NOC

Ummm, ground control to space cadet. Come in space cadet....

Pay the teachers well, get rid of the visa problems, create a culture where people want to help you.

Cut the tree down.

Plant a new tree.

You can obtain a double entry tourist visa in a neighbouring country.

Vientiane in Laos is usually the best place to do so.

You will need to stay overnight in Laos to pick up your passport the following day after you submit your application.

1000 baht per entry.

Also you will need to obtain a visa on arrival in Laos,many people tend to use Nong Khai as opposed to flying to minimise the cost.

He wants Savanakhet, not Vientiane. Savanakhet is much easier.

Please import the wine, at reasonable prices, but please do not export the attitude...

There are just as many reasons as there are people. You want common reasons as to why people live here and slag off Thailand.

I suspect one common reason people complain is due to the fact that they may not of understood Thailand before they arrived, since Thailand is so good at packaging.... controlling the press releases... Maintaining an image, now matter how far removed from reality... _________________________ (insert common reason here)

Once they've arrived and the haze is off, reality sinks in, and they begin to do the love/hate thing until they get fed up w/ the place.

If fact if you look at the myriad of blog posts and articles, over the years, about long term expats who gave up on Thailand, they all have a common thread.

They get tired of the culture, scams, lies, ever changing rules, racism, xenophobia.

Reasonable people are going to get tired of this anywhere they go.

You have some valid points of view.

My question was why do they stay here?

Thanks.

Your post raises some good debatable questions.

In general, people move toward pleasure and away from pain.

Specifically, I think the reason why they stay is that they, unbeknownst to them, are stuck in the love/hate/pleasure/pain conundrum.

When they, or for some, if they, ever have a moment of clarity, they (may) realize they hate more days here than they love.

When you hate more days than you love, it's time to go.

The hookers are going to raise their prices again?

No, definitely not in the near future.

The recent price increases have yet contributed to a marked slowdown in demand.

The supply side has increased slightly again and meets here on a fairly slightly declining demand.

In such market conditions, the scope for price increases is here quite limited.

The only way out is here for the operators to offer better product quality or to try on customer loyalty instruments to enhance the total return.

Correct me if I'm wrong. These number things always seem to get me.

So, the recent supply-side increase combined with a reduction in market demand, has led to a stagnation?

To stimulate growth, retailers should offer either a GF experience or two pops? Did I get that correct?

I'm giving it a 1 on the troll finger scale.

The hookers are going to raise their prices again?

Move. You pissed off the security, or someone where you live. Either that, or buy rims that take tubeless tires,

I admit, I have a strange way to compare countries but I compare the metro. I once took the dirty full of graffiti metro in Paris, dominated by gangs scaring and ripping off other passengers. Same in London, less in Moskou ( probably the most beautiful one in the world). In Bangkok the metro is clean, the people friendly, never felt a threat whatsoever. Sure things are not perfect and yes there are many things to criticize but for me the Thai scale still tips to the positive side.

The gangs are there, the threats are there, you just don't have the knowledge to see them.

Many foreigners have a false sense of security in Thailand, but the houses all have bars on the windows, and the younger women never go out alone at night.

Statistically,

You are 20x more likely to die on a trip to Thailand, than a trip to Europe.

A false sense of security? I live in Thailand permanently since 1998. If you leave the (deleted) agressive behavior behind from wherever you come things are just fine.

TGF and fam live in the country. Nice folk. Go to the temple, hep the poor, run businesses, and have guns. TGF has a fit when I go out at night alone.

This?

or this?

Yeah right mate. Most on here are shacked up with a bird in Nakon Nowhere and many others can't move from a bar stool to truly spend time on a beautiful idyllic beach.

Many of these and those who are back in Farangistan through a failed crack at life here or insufficient funds will be the ones slagging off the country.

Really? I live outside of BKK, used to live on the beach in SF, have had two successful businesses, retired at 48

Send it to me, and I promise you'll here your prayer on the radio!

There are just as many reasons as there are people. You want common reasons as to why people live here and slag off Thailand.

I suspect one common reason people complain is due to the fact that they may not of understood Thailand before they arrived, since Thailand is so good at packaging.... controlling the press releases... Maintaining an image, now matter how far removed from reality... _________________________ (insert common reason here)

Once they've arrived and the haze is off, reality sinks in, and they begin to do the love/hate thing until they get fed up w/ the place.

If fact if you look at the myriad of blog posts and articles, over the years, about long term expats who gave up on Thailand, they all have a common thread.

They get tired of the culture, scams, lies, ever changing rules, racism, xenophobia.

Reasonable people are going to get tired of this anywhere they go.

Smart cities? They're going to genetically modify the gene pool?

Run. Forest. Run.

Not for long.

Thailand could learn a lot from Sing.

"Computer Crime Act and Article 112 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum five-year imprisonment"

It looks like the "Article 112" part of the alleged offence is deemed minimal, as LM can easily get you 15 or more years. The CCA part I can not judge without more details.

Note that also in the Western world (and Australia) more and more one cannot just post whatever comes to ones mind.

You can post whatever you want in the western world.

This story is about the assbackward CCA laws of Thailand.

There are two young men in prison in the UK due to their social media posts, both calling on others to riot, which they did, nonetheless it is their posts that earned them 4 years inside.

Just as I suspected. They tried to instigate violence. Can't say definitively, but you'll have that law in most civilized countries.

The four years was a bit much. I'd a made them stand on the corner every weekend for a year wearing a stupid sign that said; We're emotionally depraved and stupid. We tried to do something to hurt innocent people. Would you hire me?

Call this dentist 082 527 7473

She's on petchaburi near ramkamhaeng.

Speaks English well, many foreigner clients.

Cleaning was 500 baht, whitening was 4000 baht

I watch movies here for free. No downloads, cc's, emails.

http://viooz.ac/

http://www.instructables.com/id/Raspberry-Pi-as-low-cost-HD-surveillance-camera/

https://www.raspberrypi.org/products/camera-module/

"Computer Crime Act and Article 112 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum five-year imprisonment"

It looks like the "Article 112" part of the alleged offence is deemed minimal, as LM can easily get you 15 or more years. The CCA part I can not judge without more details.

Note that also in the Western world (and Australia) more and more one cannot just post whatever comes to ones mind.

You can post whatever you want in the western world.

This story is about the assbackward CCA laws of Thailand.

There are two young men in prison in the UK due to their social media posts, both calling on others to riot, which they did, nonetheless it is their posts that earned them 4 years inside.

Link please

They probably said something to instigate violence.

If possible, I'd suggest renting from a falang landlord who speaks the same language as you do.

I have been renting for 6 years now from the same landlord. No security deposit, he trusts me to look after the unit and pay my rent in time. I trust him to fix maintenance problems as they occur. No written contract, a gentleman's agreement. Probably rare in Thailand. Maybe I was just lucky.

I'm in the same sitch. Family house. Cheap rent. Can do what I want to it, w/in reason. What people should look for!

Yes, he originally he Piryathorn because he is blue blooded as they come and the go to man who is a complete numpty.

Massive massive error.

Now they have Somkid who is rolling out precisely the same ideas he had before. Situation is completely different than it was I'm trt time. Somkids policies are not some wonderful new discovery.

They have been used and accepted the world over for rural development. Of course thailand now owns them as thaksinomics or blatant populism depending on your politics.

Whilst Thailand continues to try and reinvent the wheels, the world is turning and people are innovating all over the world without having to ask permission from a pooyai. Thailand is neither exceptional or unique.

People are people, u just need to understand by which rules they are playing the game...

Yes, from the OP, "Gen. Prayuth seems finally to have realized these mistakes, and that the economy is his government’s Achilles’ heel."

umm, hey Lostaday, is it possible for you to compose an original thought? All this copy and paste propaganda make you look like you lost a day...

Quoting the OP is not propaganda nor off topic.

From the OP, "The return of autocracy to Thailand is putting a hole in the people’s pockets. Sixteen months after the coup that brought down the democratically elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra, incomes in rural areas, where more than 34 million Thais live, have collapsed. Exports fell by 4.9 percent during the first half of 2015, according to the Thai government."

We read the OP. We don't need you to tell what us what it means or to restate it. That's the part where thinking comes into play. Just take a vitamin...