John Drake

A couple of years ago, Thailand openly marketed itself to Chinese companies as a place to "relocate" to in order to avoid US tariffs and exclusion lists. For that and things such as this glove scandal, the US should put a trade embargo on Thailand until the country can verify to the standards of the US that is no longer engaged in fraud. Would be a good time to clean up on IP theft as well.

There are strong consumer protection laws in the US.

A very large part of the marketing of "prestige" schools, here, is that should you enroll your child with them, then he or she will meet and be among people from other hi-so families. It's also a key part of the marketing for up and coming "new wealth." What they're selling are connections. It's very blatant, openly advertised in their brochures, often before academic offerings. Over the years at Mahidol, I was part of the committee that interviewed students applying for a place at MUIC. I had students from all these schools sit in front of me and answer questions. There was rarely any strong separation among the students from one school or another. The pecking order didn't matter much. Usually, they were prepared, had passable English oral and written language skills, and lagged in the areas of science and mathematics. Most wanted to go into the business program. But nearly all of them carried a sense of entitlement I found astonishing. I think these "prestige" primary and secondary schools in Thailand perpetuate many of the social and academic problems, here. I think we have seen that sense of entitlement and false superiority even in some of the posts from people on this forum. These students come out of "elite" schools and are solid, albeit not spectacular. That is as a group. Of course, individual talents do shine. But they would do so even in the worst circumstances. Intelligence, as with truth, usually will out.

Just wait until DeltaMax hits, then DeltaTurbo, then Deltasupercharged, etc.

No thanks to Russell Crowe?

Take it or don't take it. Make your own decisions. I have taken it, because it reduces fever quickly and faster than Tylenol. I don't know if it is the same family of plants as echinacea, but it seems to have the same benefits. I used to take echinacea (https://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/cold-guide/echinacea-common-cold#1-3) in the US. I take Fah talai Jone here for the same reasons. And I usually take one or two if I'm going out to a crowded store.

Struggle? I thought a tsunami of Russians and Chinese was champing at the bit to swoop in and buy thousands and thousands of condos. Wasn't that in a forum topic a couple of weeks ago?

It has to be fantasy. My wife's friends and family mostly work as police or in police administration in Khon Kaen or around Chaiyaphum. Most of them make around 10,000 to 11,000 per month and think they have a very good job (I don't mean "extras" that come with it).

So, how about letting water out of the dams before the storm hits and they overflow?

No India, Indonesia, or Taiwan? And Cambodia, yes, but Laos and Vietnam, no? And Czech Republic, yes, but not Slovakia? Very odd.

I'm actually surprised it's that high. If the Move Forward people think they're going to get the average Isaan salary to 40,000 then they're selling fairy tales.

Don't know about the married part. I was employed by Mahidol and retired at the end of my last contract. At Nakhon Pathom immigration, they asked for my retirement letter, wrote some sentences in Thai in my passport, and then sent me to Chaengwattana to do the new extension. (Mahidol's address was used for my earlier extensions and so used Nakhon Pathom. Then had to change to my physical address in Bangkok and go to Chaengwattana.) To this day, I still extend for purposes of retirement off my original Non-B.

You can just extend the non-B for reason of retirement. That is what I did six years ago. No need to change to a non-O. I only needed to supply a retirement letter from my employer.

Why doesn't aseannow offer this service for other countries?

The decisions were made by payoffs to keep certain areas dry at the expense of others, despite the fact that flood plans in existence said to do just the opposite.

Any relation to Frank and Nancy?

I have been in an emergency room in Thailand where they bring in people who were mangled by road accidents. They treat them. Just as they treated me. Afterwards, I paid. I don't know what happened to the Thai who was almost dead. I assume they did everything possible to help. But as for us, for foreigners. I doubt anyone can skip out without paying. They have our passports and immigration/police have our addresses. Hard for me to imagine that someone foreign can abscond with free medical treatment.

All hail the arriving cold season!

They have their own logic. And "life ain't fair" doesn't get very far, here. Your wanting to put mandatory health insurance people in other than the OA category generates the same feeling I have for people who can use income letters from their embassies, after I lost that service at my embassy. But I let it go. They can use the letters, I cannot.

Among the most important things those of us living here from other countries should do is investigate the available medical care before getting sick. By that, I mean see what hospital prices are like, what services are available, and what physicians on staff are capable of. Sometimes, you'll save more money paying out of pocket than if you had insurance. For example, in 2012, I developed some inner ear problems. I went to Bumrungrad and they gave me a hearing test, sent me home with a single prescription for medicine. Total cost: 21,000 baht, of which my insurance offered through Mahidol only paid 14,000. Problems persisted. I went back several; times, seeing different physicians, but getting only the same test and treatment. Finally, after I retired and lost my insurance, I went to the Eye Ear Nose and Throat Hospital near Pinklao. Saw a specialist in Meniere's, got a hearing test, finally received an accurate diagnosis, and went home with prescription medicine. Total cost: 2500 baht. No insurance but I saved 4500 baht and received superior treatment. I still go to the same EENT doctor every couple of months. Hearing in both ears partially restored and no vertigo in four years. Lesson: don't let insurance make you lazy. Seek out the best treatment. It may not be at the "brand name" hospitals. Could say similar things about Thonburi 2 Hospital. Better than quality care, superior care, is out there, but you need to look for it. When you're collapsed on the floor sweating and semi-conscious, it's too late to know the best alternatives.

Why not?

Looks like Thai High Season will always coincide with Covid Season elsewhere in the world.

The key words being "after I file the claim." Does any medical center in Thailand accept Tricare up front? If not, I can see that their thinking might be that after you die on the operating table, there is no one around to file the claim????

So you think foreigners get medical treatment for free? Something tells me you've never been treated in a Thai hospital. They will get their money. Why do you think they wheel you out to cashier's window with two big guys on each handle of the wheelchair? And why do you think that for costly procedures they make sure you pay in advance. It's not like Mexico, where they handcuff you to the hospital bed until you pay. But they do make sure nobody gets anything for "free."

I do wonder if immigration is moving towards making 800/400 the only option for retirement extensions not including OA. No monthly income letters and no mix of income letters and fixed account levels.