mfd101

We've given Ukraine to Putin by mistake so we might as well take Afghanistan back again. And we have a choice of places to build railways through to export the stuff - Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan. With choices like that and a spare 50 years or so, what's not to like?

Thai PM believes what Xi tells her. US President believes what Putin tells him. Seems to be a pattern here. The future is looking darker for everyone.

As a former bureaucrat myself I think I can authoritatively say that 'modifying models after a studied methodology has been established' is the standard method for ensuring that nothing changes.

Thank you. Just about the first intelligent & well-informed contribution on AN to the ongoing discussions about the marvels of Trumpism. Having said that, I would argue that - despite the daily horrors emanating from the White House - disruption is a great constructor of New & Better. Of course it may all be a total disaster for Usofa & for The West, and many others. But it does have the value - which we currently see amongst the panic-stricken Europeans, notably Germany - of forcing people to go back to basics and reconstruct their models. Much of what Trump is destroying - out of ignorance not understanding - is tired & in need of a good kick in the <deleted> to wake it up & move forward.

They could continue 'sweeping' for another 12 months and collect another 120000 ...

Well, so far the Baht is stronger against the US (0.029678) & the Oz dollars ...

Proving that China is just as capable as any 'Western' country to waste money & investments by the truckload.

The Great Disruptor - horrible though he is - having a positive effect on the Europeans, all of them slowly getting up off their large flabby backsides.

The post-everything world. A country with no past has no future.

No sense of urgency in any of this. All happening at glacial speed.

So we're not going to make the 40000000 target this year? Or was that 400000000?

The DTA between TH & Oz is difficult & complex to read, but I think the bits on pensions are clear: (1) Federal superannuation for former federal government employees can be taxed ONLY in & by Oz; (2) All other pensions are at least theoretically taxable in TH even if already taxed in Oz (but taking in to account the taxes already paid in Oz, which may mean no tax to be paid in TH). So the old age pensions are assessable in TH but will often involve no further tax to be paid.

No, just observing the universal penile code.

And now Turkey is entering the game, on Zelensky's & Ukraine's side. This will jolt the Europeans in to action. A little down the track & Trump will be irrelevant for Ukraine's defence. Only one loser in that: Trump & Usofa.

Says it all.

Yes, sentence them to spend the rest of their lives in Canberra.

I wonder if Trump could find Ukraine on a map.

Chinese doers. Thais talkers.

Mr Sombat hors de combat.

If my b/f and I had been passing we would have stopped to offer any assistance.

The only good thing coming out of all of this is that the Europeans are now wringing their hands and starting to think seriously about actually building their own defence capabilities. The preliminary outcomes are interesting: UK has announced it will send troops to Ukraine (but anxiously awaiting others - the Scandinavians probably, I think). And Macron has said - surprisingly in my view - that France won't. The only point of sending them (in my view) would be if they're ready & equipped to fight. 'Peacekeeping' when there's no real peace is ridiculous. Meantime the poor Ukrainians continue to slug it out.

Ah, so that's why the Russian attack 3 years ago came from the north and making straight for Kiev!

Never mind. Noone will be found or - if found - punished.

Shouldn't that be: "lifted off of the people"?

Fine in Bangers. And here at the edge of the jungle and the end of the world I have my b/f, whose English has improved considerably over the 13 years of our togetherness and was already OKish when we met as he served in a bar in Bangers & had an English half-BIL.