khunjeff

Have you ever been to a prison here? Conversations between inmates and their visitors are routinely monitored. The fact that the inmate was "temporarily" being held in another facility wouldn't change that.

If universities can't sell degrees to unqualified students, how on earth will ministers and MPs get the qualifications that they need?? 😂

The company should certainly be punished, but why is this something that a cabinet minister has to deal with personally? These are driverless trains, and I've never seen "officers" on board, other than when they're going a few stops to another station. Was this just an employee who happened to be on the train, or actually someone assigned to be there?

You're talking about managing and controlling airspace, not defining it. Here is what was written in the article: "In an ambitious stride toward redefining Thailand's airspace, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has pledged to overhaul the nation’s airports" The PM is not, in fact, "redefining Thailand's airspace" in any way. "Redefining" what constitutes Thai airspace would be a matter for international discussion, but that isn't happening here - the PM is talking about improving airports and aviation oversight. The writer just chose an incorrect term to describe his goals.

I didn't have it with me - their question was a total surprise - and they were satisfied with my statement that I had used an Embassy letter for my extension. (Obviously such a statement wouldn't fly now, since the US Embassy no longer issues income letters, and they could see that I had an American passport.) In fact, since I had always used the Embassy letter method up until that point, I had never bothered to open a bank account, so my account was only a month old at the time I went in for the stamp transfer. I don't think I had even transferred the 800k at that point, so my account probably only had a few thousand baht in it!

The "loss" is a completely invented number. It seems to pretend that people would have bought the same stuff they purchased at duty free stores at regular stores instead (false), and would have paid an additional 100% in additional taxes on those purchases by buying outside (also false).

Thailand's airspace is defined by international law - I think the writer may wish to consult a dictionary to find a different word.

Glad to see that law enforcement has its priorities straight, as always 🙄 And just so I understand this, the guy never even removed his shorts...?

Duty free sells booze 24/7/365 already, and lounges also never stop pouring (though some have their own policies on when and what to serve). I assume this is about the 7-11 and other landside outlets, but I thought those were already exempt from selling restrictions - or perhaps their exemption doesn't include religious days? I have no idea. In any case, this guy's objections are pretty bizarre. People waiting to board airplanes aren't driving, and can drink once they're on board anyway. And the railroad alcohol restriction has never made sense - the poor girl was murdered by a homicidal railway employee, not a drunk passenger. And by the way, a single hardcore anti-alcohol campaigner does not constitute "growing criticism".

At CW ? Yes.

So they're getting ready to start registration for a program that hasn't been approved yet, and will spend funds that haven't been budgeted yet? Got it.

So the headline is wrong, and she was not "found hiding in Thailand" at all. Odd behavior - a fugitive from justice seeks services from the embassy of the country where her crimes were committed? So what happened to her there?

They asked for that when I went there to transfer stamps more than four years ago, so it isn't new - but they still haven't bothered to post the requirement online. I was quite confused when it happened, and said "I'm here to transfer stamps, not for an extension". They said yes, yes, we need to check if your balance is still in order. I told them I had used an Embassy letter rather than a bank deposit for my last extension - which happened to be true! - and they just said "oh, ok then" and waved me on.

I thought that international airports had been exempt from alcohol sales regulations for many years - they certainly don't have to follow the restrictions on selling hours.

The numbers in the article are obviously wrong, though it's unclear whether the speakers gave bad data or (more likely) the statistics were reported incorrectly. - This is (yet another) celebration of the glories of AOT, so the headline number actually represents passengers handled, including arrivals, departures, and transit passengers. This is of interest to the company, but has only an indirect relationship to international tourist arrivals. - The alleged statement that "32.05 million of these passengers were international arrivals" is obviously wrong, and is probably misreporting some different statement - though who knows. - The line that "48.95 million were international travelers, and 32.09 million were domestic passengers" is again referring to total passenger movements, and appears to be referring to the type of flight they were on, not their nationality. - It's irritating that we consistently see figures for AOT airports and DOA airports reported separately, but usually vaguely referred to as statistics for "Thailand". Company metrics and national ones are not the same, even though the great majority of passengers are handled by AOT. - If AOT spent half as much time actually improving the airports under its control as it does promoting itself, Suvarnabhumi wouldn't have fallen so far in world rankings.

These vehicles were repossessed for non-payment of loans, not seized in drug raids - so why is ONCB involved? 🤔

We seem to get exactly the same responses to every news item about duty free sales. 1) "I've never seen duty free stores on arrival": then a visit to the eye doctor might be in order, since there are shops literally flanking the entrances to the immigration hall, and at least five more in the baggage hall. They're brightly lit and pretty hard to miss! 2) "Prices are cheaper at regular stores": if you're looking at local products, which aren't subject to import duty, then yes, they will always be cheaper outside (and these usually aren't sold on arrival). Prices at King Power are far higher than they should be, but for high tax items (alcohol, tobacco, cosmetics, and luxury goods), the duty free stores are indeed usually cheaper, though sometimes not by much. Many people are confused by the fact that the price on a bottle of liquor is the same as outside, but don't notice that the duty free bottle is 1000ml and the one in town is 700ml. Look at the Thai girls buying cosmetics or perfume at duty free, and you can be sure that they carefully researched the prices downtown before deciding to make their purchases at the airport. 3) "No one buys duty free on arrival": the 3 billion baht worth of goods that were sold in the shops in the arrival area would seem to challenge this belief! That having been said, this is obviously a stupid idea. The idea that purchases are completely fungible, and that a person who can't buy duty free will instead spend that money in a shop downtown, is patently ridiculous. I only buy a bottle of booze on arrival because the price is good; I will not buy the same bottle outside at a higher price, and I certainly won't buy a bottle of Hong Thong at 7-11 to replace the Glenlivet that I wasn't able to get at the airport. Even the government seemed to recognize this when they first floated this idea last year, and said that closing the arrival duty free would be combined with a lowering of alcohol taxes to encourage more buying from regular shops. What happened to that tax reduction? "a reduction in beverage taxes will incentivise tourists to purchase beverages locally, contributing to the circulation of money within the economy. With an appropriate tax structure for beverages, Thai citizens will find it more affordable to buy beverages domestically," said Finance Ministry permanent secretary Lavaron Sangsnit." https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/policies/40033367

Are we doomed to live through this pearl clutching over alcohol sales hours again and again, like Groundhog Day?? This is from less than six months ago: "Thai Restaurant operators are asking the Thai government to unlock alcohol sale hours and end periods of sales being restricted, especially from 2PM to 5PM in the afternoons." And this is from less than two weeks ago: "The Government of Thailand dashed hopes of extended alcohol sales hours, citing alarming statistics on road casualties and accidents. Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin announced the decision following a tense panel meeting at the ministry on Tuesday, asserting that public safety must take precedence." https://thethaiger.com/news/national/government-slam-brakes-on-extended-hours-for-alcohol-sales

And represents false precision in a poll whose margin of error is at least 2%, and probably higher. Scientific polling can tell us a lot about trends and opinions in a population, but it isn't meant or designed to provide the level of exactitude that pollsters here try to assign to it.

I wish they would stop reporting these poll results to the second decimal place. With 2,000 people in the survey, .01% is equal to 1/5 of a person...

Was this one of the online gambling rings run by police? Or are those taking a breather now while the large joker works out his difficulties?

And did they interview the women to determine whether they were trafficking victims? Or offer protection? No, just arrest and jail - and that's one of the reasons that Thailand is still on Tier 2 for Trafficking in Persons.

So...44 advisers let go for taking bribes, but no mention of investigations, arrests, trials, or punishments. A "bold move" indeed 🙄

Police officer, MP, and cabinet minister - and involved in three murders. The mind boggles.

Good question, and we don't know.