BKKBike09

I'd say it depends on the car. I have an ICE that's more than 10 years old and I love it (a Scirocco). I'm very attached to that car whereas I have no attachment to my BYD. Like the CRV I had before it. It's a great city car but if it was crushed into a small cube tomorrow (obviously a. without me in it, and b. also getting paid by the insurance) I couldn't care less.

Yep. BYD are now getting stick from many customers who have suddenly seen their THB 1.2 million vehicle sold for THB 340K less. You're correct to say it's unprecedented. The only such massive discounting i can recall in Thailand was when Chevrolet said sayonara and sold Captiva's for half price. But they didn't care about unhappy customers since they were abandoning the Thai market. Be interesting to see how the insurance companies react: will they continue insuring the pre-price slash vehicles for what will be above market values, or will they say "too bad - your car is now worth THB 700K for insurance" even though the owner is still on the hook for finance at THB 1.2 mil? Not a good position to be in if the re-valued car is deemed an insurance write off, which is more likely if it's value has been greatly reduced. Right now I'd be better off getting my Atto totalled, collecting the THB 960K total loss insurance and buying a new one! I really like the car but not that impressed by BYD's strategy here. Of course, if they have say 1,000 very unhappy customers but the new prices add 100,000 new customers, why would they care?

Sorry to hear of all your problems. What you describe here sounds like an optical migraine. Starts with flashing in one part of your field of vision and then over 30 mins or turns into a flashing uneven circle that goes round the field of vision and then stops. No pain at all. If that is what you had, that (at least) is nothing to do with the retina, it is caused by temporary changes in brain chemistry. Good luck.

The study was designed to examine risk factors associated with severe outcomes of COVID-19 including admission to an ICU or stepdown unit, invasive mechanical ventilation, and death. Main Findings: Certain underlying medical conditions were associated with an increased risk for severe COVID-19 illness in adults. Having multiple conditions was also associated with severe COVID-19 illness. Obesity, diabetes with complications, and anxiety and fear-related disorders had the strongest association with death. The number of frequent underlying medical conditions (present in ≥10.0% of patients) increased with age.207 https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/clinical-care/underlyingconditions.html So fear of dying from Covid can actually make it more likely that you will die from it, if you get it.

Thanks - I enjoyed reading the Independent article: ... Prof Woolhouse said waves of Covid continue to be driven by new variants and “partial waning immunity to infection”. “For now, we have to expect this pattern to continue,” he said. “Over the coming decades, we will shift to a situation where most people are exposed to Covid – possibly several times – when they are young. “This will not cause a significant public health problem – healthy young people were never much affected by Covid – but it will result in a build-up of immunity that will make them much less vulnerable when they are elderly and frail.” He said that “to all intents and purposes” Covid-19 will become just another common cold” ... https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/summer-covid-wave-2024-uk-euros-b2573767.html

However, although 10 times more people died of Covid (according to your info) in UK than Thailand, the NHS and public health luminaries don't feel the need to issue warnings etc, encourage general mask wearing when around other people etc. Perhaps that's because people here have moved on given that, for the vast majority, it is of no interest or consequence.

I'm sure the chance of having a problem is remote in the extreme. But it does exist, especially because it is a matter of interpretation. There is a difference between 'have' and 'use' - one could argue that just keeping your original nationality is not 'use', and the Act makes that distinction in Section 19 (2) - ยังใช่ (still uses) and (6) - ยังคงมี (still retains).

You asked ... https://www.bora.dopa.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/nationality.pdf This is from a riveting DOPA review of nationality legislation.

Many thanks for the helpful insight. I've made a fair number of trips over the past 3 years and have (mostly) used the auto-channels. Coming back from the US a year or so back, via Taipei, the gates were out of action inbound. The I/O actually asked me if I had another passport so I simply said "Thai passport is good enough for me" or something like that. No further questions. I suspect things will never change but you never know ... what you don't want is to meet the Thai I/O who is having a bad day, possibly because some random foreigner has been rude to him/her

I'm not so sure in this particular case. It involves a high-profile SET-listed company, apparent malfeasance, and massive corporate default. Last thing Thailand wants is further erosion of investor confidence - especially foreign institutional investors.

Not required by thailand where is your source ? The Nationality Act 1965 (and 2008 amendment) "Section 19. The Minister shall have the power to revoke Thai nationality of a person who acquires Thai nationality by naturalization, if it appears that: (1) the naturalization is effected by concealment of facts or making false statement of essential facts; (2) there is evidence indicating that the naturalized person still uses his or her former nationality ..." Applicants are required to submit a statement of intent to renounce former nationality once Thai nationality is received and Special Branch tell applicants on several occasions that former nationality has to be given up. It may all be just for show but anyone who naturalizes absolutely does not want to be found using their "former nationality". Which is why e-gates are preferable to a passport check by a Thai I/O. "Flying direct to the US? But no visa in your Thai passport? Explain."

For anyone who wishes / intends to live AND work legally in Thailand for an extended period, citizenship makes that vastly easier than any of the other options currently available to foreigners. That said, if PR did away with the WP requirement, it would be a very attractive option. I had PR for quite a while before i decided to apply for citizenship. However, your first point is the potential elephant in the room: "No need to give up your other citizenship unless you are citizen of a relatively small number of countries who require that." Your country of birth may not require it, but it IS required by Thailand in the case of naturalised citizens. Just not enforced. The received wisdom is that it's all a cosy "nudge nudge, wink wink" set up where the Thai side know Person A will keep their original nationality but it is ignored. That has been the case for decades and may continue to be the case for decades. But any potential applicant for citizenship should be prepared to give up their birth nationality.

+1 for OfficeMate. But need to try before buy. Definitely worth getting one that's mesh fabric not cushion or fake leather. Not sweaty. https://www.ofm.co.th/en/category/เฟอร์นิเจอร์/เก้าอี้/เก้าอี้เพื่อสุขภาพ

Just say you aren't ready to give up your current nationality. Not really. Basic Thai is fine. Tax is an important point. Salary can be much less than 100K but you have to have 3 years of tax returns in your name in same employment. Losing job/WP while applying is a big problem. PR - also no TM30. But still need a WP to work legally. Need to get a visa to get a re-entry permit if you want to leave Thailand. But PR never expires as long as you visit Thailand annually (so not like US Green Card, Singapore PR etc, which you lose after a couple of years being out of country). PR of course much more expensive than citizenship in terms of initial fees.

Not sure my wife would agree with that. But never reject undeserved credit.

Eggsactly.

As another poster has explained, that message just says you're not allowed to fiddle with that menu item while driving. Which is irritating. Which is also what my VW tells me if I try to change certain settings while driving. Perhaps the Chinese learned this safety obsession 'from ze Germans'? I suspect it's an EU / Western market 'safety requirement' to have this 'feature'.

It's fairer to say that all mainstream car companies have little real interest in individual consumers once you've bought their product. Remember Ford and the Focus gearbox issue, which upset a lot of owners globally, including Thailand? I've owned several Honda Jazz in the past. Excellent car. Recommended to one of our extended family ... who then had nothing but mechanical trouble from the moment they drove it brand new out of the dealer. Just unlucky and got a lemon. My BYD experience so far (18 months) has been pretty good. It does however seem odd how Thai consumers seem happy to spend a lot of money on a car from some unheard of manufacturer with little obvious track record, simply because it's an EV. BYD at least has a reasonable track record with EVs.

Thai Raids Intercept Huge Number of Simboxes and Starlink Satellite Dishes Intended for Scam Call Centers https://commsrisk.com/thai-raids-intercept-huge-number-of-simboxes-and-starlink-satellite-dishes-intended-for-scam-call-centers/ Thai police have followed recent announcements about inspecting cell sites near the border and closing those which serve scam call centers with yet more news about raids on fraudsters. Both police and customs officials shared information over the weekend that described a series of operations which targeted separate locations spread throughout Thailand, leading to multiple arrests of both Thais and foreigners. Some of these locations had simboxes that appeared to have already been used to make scam calls. Other locations appeared to be way stations for the onward transportation of imported equipment. This equipment included Starlink satellite dishes, with the assumption that these would provide internet connectivity to scam compounds in bordering countries. The police noted how the use of Starlink would permit gangsters to keep changing the location of scam compounds, further complicating the task of law enforcement. Obtaining internet access from low earth orbit satellites not only means gangsters can guarantee reliable internet connections for scam compounds in remote regions, but also negates the enhanced anti-scam controls that have been implemented by traditional internet service providers. The Thai authorities have been working for several years to disconnect internet cables that cross the border to service scam compounds in neighboring countries.

Hang on - Putin rounded up the people who had illegally enriched themselves to an unbelievable extent and then said: "You have been naughty. But you can keep half of what you have stolen"? "Слава СССР"! You can tell Dawn Sturgess's family that novichok "never seems to kill anyone".

Looks like it.

So, what, have a shot of vaccine every time there's a new variant, understanding that it may, however, not protect against the next variant to become dominant, which will be even more transmissible (hence how it becomes dominant).

"My knowledge does not allow any further interpretation of this data, and not clear if this is a normal approach. If anyone is better qualified, please give an overview." That's a normal instrument approach to RWY18 joining at PIWAT.

EVs are everywhere! This one made by Foton (in a JV with CP Group).

Yes, the controllers at VTBU aren't overworked although there is actually a bit more traffic than that - you've also got the skydiving operators, various GA flights, police/military (mostly rotary), US mil from time to time. A lot of these a/c don't have ADS-B so they won't show on the tracking sites (which rely on ADS-B data).