jamhar

Drones v. Tomahawk v. something dropped from the manned flight at altitude. Pretty clear which one is more precise and surgical.

Call it what you want, but they are effective and get the job done. They also don't place American lives in harms way.

Gutless is the appropriate description for those that drones target. Gutless is scheming or undertaking acts of terror and indiscriminate killing of women and children that have zero military value (night clubs, twin towers, marathons, schools, shopping malls, hotels, buses).

Now if US dropped a tactical nuke on a village to get a couple of military targets without any regard to extensive collateral damage, that would he gutless. Incidentally, those in the drone's cross hairs would use a tactical nuke, if they had one, on US soil against women and children WITHOUT any military target.

The USA has such an abysmal record regarding Iraq and Afghanistan ( and even the war in Vietnam is hardly anything to be proud of). How can anyone be sure the people they kill indiscriminately using drones have been correctly identified as being the guilty parties?

"abysmal" Nice. We'll take it. ask the Taliban how they like it.

How can we tell who we are hitting? just the way we knew when we used man air strikes.

You probably forgot that the discussion was man strikes vs UAV strikes.

and finally........We have a WINNER!!!

IF you're digging deep enough to bring up Vietnam, I KNOW you're desperate!

Thank you , i'm going to sleep well tonight!

Why does this feel like secondary school?

BOC! I even like the SNL version of that song! (gimme more cowbells!!!)

Nope I didnt forget about the global hawk. Regardless of the platform, they are most likely firing the missile of choice, the Hellfire. That has an operational range of 5 miles. So regardless of the platform, you have to get close to the target to engage.

Have they even tried to arm the global hawk yet? thats like trying to put missiles on the U2....... Deliver a $70K missile using a $250M UAV?? . DONT DO IT!

I do agree that the US takes a beating because of political reasons. Like i said, we know the score. We can take it. As long as we can complete the mission!

Thanks for the article on the guardian. I'm always looking for opposing viewpoints. Initially i have to say that its conclusion doesn't pass the smell test. but i'll look at the data objectively and evaluate. Generally numbers dont lie, but people can lie about the numbers. Anyhow Thanks for the article. I'm looking forward to reading it!

An hour!!?? <deleted>?!! I dont even want sex for an hour!!!!

Man, I need a drink after admitting THAT!

Got no problems with drone strikes.

And apparently neither does the Pakistani military

The drones in use are not very stealthy and very slow,

90% of the strikes are in a 40 mile radius area,

and they can loiter for days making them an easy target for any SAM, or send a F!6 for one

but the Pakistani military has yet to take down a drone.

The US could not operate there without the permission, active or passive, of the Pakistani military

If the Pakistani were so worried about their sovereignty

They could easily clear that space of drones in no time.

But they haven't,

because they privately support the strikes

while publicly criticizing the US.

Its a complex relationship to say the least

Its OK, the US is use to it. It comes with the territory.

This is all just one mans opinion

The Salafists are one of the few groups in Egypt that have behaved morally. Yes, they are not fit to govern and the ramifications would be disastrous, but stop painting whatever boogeyman you are against today as devils incarnate. You're not an Egyptian are you? Frankly, it is none of your business.

Well, I guess I feel told off.

Unless of course I don't feel told off.

This isn't about me.

Geeze P

How can you listen to such rubbish?

Dont even respond to that crap.

I know you know that they are just trying to get under your skin,

DONT LET THE BASTARDS WIN!

PS if you ignore them, They really get pissed.

Its kinda funny watching them squirm as you constantly ig em

Thanks David, Nice 2 minute summary.

I have noticed that while there are general calls for concern

I see very few condemnations ........leading me to believe this is a generally acceptable outcome.

The journalist in the vid criticized the military for "mismanaging the transition"

I think thats a bit harsh. The military isn't in a position to evaluate the drafting a constitution, or any other civilian matters.

Actually i give the Egyptian military kudos for knowing their role and getting out of civilian rule asap.

The road to democracy isn't a smooth one. It tests the will of the people. There maybe many starts and stops.

It takes courage to want to be self reliant.

Its harder when there's no one to blame but yourself for your situation.

So I commend the Egyptian people for having the courage and taking the road to democracy,

realizing quickly that they had gotten off the path

and deciding to get back on the road again. That took courage!

At the pub tonight, I'll raise a silent toast to Egypt and hope that they find what they seek.

just a small personal salute.

One mans brilliant is anothers 2 watt bulb. But to each his own.

The Tale of the Re-Routed Bolivian President's Plane Is Falling Apart

It seems there's more (or in this case, "less") to the story than first reported.

Very STRANGE behavior indeed

The countries involved contradict the Bolivian Presidents claims of re-routing

tale-routed-bolivian-presidents-plane-falling-apart Link

Reports on the BBC say that France apologised to Bolivia last night for refusing to allow President Morales' into it's airspace.

Saw that too. Actually I'm surprised that the French didn't just surrender!

.....

.....

OK that was a cheap shot, but it felt SO GOOD!

I dont want to impose my western views and values on Thailand.

They can conduct their criminal and judicial system as they wish.

I see the Thai system as a MUCH better system than Sharia law.

Not as good as the US/Canadian, EU or Oz systems,

but that's just my personal view.

The common denominator between the affluent countries is the education level of the general masses.

Education is expensive, takes decades to take hold. But without an educated general population,

emerging economies will not take hold and the countries will have an uncertain political path.

One caveat are the countries that have won the "oil lottery". These countries may do well for a while

but most may suffer the consequences of the individual lottery winners, where a majority live well for a bit

but without the education and financial discipline that comes with it, will not learn how to grow what they have.

The Tale of the Re-Routed Bolivian President's Plane Is Falling Apart

It seems there's more (or in this case, "less") to the story than first reported.

Very STRANGE behavior indeed

The countries involved contradict the Bolivian Presidents claims of re-routing

tale-routed-bolivian-presidents-plane-falling-apart Link

just say'n

Maybe Its time to define Tourist by spending level.

The following are normalized for TL only.

Of course it depends on where in TL you are, but the way i see it

1) Low End - backpackers/hostels - If dont want to pay for a private room, you're probably a low end tourist.

Nothing against it. I personally would like to experience a hostel sometimes just to say i did it.

I sometimes like to travel on the cheap myself.

2) middle - You tip, even if its only sometimes, stay in aircon hotels and guest houses.

You eat in western food places because you miss it. you eat street food because you want to try it

or because you like it. You shop for bargains, not necessarily the lowest price.

You drink cocktails, with western booze because you miss it. and try the thai drinks because you're here!

3) HighEnd - you stay in $100 hotels and above. Nuff said

4) Elite - You stay in exclusive hotels. I generally stay away from these people.

I think I'm allergic to them. I know a few, and i tell them that lol.

In TL, I'm a #2. I dont know if I like the sound of that ( In the US, a "#2" has a not too flattering meaning)

I believe the goal is to get more $/traveler. They may have done a study and have seen that increasing the number of tourists per year is going to get increasingly difficult in the future. So the best path to tourism growth in the future is to get more bang per tourist. This is actually low lying fruit for TL. TL probably still has a significant level of low end, and low middle end travelers. that is, travelers that are on a very tight budget. If TL can attract more travelers who are on a move favorable budget, then TL can still see tourism growth (via dollars) , without having to increase the tourist numbers each year. How they can do that has yet to be seen, but the tourist industry is one of the very effective parts of TL's government so i wouldn't bet against them.

Just the views of one man.

GUYS ... you are assuming that it's a fait accompli ...

The gf (my partner) are equals ... we decide things together ... just it's that our Cultures have clashed a little here.

I was my suggestion to invite her out ... she's a sweetie.

But I was anticipating 2 - 3 weeks ... 2 - 3 not months!

Advice according ...

.

Dude, you're asking on TV

So either you're just bragging.

or its a fait accompli

and you're trying to scope out the potential damage.

I'm hoping its the former for your sake

PS, a play by play with lots of pictures would be greatly appreciated

Very nice and concise summary. Very helpful for the new wannabee expats here like myself.

THANKS!

"the first secretary at the Thai embassy in Cairo, Kakanang Amaranand, allegedly verbally and physically assaulted lawyer Rana Ashraf on June 13"

I believe she failed the "diplomacy" test,

Rule#1 Do not get into a catfight (check!) with a lawyer (check!) on foreign soil.(check!)

We have a trifecta!

You don't need to get 300 people together for a junket at the taxpayers expense. The Ambassadors have been telling you over and over what the problems are. The high end farangs are not going to come to Thailand whilst the beaches are dirty, the streets and rivers are littered with garbage, duel pricing and scams are rampant. Setting up safety zones leads one to think that the rest of the areas are no go zones and doesn't sound attractive for a holiday.

The problems are been plastered all over the international media for years but Thailand has always put the earplugs in the blindfolds on putting it down to farang hysteria.

Very true. I agree 100%. and you can include middle level farangs also.

I can only share my observations as an American traveler. And I've noticed that Americans are a small fraction of the travelers here.

1) I believe most Americans would be shocked by the conditions in Thailand unless you spend lots of money

2) If you're going to spend as much $ as you would in Miami, Las Vegas, Honolulu, Jamaica, or Cancun, Why would you come to Thailand? What is the draw of Thailand?

3) see #1 above again

But you maybe able to increase the quality of visitors (meaning willing to spend more money) from Russia and China. Thats probably low lying fruit that Thailand can take advantage of quickly.

I cant believe I agreed with chooka on a topic

realenglish1

'She is pressured by her job her future'

Why don't you give a little more detail to the above - which would appear to be an area of concern you have picked up on?

Good god NO!!

If you haven't noticed, this is not the right "forum" for this kind of advice.

Hope you find the answers you seek bro

but except for a few cases, constructive, compassionate advice are generally not available on TV.

Bullying, skepticism, and cynicism is available by the bucket full.

Just my personal experience..........

Edit:

If you are serious, follow Scully's advice above. I'm sure you can google, or ask your doctor for contact numbers, if others haven't given you contact info already.

One wonders about all the previous test takers who passed.

Thats the problem with corruption. The good gets lumped with the bad.

Its a long way to credibility, but a single step to lose it all.

Even a longer way back once your lost it.

And the kids are the ones to suffer.

I have many personal experiences of bizarre dining experiences in Bangkok.........

I order something from the menu and a completely different dish arrives!

It becomes a sport if you eat whatever arrives!

"wanted to spread the word"

"spread", yes

"the word"?

Not quite what they were shooting for