Spock

Crime up by 3% but the prison population up by 20%. This could only make sense in a Cambodian context. One third of prisoners awaiting trial. Perhaps the judicial process could be speeded up to reduce the numbers of those unnecessarily suffering in what is no doubt a nasty penitentiary system.

I don't use my real name on Facebook as my username and never knew that this was against the rules. 

Too expensive for backpackers and single travelers once you calculate in the tuk tuk price. And we don't all have the luxury of traveling on American dollars.

9 minutes ago, steven100 said:

The boy needs a good dressing down by the police.

He obviously isn't fully comprehensive as to how serious his actions were.

A one on one with the police should be sufficient.

A 'good dressing down' may not be the most appropriate treatment for his problem.

4 hours ago, morrobay said:

 

Unlike English if a Thai word is not pronounced ( tone) 100% correctly  they will  not understand it.

Anyway the girls speak bamboo Engish. Who else would you want to talk to ???

This is not true. Thai is usually spoken in a particularly context and it is my experience that the correct word order is generally sufficient to be understood by the vast majority of Thais.

3 hours ago, BuaBS said:

What ? How ?

Usually a combination of sedatives and a plastic bag. When you pass out from the drugs the carbon dioxide kills you, though the best way is to elasticise the seal around your neck and hold it open till you lose consciousness. Either that or you need a big plastic bag that allows for enough oxygen till the drugs take effect. This guy seems to have done it the hard way. RIP

4 hours ago, canuckamuck said:

I don't think it would have been greed or hunger, or even protectionism that would cause a villager to pull the trigger. Most of these guys would shoot simply because it was there. I know several people who would  never let any wild animal pass if there was a rifle or powder gun handy. There is a potential for some value and some meat, but mostly it is deep ignorance and opportunity. From rats to clouded leopards, they all end up being guilty of being alive and within range.

Nice piece of prose but not good news for threatened species. Unfortunately, the bulk of the world's exotic wildlife is situated in continents full of poor, desperate or greedy people for whom moral necessities do not exist. Little wonder that the tiger has been used as target practice.

There is no more ruthless, despicable or cruel leader in Asia than Hun Sen. He is a vile man who mercilessly crushes any opposition and oppresses the poor. The trumped up charges against Sokha and the 5 in prison are simply a means to prevent Sokha from functioning as a politician. Hopefully one day someone is able to slip through his security cordon and rid the country of this human vermin. 

1 hour ago, balo said:

No its people that grew up and were abused  as kids , then they go on and do the same thing themselves. Like a never ending circle.  

So in other words they are people who have unwittingly and perhaps unwillingly become pedophiles due to their unfortunate life experiences. However in this age they are less likely to be able to abuse without getting caught. So it's not quite a never ending circle but rather one that is tapering down with the passage of time. Children are far better prepared to recognise and repel unwanted sexual advances than in the past. 

8 hours ago, futsukayoi said:

Hmm maybe a market for providing drug free samples for tourists to carry around.  Presumably the cops don't actually watch you producing the sample so switch should be easy.

If they do watch, the cops' eyes would be feasting on my organ for an eternity. I find it difficult enough to piss at a men's urinal - even when I am the sole user of the trough. 

1 hour ago, DekDaeng said:

Should allow him 'assisted suicide' if he wishes.

At 101 years I would imagine suicide would seem a comfortable means to avoid a fate worse than death, though I imagine he would prefer a less painful end to the one you are perhaps recommending.

10 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

I looked at the polling numbers for many of the past presidents there.  Huge approval ratings when they go in, dismal ratings when they leave.  So people voted for his BS as they were fed up with the previous president. 

They have ended up being fed up with every president since Fidel Ramos. Problem is the candidates are film stars, weak women and ineffectual or corrupt men. Now they have this prick. The country has no idea of what a genuine president should be like. 

6 hours ago, lovelomsak said:

 what is happening cannot be compared to what happened in other countries this man has the support of his country men. so lets leave that out of it. no coupe will end this. he is doing right. the slums and ghettos is exactly where he must make his point.get the drugs out and give the poor the opportunity to make choices on how to improve their lifes with out drugs damaging their community.

drive up the risk factor and drive up the prices. make unaffordable for the poor get it out of their community. make it to risky to deal small time.yes cannot illiminate drug use but can contain it.

drive up the price till only the idle rich are buyers.in the 19th century the rich were the only users of drugs with cocaine and heroin widely used by the idle rich. lets go back that

the poor people of the slums should be protected from drugs. allow them as healthy of an invironment as possible.    philippinos  are honest hard working family people get the drugs out and they can work hard and make decisions to improve on their life.many problems they face now will be gone and life for them can take a positive note

What a ridiculous argument you present. Drive up the prices by killing the small time users and dealers among the poor till only the 'idle rich' are able to enjoy the pleasures of drug taking 'like in the 19th century'. Take the drugs out of the lives of the poor and their natural instinct for hard work will drag them out of their poverty! You don't think that there are factors other than drugs that are preventing the poor from improving the quality of their lives? Yeah just send masked gunman into the slums to carry out extra judicial killings and the country's problems will all be solved.  With ideas like this, you could easily be president of your own poverty riddled country. You're a genius!

Cannot believe people defend this guys actions and words. He is a despicable character and if 91% of Philippinos like him, then it is one country to which I have no desire to ever return. Perhaps providing some hope to the poor with genuine policies and reforms directed at improving their lives might dissuade people from seeking diversion from the harsh reality of life. Unfortunately the rich and privileged in that country have never been too concerned about the poor who struggle to survive. Dutertes is the worst of a procession of less than ordinary presidents in that unfortunate country.

Surely if you are in the country for 7 out of 12 months each of the last 2 years and hold an Australian residential address you qualify under the 2 year period?

I remember being in Guilin, China, in 1986 and chatting to the entrepreneurial young manager of a restaurant with a zoo full of animals in cages out front. I pointed at a pangolin and mentioned that they were said to be a threatened species. 'Once there were dinosaurs on the earth' he replied. 'Now they are gone and one day elephants will be too. But they will be replaced by yet another species. That is the way of the world. 

He then told me about a 'stupid American guy' who had bought an owl from a restaurant to save it. Now he was leaving China, and asked this guy to look after it. 'I told him that I would happily take it from him but would put it straight on the menu as soon as he left.'

8 hours ago, georgemandm said:

You are paying the right amount for surin that price is nominal your rent .

and your power bill is nominal, my friend has a big home out side surin and pays more for power then you like about 10,000 a month but big home lots of water pumps has pool and big garden to water.

i said on here 2 months ago it was a lot of money for thailand power  compare to Australia and was run down for saying it was  expensive .

so now I not say much on Tv to many , not say what I want to say .

Nearly $A400 a month, which is a big power bill here. Your friend must run several air conditioners round the clock as well, though who am I to judge what some people are able to do and pay for.

Prior to a clampdown this century, the kids on Rawai were preyed upon by foreign pedophiles in the 90's, one of whom was jailed for about 40 years. I imagine the gypsies were taken advantage of by just about everybody, given their peripheral societal status, education and lack of political or judicial clout. That developers can just push them off their land and block their access to it is an absolute disgrace. Nor does it say much for the provincial governments, the courts, police or Thai people who turn a blind eye to the dismantling of this sea-based ethnic group. Unforgivable what has been done to these people.   

10 minutes ago, digbeth said:

Looks like it's not her stall that's blocking this man's driveway but her customers parking that is....

 

Imagine coming home late at night and having to go out and ask the people in the stalls to please kindly move their cars so you could park inside your driveway

 

Not condoning but it's very understandable

Doesn't excuse kicking a woman in the mouth from behind. Perhaps the guy should have approached the customers rather than stall owners. When he did go directly to them they moved their bikes immediately.

Got a good feel for rhythm and genre. They are great! Who taught them an ACDC number?

23 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

Bahtsmart has no fees. You'll get a better rate than bank to bank transfers. You BPay from your AU account to them and they deposit into your Thai account. No bank fees at either end.

Can you transfer in $A or must convert to baht in Australia?

On 11/13/2016 at 1:31 AM, vincent13 said:

I use internet banking to transfer money from Australian bank to K Bank. Costs $20 for each transfer which usually takes 1 business day. Transfer as Australian dollars and let Thai bank do the conversion to get the best exchange rate.

And do you also get hit with a fee at the Thai end? 300 - 500 baht? When I send money from my NAB account, I am asked about a fee that can be taken from the money I send at the Thai end or from my account. I have always nominated the money I send without realising how much I lost in fees to the Thai bank (money not sent to me). Are these extra fees avoided if using an FX company to transfer to a Thai bank account? 

7 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

 

No. I set it up in Aus before I moved here. If you have any questions contact them: their customer service is fantastic.

 

I will check them out. I also signed up with WorldFirst which seemed to offer the best rate of the FX company and waived the $10 fee for transfers under $10000 if you found them through finder.com. Only needed my medicare card to register - very easy. Have not yet used them so will check out bahtsmart first.  

6 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

I use Baht Smart. Cheaper and faster than Ozforex. No complaints.

Do you have to reside in Thailand to use it?