kwilco

or just bare-faced?

Yes maybe everybody who benefits loves corruption - - and 60% of Thai people reckon that this sort of thing "oils wheels of government" - but I'd wager that the money from this is not going into government coffers - more likely there is a share out amongst some people there. the Thai system of government and "civil service" (a misnomer) is particularly open to this sort of thing. THere is a potential problem here - if this "scam" was found out to be unofficial, ten they could argue that any immigration stamps issued under this system were invalid.

all the best scams work because the punters don't know it's a scam.

As well as the traffic and industry, Chiang Mai's topography makes it worse.

No, don't think so - they don't burn in the wet - they traditionally burn in the cooldry for practical reasons. Burning has to move along the ground to vclear stubble and the dsoil it can't do that in the wet- humidity is only relative - by Jan march most crops are like a tinder box - that's why forest burning gets out ot hand. Domestic burning is also traditionally done at the beginning of the year. Any pollution now will be caused by cars and industry.

I think I could scam you easily then. the best thing about a scam is people don't realise it is one - all the other passengers are made to suffer longer queues so a few officials can take a bit of extra cash. They're scamming all the other passengers.

I hear that if you pay 300 baht you can get fast tracked avoiding the long queues at arrivals?

you can't burn when it's wet.

I don't think you'll see adverts asking you to come to Chiang Mai "the most polluted city in the World" -will you?

Chiang Mai is also bad because of its topography coupled with climate.

Local trash collection services or rather lack of them is a major contribution to air pollution. It is NOT a daily occurance, it is a seasonal tradition. In Thailand the end of the dry season has for centuries been the time when you burn all you rubbish, crops etc etc - it is no coincidence that it is followed by the Thai New Year.THat is all right in small amounts but now with an increasingly industrialised and urbanised population it has become unacceptable. On Samui and other islands the rubbish tips have become public nightmares - and fores erupt etc - all down to the hopeless garbage management systems that prevail all over Thailand - and as for the disposal of industrial waste, it is quite scandalous.

Yes - that's a very nice quote but you don't seem to want to put it isn context - in fact it looks like you don't actually understand it.

THe lesson form this and previous bus fires, is how easily they catch fire - this is the result of lack of government monitoring of the build quality of buses in general.

Can't bring yourself to type "no"?

are they EVs?

Just because a city was "always polluted" doesn't make it right. And it's getting worse. Firstly Chiang Mai for instance has more cars and more I dustry. Then there is crop burning and nan made fires. Despite being illegal they are on the increase due to pressure from the CARTELs that run the sugar, maize and rice commodities. They encourage more production and using burning as a short cut to growing more crops. The impact on tourism Thailand's golden child of the economy is also being felt. For many areas on the North now Jan to March is closed season when in other parts of the country, it is peak season. This may make even the authorities sit up and take note. Exposure to PM2.5 is calculated to take 2 or more years off life expectancy

I know several Thai families who desperately want to leave the region. They are very concerned about this recurring PM2 5 pollution. In just one hospital in 2023, 12,671 people sought treatment for respiratory issues at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital between January 1 and March 31 due to air pollution. The hospital was unable to treat many people due to overcrowding in the inpatient wing

As said - traffic and industry.TH reason for smog is there is no wind to blow the stuff away and a clouded sky, so pollutants just gather under the clouds and stay where they are.BKK is low lying and the weather is often ver clam. Chiang Mai is is just sitting in a "bowl" surrounded by hills so it is particularly prone to bouts of smog especialally between Jan and April when crop burning and man-made fires together with traffic and industry al come together to create a pollution soup of PM2.5 particles

Not really depends on where and how you use them - which is only in a few circumstances - While some costly air purifiers are highly effective indoors, they are only part of the solution for living in a polluted city. You would have to stay indoors all the time for them to be effective., The purifier can help to create safe, clean space at home (or at work). You still have to use your purifier in conjunction with outdoor precautions like masks, timing, and limiting outdoor exposure during peak pollution,.

that is about as useful as a chocolate teapot!

you mean NOW? Chiang Mai is potentially one of te most polluted cities in all of S.E. Asia - tens of thousands are treated in hospitals every year.

What crops are they burning now? It's too wet to burn My guess would be traffic and industrial pollution.

Like a ruling system dominated by the military and no customer rights. Anyone using the phrase nanny state is beyond rational discussion - if you want nanny take a look at what this country tells you that you can say, read or write. What rights you will have as an immigrant, how thy decide where you can work and look at education and healthcare... needless to say they have a workaround for property ownership? or a secure rental agreement? what is she going to do for a living? What work permit does she have and what visa? how long will that last?

how is this a story? what visas are they on?

No matter what happened in the vehicle and why, in most countries the Somtam shop would not have had permission to be there.