Traveling Sailor

And don't forget to make sure that the coal-fired power station gets built. That will insure larger tourist numbers.

The Surcharge is US$1.54. In my opinion its a very small amount and it may help keep the drivers waiting at the airports. I think the bigger problem is that the drivers refuse to turn on the meter and are always fighting for a flat higher fee. I live in New York and every time u take a taxi here it's a surcharge that it's much higher then the ฿50.00. And maybe if the drivers get the suggested higher surcharge of ฿100.00 they will follow the meter rules and the total amount will be lower then the flat fee they are demanding now.

I doubt that very much. TIT! I am willing to bet that the majority of taxi drivers will complain that they need to make more money, no matter how much they make. Basic greedy nature. Some people will never make enough money to satisfy their ego.

"Two thieves attempted to rob an ATM there in June last year but also failed to get the cash out of it."

It takes practice.....eventually they will get to the money................

Doubtful. TIT. They will do exactly the same thing, over and over again, expecting different results.

Just goes to show once again that no crimes of this type (abduction, murder, extortion etc) occur without the involvement of the Royal Thai Police in some way, shape or form, and to assume that the "higher ups" don't know (or aren't involved by at least taking their cut) is taking naiveté to a whole new level.

Bangkok Tattoo, by John Burdett, written in 2005, provides great insight into this subject. Great reading, for me anyway.

"there were 15 reckless-driving cases".

Amazing. When I'm out and about on my motorbike, I see 15 reckless-driving cases on any average day in one town.

Vide the salt for snow. Only in Thailand? Well, yeah, but maybe someone here saw it in Dubai first!

With all the extra, sitting around, rotting in warehouses, they could have used rice. It's white isn't it?

I'd love to see a 10,000 baht note in circulation, would save a lot of space in our wallets

I totally agree. A 5,000 baht note would also be very helpful. I have never seen one and don't know whether they exist or not.

Person should be banned from flying. Who cares if it's his 1st time flying. Did he not pay attention to the pre flight safety instructions from the cabin crew? Numpty

What are you talking about? Pre-flight safety instructions never mention not to open a door before the flight takes of.

Perhaps true. However, all passengers should be checked by cabin crew to make sure they are in their seats with their seat belts fastened prior to take off. What was the cabin crew doing??

If the police involved are not stopped ASAP, the damage might be huge. The police is part of the government, and if word spreads that the Thai government is subjecting tourists to harassment, blackmail and other crimes, then it is a matter for foreign governments to intervene to protect their citizens. The TAT was talking about building Thailand's brand name as a quality tourist destination. Is this how they do it? Does the junta really accept and allow some local criminals and street thugs in police uniforms to undermine the effort so far? These "policemen" needs to be arrested.

The TAT's latest campaign. Show the world what "Thainess" really is. Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't two traits of "Thainess" arrogance and corruption?

""As for our new projects, we should be able to do at least as well as Germany," he said."

"The charter drafters' president, Borwornsak Uwanno, also dismissed the proposal, stating that it "doesn't suit Thai culture" because it would initiate the first step towards republicanism."

I think that what Borwornsak really means is, the proposal does not suit HIS Thai culture. It obviously suits the large percentage of Thai people who want the change.

The Thai people should be given the opportunity to elect their own PM. And, the PM should be able to pick his/her own cabinet members. They should not be elected or chosen by the congress or house of representatives.

Just my two satang.

How big was the fan?

translate,,, "today a huge display of heavy paint cans collapsed and injured a 35 year old mother and her daughter, the accident is believed to be have caused by shoddy workmanship in the construction on the shelves"

thats better.

And, a lot more accurate. I'd put big money on, "no shelf in the entire store being secured so it won't fall over". That would require thought and planning, which seems to be in very short supply in this country.

Another victim of the Junta witch hunt. Better to run than be another victim of extreme "attitude adjustment" and find yourself flying off a 20 storey balcony.

Precisely. With Thai justice working the way it does, it was the smart thing to do.

Timely reporting! Very useful. Reminds me of mail sent via Thai Post Office.

And now, with no despatchers present to convert foreign-accented versions of Thai addresses into something the driver understands, we can be sure that all incoming passengers will be delivered to the correct address and that all meters will be activated on departure. There is absolutely no prospect that the driver will relieve the passenger of the machine-generated slip of paper that identifies him/his cab. And, of course, the time spent in the single queue for access to a terminal will be less than that spent before queueing at a despatcher's desk.

Congratulations K Thawatchai.

PS: How much did the new terminals and dinky lights cost?

Quite correct. I used one of these things on 22 November, with the help of an attendant. However, when I got to the taxi, the driver took the slip that had been spit out of the machine, never used his meter and charged me 500 baht. The last time in Bangkok, before the machines, the driver used the meter and charged me 375 baht to the same hotel. So, the scams are back because no one is watching.

What BS!

I don't suppose this would include foreigners would it? :-)

My guess is that it does not, but I wish it did.

You get paid, you pass them all.

It's an easy system to work with.

also soul destroying if you care even a vague amount about the students and your own work standards.

You're in Thailand, there are no standards, everyone passes everything.

Just smile a lot and go through the motions, like everyone else.

Makes life much easier.

And, if your own work ethic or conscience makes you uncomfortable with this sort of "education", then probably best to say "goodbye" to Thailand and find a better place to teach/live. There are many better places in the world to teach/live/work.

Four men to patrol a large beach 24/7. Another well thought out plan.

A move like this could be the nail in Thailand's financial coffin. The impact, both in the short and long term, would be dire. It seems Thailand is oblivious to the emerging markets on it's door step, Myanmar in particular.

Well said! It seems like every day now the "government" puts out another "ruling" that moves Thailand further away from a democracy and closer to a Banana Republic. I wonder if someone has a copy of the playbook from China or North Korea and found it to be good reading.

"A feasibility study is already underway to find the pros and cons of the Grey Line. Results are expected to be revealed in the near future."

The Cabinet has already approved the project, prior to the feasibility study. What blithering idiots!

Outside the American community, Thanksgiving doesn't have much resonance here. Heck, I'm an American and I don't observe it. Just another day.

I must agree with Gary on his first statement. However, I do try to celebrate. In my current situation I cannot cook my own meal so I am looking for a place on Samui that is catering to what few Americans there might be here. Anyone know if a place?

It is now 18 November 2014 and I am again looking for a place on Koh Samui that will be serving an American style Thanksgiving meal. Last year I could not find a place, so this year I have my fingers and toes crossed.

If anyone knows of a place, I would be delighted to hear about it.

Well, if it ever shows up on Samui, I might give it a shot. Cannot be any worse than paying 800 baht to go from the airport to Lamai. Or, maybe not.

Is one arm shorter than the other or does he have a very bad tailor?

The best he COULD do is to arrest the bad apples and throw them in jail for a month. After the first five or ten go to jail, the rest would clean up their act. However, since this is LOS, all BS talk and no action, the jet skis will still be on the beach next day, next week, next month.