richard_smith237

Admittedly, the air-quality is sometimes worse than other area's of the world, but it is also often no worse. A quick look shows at the moment the Air-Quality in Bangkok is only slightly higher than that of London and Paris - other cities will be cleaner, many others worse. But, to suggest Air-Quality might be a deciding factor (for most) is flawed - just look at the amount of extremely wealthy people who live in LA. And.....Thailand does most certainly not only serve the middle and lower end tourism market - you are just unaware of the higher end of the tourism market. These sweeping generalisation of what the wealthy get up to are ridiculous - just like anyone else people have their preferences and dislikes - some wont find Thailand an attractive option, while others find it an amazing choice and thats why Thailand caters to a full range of visitors from back-packers to the ultra wealthy (which for some reason are being called 'Elite' in this thread).

The person who told you was a fool spreading daft misinformation while trying to play the roll of experienced long timer.. This barstool fallacy was already addressed when GG mentioned the same daft comment... Does the utter stupidity of the above comment really need to be explained to you GG ??? This is a dumb as the 'taxi argument' whereby it is sometimes quoted by some galactically halfwitted fool that 'If you are in a taxi and it is involved in an accident it is your fault as had you not been there, the taxi would not have been in that location to have the accident in the first place'....

I'll play... just this once, to out the lack of credibility in the questions you posted... ....and after that I can't be bothered arguing with idiots - there's enough of that in other threads... 1. "Shot recipients demonstrate a 37% loss of life expectancy over non-recipients." This claim is unsupported by credible data. Life expectancy studies are complex and require decades of longitudinal data. COVID-19 vaccines have only been available since late 2020, making it impossible to determine their long-term impact on life expectancy. Numerous studies, including from the CDC and WHO, show vaccines reduce severe illness and mortality. 2. "Each booster rollout is statistically correlated with a new wave of deaths." Waves of deaths during the pandemic have been linked to the emergence of new variants, not vaccine rollouts. Boosters were introduced in response to waning immunity and variants like Delta and Omicron. Correlation does not imply causation; rigorous studies show boosters significantly reduce severe outcomes. 3. "Rats demonstrate autistic behavior after receiving COVID shots." No reputable scientific studies link COVID-19 vaccines to autism, either in humans or animals. This claim appears to misuse or misinterpret behavioral studies in animals. The association between vaccines and autism has been debunked repeatedly by global health organizations. 4. "Florida’s Surgeon General warned against anyone taking further shots owing to their terrible safety profile and negative efficacy." Florida's Surgeon General has taken controversial stances that contradict broader medical consensus. The CDC, WHO, and FDA confirm COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective in reducing severe disease and death. Negative efficacy claims are often based on flawed studies that don't account for confounders like timing or population differences. 5. "Young people are dropping dead or becoming disabled at a higher rate since the rollout." No credible evidence supports this claim. Sudden deaths among young people often attract media attention, but epidemiological studies do not show an increased mortality rate in vaccinated populations. On the contrary, vaccines have been shown to reduce risks associated with severe COVID-19 in young people. 6. "99 million vaccine records found alarming safety signals for myocarditis, pericarditis, etc." Myocarditis and pericarditis are rare side effects of mRNA vaccines, particularly in young men. However, the risk of these conditions from COVID-19 infection itself is significantly higher. Regulatory bodies like the CDC and EMA have acknowledged this risk, but the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks. 7. "Six papers connect these shots with turbo cancer." There is no widely accepted evidence linking COVID-19 vaccines to cancer acceleration ("turbo cancer"). Claims like this often rely on anecdotal reports or poorly controlled studies. Leading cancer research organizations confirm no link between vaccines and cancer development. 8. "Former CDC director admitted the agency hid known side effects." Public health agencies like the CDC are transparent about vaccine side effects, as evident in public reports and advisory panel discussions. Misrepresentations of officials' statements are common in vaccine misinformation. 9. "Five state Attorneys General are suing Pfizer for fraud." Lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies can be filed for various reasons, but filing does not equate to guilt. Pfizer's clinical trials and vaccine approvals underwent extensive scrutiny. Any findings of intentional wrongdoing would be subject to legal proceedings and evidence. 10. "An estimated 16.9 million vaccine-associated deaths by December 2022." This number appears to be fabricated. Global vaccine safety monitoring systems like VAERS and WHO's VigiBase have not reported such figures. Adverse events are rigorously tracked, and claims of widespread deaths are unsupported by global mortality data. 11. "The injections do nothing to reduce severe illness." Numerous studies from the CDC, WHO, and independent research confirm that COVID-19 vaccines significantly reduce the risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and death. These findings are consistent across diverse populations and variants. 12. "Study of 1.7 million children showed heart damage only in C19-injected kids." This claim likely misrepresents findings. Mild myocarditis in children post-vaccination is extremely rare and resolves quickly in most cases. Meanwhile, COVID-19 infection poses a higher risk of severe heart complications. 13. "Japanese Adverse Drug Event Report database showed an alarming risk of myocarditis." Japanese health authorities have acknowledged rare cases of myocarditis but emphasize that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks. This database monitors adverse events, but causation must be confirmed through controlled studies. 14. "C19 injection does not protect you from 'long COVID' symptoms." Vaccines reduce the risk of developing long COVID by lowering the likelihood of severe infection. While breakthrough cases occur, multiple studies show vaccinated individuals are less likely to experience long-term symptoms. 15. "1236% surge in excess cardiac arrest deaths among C19 injection recipients." Such a figure lacks context and credible sourcing. Sudden cardiac deaths can have many causes, and rigorous studies have not shown a significant increase linked to COVID-19 vaccines. Claims like this often misinterpret data from adverse event reporting systems.

Do you have concrete evidence of this? I think his fatality cemented that fact...

Why do you think those who Thai Authorities consider 'elite' want to isolate themselves from the culture and hustle of Thailand ????... Thailand has a lot to offer everyone, and yes, the extremely wealthy too.

He [the feckless lumber-jack] is likely poor, has no real money for fines... no one was killed. Authorities will feel sorry for him which is why they already knew who he was but ignored his illegal behavior... He'll be fined a nominal amount... he'll be cutting trees again before the week is out.

Valid point.... But, the low flag-fall rate of a taxi is not why taxi drivers charge inflated of 500 or 800 baht etc for a 150 or 200 baht journey... .... The reason they charge inflated rates is because they are cheating rip-off merchants. Nothing would change IF the flag-fall rates were increased to 70 baht... the same drivers would cheat and rip-off passengers, they would still carry weapons, they would still get into fights... In this case, all we are seeing is the shoe on the other foot - thats not to suggest the behavior of the foreigners is acceptable, its not at all... but for this incident the tables were turned... the next incident will likely be a taxi / tuktuk driver attacking a tourist... (and it will be in Pattaya or Patong).

Tramadol binds to opioid receptors in the brain, producing feelings of pain relief and sometimes mild euphoria. This effect can lead to psychological dependence. While it is considered to have a lower potential for abuse compared to some stronger opioids (like oxycodone), it still carries a risk of dependence, addiction, and misuse, especially if taken for extended periods, in higher doses than prescribed. I understand your point that some people may have greater propensity towards addiction - however, in this case, the drug itself contributes towards that as its not just habitually addictive. After having a three injuries (and surgeries) in the past couple of years, I've ended up with somewhat of a stockpile of Tramadol which I recently binned.

True... but the car still blew though a red-light and thus is 100% at fault. But, your comments are valid from a perspective of self preservation. Even when pulling away from junction on a green light, I think most of us look both ways as its not uncommon for other vehicles to ignore the lights or try and blow through so they dont have to wait. Another facet of night time accidents is visibility - many folk have poor vision, particularly poor night time vision which is worsened by a strong window tint, in this case it was also wet weather... late at night, tiredness etc...

Anyone involved in such an incident is automatically charged - how are you failing to understand this ? There is nothing illegal about riding side by side. You have posted photos of the road yourself - its not single lane, you know this already. One news report (asia pacific press) which states 'he may have been speeding' is not evidence or fact. Your propensity for taking heresay and social media commentary to shoe horn into your bias prejudice as fact is ridiculous and also wrongly misleading for those stupid enough to align themselves with your nonsense.

The incident was somewhat different - the Policeman was speeding on an unlicensed motorcycle and the Opthamologist was crossing at a pedestrian crossing. Initially, in April 2022, the Criminal Court sentenced him to one year and 15 days in prison and fined him 4,000 baht. However, in January 2024, the Court of Appeal deemed this punishment too lenient and increased his sentence to five years and one month.

That doesn't enter into it at all.... Its been mentioned numerous times throughout this thread (by myself and others). Whenever there a death occurs in a road traffic incident with two vehicles, the driver / rider of the other vehicle is automatically charged with "reckless driving causing death". This occurs in any such incident, regardless of proof, regardless of fault etc - its simply standard SOP for the way the Thai Police respond - in most cases, without any proof all such charges are very quickly dropped.

I don't think its that at all moon... a lot of the comments on this thread has been from people such as myself 'countering' dumb accusations that the American must be at fault when there is no evidence - so that has filled up a lot of space. There is also a void of information here that leads to conjecture and guess work - some of it from delusional Thai Apologists. This is also of note, as many of us ride, so this 'could' happen to a lot of us - thus there is personal interest in what happens, what could happen and how this is dealt with. So I don't think this thread is 'larger' than others because 'we think we are more important than Thais', not at all, but there is certainly additional interest because a Westerner was involved - but that doesn't automatically mean what you suggest it does.

Are you suggesting that the amount of posts there are on a thread must be directly proportional to the tragedy and other factors are not involved ?.... I don't think anyone would suggest that a Thai on Thai incident is any less tragic at all - but some threads naturally draw more interest because of: - how the incident unfolded (or may have) - an information void - arguments evolving around misinformation - who is involved - arguments evolving around bigoted and dumb comments - updated information

There was no Westerner to automatically blame in the Jeju Air 2216 discussion...

I'll humour you.... What actual evidence is there ??? go on, list any evidence. This highlights a worrying lack of intelligence.

IF you are the legal owner of the Motorcycle you can get a new Green Book at the DLT. - A Police Report is needed (to report the loss of the original). - Having a photo-copy of the original will help. - You'll also need residence certificates (for re-registering).

Thats protective riding gear. It all appears well worn and suggests that these are both experienced rider. ??? - its riding gear - how is it freaky ? - surely you've seen riding gear GG ? It looks like decent kit and shows a level of responsibility compared to tourists riding around in flipflops. Agree, likely a GF - but what relevance does her nationality have to this event ? (she looks like a Westerner to me). Its an odd question of you to ask, so I'm just curious of the your reasoning to ask that... i.e. if she is Thai, it might indicate they have been riding in Thailand a long time, whereas if she is American, it could indicate they are not so familiar with riding in Thailand... ... not that it makes any difference, IF someone steps out in front of you at the last second (which is why the riding gear !).

Tosh, I very much can 'live without booze for a few hours'. I have in fact, just gone 5 months without a drop of alcohol. You should maybe, not spout off without knowing the full details. A couple of glasses of wine and I usually wake up at the destination. A carrier that has such rules - which are not the norm in air transport, should in my opinion, make it quite clear that they do not serve alcohol. Many Arab states have quite stiff alcohol laws but often relax them for foreigners. Agreed. There's absolutely nothing wrong with preferring a glass or two of beer or wine alongside a meal. ...But, predictably, some feel compelled to gaslight and twist this harmless preference into a melodramatic accusation, laced with farcical insinuations of alcoholism - its pathetic. It’s almost amusing how we’re treated to the same tiresome script whenever alcohol is mentioned in passing on any thread. Cue the sanctimonious chorus: 'Oh, no booze on Saturday,' swiftly followed by the ever-predictable pearl-clutching proclamation, 'If you can’t go a day without booze, you have a problem.' Originality is a lost art, sanctimony though...

He thinks posting a FaceBook page with 240 or so comments from random Thai's most of which are complimentary to the compassion shown by the American, and a lot of comments which state that a Thai rider would have escaped the scene... and he thinks that this some how implies that a) there is some proof of fault and b) its evidence that the American owned up to fault. So intent is he on 'blaming a foreigner at all costs' he's become delusional and is unable to distingnusish commentary on social media from facts. There is nothing in any media source I've yet seen that highlights or proves any fault with either the American rider or the Thai pedestrian.

No you haven't... You've posted a Link to a Thai News Source which links to a FaceBook Page which is full of social commentary.... So... humour me... Can you post a Witness statement that highlight this accident was the Americans fault ? (the first responder comment you mentioned) Can you post the link where it shows the American accepted responsibility ? Post screen shots of the info or links if you are so confident of the content - otherwise your comments are exactly as I accused them of being, false information.

Your content hardly presents a critically balanced mind. Your comments have already betrayed your biased ideas that foreigners are always at fault. While the American 'could be at fault' there is no evidence or information which highlights that, other than Malcoms fabrications from a FaceBook thread. I might add, neither is there any evidence or information which highlights the lady was at fault.

Why would I thank you - you have not posted anything verifiable - you are taking social media content from facebook and quoting it as fact. Can you post a Witness statement that highlight this accident was the Americans fault ? (the first responder comment you mentioned) Can you post the link where it shows the American accepted responsibility ?

Of course they have... Now.. Are you going to post the Witness statement that highlight this accident was the Americans fault ? (the first responder comment you mentioned) Are you going to post the link where it shows the American accepted responsibility ? Oh... and I'm not name 'calling everyone' don't exaggerate - I'm just calling out the dumb comments of three posters, because, well, the comments are just a bit too trollish and false... Nothing so far points the finger at either the American or the Thai lady for being at fault. Any comment otherwise, until proven with facts, video evidence or a verified witness statement is pure conjecture.

No he has accepted responsibility. And good on him for doing it. Link ???... Or are you going to just quite what someone else wrote on a facebook page ? Without any such facts - as I've wrote all along - the fault could like with either party.