mfd101

The obvious demographic effect of fertility rates dropping below 2.1 all around the world (Africa hasn't got there yet) is that - assuming the broad accuracy of the statistics re numbers of sons and incidence of homosexuality - the number of homosexuals should already be reducing steadily everywhere. So the golden 'gay' years of the Western world may be receding. And the 'more and more seem to be homosexuals' is an effect of liberalizing social attitudes, which obscures the actual reduction - if that's what it is - in overall numbers. In about 20 years the picture should be clearer. Meanwhile the homophobes will be waiting breathlessly.

You're assuming there's only 'one way to be born with' a particular characteristic ie it must be genetic. But there's another way to be 'born with': that is, something unusual that happens in the womb. You are then 'born with' whatever the effect is but it's not genetic. In the case of male homosexuality, there's plenty of statistical evidence that the more male babies a woman produces over time, the more likely the boy is to be homosexual. That doesn't mean that a single male produced (such as me) cannot be homosexual or that any younger son will necessarily be homosexual. It means that the likelihood is greater and gets bigger and bigger with each successive boy that a given woman produces. The reasons are hypothesised to relate to fetal development of the embryo at the stage - a few weeks after fertilisation - when the original 'female' embryo (which all embryos start out as) undergoes the processes to become male. In a small number of instances the process is not completed for a variety of reasons and a homosexually-oriented baby results. The baby may be male or female according to the particular 'irregularity' that has occurred. For those who are interested in actual information - as opposed to nonsense and prejudice - a good starting point would be to browse the Wikipedia entries for 'Sexual differentiation in humans' and 'Biology and sexual orientation'. There are a hundred and one scientific books and papers to read on the subject.

TAT's strength is propaganda, not maths.

So that's all splendid (in theory) for the offspring of the Upper Middle Classes & the wealthy, almost the only ones who (currently) get near a tertiary education institution. But for the other 95% of the population, you have to start with the 5- and 6-year olds first along with their teachers, then work your way up from there. It's gonna be a long haul!

On that basis very few people here on AN would have anything to worry about. Whether we would still need - in practice - to make a tax declaration in Thailand each year remains to be seen.

Given the audience, why wouldn't it?

Everything I bought in Thailand when we decided to migrate from Oz in 2015 - land, new house, car - I made out in my b/f's name. The only 'property' I own here of any value (to me) is my books. The only cash flow is mine & it comes from Oz. No sweat.

My experience of Thai men is that they have the same range of small, medium & large as all other ethnic groups everywhere in the world. The largest one I've ever encountered in my life belonged to a Chinese Australian in Sydney. His equipment was as thick as my arm (though not quite as long - only about 10").

Not hard (so to speak) when you're 20 or 25.

Doesn't address the basic economic/financial & practical issues (unloading/uploading at one end & repeat at the other end) pointed out by many people on AN. The chances that anything will happen beyond hot air are slight. Though perhaps not zero in the very long run, if bottlenecks at Singapore/Straits of Malacca were to get much worse ...

They're designed to torpedo any hopes MFP might have of forming a government.

Thailand doesn't have the technical ability to understand the reasons for the German ban ... Note also that the Chinese were presumably well aware of the German ban in advance of the Thai order.

The usual chaos of Government decision-making in Thailand. Will they? Won't they? What about the brown envelopes?

Sounds appalling & disgusting. I hope all progressive - and even semi-progressive - parties & forces are gearing up for a massive showdown. Presumably they all know what's coming their way. If they let this one crush them in May, only one year after the dinosaurs' massive electoral defeat, we might as well go back to Uncle Prayut and beg his forgiveness.

Only China would have the uneconomic (strategic) incentive + the economic capacity (though that's diminishing even as we speak) ... Noone else would have the irrational need: double your shipping fleet for the sake of 2 or 3 days shipping reduction + increase in land-sourced delays (unloading ship, reloading trucks or rail, unloading trucks or rail, reloading new ships) ... The whole idea is off the planet. But perhaps they said that to Ferdinand de Lesseps in the 1850s ...

Hard for me not to laugh. Most of the people rabbiting on above - for & against - are living in Thailand, which must surely rank down there (or up there) in the bottom/top least 'woke' countries in the world. My Thai Khmer peasant family is just emerging from the 1950s in to the light of the late C20th - technologically, economically, culturally. Some of the children are even already dealing in & trying out assorted illegal drugs. And everyone under the age of 77 (my FIL) has a mobile phone ... They may even vote MFP instead of PTP at the next election. Meantime wokeness - the 80% exaggerated & ridiculous - is just a passing phase. It will have been forgotten in 10 years. And the 20% that makes some sense - greater sensitivity to the effects of our actions & feelings on other people - will endure under other labels. No point in getting hysterical.

Not interested. More & more of the same since I was last there doesn't help.

Never mind, the Royal Thai Armed Forces will take care of it.

Um, well I know what I imagine and I know what I need and don't need.

It's a bit long (if you'll pardon the expression).

I've never met another mind like mine. In any case I doubt it would be a pleasant experience.

If you read the full article it's mostly a load of drivel ... On the one hand this On the other hand that Anything could happen Or not.

Having visited the place twice 11 and 10 years ago I can't imagine ever having the need to visit there again.

One day Thailand's leaders will encounter concepts such as 'modern technology' and 'productivity' ...

Will be interesting to see how many of these 'new airlines' survive the next 12 months. Not to mention their passengers ...