mfd101

Most human beings are greedy. That's why scams work.

Australia is implementing the same policy - vaccinations for everyone in the country, whatever their status.

The people who matter in this country will all be looked after. Probably already have been.

So no need to worry about the other 99%.

Given the speed, organisation and energy the government is devoting to vaccines, there's a reasonable chance they won't even pass the 1 million tourist mark before 2023!

I tend to make comparisons with Oz, a generally well-run country with well-functioning multi-cultural society. The federal health minister there announced a couple of weeks ago that, starting late Feb, ALL people in Oz will be vaccinated at taxpayers' expense. That includes ALL non-citizens, visitors, tourists, foreign students and illegal migrants.

Following the hallmark of good government, unknown in Thailand: KISS.

Thailand is rated 4th best in the whole world for its handling of the pandemic. So clearly there's nothing to worry about.

How sad. And such a poor example to its otherwise exemplary neighbours.

What a farce. The predatory Brits - as usual - looking after no.1 without the slightest pretext of any interest in the trading nations of the Pacific and their geographic community, or in helping the smaller ones move up the economic ladder.

It would be in the interest of the Pacific countries already signed up (though the partnership is not yet operational) to veto British entry on the basis that they're not part of the Pacific community. Happy to do a trading deal, but not membership.

British membership could well in any case threaten Biden's thinking on Usofa joining up. I'm not sure the latter is really all that good an idea from the point of view of the smaller members, but it would certainly be more useful than having the Brits join up to veto anything they don't like.

The history of Taiwan is one thing. The democratically-expressed views of a majority of the current  inhabitants is another.

The Chinese government has no more interest in what the citizens of Taiwan think than it has in the views of its own people. If The West still stands for anything at all, it has no choice but to stand with the people of Taiwan against the authoritarians of the mainland, and that includes conventional warfare clashes if necessary.

It's not a matter of nuclear war but of a conventional clash between Chinese & US forces if it comes to the point. The difficulty is that US projection capabilities (over LONG distances) are not what they once were, and Chinese capabilities (over SHORT distances) are hugely improved and probably overwhelming even for the Americans.

The only thing that will stop the Chinese now (and it could be any day) is a US flotilla of heavy planes flying in to Taiwan over several weeks laden with missiles and high-tech capabilities of all kinds for the Taiwanese military, combined with large numbers of US military trainers to train the Taiwanese. If the Americans could also keep a large offensive maritime force with aircraft carriers at the ready in the region (ie east of Taiwan), then all will go quiet. But how long can the US maintain a fleet like that in the region (noting that they're in the process of splitting the 7th Fleet in 2, but that's a multi-year task for ships & basing)? And how much grit - and resources - is available in Washington?

In the long run, if the Chinese are really really determined - whatever it takes - they'll probably get what they want.

I'm not sure about enlisting, but there is much to be said for poor boys here in Thailand doing their 2 years conscription. For those who have never been outside the village, have no education & no knowledge of the outside world, the Army shows them a whole new world of experience and helps them to mature. The fact that the Army's role in Thailand is scarcely to be praised is not relevant to that.

My b/f had the gumption to leave the village here in Surin at age 18 and head to BKK for life's experiences. But he still learned a lot from his time in the Army - Western mealtime etiquette, how to serve petits fours to the very highest in the land, how to look after the colonel's dog, what a big smile can achieve, and how to climb over the barrack walls in BKK to find food & earn some funds in the small hours ... I have no doubt that, by the time I came along to, ahem, assist with his early departure from conscription, he had benefited mightily from his experiences.

You would think that one's self-respect would encourage one to pluck numbers that might arguably bear some relation to real-world possibilities ... But no.

Meantime, all the pandemic news worldwide is getting worse, not better. Fears that the latest variants are not merely more infectious but more deadly too, and that the first round of vaccinations may be less effective than thought. Those fears may not turn out to be well-founded, but they are not entirely baseless for the moment.

The problem with 'truth' is of course not confined to the PM or his government, or even to the whole phalanx of feudals & authoritarians who run & own the country.

Thai culture generally has a problem with concepts of truth (precision, accuracy ... ) preferring the ease of complexity, approximation and - above all - appearances. Hierarchical societies are founded on status, and status loves appearances.