new2here

I agree.. I also think that it means the right can’t then use the excuse of “congress blocked our agenda” as the right effects controls both sides… true, not every R or D will always vote purely along party lines— but i do think that it makes it hard to argue that the opposition blocked you ..

Given the location of SAT1 on the airport property itself, there simply isn’t any way to construct a whole new, stand alone landslide terminal structure to accommodate both outbound processing (ie check-in faculties, outbound immigration and security) as well as all the inbound processes (commonly that’s just baggage reclaim and immigration)… plus you’d need road access to/from it for passengers, plus all the other trappings as well.. what you’d really be doing is creating an airport-within-an-airport To me, I’d argue the opposite, given the entrance is littler smack in front of you when you emerge from outbound security/passport control … and on the arrival side, as you emerge from the train level, you’re also smack in front of the inbound immigration area. To me, I’d bet that mathematically by time alone, even WITH - short train ride from SAT1, I’d you’re still actually closer to the immigration entry point, than if you had arrived at one of the mid or end gates on the F or G main building complex gates.

To me, there’s not much legitimacy to the whole VAT issue as that’s compulsory under the law.. so that is what it is.. yes, one can argue HOW it’s administered- be that “baked” into the menu/sticker price or added in addition too.. but the tax itself is legit the service charge.. that to me is different.. I agree that there’s a legit argument made for the case that by adding is a fixed cost and unavoidable - you have undercut what what a tip” is supposed to be - a post-sale, discretionary payment in recognition of service provided at some level or above.. by assessing it at 10% across the board and not voluntary, there’s no external motivation to go above and beyond .. nor is there any real risk to sub-par service either. So.. I do think there’s a legit case to be made for how “service charges” are done here (by many but not all) but the VAT is a different case.

I suspect another large part of this is the continued falling birthrate… kind of like South Korea.. they’re going to be in a situation where they are far more people drawing FROM the system than there are paying INTO the system.. so they’ve got to do something such as pushing out the retirement age (ie delaying when you can draw from the fund), up the tax rate on those working and paying into it, and/or cutting back on the benefits drawn from it..

i don’t disagree.. unfortunately given the depth and breadth of the investigation (as reported) there’s lots of “room” for a suitable person/people - to be found guilty of dereliction of duty if you will.

I am sure someone will have to put up to the alter .. you can’t have that big and visual of a disaster .. with all the associated public outrage and not have someone taken to task. It’s fair to argue who really is responsible, but in the end, someone is going to have be “the one”

I agree .. but I don’t think Thailand is set up for nor has the country invested in things like domestic infrastructure, to really make a competitive pitch to attract the high yield tourist.. that’s things like domestic transport, tourist safety and really creating authentic “experience” events. I ALSO think something that has long HELPED thailand- is also something that is going to HURT them in their pivot to higher yielding tourists .. Thailand has long, long been seen externally as — and has long lived off a reputation as a “cheap” mass tourism destination … and I don’t higher yielding folks are going to be attracted to places that carry a moniker of “cheap” IMHO

I DO think the whole “digital” payment universe is here and here to stay.. it won’t go away .. it is only going to get bigger.. to me the larger question is how big and how fast will that be? That said, I think there’s a lot of fairly big “issues” that will need to get addressed before it can really be seen as a primary, long-term and viable payment option on a national basis.. but I do think there’s groundwork has been set… For example, a) system integrity/security (ie what about breaches and losses from a breach?), b) system reliability (what if the larger system goes “down”?), c) speed (you have to be able to complete an e-payment transaction at minimum in the same time - or less - as a cash based transaction), d) data privacy and integrity (how and how will all that transaction data be stored, how long and who will have access?), e) the “unbanked” (you’ll have to provide a channel for those who don’t currently have any qualified bank account, to get one) f) hardware (what about those without a suitable phone or device? and lastly g) education.. you’ll have to invest the time to educate those who are just not familiar with digital payments.

Overall I’d agree.. but.. as far as improving the sidewalks/footpaths go- I have to give credit where it’s due and earned.. As others have noted, there HAS been a notable improvement in some areas … yea, that’s “some” and not “all”.. but given the size and scope of the city and the sheer amount of footpath that needs to be addressed - that’s going to take time, but as far what’s been done so far- they get a solid score from me. As far as the wiring goes, I suspect that’s more involved, not only from a technical and logistical basis, but i’ll bet that there’s other players that need to be synched (like the MEA) before work can be done.. by contrast the footpaths are largely BMA controlled and not a lot of outside players involved.

IMHO, I think it’s going to take time for TH to be a “ cash-less” retail economy.. and I also think it’s never going to be truly cash-less.. but ai do think a lot of everyday purchasing will move away from traditional coin/banknote based payments to some form of “digital” - be that debit/credit cards or QR/bank transfer. I just renewed my work permit at the MoLs Bangkok Employment Office - and they don’t take coin/banknote payments .. on card or QR.. So.. I wouldn’t be surprised to see other ministries move to this system as well - notably Immigration - for their fee payments. Looking longer term, i think the government will have to address issues like theft liability, infrastructure stability and reliability, and fees, before the notion of cash-only can really move to the principal payment platform.

I’ll say this.. I live in the Sathorn area and I brisk speed walk (as exercise) along Rajadamri Road from Rama 4 (ie Lumphini Park) up to Rama 1 (ie CTW) and the side walks there are perfect.. smooth, largely obstruction free, wide and level .. even on the major roads in my district - I’ve seen the city make pretty sizable improvements.. While I agree that it’s going to take time - lots of it .. and money - even more of it.. from my own perspective, it’s been a very good initial rollout

Hi, Ill say that it’s not IMpossible.. but its hard to do… banks really do want to see a valid work permit (and some want to see a WP that’s at least 6-12 months old and still has 3-6 months remaining) but.. each bank is free to see their own rules.. the “secured” card approach is one of the most common ways a non-citizen gets a card here .. but again, it’s not impossible to get a truly unsecured card … if you have a decent history with X branch of Y bank, I’d suggest you go and talk to the manager … S/he might be willing to assist you .. while credit card approvals aren’t done at the branch level, i’m sure that a “vote of confidence “ by the manager of the originating branch would be a positive for your applications approval odds.

Agreed. It’s clear that there is zero intentions to do otherwise … in part, by making any kind of public event, that would invite … questions… and that would in turn invite unwanted attention to people and a system that really would prefer to remain as it now.

I agree that they are quite active with promotional emails and pop up’s etc … and I also agree that - IMHO - their service is not what it used to be.. so to that end, I’d agree that perhaps less “selling” of themselves and more time fixing the issues that have dragged down their service, might be the better way. But.. I also acknowledge that for OUTGOING transfers there is far less competition and non-bank options than there is for INcoming transfers… so the cynical side of me says that there’s not much motivation or pressure to fix it.. they’ve kind of got a quasi captive market for discount OUTgoing money transfers.

Of course, the optics of this look bad… very bad… but.. I think to be fair, we’d need to know context.. Larger employers might have more “wiggle” room to temporarily shift work around to cover .. smaller firms might not… Is the work specialized that only a handful can/do do, or it is generalized? I also think it’s fair to look into her prior attendance record.. Again, I do think there’s room for compassion and understanding.. but.. I have to balance that against business realities .. both sides have needs and in a fair solution, both sides must have some of their needs met.