ace

Gary Mckinnon was looking for evidence of aliens on us government servers with woeful security. This guy deliberately targeted servers (probably also with poor security)  as part of a known hacker collective,  doesn't have much of a defence IMO.  I don't agree with US policy though,  seems arbitrary and vindictive.  Foreign governments are hacking them 24x7.

Thing is,  do you believe she actually had a quick dose of pneumonia? I just reflexively assume she's lying, covering up something worse. For the record I don't like Trump either but amazingly he could win! Sorry state of affairs indeed. 

The director also predicted that the Thai export sector would grow by -2% due to an economic slowdown in Thailand’s trade partners and better competitiveness of the country's competitors.

Uh oh.  Somebody missed their a44 realignment program 

The Great Beach Chair Debate 

I'm for them. Never seen this apparent thuggery. Also how much fun is it sitting out there in the Thai sun,  with sand in your sandwiches on a dirty beach?  

Removing chairs from Wongamat was plain stupid,  they were 40 baht,  served decent food & drink.  Very popular in high season.  I expect it was more about backhanders not being sufficient myself.  Or maybe just stupidity.  Does happen in Los I hear. 

On 29/08/2016 at 6:14 AM, smudger1951 said:

As has been said our falling populations have been wilfully created through poor economic policy. If the german government thinks these people want to come and work to pay the aging peoples pensions they are woefully wrong. European economies are burdened with an immigrant invasion of freeloaders. 

Good point,  and I'd just add,  why is it assumed that a smaller population is a bad thing?  More space,  more countryside seems good to me 7 billion + is plenty. Maybe some more nature reserves,  slow down our impressive extinction rate.? 

It would present short term pain for a couple of generations,  mine included,  but eventually be utopian,  considering the rise of automation.  Kind of rhetorical,  mostly down to the fact that politicians spent so much of our money to build huge debt & they're also stupid & unimaginative mostly. 

400 baht a pop,  not wasteful at all

It's what Saint William of Gibson calls a "nodal point" 

A studious wonk who prefers policy discussions to soaring oratory....

Maybe should have studied CIA intelligence reports from Libya a few years ago, or read the regulations on the handling of classified documents. Studious wonk my ars, wonder who the writers of that are voting for...

4% is a sizeable margin in a political vote, about 8% ahead. If people want to back pedal, maybe they could consider the margin in England over 55-45. Apparently the Scots are planning to veto the whole thing anyway. That should work out well...

Cameron took a stupidly huge gamble and lost but the EU must share some of the blame as Britain's were fed up being dictated to by Brussels bureaucrats but before too many Yanks start telling us how 'stupid' we are I don't think the US would ever contemplate joining such a union themselves.

Dude, get a clue. The USA is so HUGE it comprises it's OWN union. You Brits made a mistake. The damage will be massive. Really sorry about that.

yes I get that dude... but you get the point? anyway, rough ride ahead but no one really knows 10 or 20 years down the road and history will judge but it's DEMOCRACY in action and we can be proud of that!

This is decision for the long-term. It will shake up, reshape or most likely initiate the destruction of the EU which is a bureaucratic nightmare (I used to work in Brussels fyi). 2nd, we are excitingly, living through a 2nd "industrial revolution", being the technological revolution. This requires imagination and the ability to be nimble because a lot of jobs are going to dissappear / change. Europe won't adapt. Britain can.

2% lead and on an upwards trajectory . Bookies screwed the pooch on this one ?

And to continue with the mystery over this:

I can understand the possibility that the media reports are biased towards Remain.

I can understand the possibility that the Bank of England, with help from the U.S. Fed, is keeping the pound strong.

But I can't understand the strength of the equity markets, which are really too large for government control. Nor can I understand the strength of the betting odds against Brexit.

The conflict is baffling as can be.

If your comments about the BOE and Fed are correct, they are both having to spend billions of pounds and dollars of

taxpayers' money, but to what end? the BOE would have to be buying pounds, and the Fed would have to be selling

dollars, but in huge quantities if their objective is to support the pound. I am not sure why they would do this?

Stock markets are seldom an indicator of what is happening now (although this is what people would tend to believe).

They are rather an indicator of the future. Clearly, then, there is confidence about the future, but, in the case of the

Brexit vote, whether it is a belief for "in" or "out", one simply would know.

Commodities including gold and oil have been trading higher over the past few months, which would indicate that the

the world economy is improving. This may be trickling down into stock markets everywhere.

Equity markets would be far easier for governments to control in terms of volume of money, than the currency market.

The value of stock markets around the world does not come close to the amount of currency traded each day

(around $4.5 - 5 trillion).

It is odd. According to the polls it's too close to call, well within the margin of error. Yet sterling is already higher against USD than was predicted to *follow * a remain vote. Bookies have gone 1-4 now on remain. The trend on the leave vote has been consistently *up*. Options cost, ie. Volatility, is way *up*. It could be that bank AIs have analysed the data and see a high probability of remain, the phone v Internet difference perhaps? Or it could be that the Fix is in (see Austria). Or someone sold/leaked postal vote data? Would be worth 1bill£ no prob.

Mediocrity pride. My my. Can't even rank in the top 50%. Where does that put the rest of Thai unis?

Is it any wonder, der that Thais who can afford it and get visas send their kids to America for a degree?

90/200, 45th %, but I can't do that algebra puzzle ??

How it begins my hot frog friends. The attitude to social media has already been displayed. I'm sure the information won't be widely implemented, but if they want to come for you? And what about when fine/prison time is sanctioned for providing false information, still mai bpen rai? I'm off next week anyway, got a condo for sale ?

I've met (and reported to the police) a loser like this before . They're f-d up dumbos going nowhere. Extremism wraps up a raison d'etre in a nice parcel for them. If they're nutty enough they'll blow something up, put a bomb in their shoe, f off to Syria or kill a bunch of innocent clubbers. Probably in the closet too this one. And a lefty, that's probably offensive to Muslims or something.

The loss of face thing can turn events ugly.

The slap by the British woman over a drunk Thai mans face during their celebration period , can be a costly mistake.

I say this with full respect to the poor victim and make no justification for the thuggery .

But Thais watching clearly thought they got their just deserts.

In fact it could have more worse if many more joined in .

I have seen worse.

Thailand is a third wood country still developing .

A newspaper with grizzly photos reflects its stage of development.

Thais are not horrified like westerners at "" Real "" violence.

And are capable of committing it.

I almost married a Thai woman.

But was put off by what happened one evening in 2004.

We were being robbed at knife point .i had just taken 10,000 from an ATM machine on third road Pattaya at 2am.

A man armed with a sharp looking rope blade 8-9 inches long menacingly demanded the money.

He looked like a drug addicted angry son of a bitch so I handed it over.

But the woman who I was with had other ideas .

She smashed the man with a swing wild direct hit to his temple using a long neck of unopened Chang she was carrying from 7/11 .the guy dropped cold.

Banging his head on the footpath .

She then started trying to scratch his face to pieces .

And I had to stop her.

My policy is money aint important .

I nod yes at Thais .

Smile stay calm.

Remember it ain't Kansas

Sounds like a keeper. Did the Chang survive?

Walked past 2 police on patrol yesterday, 1st time ever. Thought they were coming for me! Sounds like he can't be worse than his predecessor.

If it's localised & weather related you might want to check the junction box into your condo. Some are pretty ropey, mine included, though it holds up surprisingly well. The customer service desk at Tesco Pattaya Nua are good, good English too.

Keep telling you, its Planet X

http://news.discovery.com/space/could-planet-x-cause-comet-catastrophes-on-earth-160330.htm

This is entirely or at least partially correct. Most human could not describe but a few planetary features that contribute to climate. Perhaps the earth spins, and takes a year to go around the sun, no more. nearly 100% know nothing about horizon, galactic equator, ecliptic, precession, orbit through galactic center, etc. all of these factors seem to be inconvenient for those espousing the radical ideology of climate change. The earth spins like a top on a table. Climate change ideologues suggest that's all the content needed. That's the model. Wrong. There's many other tops and forces at work on the table. It's a lie to rule these out of formula. It's not just bad science. It's deceit.

Keep it simple, keep it stupid- "Ball. Space. Gruff. Sigh. Hot. Bad!" but no real truth. Never context.

Also the inconvenient issue of the data seeming to suggest that there most certainly a cyclic, measurable force in the solar system that is not explained by the current model and clearly suggests a dwarf star or planetary body on perturbed orbit, something huge- fact. These are the things that repeatedly cause ice age or not. Only when factored in can a valid model exist. One might insist humans are raising the temp. Ok. Offer this in accordance with the acutal factors that create climate. Otherwise, it's BS!

The earth can roast tomorrow and Climate Change, the ideology, is still a fraud! There's a reason why Climate Change has a naturally born opponent on the Right- because it's an entirely contrived Frankenstein of the Left. It's self evident.

Celestrial objects affecting Earths climate?

A controversial proposal to be sure, , I am sure that there are some people that would propose that the Sun might have something to do with the Earths Climate, but I will withhold opinion until all the data is in.

I have noticed one thing though, when wearing back clothing in the sun it seems to affect my personal climate , do you think it is mostly my fault for wearing black or The suns fault? and would you propose I do nothing? or do you think I should wear lighter clothing?

It's currently believed the majority of systems are binary and that there could well be a large 'dark star' way out there past the oort cloud. It's debatable, but hey that's science. Or are you a heretic denier?!

There's a word for this - shoplifting.

Hand yourself into the police immediately.

Ermmmm 3-1 in favour of staying, 9-4 of leaving at Ladbroke, which only means 1 thing, money for Ladbrokes. Fairer odds at betfair. I'm in favour of leaving, but expect Scotland to swing it the other way. Could have joined up themselves when they had the chance couple of years ago. Why they rejected independence then vote 90% SNP I'll never know.

You know all I hear from the pro euro campaign is "oh... It will be so difficult if we leave, we'll have to re-negotiate treaties, bo-hoo we'll have to do some work" . Useless fks. They love Brussels with the 2 hour expenses claimed 5 star lunch break, nap in the office, go home early (I used to work there long time ago).

Heat + Pollution, land, sea & air.

If the Scottish & Welsh votes keep us in Europe, I think that won't sit well with the English