Tofer

6 hours ago, Stargrazer9889 said:

Most posters on this forum do not live in a small village, or come from a small town or village, so they do not know what the poor people in Thailand live like.

  Most think of their own situations, and respond accordingly. Most posters here are

in the category of a middle class to upper class Thai, so can not possibly fathom, life as

a poor person. I guess this situation will not change as well. I feel sorry for the boys parents, brothers and sisters and friends who now may realize how foolish it was for the boy to be allowed to drive pickups and other 4 wheeled vehicles. His habit cost him his life.

  RIP. 

Geezer

I've long hadn't you down as the king of conjecture. This proves my opinion once again.

On 1/3/2020 at 10:40 AM, Grumpy John said:

And assuming the kid wasn't skilled is a bit unkind.  

Not only was he not skilled, as he could not control the car down a hill, he was underage, unlicensed and uninsured.

So when some youth causes an accident with your family, you will be quite happy to accept the circumstances?

On 1/2/2020 at 8:19 PM, Chelseafan said:

Again, I'm not disagreeing but given where the kids live, there's just no way we would allow them ride pushbikes. The cars come around those bends at 50+ mph sometimes and I suspect there would be more deaths of schoolkids on the roads. I don't like motorbikes, I don't like the kids driving them either but unfortunately they are a practicality out in the provinces.

 

 

I hope you're not suggesting a child is safer driving a motorbike on those roads than a push bike.....

3 hours ago, RyanWalker said:

Correct. Thailand was good to me 10 years ago but for now can not make money in Thailand as an expat unless you are set up somehow. In China making 5 times more already within a couple of months.

5 times more than what?

I thought you said you didn't pay tax in Thailand, so what income are you referring to?

3 hours ago, RyanWalker said:

Of course I did not pay tax. No business, just teaching

So your teaching was a charitable arrangement?

1 minute ago, Pattaya46 said:

Which area ?

This year in Pattaya it's difficult to avoid aircon

as temperature climbs over 35°C every day !

Koh Lanta, Krabi. Clean air and pleasant ocean breeze.

As I said, it's personal circumstances, but not nationwide. Sanemax referred to "Thailand", i.e. the whole country.

Find a pleasant breezy terrace in the shade, with a cool drink, and turn on a fan if necessary, I'm sure that's possible even in Pattaya.

4 hours ago, JAFO said:

Howdy Gecko,

I didn't want quote your entire response but my point being it has grown very old of reading all these folks posts that come on here and complain at the top of their lungs about all that's bad here. Does that some how make them feel better? Is it really that bad? I think not. I have found that the westerners I have met and known that left, moved here with little to no plan. However as time has gone on they go on and on to complain about how terrible this place is. How the immigration is a farce, how Thais hate them, how people are mean etc. Do these posters ever step back and look in the mirror and wonder if its them? 

 

I respect that this just didn't work out for them. Such as life. Forums usually attract an audience that typically wants to complain, its the nature of the beast. As you and I have seen when someone posts how their life is going well, they live comfortably, have no immigration issues etc the thread dies quickly or they get negative responses about being smug or braggarts. Is it because some adapted and had a plan and they didn't?

 

Moving abroad takes careful consideration for all the concerns you noted in your post. I still suspect that many posters moved here on a whim or something close to it and while maybe their first 5 to 10 years were Ok, times are changing and like anywhere one must adapt. If not then those same people will be come their own worst enemy and their constant complaining will become cancerous and all consuming like it appears to have happened to many.

 

So as I stated earlier, Expats will come and go, they do in every country. I respect and understand that but just get on with it. Don't complain looking for some sort of validation that its the same for everyone as its not. ????

 

Cheers and Happy New Year

Thank you Jafo, well said.

4 hours ago, JAFO said:

Howdy Gecko,

I didn't want quote your entire response but my point being it has grown very old of reading all these folks posts that come on here and complain at the top of their lungs about all that's bad here. Does that some how make them feel better? Is it really that bad? I think not. I have found that the westerners I have met and known that left, moved here with little to no plan. However as time has gone on they go on and on to complain about how terrible this place is. How the immigration is a farce, how Thais hate them, how people are mean etc. Do these posters ever step back and look in the mirror and wonder if its them? 

 

I respect that this just didn't work out for them. Such as life. Forums usually attract an audience that typically wants to complain, its the nature of the beast. As you and I have seen when someone posts how their life is going well, they live comfortably, have no immigration issues etc the thread dies quickly or they get negative responses about being smug or braggarts. Is it because some adapted and had a plan and they didn't?

 

Moving abroad takes careful consideration for all the concerns you noted in your post. I still suspect that many posters moved here on a whim or something close to it and while maybe their first 5 to 10 years were Ok, times are changing and like anywhere one must adapt. If not then those same people will be come their own worst enemy and their constant complaining will become cancerous and all consuming like it appears to have happened to many.

 

So as I stated earlier, Expats will come and go, they do in every country. I respect and understand that but just get on with it. Don't complain looking for some sort of validation that its the same for everyone as its not. ????

 

Cheers and Happy New Year

Just thought the members should read your post again, and amen to that hopefully.....????

Happy New Year.

9 hours ago, sanemax said:

Nice cold 7 degrees weather here in a UK winter .

I was just telling my neighbours today about how horrendous the heat was in Thailand and how unpleasant it was going out between 11 am and 3 PM because the heat was too hot and having to spend that time chilling out in air-con shopping centres to avoid the heat and pollution 

 

Well, you've just done your neighbours and Thailand a great disservice.

I would suggest it was your personal circumstances which created your negative view of a day in Thailand.

I don't go near an a/c on an average day, and the air in my area is as pure as the driven snow, that was before they discovered rubber and plastic particles in the snow!

19 hours ago, RyanWalker said:

I worked for 8 years online in Thailand and I have always had a TV. So if theyballow me to do it then thanks????

Was that a business / employment visa?

Did you pay income tax in Thailand?

Crime of passion, diminished responsibility.

Don't anybody dare say that puts paid to most crimes in Thailand....

2 hours ago, Christie Paul said:

Working illegally online ?

 

I just don't see the harm in it. 

 

To the contrary, if they earn from abroad and spend here, the beneficiary is where they spend. 

 

Furthermore, because of such policies Thailand loses out to many countries which welcome such people and thrive because of it. 

That's as maybe, but they're still working illegally and manipulating the immigration laws.

I don't make the laws, but they do exist, and should be respected.

Don't like it, off you go then.

Then when Thailand disappears of the face of the earth due to the loss of your input, you can come back and tell us 'I told you so'....

1 minute ago, bowerboy said:

 

Are you joking?

Nope - fact.

3 minutes ago, saengd said:

I believe he's talking about loan sharks.

You beat me to it, I was about to edit my post to say, except at the point of a gun.....

1 hour ago, bowerboy said:

What about informal lending? That business is not inconsiderable in size in Thailand.

I believe this is now virtually non existent. Since the government outlawed securitisation of private / informal loans, the debtors have simply walked away from their obligations, hence the business no longer functions.

34 minutes ago, Aussiepeter said:

You have my sympathy for your loss NanLaew and I sympathise too with Cornish Carlos, as my Thai missus is totally deaf in one ear and has 30% loss in the other after some dumb 'Somchai' let off a cherry-bomb next to her in CM when she was 17. Burst both her eardrums. I was an explosives safety officer and UXO technician in the army for nearly 30 years. There are many safety rules with gunpowder-based explosives, including light it at arms length, but the main one that another poster hit on is simple - if you have lit or tried to lite it once, there is a 2 hour wait (in the bunker) before one silly sod (the safety Officer, i.e. me) goes down to take a closer look. I would then destroy it - not try to relight it.

I enjoyed playing with fireworks in C Mai for many years, but always in a vacant cleared paddock, with both adults and kids kept at least 100m away to watch. They have been banned in Oz since about 1970, with good cause. The Chinese stuff they sell downstairs in Kad Luang (Worowat Market) often has over 200+ grams of compressed gunpowder and often with old dodgy fuzes. Gunpowder breaks down with time, so the burning time of a fuze can suffer delay if old.

Sad way to go for a chap who from all reports was a very nice bloke. 

Thanks for the technical advice. I put ours on a shelf last night as it was way too windy to set them off. I was going to keep them for the next celebration, but I think not now.

I must confess I felt extremely uncomfortable riding home with them under my bike seat, next to the petrol tank in the hot sun, no telling how we'll made they are out here. Decided to cut short my bike ride instead of my manhood.... ????

On 12/27/2019 at 11:54 AM, Halfaboy said:

 

Maybe we need to invite Greta for a visit.....

NO !

Shame. I for one would be happy to meet her!

She is intelligent, articulate and inspiring. Something a lot on this site cannot be accused of.

4 hours ago, Airbagwill said:

Please exain how you come to this conclusion.

Gladly.

You stated in post #112 (sorry not 114)  that "they (Thais) are completely uninformed on road safety issues, and quite often aren't even intellectually up to the job".

Post #107 also, "Thailand ignores advice..."

Then in post #117, you state that people exhibit "their personal superiority over the people of Thailand", and the previously noted "generalisation" comment. Criticising others for doing exactly what you just did in 2 cuncurrent posts.

How would you describe that if not hypocritical.?

1 hour ago, Airbagwill said:

 

Generalisation, cliche, stereotyping and racism seem to be the order off the day.

You mean as in your post #114.

Rather hypocritical wouldn't you agree.....

On 12/28/2019 at 1:52 PM, Oliver Holzerfilled said:

Invite Greta?  Are you going to take your own medicine and paddle a canoe to get to your home country the next time you need to visit it?  

No need, I have a yacht and could use the free and environmentally friendly power of the wind, as Greta did on her Atlantic crossing.

By the way, my yacht tender is a kayak, so yes I would be paddling part of the way!

And unless you have ever made an ocean crossing, with a bunch of strangers to boot, show some respect for the young lady's commitment / dedication and determination.

What have you done in your lifetime to make a difference?

23 hours ago, CNXexpat said:

Sure? This sign says "Drive slowly if you are drunk".

 

23 hours ago, CNXexpat said:

Sure? This sign says "Drive slowly if you are drunk".

 

Obviously a spoof sign.

I wonder how long that was allowed to stay in place?

1 hour ago, superal said:

Sooooo true & apathy rules for sure .   There are many ways to mitigate the carnage on Thailand's roads but for some reason they are not used .

The reason is very simple, and it's not apathy but face. Thais are too proud (read arrogant) to accept that anybody knows better than them. They will never follow others example or advice, as it would be seen as an admission that their way is not the best way.

Combined with the inbred culture of corruption, which will never change also.

The powers that be are well aware of the traffic laws / rules and stringent licensing requirements in other countries around the world, so why else would they choose to turn a blind eye to them, if they are so concerned about the situation.....

And the conclusion from all this wonderfully in depth research and statistical analysis??

Nothing will change.

I wonder if they think they are clever?

It's a lot easier to state factual record than form a coherent and meaningful plan to rectify the dire situation.

Until they introduce a meaningful driving test and proper enforcement of the rules, nothing will change.

10 minutes ago, alex8912 said:

I don’t believe any inside temp is 12. 
Frail can mean bad blood circulation because the cold inside temps seem to affect less than 20% of the people. Same at Don Mueang. 

Maybe not, it was an over exaggeration to prove a point. I'm sure it's not a first on TV!

By the same token, I'd like to know where you got your 20% from?

There were far more people with jackets, jumpers, shawls, long sleeved shirts, trousers, shoes and socks than without, and those without were hogging the windows for the heat. The rest were grinning and bearing it....

21 hours ago, Gweiloman said:

Do you think that most Thais know or even bother about tourism numbers?

 

What I can tell you is that most people who live in touristic places hates tourism unless they are personally benefitting in some way from it. 

That's as maybe. But they all surely benefit indirectly from improved infrastructure and the consumer economy from workers in the tourism industry for instance, and suffer from rampant over development.