Evil Penevil

I don't know how common it is, but some farang landlords who rent out through AirBnB in Pattaya do keep the deposit as a scam. It works like this: The landlord will make a big thing of offering a discount on the monthly rent, but then keep the deposit to make up for the discount. Say 15,000/month is the "going rate" for a six-month rental of an apartment of a certain size/standard in a certain area. To attract renters, the landlord will cut the monthly rent to 13,000/month. However, he gets back the discount plus 1,000 baht by keeping the deposit. On a one-month rental, the landlord could slash the rent all the way to 10,000/month and earn a much higher margin by keeping the 10,0000 deposit. Scumbag landlords know farang tourists who are in Thailand for one to six months aren't going to take the matter to court, especially since they haven't really lost that much. The renter ends up paying what would be the normal going rate. When I lived in Pattaya, I knew of a farang landlord who'd done this for years. He finally got in trouble because an irate former tenant reported him to the immigration police for working without a permit. You don't need a work permit to rent out apartments and can do it on a retirement visa, but it has to be entirely passive. The farang owner can't actively advertise, handle or manage the apartment rental unless he has a work permit.

Iran has had a major grudge against Trump since he pulled the U.S. out of the multi-nation Iran nuclear deal and resumed economic sanctions in 2018. When Itump ordered the assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in 2020, that grudge became even more pressing. Soleimani was head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and widely regarded as the second most powerful man in Iran as well as a hero to many. At the time, Iranian leaders vowed to take heavy revenge against the U.S.. but nothing much came of it. They sure as hell haven't forgotten and will indeed try to assassinate Trump if they ever have the chance. You can be sure the Iranians would rather have Kamala as president. They have a better chance of getting Trump before he might be re-elected than after, so it's very possible he right now faces a credible death threat from Iran.

For me it's a meatloaf sandwich. Other choices would be: Tuna melt Katsu pork Grilled eggplant, tomato and mozzarella Fried chicken Fried fish

Not ALL homeless are mentally ill, but a significant number are. Many drug addicts also live on the streets. Take a look at the homeless in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco, Skid Row in Los Angeles, Brownsville in the Bronx or the Kensington area of Philadelphia and tell me it's only people who have fallen on hard economic times. You have to distinguish between the acute homeless and the chronic homeless. Acute homeless are people who lost their housing due to bad luck- an economic shock such as unemployment or massive debt or a catastrophe like a fire or flood. Some previously had low-cost living arrangements that ended suddenly. They can be helped by affordable housing and often don't spend long on the street before finding some sort of steady housing. The chronic homeless are those who have spent lengthy periods on the streets and its become a lifestyle for them. They often can't get housing because of mental illness or substance abuse. Take a look at this video of the chronic homeless in Philadelphia.

A lack of affordable housing and tax-payer-funded rent subsidies is part of the explanation, but it is hardly the full story. The linked site failed to mention the role played by mental illness and sustance abuse as causes of homelessness. Quite simply, there are several hundred thousand people in the U.S. who are too crazy to live on their own, even if the government is paying the rent. Studies have found 25% of the people living on the street suffer from severe mental ilness and nearly 50% have some type of mental problem. https://mentalillnesspolicy.org/consequences/homeless-mentally-ill.html One study in Los Angeles found "about 76% of individuals living outside on the streets reported being, or were observed to be, affected by mental illness, substance abuse, poor health or a physical disability." https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-10-07/homeless-population-mental-illness-disability More affordable housing is NOT a panacea for the homeless crisis. One expert puts it this way: “So people may get into housing, but they’re still traumatized, they may still be addicted, they may still be suffering for mental illness,” she says. “And so they’ll likely fall out of housing. They’re not prepared to live independently. Plus, they may be living in an apartment complex with other people who have very serious problems, and it turns out to be a very unpleasant place to live. So they’ll leave, as the streets are better.” https://www.dailysignal.com/2022/07/09/solving-the-homeless-problem-in-san-francisco/ Many homeless people need to live in an institutional setting. The severely mentally ill need to be placed in mental hospitals with high walls and locked gates. Those who abuse hard drugs should be jailed. People with less serious mental or substance abuse problems need group or transitional homes; assisted living facilities and shelters. That's the real cause of people living on the street. The U.S. doesn't have a sufficient support system for those unable to live independently.

That's an excellent point. A large, thick-coated dog like a Goldendoodle will have a hard time in the hot and humid Thai climate. Also, Goldendoodles need a fair amount of exercise and that's problematic for big dogs in Thailand, whether you live in a city or on a farm. Heavy traffic, a lack of parks and dog-friendly exercise areas, soi dogs, nasty critters and insects plus ticks and fleas in avalanches make it hard to be a responsible big-dog owner in Thailand.

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When I heard as a child, I thought it was the saddest song ever.

I realize this is a music thread. but an egregiously false statement has to be corrected. Mainstream historians say Lincoln freed between 3 and 3,5 million of the country's slaves, mostly through the Emancipation Proclamation. It's true the Proclamation only applied to states in rebellion against the U.S.. but as the Unions armies advanced deeper and deeper into the Confederacy, the sslaves in those states were freed. It also made it easier for slaves to escape their masters, as they only had to reach Union lines. Before the Civil War, slaves had to escape to either Canada or Mexico because fugitive slaves laws applied in the northern states. The Emancipation Proclamation provided a legal framework for freeing slaves without amending the U. S. Constitution. Lincoln's political acumen was crucial in steering the 13th Amendment through the House of Representatives and Senate. Without Lincoln's efforts to line up the votes needed, it's likely the 13th Amendment would have died in Congress. Lincoln also put pressure on the border states to free slaves and Missouri nd Marylnd both abolished slavery before the end of the Civil War, as did the former Confederaten states of Tennesee and Arkansas. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End_of_slavery_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation

Leonard Cohen wasn't the best singer, but his gravelly voice seemed appropriate for the profound but often harsh lyrics of his songs. Cohen was also a poet and novelist and the importance of his lyrics over melodic clang is evident. He's widely ackowledged by critics and other musicians as one of the best lyricists of the past 100 years. His popular hit 'Closing Time" from 1992 is very reflective of the Pattaya experience. A sample of the lyrics: "And I loved you when our love was blessed And I love you now there's nothing left But sorrow and a sense of overtime And I missed you since the place got wrecked And I just don't care what happens next Looks like freedom but it feels like death It's something in between, I guess It's closing time" https://genius.com/Leonard-cohen-closing-time-lyrics

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That's the best one-liner and basis for a meme I've read regarding the exploding pager op. I know what I'll answer the next time a pro-Palestine protester yells, "From the river to the sea," at me. You deserve a big round of applause.

And most importantly ... Meanwhile, Rashida Tlaib, the best friend of Hamas and Hezbollah in the U, S, Congress, says

You might want to check your source for that article. The writer is on the lunatic political fringe and hates both the U. S. and Israel. What definition of terrorism are you using? No universally accepted definition exists, although the U.N. has been trying to formulate one for years. The problem is, was and always will be that one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. It may be possible to formulate an objective definition of terrorism, but deciding exactly who is a terrorist will always be subjective and entirely dependent on how you feel about the person, group or nation that commits the act. In WWII, the German government considered the resistance groups in the occupied countries to be terrorists, while the Allies regarded them as freedom fighters. When German partisans used the same tactics against Allied occupaion forces as French, Greek, Norwegian etc. resistance groups had, the Germans were deemed terrorists and often executed when caught. It's truly a case of "same-same but different" when it comes to Israel's battle for survival against Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran. Those who support or at least sympathize with Hezbollah and Iran will consider the pager and walkie-talkie attacks as terrorism, while Israel's supporters will consider it a legitimate means to take out terrorist operatives and thereby protect Israeli citizens.

It's not the end for me. I will always reply when anti-Semitism masquerades as anti-Zionism.

Queers for Palestine is the equivalent of

I have read the post. You and I must have very different interpretations of @impulse's post: The "Sure they can" was referring to a previous post that said Hezbollah lacked the ability to respond to the pager attack. @impulse then named other cities in the world where Jews could be attacked. If "a Jew is a Jew is a Jew" and Jews in London, Paris and NYC can be attacked because of a covert op by the Israeli government, then all Jews are being held responsible for the action of a few Jews in a different country. That is indeed the definition of antisemitism. I didn't say @impulse was an anti-Semite. He was describing a possible course of action by Hezbollah that would be antisemitic. Many pro-Palestinians have said Hamas and Hezbollah are anti-Zionist but not antisemitic. Any time any group or nation- doesn't matter if it is Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, the pro-Palestinian protesters on U.S. campuses, anti-Israel posters on AN or the KKK- holds any Jews responsible for the policies and actions of the Israeli government other than the members of that government, it's blatant antisemitism.

Holding all Jews responsible for the action of some Jews (the government of Israel) is the definition of antisemitism. European antisemitism arose because early Christians considered all Jews the descendants of the killers of Christ and therefore deserving of punishment. The antisemitism in the Arab world has its roots in the interpretation of certain verses in the Koran coupled with the second-class status of Jews and Christians as dhimmis under sharia law. Dhimmis are "People of the Book," mainly Jews and Christians, who live under the control of a Muslim state.

Exploding pagers has to be the most innovative and creative attack in the history of war. Putting 2,700 terrorists out of action with one phone call while not losing a single IDF member is quite an accompishment.. Very well done, Israel. Thank you for reminding Hezbollah and its ilk that "Never again is today" and that Jews will no longer walk quietly to their extermination.

A shocking example of tourist atitudes taking the piss!

Four slave-owning border states (Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland and Delaware) remained in the Union, but NO free states joined the Confederacy. The anti-slavery western part of Virginia formed a new free state (West Virginia) and some counties in slave states declared themselves loyal to the Union, but no state that was free prior to the Civil War seceded.

This version of "The Sounds of Silence" gets my vote in the popular music category.

"Imagine" by John Lennon is often considered the best song of the past 100 years. It doesn't get my vote, but it is the opinion of many. In terms of which song has had the most influence in the past 100 years, I would say the U.S. Civil War song "Battle Hymn of the Republic." It had a significant role as both a marching song for Northern troops and an inspirational song for civilians. Lines from the song have been used as the titles of movies and books as well as in speeches. Several of Dr. Martin Luther King's most famous speeches have made reference to or quoted "Battle Hymn of the Republic." King's last publicly spoken words before his assasination were "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."

Considering the high levels oi alcohol and testosterone in low IQ individuals, I'm surprised we don't see many more fights in Pattaya. There are more fights in any U.S. city when the bars close on Friday and Saturday nights than you'll see in 10 years in Pattaya. The guys in the video were too drunk and too old to cause each other much damage, but the risk is one would fall and hit his head or break his neck. No one can accuse the Thai police of brutality; the officers were quite gentle with the idiots. It wouldn't have gone down that way in the U.S.