rickudon

The hostages are Hamas's only trump card. Of course, they do not care about how many Palestinians die, but the longer the war goes on, the more support for Israel falls. And that's all they care about. Call the Hamas bluff, and see what they do; backpedal, and loose sympathy. or risk Israel keep on killing them (but get more sympathy). Meanwhile, the ethnic cleansing of the West bank continues (but very slowly).

Pesticides. When i was young, wheat fields where still full of poppies and other flowers. When we went for a drive in the car, windscreen and radiator grill covered in splattered bugs. Now you see none of these; in fact in gardens, insects these days just a few species, not many butterflies. Many bird, amphibian and reptile species declining. When we were growing up, few of these chemicals. Have some friends in rural France, farming region, similar age to us, they all still alive, half their children and grandchildren have died of cancer already.

Netanyahu has no real interest in seeing the hostages released, he would have no excuse for the daily massacres of Palestinians, the war keeps him in power.

Oh just to add, the 30 day thing was because some foreigners tried to game the system, by marrying a Thai, paying them off but never actually living with them. From a big country just west of Thailand, across the sea...

I have been doing marriage for 10 years in Udon Thani. Never refused, but sometimes they do not like a photo or once didn't like the discreency between bank book and bank letter. All easily resolved and no need to reapply. Never experienced surly officers except for once the new supervisor insisted on putting his oar in. Could tell the desk officers were not happy, he was gone by my next 90 day report. Just need to get your documents correct. Just one day a year. I do the 400,000 in the bank, because i do not want to send money every month (because not always in Thailand).

Forcing people to retire at 55 is madness these days. Apart from the hardened Lao Khao drinkers who have been day labourers most of their lives, and seldom make it past 60, many Thais these days live into their 80's. My M-in-L and F-in-L were both going strong until last year and were over 80. If not for the 2 daughters married to farangs there would be a crisis in the family; the other daughter is a teacher and married to another teacher, who are both reaching retiring age and still have debts and a worthless son who claims he is too sick to work (but still has 2 kids who have to be cared for); the only son of my FIL and MIL was not an academic and has a 100% disabled son, who requires 24 hour care - on a disability pension of 600 baht a month which does not even pay for the diapers he requires. Obvious who has to pay most of the utility bills and buy half the food - us farangs. The pitiful pensions and the debt problems make retirement a dismal prospect for most.

Their age? believed to take thousands of years to form.

I have only had my credit card cloned once, and that was in the UK 25 years ago when i bought a new car from a showroom! In Thailand, i only use my credit card to get cash from the bank or in Lotus or BigC, rarely anywhere else. Maybe online to buy flights (to get CC protection). I also keep a spare card in case the main one is compromised, because my UK bank will not send overseas, and last time i had it forwarded, never arrived (needed new card because old one expired).

And pregnant 2 months after i moved permanently to Thailand! No messing about there.

Wife has worked all the time i have known her, apart from about 3 years around the time our daughter was born; once she went to nursery, wife opened a shop, because she wanted too. Also has her mother and father to look after (especially the last year, both in their 80's), also house to look after and other domestic duties. What she does with her money is her concern, as long as the monthly housekeeping I give her isn't used up.

Me two her none. She was never married before, was 40 when she had our daughter., I was 59.

My wife was managing a restaurant/fishing pond when i first met her. What attracted her to me? 1. I came alone, no bar girl in tow. 2. I didn't smoke, only drank one beer. 3. Called her sister to come and talk to me, because i knew her sister's husband's friend (so probably a good guy). 4. Because her sister was happily married to a farang. 5. when I next went back (9 months later), SHE invited me out. 6. I suspect the pension and the thought of a fairer skinned, longer nosed kid also were in her calculations!

The photo doesn't show any evidence of law breaking. Looks like a peaceful protest not blocking much. Although i sympathise with what they are trying to achieve, law breaking, criminal damage and seriously inconveniencing other people is counter productive. The sentences do seem a bit harsh, if the authorities just want to make a point a one year sentence is sufficient. The M25 protests were OTT. Wave placards and hang posters from a motorway bridge would be quite sufficient.

The USA will probably become a Theocracy before Islam is the dominant religion in the UK. All those creationist nutters.

My ATM is greased with treacle. Works very slowly, only produces money on the third attempt, and often less than hoped for....

Jenny Agutter in Walkabout

Barramundi are native to the Thai coastal waters, so not an introduced foreign fish that will run amok. Probably the local populations have been near exterminated by overfishing/pollution. They are farmed in Thailand, hence easy to get the fish to stock the rivers/canals. Biggest problem will be the locals catching and eating them.... The Blackchin Tilapia is able to survive in polluted water and breeds very successfully, displacing other fish and aquatic fauna. As an introduced fish its natural predators/parasites are not present, giving it another advantage. They could be eaten, but do not grow very big (most under 15 cm). Probably could also use giant snakeheads to cull the tilapia, but hard to get 90,000 of them!

Before moving to Thailand, worked out my budget as 30,000 a month, which was slightly less than my pension income. Had savings. Unfortunately, exchange rate plummeted, wife got pregnant and wife's family business failed. What with unplanned events (repairs etc.) found i was spending 40,000 a month, more than pension. And then some major expenditures on the Thai house; could have done a Heath Robinson repair, but if it needs to be done, better to improve on what was already there. Scraped through to my state pension, and then was able to save (well not really, just save up to do those things you want, but couldn't previously afford). Good thing is 10 years later still only spend 40,000 baht a month, not including 'projects' about twice a year. Pension now 50% above the routine monthly expenditure. Main costs: Utility bills, 10,000 baht a month (big house, 5 people) Petrol, 2,000 baht a month (mainly school runs, shopping) Food 15,000 a month Annual things: School fees/other school costs 45,000 baht a year car insurance /service/ tax 12,000 baht a year Health - PAYG - 30,000 baht a year Annual trip to see children in UK - 50,000 baht (not part of monthly). How anyone would want to live on 15,000 baht a month lifestyle i do not know, especially with a family, it must be very boring. I know Thais do it, but they have to do without many things we take for granted.

Yes, Hampshire. but not even a posh area. In London, that buys you a room in a shared house/flat - if you are lucky.

On.a 1500 GBP total pension income, life in the UK would be tough. Rent, council tax, home insurance and monthly bills (electric, gas, water, internet etc.) Would easily use all that up, let alone running.a car and buying food. Would be living in some substandard accomodatiom, afraid to heat it because of the bills, and living on beans on toast. Is that life? In Thailand, save enough to enhance property every 2 years, have 2 ponds for fishing and land to grow food if i want. Only downsides are too hot most of the time and potential healthcare issues. Oh, and a wife 20 years younger!

And no one would read tbe Daily Telegraph, Express or Mail unless they were Tory sheeple.

I was trying to plug a light extension lead into a a plug on an extension lead and it was hard to push in. I grabbed hold of the extension plug hard and got an electric shock from a screw holding it together, Numbed my whole forearm. All because the shop i went to didn't have the extension plug i wanted. At our house we have about 5 manufactured extension leads with multiple plug points where at least one plug socket has melted and another that no longer works! Always now very careful to only turn on AFTER connecting everything up. In the UK, only ever had this happen once in 50 years.

As said, get your visa before you come, or in Laos, and then extend later an on subsequent years in Thailand. Yes, i had a hassle trying to open a new account in Thailand, had one already but wanted a better account - took me 5 attempts and one and half hours to do the paperwork when they did agree (they also throw hurdles in your path). Keep trying. If you want/need to do the 400,000/800,000 in a Thai bank, rather than on monthly income, and you do not have enough cash - borrow it in the UK, repay over 7 years, not that expensive - that is what i did when they stopped accepting Embassy income letters for extensions. Finally, if you are going to be living in Thailand, make sure you have enough money..... are you going to work (if you do not have a job lined up, do not count on it)? Do you have enough pension? You said you do not have much cash. What with exchange rate calculations and contingencies, you need 50% more than you calculate you need. Otherwise you WILL end up broke.

As quite a few have said - housing is the big cost in our home countries. In the UK, renting a one bedroom flat anywhere in the south will cost you near 1,000 GBP a month (or more). But ... you also have Council Tax, house insurance, TV licence, Internet as well as Utility bills. So actual 'housing' costs are actually around 1250 GBP and up. This would represent around about 80% of my pension. Running a car also expensive - 50-100 GBP a month on top. Other transport costs also high. I suppose if i was still in the UK i could still afford Tesco value baked beans on toast 3 times a day, but that would be it. In Thailand my living costs are about one third of the UK. Negatives - yes foreign food is more expensive, but you can find substitutes - if you keep looking can find many items at similar costs to UK - Jam - i make my own, frozen strawberries and sugar are cheap, i make 4 jars for about the same price as one jar of imported stuff and tastes better too. Wife makes good burgers patties, just hard to find good buns. Even found Muesli at 150 baht a kilo. The big negatives are the heat and humidity, somewhat counterbalancing the cold in the UK; and the big elephant in the room, Healthcare. Is Thailand perfect - far from it, but where is. And the 20 year younger wife a bonus too.

She had a daughter. Next trip back 9 months later a Yank had already snapped her up and she had gone to the USA.