richard_smith237

7 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

The french guy seems really annoying….if someone started filming me like that, I would take it upon myself to administer justice in the way I sought fit. This may include a broken phone or a broken nose for the offending party, or maybe both.

As I see it, this is the issue...  You can't respond to some 'annoying, whiney, whinging little weasel' at all... they will just bring you down to their level and play the victim. Any physical response will surely result in this sort of character crying foul and you on the wrong end of legal proceedings...  

In this situation, its already too late, you've entered the line with 14 items !!!!... you've make the mistake. Perhaps right response is complete and total ignorance of their presence... you don't acknowledge them, you don't hear them, you don't see them...

You may want to smash in their face, but they want that confrontation too... they want to win, to win at all costs no matter what scene they make, no matter how petty.... make no mistake, these people are not 'fighting for our rights'... they are not trying to make the world a better place, they are not protesting against minor injustices... they are simply irritating petty little weasels.

3 minutes ago, sensortec said:

9 Mio US $ he owns and walk by him self in a cheap charly supermarket ? Is that the american way of life ?  Pattaya do not need such F*** You Guys with no respect !

 

You mean if you had US$9m would you only go into designer stores?

The money is earnings over the past 30 years BTW - so I'm guessing he has significantly less.

That said, it is irrelevant how much money he has, where he chooses to spend it and whether or not he chooses to shop at the same place the rest of us do. 

Your point seems quite irrelevant. But, I also agree, its not just Pattaya, but the world doesn't need people who can react so strongly, but neither does the world need the irritating little weasels who make such a significant deal out of something so minor.

Wow... This guy has got himself into a right old silly mess... He's right of course, but he comes across as if he's totally lost it.

In fairness, we've all come across the 'self righteous, arrogant, wanna punch them straight in the nose' type of foreigner here who gets in everyones business and makes a big deal out of the most minor of issues - Lots of people have probably wanted to tell this French guy to go forth and multiply.

However, the fact remains that this wacky American guy was out in public stretching regulations which exist for the benefit of everyone, his response was wrong, but nonetheless understandable if an annoying guy was being petty and pushing his buttons.

After all, who hasn't gone through the 10 items or less line and stretched it a little... 12, 13, 14 items. As this videos explains, it really is no big deal, its hardly the crime of the century. And who hasn't been in the 10 items or less line, seen someone in front of them with 12, 13, 14 items and thought 'well its hardly worth making a big deal about it' ?

The American clearly over reacted to having his buttons pushed, but some guys have a special skill at getting up peoples noses, I apologise for the generalisation, but the French can excel at this skill. 

An now Geoffrey Giuliano's buttons have been pushed further, an international news story over this issue... what ? its just ridiculous, the world has gone mad, upside down, inside out - when this is a major story there is a great deal of idiocy at play - In retrospect, emotion aside, the comments of the American Actor / Writer are quite right... 

Beyond the fact this this has become an International story, the only issue we as the public could take with this news is not the point that Geoffrey Giuliano made, which is quite valid, but in his delivery, which, lets face it comes across as somewhat of an agitated retaliation and not that of someone who has thought this out carefully - Yes, he's upset, but who wouldn't be?

19 minutes ago, Dave67 said:

I think it realism rather than Negativity

 

"Good place to start a business"

We can all see the wreckage of what happened in 97, German company holding a Thai plane so Thais pay the money they were deemed to owe from arbitration, Corruption, Military Junta, No sign of real democracy.Possibility of protest and street violence between army and protesters, change government, another Military  coup, and round and round and round we go, no stability at all, in fact, I wouldn't open a bar let alone invest millions

Retail

Food, I'll give than one

Other, The possibility of buying snide, shoes, trainers, T shirts, shirts, watches, diamonds and every thing else.

Creativity

I wikied this

Stem cell amniotic Fluid, I think the mean they discovered it in Thailand after it was discovered somewhere else

Embola Antibodies (Basically a blood test taken from someone with Ebola)

The most significant thing after that is the creation of Red Bull. After that, it's Tuk-Tuks and Thai boxing

 

 

 

I agree with much of your Intelligent and balanced input where others would take any opportunity to 'bash' when the thread commences on a positive note.... 

I agree with realism and many of Thailands Criticism are realistic and balanced observations, however, other points often made by some are simply bias and unbalanced opportunities to spout negativity.

Brandishes a deadly weapon, receives an ineffective fine on a charge which is less than a girl who gets her norks out on Facebook... and to top it off is permitted to continue working in the public arena...

The BiB are so ineffective at protecting the public and preventing future issues - its astonishing to anyone with any intellect how lazy and careless those who make these decisions are.

18 hours ago, Foozool said:

You never know ? There could be a 2nd car that caused the crash. ? 

I have seen a real psycho who was driving a long mobile home with powered engin and loved to race with cars that were going to pass by and get cars stuck on opposite lane Close to the Grand Canyon, Arizona. 

There are other kind of psychos out there as well. 

In Thailand reckless drivers are either stupid or drunk, but in the US they are sick or psychos mostly. 

There is nothing better than a healthy balanced and unbiased opinion.... 

9 minutes ago, transam said:

I can remember those great days when you walked into an English pub full of smoke and beer essence...Sadly gone now...

Indeed, I can remember the overwhelming stink of smoke when getting home....

....In pubs now all you can smell now is 'Old Mens Farts and Cheap Perfume'.....  

I think the Solution: Ban Smoking indoors, but also ban people from guffing and ban women from bathing in Eau de teargas....

Seriously though guys... stop farting so much !!!...  oh, and the smoking ban indoors really is a huge improvement.

More on topic: There is only one bar / restaurant in Bangkok I know of which does not adhere to the ban and its still quite Popular. 

This is an example of a guy clearly in the wrong job... His ego is empowered by a uniform, he is a bully and an impatient pr£$k, he had no right to use force he is an embarrassment to a force which clearly needs to look at itself.

US Police come across as the Gestapo, they have a tough job to do, but they need to be 'better' than those for whom they are keeping the peace.

In instances such as this it is clear that the 'them vs us' mentality (as mentioned in a post above) is prevalent and the supportive element is missing... no wonder some call the Police such derogatory names when they behave like this. 

Force is a part of the Job, it should continue to be allowed to be part of the job, but fools such as this most definitely should be held accountable for their inhumanity and failure to act professionally. 

I love it when there is a positive article about Thailand and 'some' posters are tripping over themselves to respond with something negative... 

I for one think Bangkok is an excellent city for foreigners to be in...  

Price wise, diversity, amazing range and diversity restaurants at a good price, cost of getting around, the way we are treated (IMO very positively, or with the same indifference Thai's treat each other).

Plenty to do for small kids (play areas etc), good international schools, ease of traveling to other amazing south east asian countries... beaches etc... 

The only negatives are the Traffic, cost of imported luxuries (wine & cheese) and cost of decent beer... the heat can be oppressive and Safety is a major issue for me (as a father).

In Balance when compared to many other international cities Bangkok offers' the best bang for the buck. When compared to other cities in Thailand it simply has more to offer someone in their 40's with a family.... 

I was a member of Spotify Premium for GBP£9.99 per month (430 baht)...

I only ever used it when in my car, it connects up to the connected drive and an I can control it through the car console. However, I ended up cancelling it as I figured I wasn't using it enough. 

Now, in Thailand its 129 baht per month (GBP£3.00) so I've changed the location on the APP and signed up for Premium again (no adverts, can jump tracks etc).

At less than 1/3rd of the price, its far better value here than in the UK (same with Netflix although Netflix in the UK has more up to date content). I'm assuming that the Spotify library here in Thailand will not be as up to date and we may have to wait a little longer for new releases, which is of no major concern really.

So many photos of accidents here in Thailand leave me thinking... 'how on earth is that even possible?'...  the precarious positions that some of these vehicles end up in is astonishing !

It takes a special kind of skill to <deleted> up so perfectly !!!!

You make an entirely valid point... 

Differences of opinion are an important aspect of life and when discussed respectfully these differences help us understand one another. 

It is when someone is unable to accept these differences and their lack of intellect plays an important role in their failure to respect these differences and instead try to 'win'... their arguments often become moronic and the flame wars and personal insults begin.

Sometimes these flames wars are amusing, but many times they consume an interesting thread, some guys perhaps get a kick out of ruining things for others.

Apologies in advance - this IS a Thai Bash... 

In a society which so obviously lacks spatial awareness and basic observation skills observed in other countries it astounds me that U-Turns have not been abolished. 

One of the major reasons for the high accident rates in Thailand is the galactically idiotic road design in many areas.... Basic common sense can identify danger spots and readily correct them before accidents occur rather than later. However, I have plenty of Thai friends and they all have a great deal of common sense, which only lends me to the conclusion that those in positions of decision making power to make these adjustments, improve road design and make the roads safer simply do not care one little bit.... 

In its simplest terms; as a nation Thailands apathy kills in scores... 

Tried to get a Taxi for my Visiting Family last night...  First one wanted 250 baht, second one accepted the ride, my family got in, the driver then refused to put the meter on, I was still holding the door open... 

I asked the driver a second time to put the meter on, he told me to close the door first !!!!

I got my family out of that taxi and called GRAB, which I should have done from the onset..

<deleted> taxi's... they have a way of nearly ruining a good evening... 

We were taxi'ing around a lot yesterday, we did use one taxi which had no rear seat-belts...

They were honest though, no meter issues, the taxi's were queueing in front of Policeman at the end of KS rd !... 

It astonishes me that the drivers in so many of these 'dumb accidents' are not breathalysed.

Actually, no, it doesn't... Pure apathy from the BiB... absolutely laziness and an unwillingness to do anything other than extract a few baht from poor people on motorcycles... 

29 minutes ago, siam2007 said:

As I am now mostly using Grab and Uber, it felt like a "back to the stone age" when I had to use a regular Cab (even a Grab-Taxi, ordered by a Grab counter at a BKK hospital).

The driver was so unprofessional and the distance on the Meter already read 1.2 km and 39 Baht when we started the ride. he said "Rot dtit maak maak" when I questioned him in Thai, I did not continue to argue as I was just glad I got a ride to where I needed to go.

I had MANY unpleasant and scary rides in the past ten years originating from Swampy, with several drivers clearly under the influence of amphetamines or almost falling asleep

Indeed, the APPS such as UBER & GRAB have revolutionized Taxi's in Bangkok. The readily available report function, dual accountability (for driver and passenger) has made taking a taxi safer for both driver and passengers.... a win win... 

I use UBER & GRAB whenever possible, which of course is not always - its about 10% of the time now that I get a dodgy regular Taxi, but the majority of regular Taxi experiences still feel under serviced compared to UBER. 

1 hour ago, rodpav said:

 

Problem is most taxis dont have seat belts in the back, whenever i get into a taxi i check if seatbelts are good if not i get into another, no way will i not be belted in travelling around thailand.

That certainly used to be the case... however, as of the past 6 months I've found that the majority of Taxi's in Bangkok have fully functioning seatbelt in the rear seats. 

This, I believe, is in response to some harsh but not widely publicized penalties  for those Taxi's caught without functioning seatbelts in the rear. 

It surprised me that this is one 'crack down' which had any effect at all.

9 minutes ago, GOLDBUGGY said:

Travelled once from Poland to Helsinki and after about 4 hour stop over went on to Bangkok. I recall the price was good, but the trip felt like the longest non stop trip in my life. About 17 hurs comes to mind, but I forget if this was the total flights. But I swore I would never do that again. 

I have tried Finn Air... Bangkok - Helsinki - London 

The flight duration on the long leg... Bangkok - Helsinki was about 10 hrs (less I think)...  and about 3 hrs from Helsinki to London...  At the time there were some excellent business class promotions.

I recall the flights were early... meaning we had to get up early and were already knackered before the day time flights took off (both out going and return). 

A 40 minute lay over in Helskini kept total travel time down... 

The most comfortable option for Economy Class with 1 stop.

Without any doubt: Emirates A380

With a stop-off and over-night inside the Airport Hotel, Aerotel which is air-side so no need to exit the airport or pass Immigration etc... (baggage goes all the way though to final destination).

I fly BKK to Dubai in the afternoon / early evening.. Stop off for 12 hrs, get 8 hrs sleep at the Airport Hotel, grab a cup of coffee and breakfast, board your flight to the UK stress free and refreshed. The same works well in return. 

Been doing it for years, works well with and without kids... even better with kids though, when they sleep on a flight I don't, so I'm tired when they are alert. When then sleep at night in a hotel, so do my Wife and I... makes traveling easy, simple, worry and hassle free... 

For your purposes OP: It would be worth looking at Whether or not Qatar have an Airport hotel (airside) and if you can spend 8 hours or so there and time your flights accordingly, alternatively there is a Airside hotel in Abu Dhabi (Etihad), and, as I mentioned above, so does Dubai (Emirates).

The stop off may be considered by some a time waster, especially for those who simply want to 'get to their destination' howerer, I have found that it makes the journey so easy that fatigue and jet lag are greatly reduced.

1 hour ago, lovelomsak said:

Maybe she was abducted . Big brother then told to keep quiet. I think we have seen the last of her. Rumours and conjecture will keep going but we will never see her again. She is gone and there is no one to blame. No body no death.If she reappears I will apologize to every one in this forum for this post until then  my post has credibility.

link: 1.mp4 very grainy video supposedly of Yingluck meeting her brother at a private airfield, somewhere allegedly in the UK...  (refuelling issues must have been resolved if true)...

This may all be speculation, false information, old photos etc... but this is whats circulating on Thai message groups... 

Can anyone think of any logical reason why Motocycles cannot use the tunnel ?

The road has an 80kmh speed limit, a speed which any motorcycle and readily achieve... I just don't understand why motorcycles of any type would be prevented from passing through the tunnel.

Some of these road regulations seem to exists simply because they exist elsewhere... 

... 'The Five Monkeys in a Cage' scenario...

... The most damaging phrase "Its always been done like that" which kneecaps any intelligent logic or argument... 

27 minutes ago, selavy59 said:

I did the same with my son. No proof of consent required. Good luck.

Do not give the Op incorrect information. 

A minor traveling with one parent is supposed to have notarized permission of the other parent.

It is not uncommon for the Immigration Officers to request such documentation although there are many examples otherwise. If you do not have this documentation you are simply 'taking a chance'.

When I travelled alone with my Son - I had a Parental Consent document signed by my Wife and a signed copy of her passport with a comment from her permitting travel, I also asked her to wait at the airport until we were through immigration just incase we faced any difficulty as I did not have time to have the Parental consent document notarized by the local Amphur. We passed immigration without any questions, nevertheless I was prepared as best as possible for the eventuality of immigration questioning me as a single parent traveling with a child. 

No proof was requested when I travelled with my 3 year old Son recently. However, permission was requested of a friend traveling alone with his daughter last year - he had no such documentation but a phone call to his Wife sufficed. 

It would avoid any potential hassles to have a 'Parental Consent Document', in Thai signed by your ex Wife and yourself notarized by your local Amphur Office - This is the single solution to avoid any hassles with certainty. 

-----------

Not specifically in response to the Op who has indicated he will return as he has a new Wife and Child on the way... this discussion may be useful for others reading.

As your daughter at 10 years old is still a dependent if you showed intention to remain in the UK any future custody case (if custody is not already awarded) could be impacted. It would be good to read up on the Hague Convention and Parental Kidnapping. 

I may be mistaken here, but as I understand it: While Thailand is a signatory of the Hague Convention it does not recognize Parental Kidnapping, however, your reputation would be damaged in the eyes of a court in the event of a custody battle. 

Someone could see how much you have just withdrawn....  then mug you. 

Someone could see how much is in your account... then mug you.

The information displayed on the receipt 'could' be the deciding factor.

1 minute ago, BangkokReady said:

Exactly what I thought when I saw the headline.

 

I wonder if Thais understand the irony. (Or would they instead say "copying is wrong, a Thai would never do this".)

Might some of you you be defending outright 'Image Theft' in this case because 'Thai's infringe on Copyright' ???... 

A somewhat juvenile response. Yes, Thai's have atrocious record of infringing on Intellectual Property rights, however, this mans work was stollen, because the Moral Compass with regards to IP rights in Thailand is highly distorted it doesn't make it acceptable.

This 'they don't like it when it happens to them' approach is retarded....