YeahSiam

Frankly, I think that once you're over 70, hospitals should be under no obligation to treat you if you don't have insurance.

People are supposed to live, grow old, become sick and then die - extending life at all costs is BS; euthanasia should be decriminalised.

Uninsured, infirm old people are a massive, massive burden on the healthcare system.

If you have the funds to cover your care past 70, then live on, bro - but if you don't, it shouldn't be the state's responsibility to keep you ticking over.

21 hours ago, DILLIGAD said:

I'd say 99.9% of relationships to a Thai are treated like a business transaction. If not by the girl, then by the family behind her.
OP read 'ThailandFever' book, it's an interesting study piece.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Alternatively, find a woman who shares your culture, values and language.

If you speak English, you have an enormous advantage; you have the women of many native English-speaking countries available to you.

Why come to Thailand to find a woman trapped in a culture that actively promotes ignorance among the majority of its people?

Thai women are great for fun but the ones typically available to farangs tend to have an angle and it's usually financial.

Of course, you could learn the language and increase the chances of finding a really good Thai woman but, seriously...........do you really want to go to the trouble of learning a language just so you can speak to the women of one country most of whom are primarily and almost exclusively interested in their countrymen??

Personally, I'm researching commercial cryogenics services.

6 hours ago, Stevemercer said:

 Many Thai girls are reluctant to kiss,

Drivel

Late to the party but never mind

On 2/7/2017 at 5:03 AM, sandemara said:

I think you'll find most - if not all - relationships in Thailand are based purely on money.

Nope.

Most inter-generational farang/Thai relationships are based on money.

So how do you know to a reasonable degree of certainty that it's not the money?

Ok well, if you're in an inter-generational relationship and she won't kiss you passionately (tongue, open-mouth) then I'm sorry but you're a meal ticket.

It really is as simple as that

On 2/3/2017 at 4:46 AM, Old Guy said:

To Mr. Cyber Farang.

Yes you are right -- I also am worried about a serious illness.  The only asset we have is the house which is (by law) in my wife's name but fully paid for.  So it would have to be sold, whether for death or serious illness.   I am sure I am not the only farang which lives hand-to mouth (I am on a U.K. pension which has been frozen).  Your suggestion re 10,000 baht to the monks and then the rubber tyre is fine by me -- as I said earlier the disposal method has no bearing on any future after-life.  But I appreciate Oldgent's sympathy. So I am now saving 1,000 each month from my income and putting it safely into an envelope !  Thanks everybody for your input.

You most definitely are not the only pensioner living hand-to-mouth in Thailand but, unlike others in a similar situation, you sound like you're carrying it with dignity, mate.

Good luck to you

10 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

Just not worth worrying about unless you dabble in currency exchange.

Well, if he transfers money from the UK to Thailand regularly, he'll be dabbling in foreign exchange, won't he?

Your pals are winding you up - lots of people are still being offered zero hours contracts, part-time jobs and temporary jobs in the UK.

Sorry but Britain is definitely not booming unless the meaning of the term has changed recently.

You've quoted 1 - 2% growth as if that's something in sterling's favour?

It isn't - it's dreadful ........even for a developed economy and rising inflation won't help one little bit.

Thailand's economy isn't bombproof by any means but at least it grew at over 3% last year.

The Thai people might be up to their eyeballs in debt but the government has a reassuringly low debt-to-GDP ratio.

All that being said, I think we may have reached the lows against the baht for now but all it'll take to force a retest is a bit of fear about the deal Britain gets from the EU.

6 hours ago, colinneil said:

Legendary hip-hop band ??

I have never heard of them, so not that legendary.

Yeah they weren't around when Dusty Springfield was big, mate

If they do, I'll be there.

Be good to hear real hip-hop as opposed to the "hip pop" you get in the clubs.

How long has the OP been renting?

It does sound like wear and tear.

10,000 to paint 39sqm?

Major rip but as others have said, probably not a good idea to paint without owner's consent.

The reaction on here has been largely positive.

Can you imagine if he was a digital nomad working illegally?

Everyone would be calling for his head.

9 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

No YS I do not believe that "looking for a partner" and " shagging his way through hooker after hooker" are the same thing and if you do it says much about you!  But I do think you and I are done here if you are unable to hold a civilised debate at a reasonable level of maturity!

As you wish but I will point out that there's no immaturity in my argument.

1 hour ago, chiang mai said:

In your opinion, it's far far away from being fact.

An opinion that you agree with;

Quote

many expat retirees come here because they want to retire in a warmer climate, improve their chances of finding a partner

you just tried to sanitize it, slap a suit on it and make it sound respectable.

7 hours ago, chiang mai said:

A social networking site such as TVF rarely ever hears from happy people when it comes to visa's and Immigration, posters use sites TVF as a mechanism for venting their frustration on visa issues and matters related. So of course the wealthy expat who is employed on a substantial package is unlikely to ever be heard in these pages whereas the the less wealthy retiree with more time n his hands will be heard frequently, that's only common sense of course.

 

But I think it's extremely arrogant that you think it's your job to put some of those retirees in their place when they choose to complain about their circumstances, who appointed you the behavioural sheriff of these things! I have no idea and can't begin to guess at how many expat retirees might be considered economic migrants but I suspect the numbers are much smaller than you imply, I doubt many people set out to become that. I do believe however that many expat retirees come here because they want to retire in a warmer climate, improve their chances of finding a partner and are fed up with life back home and want a changed life in retirement - many if not most of those people will have begun their journey with a reasonable amount of money, albeit without any real plan. I find it hard to be critical of those people when after say fifteen years of living here their wealth has diminished as a result of many factors, some outside of their control and at age 70 they are now caught between a rock and a hard place and complain on TVF. Such people are I think a very small minority but just like an echo in an empty room they seem louder and far greater than they actually are.

 

Finally, your post  links complaining and wealth, those who have money don't complain but those who are poorer do, but then you say you can't understand why it is the poorer people who always complain. I think there's another angle on this which is that stupid and unnecessarily bureaucratic measures anywhere need complaining about, regardless of how much money a person has in the bank and the lack of wealth doesn't make a poor persons argument any less valid. Case in point is being required to report and confirm my address 4, x 90 days, 1 x visa extension, 1 x every time I return home following a visit away (TM30). I would probably never start a thread to complain about that but as here, I will raise it as being very unnecessary and I have over 15 million in my bank accounts here, hence I think your link between wealth and complaints needs to be rethought.

You've made this about retirees, when it's about economic migrants (or what you'd call "expats") as a whole.

It's definitely not just the retirees thinking they deserve a bigger pot to piss in; it's those on spousal and dependent visas/extensions of stay too.

I never insinuated it was my "job" to put these people in their place - I just said it was worth putting forward a more balanced view when some people got a bit ahead of themselves and held their wealth up as a justification for a greater say in how things are done here.

 I don't care how you dress it up, CM, most male economic migrants come here for cheap living costs and easy, attractive pussy at a price they can get behind.

This is one of the reasons behind the popular perception of the single male, holed up in a fan room in Pattaya shagging his way through hooker after hooker while living hand-to-mouth.

It's a stereotype but it's also a well-deserved one.

It's worth pointing out that male economic migrants living in the Caribbean, Southern Europe etc don't suffer from this stereotyping. Wonder why?

You say the 90 day reports thing is a pain and you're right - it is - but you (and I) KNEW about it all along; it wasn't introduced yesterday, mate; it's just that, after however many years,for many, it's become an inconvenience.

You think the authorities need to change it but that's because your perception of it has changed.

People who complain about not being able to buy land or work to support families are hardly in a minority, CM - they're everywhere on here and out in the real world but, again, these rules have been immutable - it's only individual circumstances that have changed.

A guy happy to comply with 90 day reports and restrictions on work etc when he first arrived suddenly finds those things an inconvenience after he knocks up a local bird and wants to leave land/property to his kid but doesn't want to buy in his wife's name.

Whose fault is that?

Is it the fault of those who make the rules or the guy who knocked up the bird?

Should the authorities change the law to accommodate those who make dumb life choices?

1 minute ago, chiang mai said:

a desire to put down the resident expat and to keep portraying him as a alcoholic penniless sex tourist who lives here in a single room and lives hand to mouth, exactly why people need to do that mystifies me completely.

It's an attempt to balance the picture, CM.

This thread is about how Thaivisa might be used to act as a lobbying tool to eke out concessions that might make things "easier" for foreigners.

Those resident economic migrants who think they deserve a "say" or some kind of enhanced status because they bring modest sums of money to the Thai economy need to be shaken out of their delusions & reminded of their place in the pecking order.

As geriatrickid said earlier, you don't hear the dudes on the big expat packages with MNCs bitching about the irritants of dual pricing or 90 day reports

Those guys aren't whining about deadbeat Thai birds with 3 kids ripping them off, the price of a continental breakfast, problems with law enforcement, the fact they can't buy a rai of swampland to build a McMansion on.

I can't for the life of me understand why it's always those with the most unremarkable levels of wealth that are always the most vocal about what that should entitle them to.

Does it stem from a need to be recognised or acknowledged after a lifetime of feeling like a distinctly average "also-ran"?

Is it the ignominy of finally making it into the top 5% (if only by moving to a country with a much poorer population) and deriving no privilege for their "achievement"?

Who knows but it's the height of vanity and the nadir of snobbery.

Just accept it, we have little control over our status here; we all knew that before we pitched our tents.

All we can do is satisfy the criteria ........ or don't.

55 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

 

And exactly why you think retirees always live hand to mouth here escapes me, 20/25k a month will rent a very very nice 2 bed condo at Floral, a very desirable condo complex near downtown CM. Plus I'm a retiree and I spend everyday, each year I spend in excess of 1 mill. baht, does that make me hand to mouth and whiny also.

Because a lot of them do live hand-to-mouth.

Of course, some retirees are very comfortable indeed but, at the end of the day, most of them are here to stretch their pensions.

How do you figure that people stretching a pension can, at the same time, claim to be a cornerstone of the Thai economy?

They're the most vocal complainants when foreign exchange rates go against them

They're the farang contingent most heavily represented at the Tesco Lotus and Big C food courts.

They're the most likely to be drinking early doors at happy hour in order to save money.

A valiant effort, CM, but I'm afraid that your demographic won't be awarded medals, sashes and inductions into the Economic Friends of Thailand VIP group any time soon.

10 hours ago, Prbkk said:

Correct, of course: but that's 200,000 foreigners ( low estimate), virtually all of them  certain  to subscribe, most for a premium package if the service/quality is good. But this mob has thumbed their noses at that sector, good riddance to this awful company and its wretched management.

Truevisions is profitable because it has a monopoly and it provides content to people with the worst standard of English in Asean.

They're less bothered about the foreign subscribers because they know most foreigners have the resourcefulness to get want they want online - torrents, streaming services etc

For what channels like BBC Entertainment charge for content, Truevisions figures farangs just aren't worth the expense of catering to their tastes or the hassle required to deal with them in their language.

It does puzzle me, though, why people who claim to have chucked Truevisions/UBC years ago still seem so bitter about it.

It's as if they're venting at an old ex who took them for granted and they're dying to let them know how happy they are with their new love.

Get over it and get a life - the service didn't cater to you, you moved on

1 hour ago, georgemandm said:

That is what I am saying voteing rights in the U.K. .

so are you better them because my English is not up to your standards no you are not .

because western in thailand are putting money in to the country are they not , yes they are .

thats why they should have a say .

so get of your high horse and think how much money is  poured in to thailand through the money from western.

It's not about being "better", George; it's about being "understood".

You're too clueless to even bother replying to half the time

I stand corrected

1 hour ago, georgemandm said:

Why not listen to foreigners if they are living in thailand and putting more in to the thai  economy that thai people do .

you talk about nanny state thailand would be the worst nanny state I have seen in my life .

Thais out of thailand never  Heard or seen any foreign what to see Thais out of thailand that is a  ridiculous statement .

You see in thailand no  freedom of speech for foreign in the nanny state thailand.

in your U.K. Muslins have a say in the way the country is run , but in thailand as a  permanent resident you as a  permanent  resident have no so in thailand a nanny state.

Honestly, what the hell are you talking about, George?

As if having only just enough knowledge to be dangerous isn't bad enough but you can barely string a sentence together in English.

Muslims don't have a say in the way the UK is run based on their being Muslims.

They have a say in the way the UK is run based on their being eligible to vote as British citizens.

Wealthy Russians and other nationalities living in London's most exclusive areas don't have a say in how the UK is run even though they bring in serious money.

If people with that kind of money don't get a say, how do you figure a group of economic migrants here for the cheaper living costs should have a say in how Thailand is run?

13 minutes ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

 

Sure and Japan probably had a similar share of world growth in the 1980's. 

 

China is already producing near 100% of the worlds zippes and buttons, 80% of the air conditioners, 70% of mobile phones, 60% of shoes.

 

Unless you thing they can produce more then 100% of any given product, they are fast running out of space to growth, just like Japan did in 1991.

And they realise that - hence the drive to bring their rate of economic growth down to more sustainable levels.

Doesn't mean the dollar isn't in for a serious drubbing - it's already happening

9 hours ago, berybert said:

La Raffine on 24 is top class. All balconies have a private pool.

Prices from 120,000 baht a month.

https://www.hipflat.co.th/en/bangkok/condo/le-raffine-sukhumvit-24

There aren't any Le Raffine condos on soi 24

There's one on soi 31 and another on soi 39

16 hours ago, gdgbb said:

Well. it's on Thaivisa, that's not exactly "all over the news".  A handful of members of a Thai forum will hardly have them quaking in their boots.

To many, a mention on Thaivisa is the equivalent of being the subject of a Trump tweet

Cigarettes were my Achilles heel

Couldn't do anything without one - used to smoke 50 a day during the week and as many as 80 a day on the weekends.

Stopped two weeks ago after an 8 month binge

I drink when I have to be sociable but I detest being drunk.

I was partial to a toot of coke or an E back in London