dcnx

So sad...But i can smell a crackdown on busdrivers coming.

Enforced for a whole day, if that.

That's always the problem, there is zero enforcement here unless it's about scooter helmets. Quick cash is the name of the game in the land of road carnage.

Is rain making reserved for Thais only or can anyone get in on it?

Royal rain.......

Please, NOT Americans going on about their love of guns again !!!!!

Shooting four kids dead after being abusive to them is the reason why you should nt be allowed to carry a gun around with you

The majority of gun owners are responsible. The media always blows things out of proportion. Yes, people get shot, but I bet more people died in auto accidents today caused by drunk driving than they did violent gun crimes. Ban alcohol too?

Guns are not the problem, just as cars, knives, and alcohol are not a problem. People are the problem.

Its quite easy to avoid confrontations with Thais .

Generally, yes.

Most negative encounters will come from bars, booze, and/or Thai women, or a combination of them all. Avoid them, and you'll avoid 99% of the risk.

The other 1% comes from random attacks, such as being attacked by your taxi driver over a fare dispute, beaten by BTS security because you're carrying a balloon, or kids wanting to recreate a video game beating and you just happen to be in their sight. It happens when you least expect it, and unfortunately, they are always the ones with a weapon, be it a stick, knife, brick, or firearm.

I would be first in line if Thailand permitted foreigners to get a concealed firearm permit (never gonna happen). The locals would think twice about randomly attacking foreigners if they started getting shot. And yes, I'm American, I love guns. :-) Received my first shotgun as a child at the age of 10, and have owned firearms my entire life. Thankfully, I've never had to use one in self defense, but I fully support our right to do so if needed.

Uranus enters perilous position? ....... No comment

You just can't make something like that up.

Fair enough. They're ridiculously cheap after all.

Considering the service is generally terrible and the drivers often have a very poor attitude, I would say its priced right where it should be.

Also, taxi drivers can easily make 2 or 3 times the minimum wage per day if they actually stop rejecting passengers. They pay 700 baht to rent the taxi for 12 hours. It should not be hard to garner 2,100 baht in fares per day. That already puts their daily earning far above the minimum wage (300 baht) after paying the 700 rental fee. The gas (NVG) that taxis run on is very cheap as well.

So yes it cost the driver 600 -700 Baht to hire the taxi for a 12 hour shift, plus 600 Baht for gas LPG NGV. The driver need to make 1200 -1300 baht to break even. Not a job I would be queuing up for thank you.5% is ok. Not sure about the airport surcharge why is that justified nothing changed there in fact now it more organised it better for driver at the airport at least a SB not sure about DM.

Yes! You won't be lining up for it. But you act as of Thai taxi drivers could just go be a lawyer or Dr but they can't! Their other option is often a minimum wage profession like working at an NGV station for 300 baht a day. There is a reason why there are so many taxis in BKK. It's because the people who drive them don't have any better options.

I am not sure why so many people fail to grasp the very basics of economics. Driving a vehicle is not difficult and anyone can do it.....this the reason the wage is low.

Everyone makes their choices is life. Driving a taxi in Bangkok would be considered a poor one if you're not professional, efficient and courteous.

Welcome to the hospital business. It happens all over the world.

Foreigners, not just Americans, need to learn that behavior and language tolerated in their home countries, is not tolerated here.

They also need to learn that if a Thai has a bone to pick with you, they almost never do it one on one....they get their friends and gang up on you,

You can not win.

An American who has been here long enough to work as a teacher, should know better.

If you are going to react like this to rude drivers in Thailand ( most Thai drivers are rude ) you will probably not live very long.

I am American and am often upset about how people drive in Thailand, but I am smart enough to keep my "rage" to myself.

This, exactly.

If you run your mouth or flip the bird, be prepared for the worst, as it may cost you your life.

However, sometimes we are targets simply because we are foreigners. For those times when you have no choice, I hope to read you survive and have to pay 1 million baht to a family instead of fishing your body from the river or a ditch.

Tragic story. It's shameful nothing happened to the attackers. But this is the reality of living here, our lives are worth little, if anything at all, and so is theirs.

Bottom line is this, you don't hurl insults at a Thai or challenge them to a fight unless you are prepared to literally kill them along with anyone who may be with them, and you had better have a weapon and be prepared to use it because chances are they do.

Westerners fight, argue, and insult others to win, Thais fight to kill.

This is what is true and what most westerners from this Era have not experienced. I recommend any expat friends who live here to always carry something deadly. You don't go looking for trouble, and you try to avoid it, but if you cannot, it's kill or be killed time. And that goes for the effeminate middle and upper class Thais and the poor, rough ones alike.

We need to better take care of each other. They are slaughtering us.

A rather pathetic suggestion to 'carry something deadly'.
I am not sure if you are aware, but it is a pretty serious offence to carry a deadly weapon.

As serious as dying?

What a pathetic quote. If you spent time .i.e years in the Bangkok Hilton for stupidity then I think you would wish you had have been killed. It's comments like yours who reinforce my fears of why the Thais are probably turning quite rapidly again foreigners. Unbelievable you must be a wonderful person to socialise with ! ,!

There is nothing stupid about defending yourself if you have to, and heaven help any of us who are in such a terrible situation.

If you are attacked by a local, he is probably going to try to kill you. So either die, be harmed, or defend yourself by whatever means. You don't have other options.

I don't advocate breaking the law, but let's be honest here, in matters of self defense, you can usually buy your way out of such legal issues if you have the means. If you don't have money, and you find yourself in such a bad situation, you roll the dice or flee. But a roll of the dice is still better than dead. I'd also rather have a weapons charge than dead. But that's just me, and after almost 15 years here, I've never once had a policeman search my body during a road stop, and I doubt they ever will.

Tragic story. It's shameful nothing happened to the attackers. But this is the reality of living here, our lives are worth little, if anything at all, and so is theirs.

Bottom line is this, you don't hurl insults at a Thai or challenge them to a fight unless you are prepared to literally kill them along with anyone who may be with them, and you had better have a weapon and be prepared to use it because chances are they do.

Westerners fight, argue, and insult others to win, Thais fight to kill.

This is what is true and what most westerners from this Era have not experienced. I recommend any expat friends who live here to always carry something deadly. You don't go looking for trouble, and you try to avoid it, but if you cannot, it's kill or be killed time. And that goes for the effeminate middle and upper class Thais and the poor, rough ones alike.

We need to better take care of each other. They are slaughtering us.

A rather pathetic suggestion to 'carry something deadly'.

I am not sure if you are aware, but it is a pretty serious offence to carry a deadly weapon.

How much is your life worth to you?

In a country where the law is determined by money, your life is worth literally nothing, and you can be killed like a dog for honking your horn at someone, there is no shame in breaking the "law" to protect yourself.

I'd rather be judged than carried to my grave.

Prison time for not paying traffic tickets. Yea, right. Someone just wanted their name in the news.

Tragic story. It's shameful nothing happened to the attackers. But this is the reality of living here, our lives are worth little, if anything at all, and so is theirs.

Bottom line is this, you don't hurl insults at a Thai or challenge them to a fight unless you are prepared to literally kill them along with anyone who may be with them, and you had better have a weapon and be prepared to use it because chances are they do.

Westerners fight, argue, and insult others to win, Thais fight to kill.

I live in a condo with a handful of Chinese, all of their children can swim. The Thai kids just run around the outside of the pool. Some of them even ride skateboards and skate shoes right next to the water. Stupid is as stupid does.

that the next government is transparent, not corrupt and practice good governance

Those words don't sit well with these "opponents" of which despise this dream that Paryut and the majority of Thai's want which is transparency, lack of corruption and good governance.

If I didn't respect the above I would be making as much noise as I could to and trying my hardest to "sabotage the country"

Well done Prayut. He must be doing something right when the corrupt are up in arms.

"Those words don't sit well with these "opponents" of which despise this dream that Paryut and the majority of Thai's want which is transparency, lack of corruption and good governance."

No one (AFAIK) here on TVF is against "transparency, lack of corruption and good governance". What I and many other question is the will and ability of the junta to deliver this. If they really wanted to change Thailand for the better they would welcome inquiries about their personal wealth, reform the military, police and judiciary (for a start).

Tell me; why is none of this happening?

Well, someone needs to run the country

Indeed. Here is a radical idea: Why not hold an election and have the people decide?

Because then it all starts all over again.

If it wasn't for those meddling foreigners and Thaksin, we would all be living in a Thainess utopia right now.

I will say it again: nearly ALL news involving Chinese people and China is BAD NEWS!!!

Chinese people who travel in Thailand are very arrogant and disrespectful, they smoke and spitting everywhere, even in a crowded hotel elevator.

The Chinese smoke, everywhere, even in non smoking areas. They don't care.

All the other stuff is usually done lower class tour package tourists.

China is FULL of criminals and Thailand has made it easy for them to come here. It's going to get a lot worse, you can count on it.

Wait until their pro pick pocket teams arrive, no one will be safe. These guys are good, work in numbers, and empty your pocket or bag even in the most obvious places, indoor or out.

I wonder what would cause them to deny a beggar this license? Not poor enough, not Thai, isn't deformed in any way. Can foreigners legally be beggars and not need a work permit? Will taxes be collected? Will they be zoned to certain areas and streets?

Seems to me this opens a whole can of worms.

What's good about Chiang Mai?

The Russians, Indians, Arabs, and hordes of toothless bar stool Brits haven't found it yet. ;-) (just having a poke, relax)

Seriously though, Chiang Mai has positives and negatives, as does any place. Whichever one you focus on the most is what you'll see.

It can be a struggle sometimes to overlook the BS, but it's important not to dwell on it. That's how you end up bitter.

Maybe not a lot of toothless barstool Brits here but that's compensated for by a there being a dispropriate number of conspiratorial newagers.

I'll admit that I've met some kooky people in Chiang Mai. But you should see Ubud in Bali, it is ground zero for them. Ubud is to newagers what Pattaya is to alcoholics. ;-) But hey, whatever makes you happy. Just don't hurt anyone in the process.

What's good about Chiang Mai?

The Russians, Indians, Arabs, and hordes of toothless bar stool Brits haven't found it yet. ;-) (just having a poke, relax)

Seriously though, Chiang Mai has positives and negatives, as does any place. Whichever one you focus on the most is what you'll see.

It can be a struggle sometimes to overlook the BS, but it's important not to dwell on it. That's how you end up bitter.

Never seen her out and about.

Slow "news" day indeed.

And to think, the Gov huffs on about creating their own Thai social networking site to rival Facebook. Comedy gold.

That said, I do wish them luck. Perhaps they will hire capable people to build and maintain the upgraded site.

The Chinese are buying land. Not sure how, but they are buying it. Actual land.

Can't speak for the rest of the country, but in Chiang Mai they are buying condos like it's a fire sale.

Thailand wanted them, she got them. And being the wh*re Thailand is, she is on her knees servicing the Chinese at the moment, and isn't coming up for air any time soon.

Good hospital, but with their recent upgrades and new wing under construction, expect a hefty price hike. That seems to be the norm in Thailand.