John Drake

Should make them perfect candidates for Harvard or Columbia then.

Are you saying, well, vote for Trump, because Biden is even worse? There is no disputing the fact that Trump is doing a 180 on his promised immigration crackdown. (He did this last election, too, btw, when he promised to cancel DACA on "day one" but instead on "day one" came out of a plane with his daughter and actually proposed expanding DACA.) The reason this time? It might just be this: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/republican-mega-donor-adelson-back-major-pro-trump-spending-group-2024-05-30/ . Miriam Adelson is the widow of Sheldon Adelson who always conditioned his funding of Republicans on their support of expanded immigration. Basically, Trump is for sale. No matter the issue. Same as with Tik Tok, where he went against his own policy of banning Tik Tok just to get money from a billionaire invested heavily into Tik Tok. Don't be a chump. Vote for RFKjr. Trump has no core beliefs. And Biden's beliefs are bad. Not to mention that Herman Munster displays more agility and alertness than Biden. Only RFKjr can save the country.

How did they ever get into Germany to do such a thing???

Make room for the Chinese colonists.

This is the definition of a colony. Thailand is becoming a colony that exports its raw materials and agriculture to the mother country and in return receives manufactured goods. So its own manufacturing shuts down. This also explains the trade deficit with China. (And why things like durian are so much more expensive for Thais than in the past.)

Thanks for your overall view. I agree that it's like waiting on pins and needles. I know that I've begun to think about coming out of retirement to take a part time teaching job at a university, if necessary. I'm also looking into nearby countries, particularly Laos--I like Vientiane. Your comments about a turf war are interesting. One thing I can't understand is if economic conditions are so dire and Thailand is desperate for any income it can get its hands on, then why on earth push out the steady stream of income people on retirement extensions provide? FWIW, a friend of mine (I know, I know, everybody has a "friend"), had a conversation with immigration staff and overheard them talking about doing whatever they can to bring more Chinese into the country. They said the Chinese didn't like putting the 800K in the bank, and so a proposal was being mooted to require different levels of money for different provinces, with the remoter provinces being cheaper. So it might mean 800K still needed for Bangkok but say 700K or 600K for Chaiyaphum. Whatever happens, it is the insurance requirement that worries me most. Anyway, just my rumor mongering, so nobody take it seriously. Anyway, thanks for your contributions. It gives me pause and something to think about.

What are some of the specific changes being floated?

Japan is one of the most hygienic societies in the world. If it can happen there . . . .

Here is a source for the video. It's really very funny. Trump has shafted his voters on the one issue he had a clear cut advantage over Biden with. What an absolute idiot.

Trump is going one better than Biden. He's offering green cards to every non-citizen who graduates from a college, including two year colleges. Any degree. Yep, Trump is not even waiting until elected to betray his own base. I took a look into the Trump sites and Trump influencers on Twitter/X. They're denying he said it, even though there is a video of the podcast, which I would post here, but I'm not sure it's allowed. Trump making Biden look like a piker when it comes to opening the immigration floodgates.

Once this is over and Putin is defeated, there need to be some repercussions for siding with the invaders.

Could there be another lock down, lock out in Thailand? I admit I liked living in Thailand during Covid. Fewer people, less air pollution, easier to get around. Anyway, I've still got masks, hand cleaner, and Fah Talai Jone in stock.

No, what I meant is what I wrote.

All I can do is make judgments based on my individual encounters. And they are uniformly and without exception negative. Unlike, I might add, formal and informal encounters with PRC Chinese, many of whom have been quite nice and engaging. With the Russians, it amounts to them blocking the escalators rather than stepping aside once they get off, pushing and shoving on the BTS, pounding on restaurant tables, breaking in line and shoving their friends in front of you, giving hostile stare downs to others when monopolizing a space, crowding on to elevators, pestering sales clerks, etc. I've not had or seen one single positive encounter with them. Of course, I don't give them questionnaires to discover what their attitude is towards political or social topics. Maybe underneath all the hostility and aggression they're all like Albert Schweitzer. But I doubt it. And I'm only interested in avoiding them, not saying hello how are you.

So two separate terminals miles apart? That's going to be like Kuala Lumpur where I've twice been dropped at the wrong terminal.

And just in case you're wondering if the US Embassy had a statement or a comment or something, no, the ambassador is too busy with a cheese lunch. And California cheese at that. Were I from Wisconsin, I might be wondering what the hell . . . https://x.com/USAmbThailand/status/1803600952974516607

How about marriage equality for foreign men married to Thai women? Make it the same as for foreign women married to Thai men. Are these gay marriages going to be treated like foreign women marrying Thai men or foreign men marrying Thai women? https://www.thaicitizenship.com/thai-citizenship-based-on-marriage-to-a-thai-husband/

In other words, Thailand is the tallest midget.

Well, yes, I think some of what you say is correct. I've said before on these forums that Vietnam has snookered the US. Vietnam was never, could never, replace China with the US. Ideologically, they are both still communist. And with the new Vietnamese hardliners who came to power on an anti-corruption campaign (just like Xi), it should be obvious which way they will go. If that is not enough, there is the simple fact that China controls the Mekong River and holds ultimate control over Vietnam. US foreign policy is delusional if it thinks it ever had a chance of bringing Vietnam over to its side.

It's not just China. It's also Vietnam. Putin is going there for a state visit this week. I've made mention in several topics of the slow moving coup in Vietnam that recently ousted the so-called reformers and put in place hardline, pro-China generals. Now, the wider effect is being seen. The US and Europe needs to withdraw from any agreements and investment in Vietnam. To maintain them, is to help China and Russia and damage the effort against Russia in Ukraine. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/vietnam-host-putin-nod-old-ties-risking-ire-west-2024-06-19/

Why is the sign in English? Shouldn't it be in Chinese, since they're the Big Brother supposed to build up Thailand?

Either that, or don't have anything more complicated than US social security and maybe a simple annuity.

I do wonder if this guy might end up winning it all? I don't know much about the nuances of British politics, but I see a lot of postings on it on Twitter. The Conservatives look like they've already given up. The Labor people look like they are in an absolute panic. Got the media, whose Twitter/X accounts I see, desperately trying to destroy him.

How are the applicants going to prove they've been in the US for 10 years? Take their word for it? Create false documentation? That's what they did for the last amnesty. That, and the numbers were so much larger than expected that INS ended up barely giving any inspection to the application and just stamped through approvals.

If they are willing to go to these lengths to take this guy's 600 baht per month pension, imagine what Thai IRS will do to get their hands on the tax on expatriates' worldwide income.