John Drake

How did a topic supposedly about European tourism to Thailand turn into yet another argument between potheads and boozers?

3 hours ago, Hummin said:

It cost them 350 000 men, another 80k to maintain it for 80 years. Now, ready to turn their back to old allies

Might have something to do with the "old Allies" snuggling up to China as fast as they can.

On 5/18/2025 at 9:38 AM, KhunLA said:

Since sailors, one would expect they know how to swim.

 

Maybe not. It seems their predecessors didn't. 

Quote

Traditionally, most sailors through the 19th century couldn’t swim. The British Royal Navy preferred it that way because men who could not swim had more incentive to remain on board and keep the ship afloat. Life vests of that era were also discouraged because a square-rigged ship sailing downwind wasn’t coming back to find an overboard sailor in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic. So, why prolong the inevitable? Closer to shore, life vests were denied to prevent non-swimming sailors, some of whom were conscripted from city jails, from escaping their imprisonment. https://americansailing.com/articles/swim-to-sail/#:~:text=Traditionally%2C most sailors through the,and keep the ship afloat.

 

Why was it going backwards?

World War II commemorations are like a religion to many Europeans, especially the British. Frankly, it seems unhealthy to me, trying to compensate for present day inadequacy through constantly sanctifying events that occurred 80 to 86 years ago.

We're going to need it! Need to get a reading on the water level in the dams, too.

He's just a narcissistic agent of chaos who wants two things: 1) to be the center of attention every day and 2) to manipulate the government to increase his own wealth through a variety of shady deals and stock manipulation.

As inept as Thai officials can be, I expect to see Trump's even more incompetent negotiators get rolled by them.

I think we're going to need this topic this year. Maybe they should already be letting dam water out.

Maybe two years ago. I used to stop in and say hello to some old colleagues at MUIC whenever I would go to the Mahidol branch of Bangkok Bank. It was still the closest branch to me. But they closed it, and I haven't gone back to MU. 

3 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

"Apply for credits" appears to mean would have to claim a credit on your 1040, to be applied against tax owed.

No owe tax, no get remittance tax refund?

 

"Tax credits" seem to work oddly in IRS terminology. The Earned Income Tax Credit, for example, is not a credit against taxes you pay but actually a cash amount the government flat out gives you. Maybe that is the way they will do it, here. File return, claim US citizen remittance tax credit, and have the IRS issue it to your bank account.

When these sort of holidays come around, it has had an effect on my SSA payment to my Thai bank account. At first, I would get payments on the same day that SSA paid out my check. Then, for quite some time, I was put at the back of the line. And, as with the instance described, I would receive my check the next day or, in case of holidays, some time four days after the SSA payout. Right now, I'm back to getting same day checks. Received mine in my Bangkok Bank account this month on 2 May in the morning. 

Do you count the Iranian terrorists from about 10 or 12 years ago? I think Thailand eventually let them go free back to Iran.

8 minutes ago, connda said:

Today, on both May 8th and May 9th depending on the region, we reflect and mourn the losses caused by the German Nazis who attempted to establish a Third Reich in Europe and beyond.
Prayer for those lost, killed, injured, and traumatized by those who sought to conquer the world eighty years ago.
As always in war in the past, and war in the future - civilians bear the brunt force of wars.

As a US Anti-war Veteran - I call for an end to all war.  If we don't end war soon, as Einstein so aptly pointed out, "World War 4 will be fought with rocks and sticks."

✝️☦️✡️🙏🙏🙏

Interesting to see the vast number of UK MIAs versus the extremely low number of US MIAs. Asked Grok about it and Grok said the US had a better centralized system of record keeping and many of the UK MIAs were later found to be POWs. Other factors too, but the UK MIAs almost equal the KIAs.

2 minutes ago, Tug said:

Or what’s he trying to hide from view with this latest outrage? he’s up to something.

I could accept that, except there are already so many of his toddler toys thrown out of the crib and cluttering the floor. He's grunting about Canada and Greenland again. Putting tariffs on movies. At one moment saying Iran's nuclear program is okay, the next saying there is no change. Then vague comments about whether or not he'll uphold the Constitution. How can an 80 year old man behave with such a lack of dignity and disdain for the contempt future generations will hold for him?

Trump sounding more like Kim Dotcom every day.