Jonathan Swift

2 hours ago, motdaeng said:

 

to improve the living conditions of the poorest people, different approaches are needed. corruption must be tackled consistently,

starting with all government officials. a fair justice system must be established, and equal opportunities for everyone must be ensured,

including for the "ordinary people" ... 

 

simply giving money to low-income earners or to the poor is not a long-term solution. in a developing country with widespread corruption,

trying to create a "welfare solution" only leads to more injustices and more chances for corruption ... 

 

You're right about needing a multi faceted approach to dealing with the poor and unemployed. The same problem is the same in the US and elsewhere.  Your statements about welfare are not what invariably actually happens in the real (western) world.  Have you ever been on welfare? I have, in the US. Nobody in those lines wanted to be there, they would gladly accept any decent job. And they often did eventually. I couldn't wait to get off. The amount of actual welfare cheating (in western countries) is actually so relatively small that it really has little effect, and the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. I make $1625 a month on disability and still get $170.00 in food assistance in the US, no benefits here other than my $1624. However, corruption in Thailand is a different story, and you may be right about this program's implementation here. However, if one weighs the benefits to persons in dire need against the cons, it may be worth a shot. I say give it a try and watch closely to see how it pans out. Some of this is fact, and some is just my opinion. 

1 minute ago, harryviking said:

Badly serviced busses by amateurs makes the a death trap! I will never sit in one....😫

How do you know what caused this fire? Are you psychic? Due to the location of the damage, how do you know it wasn't a lithium battery pack fire from inside someone's luggage in the baggage compartment or passenger area? Nobody checks for that on buses.  I've been riding buses in Thailand for the past 11 years, my confidence in them is not the least bit diminished by the occasional accident. I have only had one bus incident in my entire 67 years, and that was in the US where the driver had been monkeying around with the engine himself.

12 minutes ago, sabai-dee-man said:

 

Well in that case I'd expect you know all about HSI, and the properties of diesel fuel.

"Petrol (gasoline) has a fairly low flashpoint at −43 °C (−45 °F). This means that, unless you’re in one of the coldest places in the world, your petrol fuel is above its flashpoint. White Diesel, on the other hand, enjoys a mid-range flash point of over 52 °C (126 °F), meaning the exact opposite! Diesel will likely be below its flash point unless you are in a particularly hot place.

Both petrol and diesel have quite high autoignition temperatures, or our vehicles would be in trouble! Petrol and diesel have autoignition temperatures of 280 °C (536 °F) and 210 °C (410 °F), respectively." OK with you?

3 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

Not if it leaks onto a hot exhaust manifold 

So you're arguing just to argue? It is a fact that diesel is much more difficult to ignite than gasoline. It's a matter of physics. The flash point is much higher. Pouring diesel onto an open flame also does not change that basic fact. If you pour liquid diesel onto a lit match the match will extinguish. Not so with gasoline. The commenter said nothing about diesel at much higher than normal temperatures such as leaking onto a hot manifold. If you pour both gasoline and diesel onto to the same manifold at the same temperature which will ignite first? Which is more explosive, gasoline vapor or diesel vapor? Duh. Plus that photo you posted is meaningless. The flash point, or minimal temperature for ignition to take place,  of diesel is greater than 126º F/ 52º C.  You might want to actually read up before you post. Auto ignition is exactly what it says - the temperature at which the fuel will spontaneously burst into flame. Here:

"Petrol (gasoline) has a fairly low flashpoint at −43 °C (−45 °F). This means that, unless you’re in one of the coldest places in the world, your petrol fuel is above its flashpoint. White Diesel, on the other hand, enjoys a mid-range flash point of over 52 °C (126 °F), meaning the exact opposite! Diesel will likely be below its flash point unless you are in a particularly hot place.

Both petrol and diesel have quite high autoignition temperatures, or our vehicles would be in trouble! Petrol and diesel have autoignition temperatures of 280 °C (536 °F) and 210 °C (410 °F), respectively."

6 hours ago, steven100 said:

oh dear Georgealbert,  It is difficult for me to read any bus fire stories after the recent horrible tragedy. 

 

It makes me sad, so I cannot comment.   Just thankful the passengers got off ok. 

 

A diesel leak that was near the battery terminal perhaps ... it can't be much else with a diesel 

Scania DSC9/DSC12 (Euro II) engine.

Diesel is much more difficult to ignite than gasoline, unlikely that low voltage battery terminal sparks would do it. Also, fuel lines don't run anywhere near the battery. Lastly, it looks like the upper deck was the focal point which would suggest possibly someone's battery power pack inside luggage as a possibility. These are just guesses, but I agree that it's great news that no one was hurt. 

2 hours ago, brianthainess said:

What you went to the desk to report it OMG you didn't omit that and go straight on Facebook, to report it ................  it's amazing how some people are so dumb not to report it at the point they lost it. Yep my keys stay in my bag. 

well, it's a good thing there are so many "dumb" people out there so that you can pretend to be smart by comparison, isn't it? 

7 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

I often see factory workers walking around with 40k baht 

 

I reckon she's a show off. 

Taking the money out is the last thing I'd do, you would try to keep it hidden. 

 

She's accidentally lost her brain to, let's get her Facebook friends looking for her common sense. 

 

Does it feel good to ridicule people? Did you bully the other kids in school? While we're at it, let's see if facebook can find your lost humanity and sympathy. As to YOUR brain, well, you can't find something that was never there. 

15 hours ago, Nick Carter icp said:

I would like to be the first poster to state that I would prefer NOT to see men's knobs out on beaches

But the "ladies' " knobs are ok then? 

31 minutes ago, sambum said:

 

"........... coin operated toilet facilities......."

 

Reminds me of a rhyme we kids used to chant back in the UK many years ago:-

"Here I sit all broken hearted - wasted a penny 'cos I only fa***d"

The way I heard it in the US was "Here I sit all broken hearted, came to $ht, but only ƒarted"

16 hours ago, connda said:

Fish pee in the sea all the time.  Why not people?

Not just pee. But who doesn't think people pee in the water while swimming? Urine is just another type of salt water, only yellow. This is a matter of optics, and of disrespectful public behavior. 

22 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

They must start to give very harsh penalties for this kind of behavior. I would say that person should have a minimum of 5 years. That should be 5 years full, as there is no need for confession. The proof is already there.

The smart thing would be to create enhanced penalties for doing this to emergency vehicles

23 hours ago, JeffersLos said:

Psychotic Thai power trip. 

 

Another 24 hours of smiling and bowing while being treat like crap the next day. 

And no one ever in any other country does the same? You have no psychotic road rage drivers in your country? You don't even know the nationality of the driver. If it's a Thai person He probably  learned this from Americans.

14 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

I agree with this crackdown wholeheartedly.

Thai women are world famous for their promiscuity.

Keeping these evil toys out of their hands means they need us to relieve their insatiable sexual urges.

 

i have a good female friend in the UK who bought herself a “rabbit” who then didn’t seek a man for a few years as a result, she even stopped socializing and when she finally did get back into dating could not get off with a real man any longer. 

She bought it in her early thirties and was a bit of a tart, fairly attractive. 
 

 

She's no doubt  waiting for marriage to toys is legalized. Wants to have kids, maybe a few little buttplugs running around. 

14 hours ago, NativeBob said:

dumb as f**k!

How are they (policemen) going to justify illegal "storming inside" private property?

Foreigners playing cards are not guilty in anything until the legal case is/was opened and legal accusations were made.

Gambling is not same-same playing, that's as dumb as "working" and other "lost in translation" jokes.  

So I take it you're a Thailand licensed attorney?

16 hours ago, JoePai said:

 undercutting Thai operators

 

Is it possible the Thai operators are charging too much ?

You have it upside down. More likely that these guys are undercutting Thais and not fairly competing. That's what happens when you flood the market with underpriced services and products. You also can't trust people who do such things, they're more likely to misrepresent things and not honor their word. That's why we have strict immigration laws about work permits and visas. Anyone who wants to knows you can negotiate prices with the Thai tour operators. They are absolutely not "overcharging" unless you don't know enough to negotiate. If someone doesn't negotiate, then they are ok with the price and they pay, so nobody is losing business because of overcharging. I've never done business with anyone but legitimate tour businesses. If someone wants to run a legitimate business they can take the necessary steps for operating a business in Thailand. If they cheat the government then they're more likely to cheat their customers. The whole point of this is whether these vendors are operating legally, which is doubtful. 

3 hours ago, Homburg said:

 

They could be aiming to take the Brits' "bad behaviour crown", and seem to be on a bit of a roll..... 😉

Are there a lot of Swiss people smuggling guns then? I haven't heard of any

18 minutes ago, hoopmonk said:

 

Perhaps the oldtimer just wanted to bring a Swiss gun home for a souvenir.

 

From the BKK Post: 

 

During questioning, the Swiss man reportedly told police that he thought bringing a gun with no ammunition or magazine onboard a flight was not prohibited. He had decided to bring it to his home country because he thought it was not against the law, police said.

 

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2879947/swiss-man-arrested-with-gun-at-phuket-airport. View our policies at http://goo.gl/9HgTd and http://goo.gl/ou6Ip. © Bangkok Post PCL. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

That might be true, but he should have checked. wait, there are those signs with photos of hand grenades, pipe bombs, guns, and everything that is prohibited. I suspect perhaps senile. 

14 hours ago, brianthainess said:

I wonder if it was in his carry on, luggage or checked in luggage. 

Doesn't really matter much - I think checked bags are x-rayed. But I would guess carry on. Maybe he has Alzheimers, that would explain something like that at his age. 

14 hours ago, Woke to Sounds of Horking said:

Bloke is positively drowning in ganja  😂   Even the cops look stoned. So much for the weed champs saying pot's harmless...

Medically and physically harmless is not the same as bad behavior. They are two separate things. Nobody is claiming that weed is 100% harmless, only that it appears to have no harmful direct physical effect on users. It typically doesn't cause any such behavioral problems. This is backed up by decades of research. This guy was probably already a misbehaving loser before he smoked or ate anything. In my 67 years going back to the 60s among dozens of hippie friends I have never seen marijuana cause any such bad behavior. And I don't know where you get the term "weed champs". Are they chasing you down the street, climbing in your windows and doors, hollering out the glories of weed? Are they marching in parades, running ads on your favorite football games? You sound like you yourself may have smoked a little too much.