Jonathan Swift

17 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Why, did he do something wrong.  Govts invade countries, not their citizens.

 

Did the world go after USA billionaire's assets when they invaded & occupied Nam, Iraq, Afghan.   I think not.  

"But mommy, Billy did this and Billy did that and why didn't you punish him?" How old are you, sonny? Did you happen to notice that this is not 70 years ago? You are drawing a false equivalency and injecting irrelevant topics to this one. You clearly don't understand what is going on, and what the difference is between Ukraine and other wars, you clearly don't want to actually educate yourself. I think you even might be Russian and a Putin supporter. Russian oligarchs are corruptly intertwined with Russian government officials and policy makers, the ones who wage and support these wars and often profit on them including and especially  Putin. They are often  as much extensions of the Russian government officials as the officials themselves. It's obvious to everyone but you that taking down these oligarchs is justified to oppose and put pressure on Putin. The sanctions were approved by and implemented by NATO countries, not just the US. Do you know what NATO is? This is today's world. I'm not going to explain it to you. I don't think anyone could, your mind is welded shut.  But it would seem that you support Putin's attack and war on the Ukrainian people and its innocent civilians. Do you salute every time you see a picture of Putin?

16 hours ago, phetphet said:

Seems like honesty isn't always the best policy.

Either put it back where found, or have a spend up.

Drop it into a post mail box. Let the post office worry about it. In the US that is how it has been done forever. 

13 hours ago, Mavideol said:

what a surprise (not) .... during hard times such as war, epidemics and so forth the rich get richer and the poor get miserable

It happens during ALL times, always, it always has, always will, forever, since time began. Such is the very nature of wealth and power. 

10 hours ago, proton said:

feeling all fuzzy when charged up to 10x the cost for Thais ? 

You don't have to stay here if you don't like it. Oh, wait, it's complaining about everything that you enjoy best. Well, I hope you're happy in your misery.

13 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

Professionaly manipulated...how so?  You mean the pharmaceutical corporations?  Not sure about that. The gas and power companies? Who

That's a new one to me, "professionally manipulated" - I didn't know there were professional manipulators. Clearly a made up term by someone who doesn't understand economics and leans toward conspiracy and Q-anon

31 minutes ago, Isaan sailor said:

Welcome, foreigners to Thailand, where your money’s worth less every day!(inflation and a rising Baht).

Maybe Thailand should revoke its welcome to those who can't pass an intelligence test. You see, your money is actually worth MORE now: the exchange rate has been 34.4 baht to the US dollar for about the last year, the highest its been in several years. I am saving about $300 a month in monthly income exchange rates for every $2000 US compared to when it was 29 baht / dollar 3 - 4 years ago. Inflation? That's not the sole problem of Thailand and nowhere else. In fact, inflation right now in the US and other countries dwarfs Thailand's problems. Thailand's inflation rate post Covid is 4.65%. The US inflation rate is 8.3%. In the UK it's 9%. And did you think you were going to go through your entire life in some kind of inflation free economic Shangri-La? But then again, math isn't your strongest subject is it? I've been here 9 years and you will NEVER hear me complain. Methinks your unhappiness has nothing to do with Thailand, you are projecting your own dissatisfaction with yourself. There there, if I were you I wouldn't like me either. 

23 minutes ago, PEE TEE said:

Still confused if you are on a 1 year valid   re entry retirement visa and you come back into the kingdom with after a short visit to your old country are you classed as visitor if you live here?. You are over 75 and cannot get the insurance . or you have business and travel back and forth do you still need a Thailand pass with all the relevant conditions?  Surely the Thailand pass applies to tourist (visitors) or anyone who arrives ?

I have been doing the non O retirement visa for four years. I go back to the (ugh!) US for four months June-Sept every year. You can get insurance, it just won't be as cheap as a younger person. You can get a 30 day policy, they do not check the expiration. My 6 month policy expired in April, and I'm still here. But even full term, a $10,000 policy is not expensive. You are not a "visitor", you are a non immigrant resident with a permanent address. The rules specify "travelers", not visiors or tourists. The Thailand pass is universal for all who enter Thailand regardless of status. It superseded previous rules, which were in effect when I arrived last October. If you need up to date info on entry rules you can contact any airline, or go to their website, and they will spell out the rules, because they of all people HAVE to be aware of entry rules wherever they do business. They are required to check all of your documents prior to boarding. Good luck, chok dee. I have not yet used Thailand Pass, but my interpretation of it is that it replaces the need for a Certificate of Entry. 

10 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Thailand need to stop considering itself like some Willy wonka  resort that you need a golden ticket to gain entry to.. Stop it with this pass and insurance nonsense. Nobody seeing it  come, these fools have lost tourism for this year, its far too late now to rescue 2022. Drop it all you may get 4 million up, leave it in place, lucky to get 2.5-3 million. Complete idiots

And it's always the other guys who are the idiots and fools...

Let me guess, you don't believe Covid is real, it was a conspiracy, and was faked, right? All the people who died of it, well that was just nonsense, right? It was a golden ticket Willy Wonka hoax.

So last question, why are you even here? So that you can whine and complain about it while reaping all the advantages it gives you? 

On 5/26/2022 at 8:12 AM, Thailand said:

This is a joke surely?

it was a complete cluster<deleted> by the ptb for many months.

So why are you still here? Did you get covid? Sounds like you're still very much alive. Meanwhile 1,000,000 dead in the US.  But don't let me spoil your fun, complain away.

9 hours ago, Misterwhisper said:

Even after 30+ years in this country I am still amazed (even a little impressed, actually) about the elaborate, pre-plotted scams these people are able to cook up when they smell money; and lots of it.

 

But ask them them to plan or carry out something that should be within the scope of their regular work duties (and where there is no immediate financial benefit apparent), they all too often mess up miserably. 

 

 

"These people". Dog whistle term used by racists, xenophobes,  and bigots. This isn't a scam the natives "cooked up". It follows standard successful Western textbook examples of scams, all anyone has to do is read about enough of them in the news and you can put one together. Convince a bunch of investors to cough up money with an effective sales pitch and bait, take the money and run. Ponzi scheme. Bernie Madoff. There are always going to be people tempted by the smell of money, regardless of nationality. Meanwhile as to your accusation about Thai people messing up regular work duties, I have found Thai people to be almost universally conscientious  and responsible - don't know where your unfounded prejudices and bigotry toward Thais comes from, but very likely you create your own bad experiences with your own attitude and then scapegoat/gaslight others. If a Thai person doesn't like you for good reason, what should you expect but to have your bad attitude reflected back? 

6 hours ago, DGS1244 said:

Nothing new, always been this way. Why waste money on designer clothes when copies here are cheaper anyway?

Authenticity becomes part of the status and bragging rights. To such people the money is not wasted, since they have plenty of it to waste. No doubt some of these items were intended for discerning Thai people willing to pay. And no doubt they knew the risks of this happening beforehand. So they gambled and lost, and now are whining about it. 

7 hours ago, up-country_sinclair said:

Is this a new development?

I thought you always had to apply for a non-O outside of Thailand and then do the extension of stay inside Thailand.

 

And just to clarify, a visa exempt is people who get 30 days based on their passport, for example, US, UK, EU, etc...

I applied and got my non O from a tourist visa in Bangkok about 4 years ago. They converted from tourist to another type of non immigrant, then to non O retirement. It was not well known that you could do this, and there was a lot of contradictory "advice" about it, but I did it. 

31 minutes ago, johncat1 said:

What were bullets, live or dummy doing on the floor ?  Sounds like a very sloppy shooting range with poor safety. It should be closed down until they improve their safety.  Years ago I caught young students throwing bullets at each other at a school Later when they were checked they turned out to be live rounds the students picked up off the ground at a POLICE shooting range. 

I agree, close it down, investigate, and then investigate other ranges for safety. Some people enter into businesses who are simply not responsible enough or qualified. Happens in all professions, some deadly and some not. 

7 hours ago, connda said:

They are real.  They are called "snap caps."  You can use them for dry firing, or they can be useful when working with a student to get them use to clearing an unexpected misfire. 
 

I think it's more likely that she meant blanks, not knowing what a blank really looks like, somehow the terminology got mixed up in translation. 

8 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

She said she thought that it was a dummy round after picking up a bullet mixed with others on the floor, reported Thai Rath. She was taken to the police station for questioning but as yet no charges have been filed. 

 

Huh? Even if she thought it was a "dummy round", why would she be pointing the gun at the instructor, then firing the gun? And why would a gun have blanks at a firing range? So many unanswered questions. Looks like manslaughter to me. 

Something similar to involuntary manslaughter or negligent homicide. She's 50 years old, understands right from wrong, knows that guns kill, culpable negligence. But we don't know what Thai law does with such things. A substantial payment to the family?

9 hours ago, darksidedog said:

I guess the instructor never told her the very first rule of never pointing a gun at anyone, whether it is loaded or not.

"Treat every gun as if it is loaded, never put your finger on the trigger until ready to fire" etc. Maybe she missed the first day of instruction, maybe she wasn't even taking the course and was just there for fun, who knows?

9 hours ago, Henryford said:

Even if it was a dummy why did she aim at the instructor and fire?

People see guns in movies and video games and think they are toys until taught otherwise