual elected PMs and disband entire political parties for dubious reasons.

Bet they said that last time as well (in 2014). And the time before that (in 2006). Sheer coincidence that both times were when a Shinawatra was PM ?

I copied part of the headline, pasted it into Google Translate, Put that into the search bar and got a number hits. This one is from the Channel 7 news. There's actually a couple of clips. Apparently she tried to file a police report against the official and - naturally - the police told her she might face assault charges for slapping the official so she dropped her charges. I guess she knew she wasn't going to win that one !

Wrong. "The Japanese surrendered on 15 August 1945. Immediately, Allied military responsibility for Thailand fell to the British. As soon as practicable, British and Indian troops were flown in and rapidly secured the release of surviving POWs. The British were surprised to find that the Japanese soldiers had already been largely disarmed by the Thais." They didn't "occupy", they were just there to rescue POWs from the Japanese internment camps.

Actually it celebrates Thailand's "victory" in the Franco-Thai War in 1941. General Phibun took advantage of France's problems in Europe to invade parts of Laos and Cambodia and reclaim territories Thailand had been forced to cede to France and England in the late 1800s and early 1900s. While they did well on the ground and in the air, the Thai navy lost a significant battle at Ko Chang, with a couple small ships sunk and no losses on the French side. That lead the Japanese to intercede and mediate the dispute, forcing the French to return most of the disputed territories back to Thailand. (Which Thailand was then forced to return in 1946.)

"Colonized" indicates that a country is controlled politically, militarily and economically by a foreign country. "Occupied" indicates that a country has been invaded by a foreign military but may still have it's own political structure and some control over it's economy, though perhaps at the whim of the occupying power. Journey with me to the past and harken the days of old, when upstart young King Alexander led a conquest that saw him invade and "occupy" most of Persia, Egypt and parts of India. Many of those areas became "colonies" of Alexander's Empire as they were ruled by his appointees and Generals. Many remained under Greek control for centuries after Alexander's death. Egypt was invaded and occupied by Alexander, but never really "colonized". Ptolemy declared himself Pharaoh and his line ruled Egypt for nearly 3 centuries, they never adopted Greek language or customs or religion. Rome invaded and occupied Egypt as well, but never "colonized" it. They controlled it's military and foreign affairs (in military matters at least) but Egyptians controlled their own internal matters (for the most part). Hence why Egyptians - as a people - never learned Latin. The British initially invaded and "occupied" India and that "occupation" evolved into "colonization" as the evil (sic) Empire took over India's political, military and economic affairs. Hence why many/most Indians now speak (poor) English in addition to Hindi. The French invaded "Indochina" and "occupied" large portions of Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. Like the British, the"occupation" became "colonization" as France assumed control of those country's domestic and foreign affairs. Not as successful as the British but their influence is still felt in the region. One could say that "occupation" relates primarily to military affairs and "colonization" refers to the subject nation's politics and economy. And "occupation" often leads (or used to) to "colonization" the longer the subject nation is occupied. In WW2, Japan had a strong influence in Thailand. You can thank (or not) the Japanese for why Thai women no longer wander around topless all the time. While "modern" women in the large cities often affected "modern" standards of dress, women in the lower classes and more rural areas usually still went topless. This distressed the Japanese who were basically the economic and military powerhouse in Asia at the time. Much like China is now. They pressured General Phibun, who was Prime Minister at the time, to adopt more "civilized" dress standards and Phibun (around 1939 ?) had this "cultural" poster distributed around the country. In WW2, Thailand initially tried to resist the Japanese - for a whole 5 hours - but were forced to surrender and strike a peace agreement with them. However, Thailand maintained it's own gov't and some control over it's domestic and economic affairs. In that sense, Thailand was "occupied" but not "colonized". And because of the machinations noted in previous posts, they evaded punishment for their support of the Japanese. While the British were technically "responsible" for Thailand after the war (as the dominant military power in the area and because of their colonies that stretched from Myanmar to India, down "British Malay" and over to Singapore) America was still "the big dog" overall and could still call the shots when it suited them. England wanted to treat Thailand as a defeated enemy but America objected, in part as they disagreed with England's and France's colonization of the region. And that is why Thailand was able to escape "punishment" for it's actions - though it didn't make it unscathed. Most of the territory it had acquired (with Japan's assistance) from the French in the Franco-Thai war, including most of Northern Cambodia (and Siem Reap though it didn't have the status then that it does now) and parts of Laos, was returned to the French in 1946, setting Thailand's borders pretty much to what they are now. These are the territories Thailand gain in 1941 - and lost in 1946.

Burma is a puppet of China so the "West" has to steer clear. Recall the weak justification the UN/NATO used to bomb Gadafi into non-existence - because oil companies in France and Italy had funded an "Arab Spring uprising" - led by Gadafi's former #2 man. It is against the UN's own rules to instigate a "regime change" in any country so NATO was used under the pretext of "protecting civilians". And France was the leading voice calling for NATO to intervene. And Gadafi met the same fate as Hussein. And after Gadafi met his fate what was the first major news to come out of Libya ? That the two main gas companies (from France and Italy) had gotten the refineries and pumping stations running again. Because that was what it was really about. (Note that Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and other "Sunni" countries also brutally quashed the "Arab Spring" uprisings in their countries with NO condemnation from anyone.) Same in Syria. A fundamentalist "Arab Spring" uprising started with a small group of hard-core, old school, fundamentalists hoping to overthrow Assad and establish a new "Caliphate". The "West" jumped right in and started supplying those poor, outnumbered and outgunned "rebels" with weapons and ammo and warning Assad of severe "consequences" if he crossed any "lines in the sand". But then the "West" found out that not only were those rebels Iranian/Afghan-type fundies, most of their fighters actually belonged to a half dozen recognized terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda and Al-Nusrah among others. And ! They quickly discovered that a lot of the arms, ammuntion and other materials sent to the "rebels" was showing up on the black markets in the region within weeks. But they couldn't go in and bomb Assad into history like they'd done to Gadafi - because Russia had Assad's back. And ! The rebels turned out to be worse than Assad ! They actually staged a number of "chemical weapons" attacks - in areas they controlled - in an attempt to drag America into the fight (after Obama had made his "line in the sand" statement that if Assad used chemical weapons against the rebels, that would be "crossing" that line and draw the US into the fight). However, the West wasn't fooled. Especially as Assad had already (under UN supervision and assistance) disposed of any chemical weapons they had and the UN had inspected all the chemical plants under Assad's control. But oddly enough - they NEVER inspected the FOUR chemical plants that were in "rebel held" territory ! Also consider Rwanda. Mugabe was just as bad as Hussein, Assad or Gadafi - yet the world just looked the other way and pretended they couldn't see or hear anything. When I was in Afghanistan we had a guy from Rwanda working in our Finance section. One day, not long after the war in Syria kicked off, we were talking about it at lunch. We pondered the real reasons for the conflict and why the same countries (US/European mainly) weren't doing anything about Mugabe. The Rwandan guy shook his head and said "What do we export ? Potatoes. Not oil. No one cares what happens to us." And that was hitting the nail on the head. Hussein ? Iraqi oil. Gadafi ? Libyan oil. Assad ? Syrian oil. Mugabe ? Rwandan potatoes. No interest to the "West" so no intervention. Hlaing (Myanmar) ? Oil and Natural gas - but under China's umbrella. Most of Myanmar's exported commodities go to China (no surprise), India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Germany. Most of Myanmar's imports come from China (no surprise), Thailand and other countries in the region. Zero chance the UN or the "West" will do anything about what is happening in Myanmar other than maybe some weak sanctions (if China agrees) or travel restrictions on the senior leadership. And as long as Thailand keeps dancing to China's tune, there's zero chance they'll do anything either. And even if something "major" happened that required a response from Thailand, what are they going to do ? Go to war with a country that is heavily backed - and supplied - by China ? To whom Thailand is already heavily in debt to. They could go to the ineffectual, corrupt UN about it - and get a tepid response and maybe, if they are lucky, a weak, unenforceable "resolution" condeming (whatever happened) but recommending "discussions" and "negotiations" because they already know China will veto any military response. And let us not forget, Thailand is but a "coup" away from becoming exactly like Cambodia and Myanmar. And if China has it's hooks in deep enough, the "West" will be forced to sit back and mouth meaningless statements about "restoring order and democracy" and then go back to watching whatever sports match is on the tele. Because there's pretty much zero chance anyone will intervene to "save" Thailand even if they go "full Junta" and start mowing people down in the streets. In fact, all that would do would be to play right into China's hands by giving them the justification to invade to "protect the innocent civilians". And the UN and the West will make grand statements about respecting Thailand's independence and the rights of the people - and then ignore it as they know they are pretty much powerless to do anything about it anyways. (I suspect we have less than 20 years before conjecture becomes reality.) Unless "something" happens somewhere else in the world sooner. Like if the Middle East were to escalate into a full-fledged regional conflict, and the war in Ukraine escalated, and maybe even India and Pakistan started poking each other with more than sticks and stones. China could make moves on Taiwan and in the South China sea as well as Thailand (and maybe Myanmar and Laos) and the "West" would be screwed. They'd be flipping coins to see which conflict to respond to and which to basically ignore and hope for the best. But they'd never come to an agreement about which should have a priority over the others and if they did, it would be Europe first, Middle East second, India/Pakistan third (because of the danger of it escalating into a nuclear conflict) and SE Asia would be a distant 4th. I'd say - start planning now - but I'm a realist, not a fortune teller. And the reality is, we're probably screwed no matter what. Unless you move to a remote village in the middle of the Andes mountains.

I've been ordering from Amazon for over a decade now. Quite a bit on Lazada as well but mostly for cheap, throw-away stuff like cotton drawstring pants, Irish Spring soap (20/case), LED clocks, hoses and other cheap items, most of which are made/shipped from China. If I want something that's better quality or unavailable on Lazada, then I look at Amazon. I order a lot of "sugar-free" powdered drink mixes (like Crystal Light) but it's considered a "food item" so I have to have it shipped to a "mail forwarding" company that gives me an selection of couriers and prices, slaps a Customs Declaration/Address Label on it and fires it off. A much more expensive way to do things, even using their cheapest "it'll arrive eventually" shipping method. But for other items Amazon is usually pretty good, especially as they will calculate the (estimated) Import duties and add that to your total when you make the purchase. And the packages usually arrive just as fast as if you used a "priority" courier service like DHL/FedEx/USPS. Except you don't have to go through the hassle of one of those couriers holding up your package so they can ding you will a couple thousand baht in "extra fees". (Recently I made 2 separate orders for "food items" from Amazon. 6 small bottles of super nasty hot sauce (Blair's Mega and Ultra Death Sauces) in one order and 4 boxes of powdered drink mix in the other. I did them separately so they'd be shipped separately and then could be "forwarded" separately as well. However, for some reason, Amazon consolidated the two orders into one box. It arrived at the "forwarding" company but it was now too heavy to use the "slow boat to China" shipping method so I was forced to use the next cheapest method which was FedEx. Cost me frikken $80 US. Had I known what FedEx was going to do when it arrived in Bangkok, I wouldn't have shipped it at all. After holding my package for 3 days, they contact me on a Friday afternoon to tell me I need to send them my passport (!?!?!?!) so they can "clear" the package through Customs. Alternately, I can go to Bangkok in person. Or - I can go to a Customs Office (anywhere) and "register" with them and then send a scan of the "registration card". (FedEx sent me a "pre-filled" form to use which was handy.) Monday was a holiday so the earliest I could go was Tuesday (to the Customs Office in Laem Chabang). Registration was easy (and free). I sent the information to FedEx before noon. They responded late Wednesday afternoon to inform me that "they" needed to "amend" the shipping Waybill and it would cost ME over 1400 baht and take two days ! What needed amendment ? The shipping label had my first and last name - but the "Registration Card" CUSTOMS gave me had my First, Middle and Last name. So they had to "amend" the waybill to include my MIDDLE name - and charged me (1,428 baht) for it !! In the end, I had to pay just over 3,000 baht to get my package delivered, including a 200 baht "Customs Overtime" charge, 400 baht "Clearance" charge, 150 baht "Storage" surcharge, 200 baht "Duty Handling" fee, plus 7% VAT on that. And the actual "Duties and Taxes" for the package ? 746 baht. 2,430 baht in "fees, charges and surcharges" for a package that was assessed 746 baht in Duties - on top of the $80 I'd already paid FedEx to ship it in the first place. (They know they have you over a barrel and your only option, as you've already paid for the item(s) and shipping, is to "abandon" the package (refuse delivery) and lose the money you've already paid. And even then - you are STILL liable to pay the Custom's Duties. But you'll have the peace of mind knowning that some FedEx employee(s) will get to keep and use your items - for free.) But for items that Amazon will ship direct themselves, I've never had them held up for any reason or been charged any additional fees. In fact, I often get a small "refund" when it turns out the Duties were less than Amazon had calculated. But watch out for the Shipping costs !! I was going to order some out-of-print (used) paperback novels awhile ago. Most of them are in the $5-$10 range. But the shipping cost for ONE book (and not a huge one either) was as much or more than the cost of the novel ! I tried different options and quantities and it just made it more expensive. Shipping 2 books together cost as much as shipping them separately, even though they were both coming from the same location. I still use Amazon (and the mail forwarding company) but I'm a lot more careful about package sizes and quantities - and shipping costs.

Remember, this is Thailand and people, even "influential HiSos" have to tread carefully when making statements/accusations as they could easily be hit with Defamation lawsuits, even if they are speaking 100% truth. And the media has to be careful as well. Which makes it difficult for people to call a Durian a Durian even when everyone absolutely knows it's a Durian because the Durian might be offended at being called a Durian and file a Defamation lawsuit against those who claim the Durian is a Durian. Not to mention the danger of violating the Lese Majesty laws - which apply to more than just discussions of those we can't discuss. As Thaksin himself will soon have to go to court about as well. He still has those charges pending. And remember how not long ago he tried to flee the country (again) by claiming he needed to go to Dubai for "medical consultations" ? His request was denied (lol - I wonder if they too thought he was going to do a runner) - and then the whole "medical issues" he needed to go to Dubai for apparently cleared up all by themselves. (Unless the media missed him going to a local, private hospital for treatment ? It's not like he'd take advantage of his own 30 baht healthcare scam anyways !)

There's almost a cycle to this event. A couple of years of heavy flooding, especially in the lowlands and capital region. Then a couple years where they are telling the farmers to not plant a second rice crop because the water levels in the dams and reservoirs are at "all time lows". (Remember the stories of them finding forgotten monuments and the remains of old temples that had been submerged in different reservoirs for decades and were suddenly "on dry land" again because the water levels were so low.) And then a couple years later, Bangkok is flooding again and they've got special boats in the Chao Praya river using their propellers to try and force more water out into the Gulf because the dams "upstream" are at their limits and have to dump excess capacity "downstream" (or risk a catastophic collapse). Meanwhile, I rode past the Map Prachan reservoir a couple days ago and I have never seen the water level so low. And that was after a recent heavy rain. And we are nearing the end of the rainy season. Remember before the Covid crisis. We had a bit of a "drought" and the place was packed full of tourists. The water levels were so low the PWA had to start rotating "cut off days" where some areas either had reduced water flows or were cut off entirely for a couple of days. That was when the "officials" came up with the great idea of trying to channel all of the city's water drainage (from the sewers and run-off from the streets) back into the city's main water supply ! Think of all the crap (literally), garbage, chemical and industrial waste that people routinely dump into the sewers and spills onto the roads every day. And they wanted to pump all of that into the Map Prachan reservoir to boost the water levels !! (Note: the city water supply is "filtered" - not "purified". Basically it's run through filters/strainers to remove sediment and "big stuff" before being released into the water mains.) Probably a good thing the covid crisis hit otherwise they might have gone through with that idea and ended up contaminating the entire reservoir with assorted pollutants. It does appear that they are doing some dredging on the north-west corner of the reservoir. I hope it's to increase the capacity and not for some building project. I was actually trying to push that idea back before the covid crisis. Had a presentation sketched out on how they could dredge out a portion of the reservoir that was usually "high and dry" even when the reservoir was nearly full and how much capacity they could gain (while using or selling the dredged material for landfill or construction elsewhere). What I didn't have was any "connections". Basically the idea had to come from a "local", preferably someone that had some influence, who could talk to the people that knew the people who could make something like that happen. And none of the people I knew at the time could do that. And then covid came along and without the increased demand for water from all the hotels and businesses, the problem went away. But it looks like it's back and possibly even worse than before. Glad I had the extra large water tank installed last year and a good stock of "filtered water" jugs. I'm guessing we're going to be in for a lot of "cut off" days between now and next Spring.

It used to be a "brown spot" on Pattaya's image (and Jomtien's) when you could look out about 4-500 meters offshore and see large flocks of seagulls gathered around one spot in a sort of feeding frenzy. They were after all the fish that clustered around where the raw sewage emptied into the ocean. I think the old sewage pipe is still visible on Jomtien Beach ? Though they too stopped pumping raw sewage into the water a long time ago. But every time I look out into Pattaya Bay I see all - those - boats anchored out there. Floating restaurants. Fishing boats. Tourist boats. Many with people living on them full time. And not a pumping station for "black water" (raw sewage) anywhere. Take a wild guess where all their crap (literally) goes. And no doubt a large amount of their day-to-day garbage as well. One of the reasons I rarely (as in never) go swimming around here.

And example of how blind - or at least short-sighted - the people who seemed to want the Chinese to take over Thailand are. China does not abide by democracy. Look at all their puppet states. Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar. And the ones they have their hooks firmly planted in, like North Korea and Pakistan. And there's three more things the Chinese do not abide by. A free press (and freedom of speech). Religion. Monarchy. We can't speak about the last one of course. It took them a few years after they gained full control over Hong Kong, but they were finally able to shut down the last "free press" media outlet in Hong Kong a few years ago. And passed a law that all internet traffic would be monitored. (That was brought up when we learned that this site had been sold and was going to be run from a location in Hong Kong.) It was in the news (last year ?) about a baker in Hong Kong being arrested for making a "Tiananmen Square" cake for a customer and two years ago a prominent Chinese "influencer" had his podcast cut off in mid-stream after he showed an "ice cream treat" that sort of looked like a tank - on 3 June 2022 - the day before the 33rd anniversary of Tiananmen Square. (It caused quite a stir as the guy apparently has - or had - over 170 million followers. He didn't resume streaming until 20 Sept with no explanation for why he was off-line for so long.) They actually have censors monitoring live stream podcasts and the ability to shut them down with the push of a button if they think something is being said (or shown) that the Communists don't want the general population to know about. And we know what happened to the Dalai Lama (and is still going on). (But no worries they'll just turn all the temples into Casinos and no one will say a word.) And the signs that they are digging their hooks into Thailand are literally in the news almost every day - but are overlooked because most people just ignore any news that doesn't directly affect them. And if it's news that might have some minor impact on their lives it's usually forgotten within a few days - or by the time the next "footie" match is on the tele. I once had someone try to tell me there was no such thing as a "slippery slope". He was one of those people who thought that - being a (former) Air Force pilot - he was smarter than everyone else. But he was also one of those people who didn't study any history and often made comments on subjects that were easily proven wrong - but he expected people to just assume he knew what he was talking about. And in his mind, if something doesn't happen within a week, then that means it's never going to happen. Because he didn't have the intelligence to put two and two together unless they both happened within his limited attention span. Things these days don't start with a "shock and awe blitzkrieg" like they used to. They start with slow, planned agendas that can take decades or longer to achieve a goal. The Russian annexation of Crimea and the insurgency in Eastern Ukraine had been going on for over a decade before the Russians outright invaded in Feb 2022). They started by seeding insurgents, dissidents and even troops (in civilian clothing) into the regions, whose purpose in the beginning was to stir up anti-Ukraine/pro-Russian sentiments, then escalating into violent protests and riots. Russia was able to use their proxies to hold a (disputed) referendum that they claim gave them the authority to move in and annex Crimea in 2014. They were doing the same thing in other parts of Eastern Ukraine as well but not as successfully so they turned the slippery slope into a cliff and just outright invaded the country. Most of Europe is on a slippery slope as well. But again, many don't see it because if it doesn't directly affect them, or doesn't happen in the short time span between "footie" matches, then they ignore it. But when you see all the reports of all the violent protests and riots in so many European cities, it's not hard to identify the slope they are on. One side is trying to make that slope steeper and the other side is trying to stop the slope from turning into a cliff. The slope Thailand is on is similar, but with a different protagonist and agenda. But the methodology is the same. Start slow, dig your hooks in, make the slope steeper and harder to stop. Start pushing your agenda using the proxies you've put firmly in your pocket. Use them to make changes and decisions that favour you while putting them on an even steeper slope. Eventually they won't be able to sneeze without getting your permission first and by then it's too late. But I'm sure everyone will be more than happy when Thailand becomes another Cambodia - or Myanmar.

They left this part out of the OP: And no mention of checking their passports to see if any of them were on overstay. And if they didn't report their address properly then they probably didn't do their 90 day reports either (unless all of them just happened to have arrived less than 3 months ago of course).

Keep in mind that is "his" story and you can bet he's not going to admit that he (or his wife) did anything wrong. I had a wipe out about 10 years ago on the railway bypass road when a scooter with side-cart in the left lane suddenly decided to cut around the food vendor scooter/side-cart in front of him. Never signalled, never checked if it was safe. He just cut into the right lane as I was about to go by him. I wasn't going fast as I was turning at the next intersection barely 80 meters away. I hit the brakes and clutch hard as I could. Couldn't swerve left because of the food vendor and couldn't go right because of the concrete barriers on that side of the road. I was bracing for a rear-end collision with his sidecart when my front tire went over one of those glossy "speed" signs they'd painted on the roads years ago. BANG ! Front tire locks up when it slides over the glossy paint and when it made contact with the normal pavement, over I went. Bike skidded off the road and into a power pole 20 meters away. I stood up in the middle of the road just in time to see the guy zip through the intersection and disappear. Dislocated knee, broken toe, some fancy road rash and 140,000 baht in repairs. You can bet though if I'd hit him he'd have had a story about how he never did anything wrong and it was the "crazy farang" driving very fast that just rammed him for no reason. Which is why I always run with a motorcycle camera system (front and rear cameras) and usually a GoPro running as well. Because people just suddenly changing lanes without looking or signalling happens so often here you'd think they teach them how to do that when they first start going to school. And they KNOW there's a good chance that even if they were in the wrong, the foreigner will still get the blame and there's money to be made. At least with the cameras I stand a chance of proving it wasn't my fault. Not that it would make a lot of difference anyways I suspect. Like the time I had an old geezer on a scooter cut from the "shoulder lane" across 2 lanes of traffic and then turn and stop in front of me because he wanted to cross the road. I was explaining to the cop what happened while I was trying to call the Insurance rep. The cop pointed at the insurance tag and asked "1st Class ?" and as soon as I said yes he closed his notebook and walked off. Investigation was over. I had 1st Class insurance so that would cover everyone's expenses no matter who was at fault. The old geezer and I ended up getting 400 baht tickets for "being involved in an accident" and that was it. Other than my insurance rates being doubled the next year of course. Got to love that scam. Pay them for 10 years and if you make a claim they double your rates to make back "their" money faster.