jas007

I’m pretty sure that not too many people care about what’s supposedly in the new Epstein documents. Given the history of the Deep State and their campaign to destroy Trump, you’d have to be naive to believe anything that is said at this point. I can remember when some people thought that Bill Clinton’s presidency could not survive the Monica Lewinsky scandal. As it turned out, no one cared except a few Republicans.

Most people don’t have a clue about how AI is going to change the world. The chat tools we’re beginning to see now are just the beginning. And I agree, people looking at screens all day are making a mistake. Anyway, AI is going to put many many people out of work. Even some professionals. A similar situation happened when computers came into widespread use, and it’ll happen again as AI begins to roll out. An Industrial Revolution of sorts. I was born in 1951, so I grew up without any of the computers or smartphones we have today. Even as late as the late 70s, when I was in school, nobody had any of that stuff. One time in the early 70s, when I was taking a chemistry lab course, they made us use punch cards to answer questions. Those punch cards were later fed into a big computer system to determine the grade. That’s about the only time I came across a computer in my schoolwork. By the late 70s, kids still took notes in class, and nobody had access to any kind of computer system. Anyway, while I was in school, I decided that I wouldn’t even have a landline phone. As late as 1981, I didn’t have a phone. Anyone that wanted to talk to me could come over to my place, see me at work or school, or write me a letter. I was totally OK with that scenario. I didn’t miss a thing and my life was really peaceful. Today, it’s sort of silly not to use the available tools. Emails, online bill payments, messaging apps, etc. It all simplifies people’s lives.

I’ve got an Apple Watch that has the capability of connecting to the Internet via a its own separate phone line, but I’ve never used it that way because it syncs up with my phone and I always have my phone with me. The watch will still get messages and email, and you can answer phone calls right from the watch. Anyway the watch’s battery seems to last two days before it runs out. Usually, though, I charge it every day, as it charges pretty quickly.

I use Nord and have never had a problem. I usually connect to the USA (Seattle) but I’m sure the other countries also work.

Anybody who uses a computer must surely realize how much value it adds to their life. And now that AI is here, it’s really amazing. Anyway, I don’t think age has much to do with it. As long as your brain still works, you’re all set.

It depends, I suppose, on what you use the computer for. If you’re just using it to play around online, I’m sure a MacBook Air would be fine. I use all Apple products and don’t have any complaints. And I wouldn’t worry too much about learning a new system. It’s simple, and there’s no shortage of online help videos. Over the years, I’ve used both Apple and Windows computers. The Apple ecosystem is better, I think.

I’ve ordered all sorts of junk from Amazon for delivery here in Thailand. As I recall, if the item is less than about $20 or maybe $30 dollars, no Thai tax is collected. Items totaling more than that get taxed. Sometimes the tax seems extremely high. And sometimes, I later get a refund to my credit card for part of the tax. I guess someone looks at those items and if they think too much tax was collected, they refund the excess.

I haven’t lived in VA for a long time, but I remember having to deal with the DMV there was annoying. Anyway, some states issue I.D. Cards for people who don’t drive but want some form of official identification. You might look into that.

Even if a retinal tear isn’t diagnosed at this point, the original poster should pay attention to some of the typical symptoms. Don’t delay if you notice strange changes. When I first noticed I had a problem, I was sitting in my car at a traffic light. The car next to me seemed to be moving around in an odd manner. Like it was moving back and forth. As it turned out, it was my retina moving around. The car was standing still. Weird. I went to the eye doctor, he referred me to a retinal specialist, and I had surgery the next day.

Trump’s NY trial and conviction was a political stunt. The result of a witch hunt.

I think the poll assumes too much. Since when are Russia, China, and NK “rouge nations”? Do they deserve that characterization simply because they don’t kowtow to the U.S. oligarchy? The world isn’t so simple these days, as the unipolar world fades away. And yet the propaganda continues, fueled by Neocon nuts. Neither the US nor the other Western powers are in a position to control the world’s eight billion people. Trying to control the world is a path to bankruptcy as we are now witnessing. How many trillion dollars have been wasted over the last few decades? What has been accomplished?

When I had laser surgery for the retinal detachment, they used some kind of sedation. I don’t think it was general anesthesia, but I was most definitely out of it. I went home after the surgery, but at this point I’m not sure how I got there. I’m pretty sure I didn’t drive myself, but if someone else brought me home, I don’t remember at this point. Usually in the US, they want you to have someone to drive you home.

I wonder if any bookies anywhere in the world are taking bets right now about a Biden replacement?

LosLobo, My surgery was done under general anesthesia. I don’t remember anything. The brought me to a room where the operation was performed, I was transferred to another table, they started hooking me up to stuff, they gave me some oxygen to breath, and I think at the same time they must have started the drugs. The next thing I knew, it was 3 1/2 hours later and I was in the recovery room. I had to spend the night in the hospital u see “bed rest.”

Pouatchee, I think they tell you it’s “dangerous “ because it’s more dangerous than doing nothing and because it’s probably not medically necessary. My surgery was a medical necessity. The entire capsular bag with the IOL inside had become detached and was floating around in my eye. Anyway, if I wanted to regain the sight in that eye, I needed the surgery. I talked to the surgeon before hand and she said the operation was fairly common. So I went ahead with it. It has now been a week or so and my vision in that eye is improving every day. I’m still using drops and will be for another few weeks. I’m guessing I’ll be back to normal in a few weeks. I’ve had surgery on the eye twice before. Once to remove a cataract and insert an IOL, and another time for a retinal tear. On both occasions, the recovery was fairly quick. I’m going this time will be no different.

What do you see with each eye separately? Before your brain can sort out anything, I think it has to have something to work with.

Seven years ago, I had surgery to repair a retinal tear. I was in the USA at the time, I’m sure they used a laser, but I don’t know about the 360 degree part. The surgery was done the day after the tear was discovered at an outpatient surgery center. I didn’t feel any pain at all, probably because they knocked me out with something. More recently (just last week) I had surgery in Bangkok to replace a previously installed IOL, which had dropped and was just floating around inside my eye along with the capsular bag. That surgery was done under general anesthesia. Again, I didn’t feel a thing. I’m currently putting drops in my eye at various intervals, and I should be back to normal in another week or so.

I’m not sure who’s buying the US bonds, but everyone should know that the real inflation rate is not the lie they’re currently peddling. At 7%, the interest rate is still a negative real interest rate, I think. 7% is better than 4%, where it was not too long ago. Of course, the cheap rates pushed home values into bubble territory. So when you buy a house today, you’re paying too much, but you’re getting a steal on the mortgage.

I think that part of the problem is that this market isn’t much of a real market these days. At least not like we had years ago. So if we’re in a bull market and it doesn’t seem like it, that’s a possible reason why. Once upon a time, money was more like real money. It meant something. The bond market meant something. Company earnings and earnings growth and revenue and other such metrics all mattered. The industrial base of the U.S. was still intact. At some point, gold was declared to be a “barbaric relic.” Not long after the death of industrial capitalism, Wall Street gained more prominence. Financialization, securitization, etc. An emphasis on the short term. People today are chasing short term gains and profits at the expense of financial stability. It all seems just like a big casino. Anyway, what’s the alternative?

Yellowtail, I guess I was just thinking out loud. While you may see the real estate market in Thailand and the U.S. as similar, in terms of risks and rewards, I was just pointing out that in the U.S., it’s sometimes the banks that take on much of the risk, not the buyer. With non-recourse financing, and 30 year fixed rate loans at absurdly low interest rates, it’s the banks that take on much of the risk. The buyer can just walk away from the loan and mail the keys back to the bank. Ever hear of ‘jingle mail”? The house is then the bank’s problem. Of course, the banks usually bundle and sell mortgage loans off to another party almost as soon as they are made, so the cycle continues. And when the real estate market crashes and the people holding the loans are in danger, they are bailed out by the government. That has happened before and it will happen again. Right now, the commercial real estate market and many banks are in big trouble. So at this point, it’s all a great game in the USA. Anything to support the system. Whether it makes sense or not, they don’t care. In Thailand, foreigners usually have to pay with cash. Their own money. They have a real estate market risk, and they have a currency risk. And if they lose, no one bails them out.

Yellowtail, I agree. Everyone’s situation is different. I’m at the point in life where I don’t want to spend all my time trying to maximize my wealth. Doing that really does take time. I remember years ago, when I first “retired” at age 35. At the time, my genius idea was to trade stocks, so I spent all day online, glued to some computer monitors. Back then, online trading was in its infancy and all the free tools they have today weren’t available. Anyway, at the end of the year and after all that work, I was only up 38%. The market had a good year that year, and in retrospect, I could have accomplished the same thing by buying an index fund and forgetting about it. I could have been down at the beach, chilling out, instead of sitting inside watching a stock ticker. So I’m now retired again, and as of a few years ago, I don’t really trade stocks. Whatever I buy, I keep. Year to date I’m up 33%. Not great, but ok. I could be back to no gain by the end of the year, but so what? If history is any guide, holding long term turns out ok 90% of the time. Back to real estate. Foreigners in Thailand usually have to pay cash. No mortgages. So anyone buying really has to risk their own money. In the USA, some states have what they call “non-recourse financing.” Suppose a person in one of those states buys a property. They can usually do that with only a small down payment. The rest of the purchase price is “somebody else’s money.” If the value of the property drops after the purchase but the buyer is forced to sell, there’s no deficiency judgment that can be obtained. Typically, the bank just gets the house back. The buyer is off the hook. Buying property in one of those state can almost be a no brainer. The only thing you can lose is your down payment and your credit rating. Banks don’t want repossessed houses. So they sell them. People buying such houses from the bank can get a good deal. The bank will even lend them the money. During the crash in the 2008 period, one of my friends bought a nice house in AZ from the bank for about 40% of the prior sale price. When he sold that house a few years later, the market had recovered and he made a nice profit.

Sure, sometimes the currency moves can be substantial. But that can be a crapshoot, right? People got some great deals back in the late 90s during the Asian financial crisis. Not only was the Thai economy not doing so well, the Thai baht had dropped significantly. Some sellers were motivated . In retrospect, many foreign buyers did well. But it can also work the other way. My only point is that buying a condo isn’t for everyone. How old are they? Do they have a significant other? Do they have kids who might not want to fool around trying to sell a condo in Thailand? What other assets do they have? What’s their income? Will they live there full time? Are they absolutely sure about the location? As for paying rent in Thailand? To me, it seems so low that it almost doesn’t matter. I’ll gladly pay it every month. I don’t pay property taxes, I don’t pay HOA fees, and I don’t pay for insurance. I guess that’s why Thailand is so popular as a retirement destination. I’m not sure where you’re from, but the property market in the States has been crazy. Not only for buyers, but rents have gone sky high as well. And don’t forget property taxes, homeowners insurance, regular maintenance, utilities, and so on. It all adds up. And if you’re not careful, you’ll be stuck in a money pit. For young people with a long time horizon, buying may well be the smart choice if they can get a fixed rate mortgage at a good rate.

Don’t believe all that. The court can’t rewrite the constitution and the case law that has evolved over the years. The court conceded that the president has unqualified immunity for actions taken when performing his core presidential duties, but also concluded that the president’s immunity is not absolute. And the president surely isn’t immune from actions taken in a purely private matter. All that makes perfect sense. It’s nothing new, really. The problem is that there’s a large grey area. The President may be performing in an official capacity and yet he might, at the same time, arguably be dealing in a mostly private matter. Just because some nutty DA somewhere dreams up a crime that the president supposedly committed, doesn’t make it so. Think about it. The president can always be charged with something or other. But being charged with a crime does not automatically remove the president’s immunity. It’s a finding the court has to make. So this case doesn’t really fix anything. It benefits Trump, in that the case was remanded and is now delayed, but that’s about it. The people screaming about the outcome are politically motivated. They hate Trump so much they’ll spout any kind of nonsense.

The court pretty much had to rule the way it did. This should be no surprise to anyone who knows anything about the Constitution and about how the court works. They couldn’t leave a president with no immunity, and it’s probably fair to say that the president would not be immune from prosecution for all acts, especially those done outside the scope of his authority as president. It becomes a question of fact. In any event, the case has been remanded and that process takes time. There will be no trial before the election. A big win for Trump in that regard. It’s all crazy, no matter how you look at it. Now, the question of whether the president was acting in his official capacity when allegedly committing a crime will always be a necessary finding. Just this morning on Al Jazeera, they interviewed a law professor about the case. She said the decision would go down as one of the worst decisions ever by the Supreme Court. It’s funny how even well educated people can be oblivious to reality. Blame Trump Derangement Syndrome.

Presnock, An update. The inpatient billing department at the hospital contacted me yesterday. They said they now have an updated approval from the insurance company, and that if I stoop into their office, they can credit the amount I paid them back to the credit card I used.