xylophone

Just a few years ago there were some tests done on vegetables available in supermarkets and other markets, and even those labelled "organic" were found to have unacceptable levels of pesticides on them – – in fact it was suggested that because the pesticide levels on the "organic" vegetables were high, that farmers were using the term "organic" as an excuse to be able to use more pesticides, because more people would buy them thinking they were organic and because they were more expensive, the farmers made more money!!! I actually posted about that and have never fallen for the "organic" ruse since.

I haven't been able to find it..........any suggestions please!

There is a great documentary on BBC iPlayer called "How the Holocaust Began" and as I've always been interested in that subject I decided to watch it, and was so pleased that I did. One of the reasons was that when I was in my teens and working in a factory in the UK, we had a German guy who was responsible for running the boilers, and I saw some footage of the concentration camps on TV and asked him how on earth this happened/how could they do this? His response was that the German people never knew these things were happening and therefore were powerless to stop it/them, however there were some critics at the time who laid waste to this argument, suggesting that with such a huge scale of events going on, someone must have noticed. This documentary puts paid the original argument and it is both disturbing and disgusting, and is well worth a watch IMO.

As you said earlier, a huge amount of deforestation happened centuries ago and nowadays New Zealand grows trees for export, so there will be an ebb and flow of statistics in that area. Getting back to the belch/fart tax, whilst we are at it, why don't we kill the cattle in other countries, along with the goats, sheep, giraffes, deer, gazelle, antelopes and wildebeest because they produce methane and nitrous oxide which are labelled "greenhouse gases". Then of course there are elephants, with each one producing enough methane to power a car for 32 km! In the US, dogs and cats produce about 64 million tonnes of methane and nitrous oxide per year, so we could also include those.........and the list goes on, so why don't we just focus on the big and important issues which often begin with an M; man, machines, manufacturing, mining, moving and stationary vehicles, and I'm sure people could think of many more, with fossil fuels probably heading up that list. As you say, the tax proposed by the Labour government was a nonsense and it was just Ardern and her government trying to "curry favour" with the lefties and leaders of other countries. Just imagine the outcry if it was suggested that the government taxed cats and dogs. Hmmm.

Well we will have to agree to disagree on this, and I'm not a climate change denier, just trying to get some perspective on it. I was really talking about the burp/fart tax, rather than the coalmining, and the argument about "per capita" does pale into insignificance when one considers that a small country in the bottom of the world really doesn't have a lot of impact upon climate change per se, and NZ doesn't have a lot of deforestation because there are huge tracts of land which are suitable for ruminants, so cutting down forests is not a major for NZ. Anyway, my main point is that we/the world/other countries could do something about the major contributors to climate change, whereas a burp/fart tax on New Zealand will have just about no impact whatsoever.

Yes I appreciate that, however I still go back to the fact that taxing farmers like that when there are only 4 million cows in New Zealand is not going to make one iota of difference. And I thought about this just yesterday when I was driving into Phuket town and following several vans and trucks belching out black smoke, and it sort of put things into perspective for me. Then look at the burning which takes place here and sometimes makes even breathing difficult, then glance across to the pollution in India and Indonesia, and little old New Zealand didn't really figure for me......(I am a Kiwi though!).

There were many years when all sorts of fertilisers were put on the soil to make the grass grow and feed the cattle/dairy industry, however a few years ago the farmers started to clean up their act and many have made big strides to do this, however it's not that simple, but it is being done. And if you really think about the greenhouse gas/burp tax you will realise that it's just for show because the Labour Party wanted to jump on that bandwagon – – if you sincerely believe they were serious then consider the following: – There are 302 million cows in India, 94 million cows in the US and 4 million+ in NZ, so do you really think that taxing the NZ farmers for their cattle belches and farts is going to make a difference in the grand scheme of things – – not a chance.

"[the new PM] must be hard-headed enough to face up to Labour’s powerful Māori caucus and take all New Zealanders into his confidence by sharing what’s in store with what is, in fact, a constitutional revolution. Right now the Government has alienated too many people with its parliamentary stealth tactics over Three Waters in particular. This is not what New Zealanders expected when Jacinda Ardern promised at the 2017 election that she would run an open and transparent government." That hits the nail on the head for me. It is simply a matter of honesty and trust, and no amount of hugs or smiles could ever make up for the failings of Jacinda and her Government in this regard.

I would have to agree with you there LL, as I've noticed the same thing, whereby the days of the fat, potbellied old farangs sitting at bars trying to chat up bar girls, seems long gone, although there are a few old mongers milling around the place, but nowhere near the numbers of the past. Having said that, if one ventures just outside of, say, Bangla, some of the above-mentioned old mongers can still be found propping up other bars like those in OTOP and similar in Nanai, so perhaps it's the crowds driving them away, or perhaps the cost of drinks for the girls or indeed just the noise, which is louder and more intrusive than I've ever experienced here before. There's definitely a younger crowd, and also more families, and I do know for a fact that some of these are Russians, probably escaping the Putin push into Ukraine. On the subject of loud music, it is one of the things which annoys the proverbial out of me, because if I go out to eat/enjoy a meal, or have a drink, the last thing I want is music drowning out the conversation. It was bad enough in the past, but now it's almost unbearable and unfortunately many places seem to want to compete with one another for the loudest music! And I had to laugh a couple of weeks ago when I saw something on Facebook with regards to one of the bars having an evening of partying with free food available, and it advertised itself as, "a great bar, with good music and........... ". In actuality the music from that particular bar is absolute rubbish and it's not only me saying that, but friends who have stopped off there for a drink don't stay longer than one drink, because the noise is awful and deafening. Bangla itself was "shoulder to shoulder crowded" on Saturday when I visited it, and it seemed as if there were many people who walked up or down for a look, but didn't frequent the bars that often?? I and a few friends visited a bar in Soi Sea Dragon and whilst we were having a drink, there was an incident going on in a little go-go bar just up from where we were sitting, complete with BIB, and although I can't be 100% sure of these "facts" it would appear that the farang who was slumped in a chair outside of this little bar had tried out some of the local "weed", and it really did have a "knockout" effect on him, and despite several Thai guys trying to revive him, in the end they ended up carrying him to the end of the Soi, and I am not sure what happened to him from thereon in! Although I enjoyed my evening out, it had been about two weeks since I last ventured out, and for quite some time now I have thought that, "I am over Bangla" because it holds nothing for me any more and I'm not a bar Monger, but would rather sit chatting to friends whilst/after eating a nice meal, which Bangla does not fulfil for me these days. I nearly didn't go out on that Saturday because of these thoughts, but I did want to catch up with a couple of mates, so I did go out, and strangely enough, I enjoyed it, and even though I wasn't going to stop at Red Hot, in the end I did and was joined by another friend and quite also enjoyed that part of the evening, so maybe I won't give Bangla away completely!!

Of course I can just avoid downloading HEVC files which is probably the most sensible solution. And that's exactly what I do, because my Sony Smart TV will not cater for these HEVC files (H265) and nor will VLC media player. I've also got a "Format Factory" app on which I convert movies in the MKV format to MP4, before sending to an old friend in Australia, because his TV has a problem with the MKV format (and he's not computer literate) however this won't convert H265 either! All the time there is the option for the non-H265 movies, then this is the course I shall follow.

As I like both Tom Hanks and Denzil Washington I decided to download and watch the movie "Philadelphia" again, and it was a little different than I remember it, so I'm glad that I watched it again as it did show the human side of suffering with regards to HIV. This reminded me of a movie I saw many years ago called, "And The Band Played On" which included Matthew Modine and Alan Alda, which was very good, if a little slow, and rather than dealing with the subject like the previous movie, this was about the US government's inaction in trying to deal with this "plague" as it was called then, and also about French and US scientists trying to find out exactly what was causing this "plague", and their disagreements over who actually found the virus. It also bought into the picture one of the supposed initial spreaders of HIV in the US, and how he blatantly ignored his symptoms and lesions and still frequented bathhouses throughout the US and overseas, easy, as he was a steward on an airline. Well worth a watch if you can find it, as is the series on iPlayer called, "Aids: The Unheard Tapes" and some of the revelations (lip-synched by actors) from the victims themselves are an eye-opener, especially the one about "fisting" – – absolutely nauseating/horrendous.

A man decided to start his own small private zoo and wanted a couple more animals to complete it, so he wrote to the local zoo and asked, "I'm starting a small private zoo and I need a couple of mongooses". He looked at what he'd written and thought it didn't look right, so he rewrote it thus, "I'm starting a small private zoo, can you please send me a couple of mongeese". That still didn't look right so he decided to go down this route, "I'm starting a small private zoo, can you please send me a mongoose". PS. Can you please send me another one.

Agree, and to quote an old American saying, "she was about as popular as a rattlesnake in a lucky dip", this especially with the Labour Party shenanigans and the proposed "methane tax" and the "3 waters" bill, not to mention the increased crime rate, and poor policing, and Labour U-turns of late, and the list goes on......good riddance to her and Labour.

Good luck with that PPN and I won't spoil the fun for you, but there is a little "trick" which they use as they are about to take out the catheter, but I'll let you find out about that tomorrow!! As for me, well, I have gotten used to sticking a catheter up the old fella every night before I go to bed, and the catheter is quite a bit smaller than the one you have inserted in you, so no big deal for me, believe it or not!

I watched the movie, "The Pale Blue Eye" the other evening at the recommendation of a friend, and found it okay, nothing to write home about, but passed an evening! It stars Christian Bale and Toby Jones, with a few other actors, one who plays Edgar Allen Poe and it does plod at times, but towards the end it becomes very interesting – – enough said.

I wish..........................!!!!!!! I can and do eat chillies raw and in dishes, but to no avail! Anyway, off topic, however I wish Pumpuynarak all the best with his endeavours and hope the op continues to be successful.

Well there must have been some Chinese coming into the country earlier than this pic, mainly because I've encountered them in a couple of shops/supermarkets and I was not over enamoured to see them here, mainly because I don't like the lower class ignorant ones and also because none of them were wearing masks!

In most supermarkets, as Sheryl has said, and I find that I need a fairly large cupful/mug full to make it work, and just occasionally I add some liquid sorbitol, which is very potent so you have to be careful with it (I buy that from Lazada at about hundred baht per bottle) – – always had a slow digestive system, so taking Metamucil and the like doesn't do much at all unfortunately!

Try a large cup of Prune Juice (Sunsweet) as it seems to work for me........mostly!!

Thanks for your feedback and I'm sure it will assist others considering undergoing this procedure. I had it done, but there were a few hiccups afterwards and I had to have a catheter for about three weeks, along with the associated bag strapped to my leg, which made a splashing sound whenever I walked, and I did a bit of it because I wanted to get out of the house! Natural to feel some pain and you will probably feel a little more after the catheter is removed, although it gets better after a short while. Good luck for the remainder of the time and please keep us informed of your progress. Well done on undergoing the procedure and for reporting back.

Ah, thanks for clearing that up because the trump you speak about must be a different one to this trump who is a disaster as a businessman!!!! TRUMP HAS FILED FOR SIX BUSINESS BANKRUPTCIES and has had many failed businesses:- The Trump Taj Mahal in 1991 Trump Castle Hotel & Casino in 1992 and Trump Plaza Casino 1992 Trump Plaza Hotel 1992 Trump Hotels and Casinos Resorts in 2004 Trump Entertainment Resorts in 2009 Not forgetting many other failed businesses….. Trumped!, Trump Steaks, Trump Network, GoTrump, Tour de Trump, Trump Airlines, Trump Vodka, The New Jersey Generals, Trump Mortgage, Trump: The Game, Trump Magazine, Trump Ice and not forgetting Trump University!! Surely this can't be the same trump that you "speak" of??????? LOL

I was going to say that Trump supporters have very short memories, but in this case it's a case of them having a total mental block with regards to the scams and grifts perpetrated by trump – – unbelievable, so here's a memory jogger for them: – Donald J. Trump Pays Court-Ordered $2 Million For Illegally Using Trump Foundation Funds Trump Ordered to Pay Eight Separate Charities $250,000 Each https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2019/donald-j-trump-pays-court-ordered-2-million-illegally-using-trump-foundation There is a long list that is easy to find online, but perhaps his supporters think they are "fake news"....only for the gullible. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/01/donald-trump-scandals/474726/ The guy is a liar and a crook, proven time and time again

I had dengue a few years ago and as you say the headache was unrelenting, despite taking large doses of paracetamol, however one of the most debilitating things for me was lower backache, which was the worst of the lot IMO.

And of course he is probably ordering burgers and cokes, like his predecessor, and that takes up time!!!!!!

"we know he's clean as a whistle" That has to be the laugh of the century, but no doubt these folk believe it – – absolutely unbelievable. Just where have these folks been hiding all these years??