d2b2

Yup there's another one for sure.... R.I.P where ever you are....11yrs here for me now and I hate this country, my plans to return home are coming soon....it's a bitter and brutal country once you look deeper into the people who live here.....bye bye Lieland

Well said. Ditto plans.

Great two bitter ones on the way out.

I wonder if you'd be miserable in any land. Are you over 50 by any chance?

It has nothing to do with being over 50. That question is just ugly and unjustified age discrimination. It is a bigoted and unfair assessment.

Their unhappiness may have to do with being miserable wherever they may find themselves, but to assign that to their age is simply wrong headed and ignorant.

Occasionally, Villa Market will offer Fresca. It is wonderful diet grapefruit soda from the U.S. .

It is pricey (45baht a can), but it is a great drink and mixer too.

I witnessed the men upon the walls yesterday;it left me feeling embarrassed to be a faring in Thailand. It is satisfying that they were apprehended. They should be grateful they were treated so leniently

I witnessed the men upon the walls yesterday;it left me feeling embarrassed to be a faring in Thailand. It is satisfying that they were apprehended. They should be grateful they were treated so leniently the

The giant Pharma companies will not allow Thailand to buy cheap generic drugs from India and the cost of caring chronic illnesses (HIV, Hepatitis, etc) will skyrocket. It will result in enormous increases to the Thai healthcare budget and fewer patients getting life saving medicines. The TPP will also allow the pharma companies to patent holistic and herbal remedies as well as patent biological meds. It will be hard for the review to paint TPP as good for Thailand, and I would question (but not be terribly surprised by) such a result.

Something tells me there is more to this story that is being withheld.

I posted the following response to The Nation's article and it was removed by the editors. a quick search of their other articles shows there are no comments to anything they publish. How can this be?

Those hailing Thailand's need to enter the TPP are eager and willing to short sell the Thai people and their country, for short-term profit. Those yelling the loudest are the nations richest, who will never be satisfied with enough riches. They want to sell Thailand's sovereignty and judicial independence to stuff more baht into their already bulging pockets. Greed, plain and simple, is what is behind the "us too" chants of those championing joining The Trans Pacific Partnership. The trade pact is a grab-all for the United States and multi-national corporate control of patents and judicial systems. If Thailand falls for this corporate raid they will lose their ability to provide lifesaving drugs in generic forms to their people and will see their natural health remedies patented and sold to them for exorbitant prices. They will find their courts stripped of independence and power... Lost to international courts where Thai citizens and the nation have little to no clout or legal standing. When you hear how important it is for Thailand to join TPP picture Thailand's elite picking your pocket for more. When you hear TPP think "Thailand's People Poorer"!

The TTP hardly seems beneficial to the Thai people. If in doubt look at those powers that are pushing for it, The uber wealthy Thais, just can't get rich enough at the expense of the Thai citizenry.

The pharmaceutical protections contain loopholes allowing for very minor tweaks to the medication and being granted additional patent extensions on drugs which remain basically the same. The current practice of Thai medical system to provide copycat drugs to save lives (i.e. HIV meds) at reasonable costs will be eliminated by TTP.

The secrecy and backroom dealing involved with TTP should be enough to make one realize it is not on the up and up. My parents taught me that if you have to hide what you are doing, you probably shouldn't be doing it..

Warning: strong language and may cause seething anger in the 10%

for a very humorous dose of reality.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=118&v=lL8JEEt2RxI

PHP

Your insults are hilariously off base. It only reinforces my perception of you being wrong about everything. I also grew up in the USA, hail from San Francisco. I am well acquainted with guns and was a sharp shooter in the Air Force. I grew up in a home with guns and I have several relatives in law enforcement.

You cherry pick NRA propaganda to post as fact and fail to hear, much less listen to anyone else's opinion or experience. You marginalized other nations, ethnicities and people to prop yourself up. It saddens me that Thais will perceive Americans are like you. You call people cowards and you bully your position. Of course you are a proud gun proponent, many insecure and inadequate gun zealots are. The bulk of Americans support reasonable gun control and the majority are disgusted by the tactics of the NRA, but as a constutionalist I support the 2nd amendment. But the NRA and gun zealots have taken things to the extreme. Opposing any and all restrictions and conditions, they are holding America hostage to the preaching and rants of zealots like yourself. Background checks, limits on gun shows, training requirements, meaningful assult weapon reductions, all supported by the majority of US citizens and all blocked by a few radical zealots and their politically connected association. The NRA was a respectable organization until it was radicalized and it is now a danger to the nation.

Oh PHP87 has determined that everyone in the USA should have a gun to shoot the blacks and other pesky non-whites who have invaded their country.

Php87 believes his same canned response will gain credence if he keeps applying to every comment. He seems quick to point out everyone's ignorance, yet fails to post a reasoned response and resorts only to name calling and bullying. It is exactly the type of trolling I have come to expect on this website. It is shame, because it could be a forum of open and helpful discussion, but quickly the comments fall to the level PHP87, rendering the discussion moot and useless.

There is little argument that the NRA started as a venerable and respected association.

It is only in the last 20 years that the NRA has been captured and turned into a right-wing political cult, incapable of intelligent dialog and debate (as is demonstrated by many of the posters here). When an organization demands more guns in elementary schools, defends the right to own and use assault weapons and wants all citizens to carry concealed weapons it has obviously lost touch with any sense of reality.

The USA is so caught up in guns and defending 2nd amendment rights that they fail to see they have already traded away all their other liberties and they clutch on to their guns as some trophy of their war on government. The time has come for the responsible and silent members of the NRA (who are the majority of it's members) to take back their once reasonable and responsible organization from the zealots who fail to recognize and accept their own culpability in the deaths of so many innocent victims.

I firmly believe in the 2nd amendment and the right to bear arms, I just don't believe that our founding fathers intended that it to be taken to the extremes that the NRA and the zealots who have now control it have lead us to.

I know that my comments will fire off the extreme wacko element that trolls these posts and send them into their crazed tizzy, so I will cease following this thread to avoid their hatred and vitriol. I pity them in their anger, ignorance and their hypocrisy.

The NRA's response to every gun death is "it wouldn't have happened if there were more guns around. The NRA has become an extremely right-wing political cult.

Will it be open to foreign passport holders?

EVA airlines was great with the pets. They took pictures at each stage of the trip and brought them to show the pets were okay.

We recently (nov 2014) imported our 4 cats and 1dog into Thailand from the U.S. It required our USDA approved vet to provide papers which we then had to take to a USDA office for certification,micro chipping and vaccination history. The process to get them through customs was an additional hour and involved fees totaling 6000 baht for 5 pets.

I was driving defensively and being very careful, it didn't matter. The road condition and traffic were to blame for the accident. The reality is I was experienced and it didn't matter. My early retirement (51) is now being spent in a wheelchair with doctor appointments and bills. Spend the extra money on a car and enjoy your tour without putting your life and future in peril. I was confidant and experienced in driving and didn't latke my Thai friends advice seriously. They all said it was a bad idea, but I knew better. They were right and I am thankful they all have been so kind and helpful since the accident .

I was driving defensively and being very careful, it didn't matter. The road condition and traffic were to blame for the accident. The reality is I was experienced and it didn't matter. My early retirement (51) is now being spent in a wheelchair with doctor appointments and bills. Spend the extra money on a car and enjoy your tour without putting your life and future in peril. I was confidant and experienced in driving and didn't latke my Thai friends advice seriously. They all said it was a bad idea, but I knew better. They were right and I am thankful they all have been so kind and helpful since the accident .

As I sit in my wheelchair, I advise you rent a car. Despite skill, experience, and confidence, my trip to Thailand has been very difficult after a minor accident on a scooter. Broken tibia and 6 months of a wheelchair and it may never be as good as before. The roads and drivers here are treacherous. The incident has cost over half a million baht.

My husband and I will be retiring early to Hua Hin in Sept 2014. 

I am considering buying the Thailand Travel Shield policy for one year to cover me during my visit. Does anyone have any information as to which of the four providers is more reputable? 

• Siam City Insurance
• Muang Thai Insurance
• Chao Phaya
• Krungthai Panich Insurance

The policy has a ton of exclusions ( attached a copy as PDF)  and I am debating if it is worth the premium and would like some feed back from someone in the know on these matters. 

Thanks