ronnie50

It's probably why he's so keen on Canada and Greenland.

I thought I read that they released his blood work this time. Wouldn't that include an FBS?

What's with the keystone secret service and VIP security cops in the United States? Are they still going to blame it on DEI?

You're correct! No, it wasn't. It was a cowardly attempt to burn to death a man, his wife and their children while they slept in their beds.

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The big unanswered question is whether Thai Immigration Officers can pull up at full list of where we've been stayling/living - and find any gaps in that record - upon presenting our Passports when exiting the Kingdom. Does anyone (honestly) know whether an Immigration Officer has all those details at his/her fingertips before stamping your exit? Like propbably most others, I've never been asked to show a TM30 or hotel bill by an IO upon leaving.

These 'zero-dollar' Chinese tours were going on before the Covid shut down. They were complaining then and the government said they'd solved the issue back then. So why is it an issue again? I remember the news reports explaining the tour group would be picked up at the airport by a chartered bus, driven to their budget hotel - where they would eat breakfast each morning, then on the bus to see some Bangkok sights, before returing to the same budget hotel for lunch, then on the bus again probably to some Chinese-owned factory showroom (gems or whatever), then back to the hotel for dinner. Then back to airport and back to China - a week of eating every meal in the same restaurant.

WTAF is it with Americans and their anti-mask brigade? During Covid it seemed this backlash was almost unique to USA. While I'm at it, and I admit off-topic. why do so many retired Americans flock to Chiang Mai and other parts of the North? Is there some kind of right-wing cult colony up there? Sort of "The Boys From Boise"?

Come on. That's the COVID-19 period, early 2021 to 2022 You're ignoring the recovery period which is clearly illustrated there.

US author Chris Hedges wrote two books on the social and moral decline of America - one before Trump's first term and a second during it (I think). "Empire of Illusion" (first one) and "America: The Farewell Tour" - that one scored 4.6 out of 5 stars by 1,200+ readers. Both are pretty grim reading but very recognizable in what he writes about the country and its societal decline. As I say, he wrote both of these long before the current craziness. But they still resonate with today.

They wear them because it's hygenic or they have a sore throat/cough. Pretty obvious isn't it? Oh, but you didn't include those options in your cynical "poll". I always wear one on the Skytrain and MRT when it's crowded. On the airplane too (unless seated with family). I'm not scared - it's just common sense. Do you wear a seatbelt when driving? Should we have a poll?

I think the country is in worse troubles than 1997. Household debt is at (possibly) an all time high. Forget Thaksin - yesterday's man anyway - and he's only stating the obvious. The country has been dragged down by two decades of old-money families who work only for the enrichment of their small circles. It's pretty clear that only a handful of oligarchs own all the retail, property development, alcohol and agrifood businesses. Anyone who's lived here even just a couple of years can easily see that the prices in supermarkets, convenience stores, etc., are always the same - regardless of where they shop. But the lack of industrial or economic development is the real killer for the country and has left most people poor. Building more condos or hotels is not 'economic development'. Earning under 10,000 baht a month, as so many do - if they're lucky enough to have a 'regular economy' job - means they'll always be poor and likely in debt. The Poo-Yai, Poo-Noi system and the pathetic state education system are the root problems - at least they need to start there - they need to start somewhere. The Future Forward party is the movement Thai voters chose, only to have the old money types disenfranchise the majority once again.

Yes. End of discussion.

An why wouldn't the Palestinians reject what was on offer at that time. Don't play revisionsist history games. Successive Israeli governments have made it clear they plan to eventually acquire the entire territory 'from the river to the sea' - illegal settlements are one part of their strategy - leaning on the US for support is another. And I'm not antisemitic at all. I am anti-zionist though - there's a big difference, but it's a difference that has many people and special interest groups determined to blur, incraesingly so in recent years. Witness Trump's refusal to fund any University where there is even a hint of pro-Palestinian activism - through exageration of 'Israeli student's fear' - as only one example but an important one.

You just know they'll all be public buildings. Gives them an excuse to issue more 'contracts' to the 'cousin-of-the-brother-of the-hi-so-niece's-husband's-step-sister's-company.' Nothing gets proposed or built here unless it's already been divied up and there is individual profit for poo-yai extended family. Nothing gets done otherwise. In other words 'the end (the grift) must always justify the (public expenditure's) means for those with power and connections. It's not called a 'patronage system' for nothing. Disclaimer: Any names used or infered are purely fictitious - - probably.

No they don't - so what? You think the Jewish Settlers want a two state solution? No they don't. They could have moved from America or South Africa or wherever into Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. But they didn't, did they. Israel's plan is to conquer the entire territory by stealth. The expanding settlements are given a blessing by every Israeli leadership and are blindingly obvious that Israel has no plans to share the land equally - or at all - with the Palestinians. Now with Trump's endorsement, things got even worse, carte blanche for the IDF to buldoze what's left of Gaza and then the West Bank will be next. To quote dufus's words - 'who holds the cards'? Certainly not Hamas or the Palestinian Authority.

That's good to know. So he's right then. Have the older buildings with damage thoroughly inspected and retrofit as needed. But I think many Thais and foreigners are still avoiding the main concern.. Bangkok experienced a large tremor from a very large and shallow earthquake 1,000 km away - and it caused 5,500 reports of damages. The same fault line runs diagonally down into the Andaman Sea from Myanmar and parallel with the Thai West Coast. If a similar strong and shallow earthquake happens in that area the result in metro Bangkok would be a massive disaster. The city's earthquake codes surely cannot account for high rise foundations - as deep as they may be - in soft reclaimed swamp land and expect them to just sway a bit like the tremor we had.

If Israel would have agreed to a land swap and a two-state solution decades ago, something the rest of the world has been pushing for (except bought and paid for American politicians, their freeby weapons to Israel, and their thick voters), there wouldn't be any Hamas and there wouldn't be any 'terrorists'. And there wouldn't be any dead medical workers, nor Israeli hostages, nor Hezbolah missiles, nor illegal Jewish 'settlements' (moslty inhabited by American and South African nutters). And we wouldn't be talking about it either.

Belated thanks to those who provided the correct/official link to apply for a VN visa online. Grateful. FYI - anyone planning a trip to Vietnam in the next few weeks - the government just declared a new five-day holiday 30 April - 5 May. (taking in Labor Day, Reunification Day and a weekend). This would probably affect online visa wait times, and of course busier travel/pricing within the country itself during that period. https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/society/20250407/vietnam-announces-5day-reunification-day-holiday/85816.html

"increased 'energy' acquisitions"? Like what? Nuclear energy? Am I missing something else?

Most pension and SS systems have a minimum bar the CPI must rise to in order to add the COLA to a pension/SS. Like more than 2% I think. Not sure of the minimum bar. Two or three years ago was the big CPI rise and COLA - 8%? I missed that one unfortunately.

It's USDOL that does it via the CPI anuual changes.

Nope. It was Reagan, Bush(s) and Clinton that facilitated offshoring manufacturing for American companies which enthusiastically pursued a race to the bottom for wages in Asian countries, particularly China. Trump is trying to wind back the clock with sanctions - but that clearly won't work. I don't know what would work to be honest. Why would the US oligarchs and Captains of Industry spend all that money to build factories in the United States again and hire fat dimmwits to run the machines and do the paperwork? Meantime, Americans and the world will end up in a recesion through tariffs as consumers tighten their belts and only buy what they need. Has Elon built any new factories in the US?

Ever been to Bangladesh? I have.. dump. Maybe the people there are less miserable than Americans right now, but is that much of a claim?

They probably do - and probably don't know who coined the expression. BTW, did the University of Chicago get its budget slashed? 🧐