Spock

Thailand doesn't pay much per day to house a prisoner in its system.

Better to jail him here I would have thought. Why offer him the opportunity to return home?

You ever had medical marijuana - the CBD kind? Wouldn't get a fly high.

I have been waiting to see which of Cambodia and Thailand lifts all restrictions of tourists and in particular do away with the possibility of testing positive and being compulsorily quarantined after arrival. Cambodia has now dropped all requirements including the pre arrival PCR test. I booked today to go there for a 3 month stay. I am sure I won't be the only potential arrival that Thailand's continued insistence on tests and restrictions will discourage. I also never thought that my own country, Australia, would apply less restrictions on entry and life and movement within the country itself than Thailand.

You begin by saying that 'I'm just saying there should be the same law for all'. What you support is anything but an equal playing field. My Thai friend did 13 years in prison for a far less severe crime than the Red Bull heir committed and didn't have the luxury of escaping jail because he was rich. Your colleague should also have served a long stretch in prison. 600k baht is nothing compared to 10 or 20 wasted years in a Thai prison. What you call a 'legal process' is simply one law for the rich and another for ordinary people. The foreign press were not alone in their concern - many if not most Thai people were unhappy with the corruption highlighted by the Red Bull heir's case.

Also don't test positive for covid on arrival in Cambodia or you will find yourself stuck in the government covid facility which is extremely basic and, last news I had on it, required 2 negative tests to get out.

My point was more related to a corrupt legal and political machine that would allow these miscarriages of justice to happen rather than the actions of a super wealthy father with the means and desire to keep his son from facing the consequences of his actions.

How can you possibly defend the red bull heir!? Even without trial, the evidence in the public arena leaves no doubt he was 100% culpable in the death of the policeman. It does you no credit to defend these people who have more than enough avenues of escaping prosecution and conviction without the likes of you whitewashing their actions.

Whatever the psychological ramifications, they are not relevant in this scenario. No one is going to suffer mental illness from a leaf or two placed atop a restaurant meal or a drop or bottle of CBD oil. I miss the old days in Thailand when the marijuana was so strong that the first few joints would leave me hanging over the edge of a toilet bowl. I am hardly going to excitedly book a flight to Thailand to sample the country's new 'secret weapon'. Thailand has lost the plot in terms of attracting foreign visitors.

Thailand is not going to legalise marijuana for recreational use. At best, there will be restaurants that are allowed to scatter a few leaves though a meal. Don't kid yourself that young or older tourists are ever going to be sitting around around smoking joints. It's not going to happen. As for the 'wellness' business, the word alone is enough to turn me off.

Although if you test positive in Cambodia, you are sent to the government quarantine centre which is a hell hole and need 2 negative tests to get out. If you are a resident of Cambodia, you can self isolate. I don't currently find either country an attractive place for a holiday.

So if there are so few positive cases picked up on the tests, why have them when they are deterring hundreds of thousands of tourists from coming to Thailand?

And after the positive test begins the private hospital scam which is certainly keeping many people, including me, from returning to Thailand.

How does a police lance corporal afford a 'Ducati monster'?

Most people I have met who own pit bulls look like they own pit bulls. I love dogs and work as a dog sitter and walker but do not understand why anyone wants a pit bull, other than as an extension of their own aggressive personality and inclinations. They give other dogs a bad name. All this talk about never leaving a child alone with dogs - I would not hesitate to leave a child alone with a golden retriever or similar natured dog. Again and again there are reports of pit bulls attacking and maiming people. It's all very well to say it's the owners fault and not the breed, but there is no doubt that pit bulls are inherently aggressive and built to cause considerable damage to a person or another animal. The majority of owners probably don't have a clue how to train their dog to not be aggressive around people. And the pit bulls I have seen in Thailand and Cambodia are among the strongest and most aggressive I have encountered. They should be banned.

You got value for money, including a colonoscopy, gastroscopy and endoscopy.

Can tourists go to the field hospitals? Who is eligible?

It could also be said that not allowing people who are asymptomatic or not particularly sick to self quarantine and force them into expensive quarantine care is totally over the top and a reason why some people might avoid providing health details if at all possible. Doesn't mean that people would not self quarantine - just means they do not want to waste their money on needless state quarantine procedures.

If for 14 days, that is about 8500B per day which is very expensive.

What did you get for that money?

The difference is that if I get Omricon in my own country I quarantine at home with all the usual luxuries and distractions available to me. If I contract it in Thailand, I am looking at enforced quarantine in a hotel or hospital? I can never quite keep up to date with the requirements. Cambodia has just introduced compulsory 14 day hospital care for anyone who tests positive for Omricon too.

Surely you are not suggesting that the consequences he has 'suffered' sufficiently pay for the crime?

I wouldn't want to come to Thailand for a holiday and spend 10 days in quarantine particularly if I was asymptomatic. Nor would I want to have to pay an ambulance to take me to the quarantine hotel. If you have ever been asymptomatic to the virus and had to endure an over the top response you would understand the frustration. The simple answer is to just not go anywhere overseas for a holiday.

How ridiculous that newsreaders have to wear a mask.

Lots of Americans are unvaccinated which makes a big difference to the consequences of people catching the virus. Australian case numbers are really high but over 90% in the states affected are vaccinated. High vaccine rates make a big difference to the severity of the infection.