jingjai9

I would love to know what percentage of expats living in Thailand have no plan B.

I read this article about Dale Smith, the man who wants to move his family to Thailand because he is fed up with England. Please tell me - What is wrong with England? It is sad to hear this. I am American so I understand the criticisms of it, but England?????? ?

I think Udon Thani is trying this as well. I saw the first evidence of this yesterday taking place next to a bridge on the road just south of Banway Market.

The Epstein affair reminds me of the Kennedy assassination, as well as that of MLK, Malcolm X and of course RFK. The rule of doubt is simply another way of exercising power. Now it seems Epstein is another iteration of this phenomenon.

JUST SAY NO! This is the chorus of Thai politicians offering a solution for political, financial and social problems. What is disappointing about this line of thinking is the lack of thinking. As many here have stated, how can you enforce such a notion? The best you can do is discourage sexual activity among youth. Religion and education are two influential agents. Teach the younsters to make good decisions. Any kind of political iniative has to be planned with all viewpoints actiive in the planning process. First you need consensus and then it needs funding, and now I will say that big swear word - enforcement. Any efforts at enforcement must be consistent, concerted and considered outside of the punishment box. You cannot carry the mentality 'lock 'em up first time, lock em longer the second time" and so on. We are talking about our young people, a product of us. We need to correct this AIDS onset with the philosophy of doing it for the public good. Attaching any kind of criminal element to this problem, even peripherally would be nothing more than an act of desperation. Think of the US War on Drugs. And of course as is usual with many Thai politicians, use foreigners as a scape goat. Trying to arrest your way out of this public concern would create the Sex Police in some form or other and then we would have to solve the voyeur problem. Perhaps the only use for Sex Police would be the name of a band.

It looks like Trump is attempting to dismantle the US university system, the heart of research in the States. Also, by giving a swift kick in the groin to the government bureacracy certainly can't help American stability and progress moving forward. There is always room for saving money and efficiency in government. Maybe some critics are accurate when they say Donald Trump is not capable of linear thinking and he is quite transactional with his leadership. Do we have a bad driver on a righteous path? I am not a Trump hater but whatever legitimacy people find in Trump and his followers' goals to change the government and cut out the "Nanny State" and keep the criminal element from entering the US may be admirable; however, you must consider that perhaps Trump is NOT the best person to lead this movement. He seems to undermine his goals by constantly using negative remarks laced with superlatives. When he mentioned the US and God during his announcement on the bombing or Iran, he may have sounded to others around the world as extreme as radical Imams speaking of their attacks on infidels. This kind of rhetoric does not make the world more peaceful. Certainly somebody could lead this neo liberal movement without trying to slaughter every critic who speaks up. This is why many people view him as anti democratic.

Maybe cannabis shops could eventually become part of pharmacies as a separate section. Then you have your pharmacist on board.

Trump can say anything about anyone on a whim, BUT should someone make even the slightest negative remarks about him he is ready to demean and sue.

Glad to hear his name mentioned. Two years already. Joe answered questions rapidly and made me feel like part of a community. Thanks for the memories.

One good thing I learned about Vietnam is that if a vietnanese person is found gulitly of committing a crime against a foreigner, they receive 7 times the normal penalty. Is this still in practice? The thing I did not see mentioned here was that Vietnam has so a lot of problems with theft (home burglaries and bicycles). I have heard many Vietnames people complain about this.

Foreign teachers have become passe over the last 4 or 5 years. The demand for native speakers has softened at many schools as it is cheaper to hire a Filiino teacher at a lower salary; moreover, the Filipinos do not complain or make demands on Thai magangement. This would also apply to government schools as the savings on salary will find a pocket somewhere. The pocketbook issue will outweigh the merits of having a native speaker. Please let me know if I am off base but I have been in Thailand awhile and this seems to be the case and I am convinced that what I say here is rule rather than exception. I do make an exception of course for international schools or some of the elite private schools where tuition is very high (part of the expense is the cost of higher salaries for native speakers). Contracts are merely a show piece presented to immigration officials for visa extension. There really isn't the issue of "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away." Many of the contracts are unclear and virtually enable the employer to do as he or she pleases. Finally, if you have a problem with a private school your embassy will usually not help you.

What do you expect? For years she has been told time and time again how great and special she is around the world. I guess these comments are a part of her growing pains and coming of age. That's life. Let's see how she handles it with humility or pomp?

Thanks so much

I want to get a check up and an prescription for new glasses. I live in Amphur Muang area of Udon Thani. Thanks

Some of the criticisms in the article were made at one time or another by RFK Jr. He continuously gets blasted and is often corned into making rapid responses to his comments as he attempts to defend his perspective causing him to blurt out statements that make him look bad. Perhaps he is on the right track in many areas, but is often misquoted and misunderstood. He gets in his own way by over explaining and it is easy to get lost while he is making his point. He would do much better with a spokesperson and I do not mean his boss.