AlexRich

This is incredibly sad to see. I’ve just read in the Guardian that London has a new tribe of people living on the streets ... workers from restaurants, cafes, cleaners who have all lost their jobs and have been turned out if shared accommodation. What’s happening in Thailand is tragic. 
 

My personal view is that we are reaching the point where the economy has to open up, and those who are in risk groups for the virus have to self isolate ... we will never achieve herd immunity if everyone is in isolation, so the young and fit need to acquire the virus, get through it, and make it safer for the rest of society. We have to accept that there will be a second wave or more but just deal with it without lockdown. There are no solutions to this crisis that doesn’t involve pain. 

If you like the city and spend the bulk of your time outside ... gym, coffee shops, restaurants, malls, etc then a condo is fine ... it’s a place to sleep, it’s secure, and it’s easily maintained. 
 

I like the countryside but I’d get bored in the sticks if I had to stay there too long, and a house is less secure if you travel regularly.

On balance, a house in my own country, but a condo in the Far East, where you have zero ownership rights.

Once this thing is passed it will be forgotten about and people will be back to their normal habits ... robotics, more online etc are already established trends. But we’re in for a terrible world economy for longer than people realise, whatever the Fed does. 

Same thing happened in 1918, the places that opened up suffered the most deaths.

Given that the obese are vulnerable let’s hope Oklahoma denizens are slim, fit, young, and diabetes free. Otherwise they’ll be clogging up the intensive care units.
 

I’m sympathetic to wanting to open up the economy but you need a plan in place to test and isolate to keep the numbers down. I guess Brian Kemp knows what he’s doing? Not.

6 hours ago, pineapple01 said:

If a Yanks here hes Rich or a Looser. If U Tubes a Yardstick, just Loosers

A loser who can’t spell loser? 

I used to think the US was the place to be, but since visiting dozens of times for vacation and work I’m now of the view that it’s only good for tourism. Who wants to work all year and feel guilty if you take the 10 days vacation you get from your employer, who can can you anytime they like. Nope, I agree with the OP, you can keep it.

Will Biden put an end to the madness of the Trump presidency? 20 million unemployed might just push him over the line.

Trump’s comments and Fox News support for this drug not based on clinical trials, just anecdotal reports. Professional trials are required before any conclusions can be made. 

I’m not sure how long any country, least of all Thailand, can close down its economy for? Without a proven vaccine we are likely to see more cases when the lockdown is relaxed. So in my view a prolonged lockdown doesn’t solve the issue unless we have either a vaccine or a medicine that can stop coved-19 from killing those who are badly affected by it. Perhaps we should open up and let it burn out, whilst attempting to isolate and support those who are most likely to suffer from it?

Closing down a building site doesn’t change the above. My guess is that countries will have to open up their economies soon or they will have a bigger catastrophe on their hands. There are no solutions that are pain free, sadly.

1 minute ago, tonray said:

Once they buy the $100,000 US Corona insurance policy and spring for the $300 Doctor Certificate in their own country...not much left for holiday

Quite so. Thailand has been shooting itself in the foot on tourism, and the economic chicks are coming home to roost.

Return as superheroes? Mmm ... if I show up at the hotel and the manager’s wearing red underpants over his trousers I’d probably cancel the booking.

Tourism will take a considerable amount of time to pick up. Social distancing on flights will mean significantly higher fares. The economic impact has yet to show its face, but when it does it will be ugly and depressing, and few will be willing to spend money on travel anytime soon.

I think the world economy is in for a much tougher time than most people think.

Put the baht back to 65 to the £ ... and get rid of fat munter bar girls ... and we’ll be back with a bang ... quite literally!

1 minute ago, Chelseafan said:

Well for a start why not reduce the military budget by 20%, that'll cover it.

 

How would Thailand defend itself without the submarines?

Then they will have to open up the economy or people will be taking to the streets. Impoverishing the population will end his premiership.

I suspect the bars will still get their regular customers, but I don’t think the tourist traffic will pick up anytime soon, only when people are convinced that the virus is no longer a threat.