jas007

MAGA? Non MAGA? Do you really think most people care? I have yet to meet anyone in Thailand that cares. Maybe on this forum, but that's about it.

I live in an area with all sorts of Russians. They're everywhere. And I'm pretty sure they don't sit around all day thinking about Putin. Some of them seem to be here permanently, some just come for three or four months at a time. I don't speak Russian, but many of the Russians know rudimentary English. Some are fluent in English. Anyway, without exception, every single one of them has been nice to me. Very nice and polite. Of course, these are probably upper class Russians. After all, they can afford to not work, get on a plane to Thailand, and book a high end condo for months at a time.

Age? Everyone is different. Some people are old, in bad physical shape, and demented at age 75. Some earlier than that. Some people live past 100 in perfect control of their minds. When he was 80, my father was still going over to the local country club every day to try to pick up girls. He never stopped being like that. When he was in his 50s, he married some cute little blond girl that was 25. I think that was marriage number three. On my mom's side of the family, almost everyone lived into their upper 80s and 90s, with one living to 106. And when he died, he was still 100%, mentally. Anyway, if you listen to Trump, he's nowhere near senile. Quite the opposite.

Yes, there is a "Deep State." That's just a term, of course, but the existence is real. When you're there, you don't get a "Deep State" identity card. You probably get a so-called "dog tag" to wear around your neck. Ever have one of those? They know when you come. They know when you go. They know where you are. And you know they know all that and you don't care. If you're that far into the system, they need you. You don't need them. Give them what they want and you can do anything you want. It's a sweet deal. I could sit here all night and tell you stories about things you would never believe. I don't believe most of it myself, but for the fact that I was there and I saw. Anyway, for me, that's all ancient history, but since then , not much has changed, I'm sure.

I've never seen Biden so happy and so remarkably cogent. It's like he was freed from a cage. Funny.

To be honest, I've never even looked into the LTR visas. I always just use the "O" extension of stay visa extension based on retirement. That always works. I've done it several times now, over the last 18 years. It doesn't get much simpler. Put at least 800,000 baht in a Thai bank and leave it there. When you show up in Thailand and want to extend your stay, it's just a matter of a little paperwork. I enter on a 30 day stamp, I extend that at Immigration, and then I can apply for the extension of stay based on retirement. At that point, I just need an application form and a letter from the bank along with an updated copy of my bank book. Anyway, I don't have a crystal ball. If your LTR visa has already been approved, why not?

We've all heard it all before. It's not a rumor, though. Just so you realize that. Maybe it matters to you. Mathematically, the status quo must adapt. Unless you think mathematics is a rumor that doesn't matter. In terms of my personal finances, I'm currently operating on the theory that I don't care. Like it or not, I'm 73 years old. I'm all-in the market. Mainly tech stocks, at least in my USA accounts, but for about $23 in my checking account. My checking accounts are free, so I can run them down to zero if I want. I might have a bit more in a few other accounts and enough money in my Thai bank to maintain my retirement extension of stay. With any luck, I'll drop dead before the financial system collapses. And currently, the results are fantastic. In my primary brokerage account, I'm up 168% YTD. Every day when I turn on my computer, I see more new money than I could ever spend here in Thailand. A lot of that increase happened in just the last few months. And if the market collapses? So what? I'll get dividends from my oil stocks. At least that's the plan. Does that make sense?

If I knew that, I could become a trillionaire. I really and truly hope that the status quo continues for the foreseeable future. The collapse of the dollar and a disruption of the Western banking system would be problematic, no? And yet how does the system continue to operate without constant change? Without adapting? Systems adapt or they die. Maybe the change is gradual. Usually, world reserve currencies don't vanish, they just fade away. The world has had any number of reserve currencies, right? For example, the British Pound is still around. We now live in a multi-polar world. And yet the Central Banks of the Western world don't like that. They've all but monopolized the world's finances for decades, and they'd like to continue that monopoly. Monopolies are a good thing to have.

I actually don't need it, it just seems tempting. I already have a newer MacBook Air with the M3 chip, and two IPad Pros. I'll probably wait for a few weeks to see what kind of bugs turn up, if any.

Probably not, unfortunately. They've had a setback, that's all. Or perhaps, I should say the "Great Reset" has been postponed. It has been in the planning stage for years, but the new political system will put a damper on their plans.

It would be nice if you were correct. Unfortunately. just because something hasn't happened doesn't mean it can't. Remember what Hemingway said about bankruptcy?

In the grand scheme of things, it's not a major issue. Anyone who wants an abortion can obtain one.

Anyone else tempted to pick up a new Mac Mini? Even the base model is supposed to be great. Pre-orders start tomorrow.

Inflation stabilized? You haven't seen anything yet. The Fed is now about to cut interest rates again, and with Trump in the White House, we can look forward to more money printing and deficit spending. That was going to happen, regardless of who won the presidency. They have no choice. They say the dollar has another five years or so.

The Legacy media is all but dead. They blew it. They can no longer maintain the false narratives. The truth is out there, for anyone willing to look outside the echo chamber of the left. Elon Musk and X have arrived on the scene. He paid 40 billion dollars to buy free speech and the future of media. An excellent example of what can happen when the truth can be heard. And the truth is from the people. People not afraid to think for themselves. People not afraid to question authority. Want some real news? Sign up for X and read whatever interests you. Read the Community Notes. Read all points of view. Some of it is nonsense, some of it is propaganda, some of it is the "truth," whatever that might be. Is it not allowed to question the official narrative? Ask yourself why they're so afraid of people doing that? Today, they call censors "fact checkers." Any viewpoint they don't like? "Misinformation." And in some places in the world, they're now jailing people for expressing an opinion. Sick.

Apple TV, provided your TV has HDMI or other compatible inputs.

I think you have it backwards. Fascism is exactly what they don't want. Hence the rejection of the authoritarian Dems and the landslide election of Trump. If you don't understand that, you should probably take a break from reading propaganda. Read some real news.

I think you're wrong about that, at least in terms of his general health. He seems to have a lot of energy. You can't do what he did if you're old and sick. Try it sometime. See how much you can do in a 24 hour day, day after day after day.

Nurse Ratched... That was a great move for anyone who doesn't know. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. From the early 70s. And it was pretty accurate in a lot of ways. The screenwriter and the producer did their homework. I wasn't a big Nurse Ratched fan, though. Chief was the hero. The final scene of the movie is fantastic. One summer in college, during summer break, I worked in a psychiatric hospital with little kids., ages 5 to 18. 1971 or 1972. I was an attendant on the children's ward. Anyway, I had to take notes on all the kids every day and I had to go to weekly meetings. Psychiatrists, social workers, nursing staff, and so on. It was a real eye opener. Back then, the solution for every kid seemed to be Thorazine. Don't know why the kid acts crazy? No problem, just give him some more Thorazine. Put him into a stupor so he won't make so much trouble.... And the parents were paying big money for their kids to stay there. Bottom line for the movie and the current political landscape: society fluctuates between order and chaos. Nurse Ratched was the order, chaos was the natural evolution. The cultural reaction to authoritarianism. But sooner or later, the pendulum swings back. I think we saw the results in the 70s on the streets of New York City: crazy people released from mental hospitals in droves, most of whom ended up as homeless alcoholics wandering the streets. I wanted to watch electro-shock therapy one time, so they let me watch some older man shocked out of his mind, so to speak. There was a whole line of people waiting for the same treatment, right after that one. Maybe that still goes on?

Simple answer: they somehow believed all the lies and propaganda distributed by the legacy media sources. Propaganda works. Fortunately, Elon Must bought Twitter and saved free speech. People woke up. Or rather, enough people woke up to allow for a Trump win. A big win.

He thinks he can cut the national budget by two trillion dollars. Should be interesting to see what transpires, as it looks like Trump will win the presidency and the Republicans will control both the House and the Senate.

Apple computers can do a lot, once you become familiar with them.

The building itself is OK, I think. But the location seems like it's a little bit isolated. Maybe when they finish the construction in the area there will be more in the way of stores and restaurants.

Another idea for anyone with a Mac an iPhone and the latest operating systems on each. There's now something called "Phone Mirroring". Turn that on, and your phone is mirrored to your computer system. Turn up the volume on your computer system as loud as necessary. You'll hear it all over the house.

I use Bolt and always just pay with cash. It's never very much. 110 baht to 140 baht, issuing the "economy" car service. And I usually give them a little tip. Anyway, that works fine for me. Usually, when I order one from my condo, the wait is two or three minutes.