sambum

"...........a yearly visa renewal is maybe one day inconvenience per year" In my neck of the woods, a visa renewal is NEVER a "one day inconvenience"! I know of one guy who had to go back and forth 8 (EIGHT!) times in order to satisfy an over zealous pedantic young I.O.! (And don't give me that old herring about "he should have got it right in the first place". The things he was asked to do/obtain/provide weren't even on the local Immigration "checklist" which also quite often differs from the Head Office official recommendations.)

"The bar workers were seen largely outnumbering the tourists" No surprise there at all! "and they also reportedly tried to bash the tourists with a rock." Must have been a boulder!!!

Just hazarding a guess - arguing over the price of a drink with 2 straws? Or maybe wanted 2 for the price of 1? ????

Looks like he's given up on wearing trendy designer label gear in order to appeal to the younger generation - talk about mutton dressed as lamb! I think the MFP have got the monopoly on that one - and looks!

You never mentioned people that are not working, you talked about people's normal or staggered lunch hours.

"Lunch is usually on a staggered time between 11 and 2" Correct, so the employee can purchase beer during those hours - doesn't give much time to cool it down in the refrigerator! However, not everybody that drinks has beer as their preferred tipple! I would imagine that among Thais, SangSom will come pretty high up the list! The reason I heard was to stop schoolchildren from buying booze on their way home after school, which I suppose makes a bit of sense, but not a lot - all that would be required would be for shop owners/supermarkets to not sell to schoolchildren - easily recognisable by their uniforms, or if not in uniform, check their ID for proof of age:- "You should note that the minimum drinking age in Thailand is 18 years old. In addition, alcohol beverages can only be sold to a person who is at least 20 years old. If you sell alcohol to an underage person, you may be subject to a criminal penalty of up to 1 year imprisonment and/or up to a THB20,000 fine." The problem is, it needs the law to be enforced, and I am sure that there are plenty of "momma/corner shops" that turn a blind eye as well as lots of BIB that realise there is no "tea money" to be had from your average schoolkid! In any case, if the UK is anything to go by, the kids will always find a friendly adult to get them a "carry out"!

Lucky you! I was told that if my new passport didn't arrive in time for my 90 day report (7 days leeway) I would have to pay a fine of 2000 baht!

"........ the prohibition on sales of alcoholic beverages between 2 PM and 5 PM" Absolutely RIDICULOUS law! What was even more ridiculous in some stores, was having a girl at the checkout at the entrance to the "liquor" department watching the unwary stock up, only to tell them "no can have"!!!

"they are too enegetic to do labor themselves............" As for the rest of your post - ???????????? I presume you mean "energetic", but I also think you've picked the wrong word - do you not mean "lazy"?

Yes the rules, fair or unfair, might be designed to avoid too large "tourists" numbers. Unbelievable - try telling that to TAT!!!

"I don't consider Thailand as easiest in the world for tourists." Or for expats!

"........a Russian who overstayed six days but is also facing charges of cryptocurrency fraud amounting to US$72,700 (around 2.5 million baht) and not paying the bills for accommodation and food totalling 66,255 baht." And so it begins! Expect more of these type of stories in the near future - I don't blame them for running away from the war, but there'll be many Russians running out of money, and not being able to afford to pay their bills. Next step is they turn to crime to enable them to stay here, but I suspect it will be a problem that will not only exist in Thailand!

I've been retired in Thailand for almost 20 years - retirement visa (Sorry, extension of visa based on retirement) for a few years, and for the rest of it, based on marriage to a Thai national. Only problem is that my UK pension is "frozen" due to Thailand not having a "reciprocal" agreement with the UK ???? ????

Described as a "Foreign man" throughout the post! (a) Can't be British, then? (b) "The names of the foreign man and his girlfriend were not released by Pattaya police, noting an ongoing investigation." Speechless!

Because apparently the company was bankrupt, or ceased operating - something like that - and who would be likely to buy shares in a defunct operation? I also heard that the shares were in his mother's name? Maybe somebody on here can shed more light on it?

"The ones I have contact with are accepting, helpful, friendly, and I believe just want to get back to living a normal life without fighting." The ones I met before Covid, and the war I found to be arrogant, disrespectful, and unthankful - funny how when you are away from your homeland looking for a safe haven, when virtually all worldwide opinion is against your country's actions, your attitudes and treatment of other people change.????

Why would you want to add that to your list od cliched responses I understand your point exactly - you are the one who's "making lists!" ???? Like I said - Bye - no point in arguing with a bigot, and my wine is getting warm! ????

I guess you don't enjoy a glass of wine with your dinner, then? "Over the years, I’ve compiled a list................" Why on earth would you want to do that, unless you are determined to "have a go" at anybody who drinks? Or maybe you're intent on getting a job with Alcoholics Anonymous? Your opening sentence implies that you are (or would like to be) a Counsellor, or maybe a member of a "Self Help" group? I think you've made your point - you think that drink is evil - up to you - I don't, and maybe I fit into one of your pigeonholes, but one thing's for sure - with your type of bigoted rhetoric, you ain't gonna convince anybody to stop drinking - and let's face it - most people don't want to! Bye - have a nice alcohol free day - I'm going to have a glass of red - "I think I deserve it"! ????

And although it is slightly off topic, these "holy days" are often poorly advertised, and Immigration Offices are closed! (OK if you are an ex pat you should know these things, but a normal tourist looking for an extension?) I was subject to a ridiculous scenario a few months ago when my 90 day report date was due on a Saturday - when AFAIK ALL Immigration Offices are closed!!!

"Drinkers are a pretty predictable group as are most people dependant of drugs." I think that most people don't stop drinking because they don't WANT to! Most people I know would never say "I can give up whenever I want", because they don't NEED to! (And I presume you mean "dependant ON drugs - not dependant OF drugs?)

Wouldn't last 5 minutes!

If she is found guilty without any shade of doubt, then I agree, but opponents of the death penalty will point out the "miscarriages of justice" in the past where people have been executed only to have been found to be innocent later. However, I wonder how much it would cost to keep her in prison for the rest of her life, because I am sure that solitary confinement will be high on the list of options.

Not really when tourism accounts for a high % of GDP!

The thing about these bigots is that they can not/do not see the difference between the casual drinker, a frequent drinker, or an alcoholic - they are all "tarred with the same brush", but as you probably know, they are worlds apart! It's like saying that someone who has a joint of marijuana/cannabis now and again is a drug addict!!!

"Firstly I wondered why they felt compelled to tell me" Probably because you were "bragging" about stopping drinking? "and secondly, they never did" - probably because they didn't want to?