Purdey

Many people debating on social media? It's called a mass debate.

Excuse the sarcasm but... Not surprising that some found the news hard to believe, what with Islam being a religion of peace and all that. Mind you, others found it hard to believe that the British created the first concentration camps. I guess it is always hard to believe that "your people" did something terrible. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allied_war_crimes_during_World_War_II#United_Kingdom Education is really needed.

Some westerners speak little Thai because they don't feel the need to learn. I know one guy who still says Fuket instead of Phuket after 20 years. I taught myself from a book, which means I can read well but sound rather academic, like written Thai, when speaking. I can write my name and address in Thai but my work writing is all in English. My staff all speak excellent English, but I have never spoken English with my driver or the better half's family. Is it useful to at least speak Thai? Absolutely, Thais love that you made the effort. Even bar girls. When I was about to get my permanent residence at immigration, I had a chat in Thai with a policewoman at the small ceremony (just a photo for their records). She said to me rather sadly, "Do you know," sweeping her arm to include the rest of the room, "You are the only one here who can speak Thai?" Speak Thai, no matter the mistakes, and see them light up. 😀

Seems they are giving him the bum's rush. No court or trial but declaring him guilty by bureaucrat. Something smells fishy.

Hope he gets better soon.

I think she's serious and has good intentions.

All very well to say it is hot but how does it compare to 10-20 years ago?

Imagine the conversation before going to China. "Hey guys. Let's go to China and tell them in no uncertain terms that we will not buy this submarine." Then later.... "What happened? How did we go from no submarine to a submarine and a frigate?"

Pheu Thai lost the election as not enough people voted for them. Why are they going ahead with an election promise when they lost?

Green on Red. Saw them live and they were great.

Thais will continue to gamble at illegal casinos if not allowed into the "foreigner casinos" . Expect them to be disgruntled.

Not disagreeing the automotive industry is huge, but it relies on low-educated labor who are low paid (which is what makes Thailand attractive). This article explains that the current labor in automotive industries is woefully underskiled. https://rapid-asia.com/news/upskilling-and-reskilling-needs-in-thailands-automotive-sector/

Thanks for pointing that out. I was actually talking about high tech industry only not manufacturing in general, which involves a lot of low educated labor. I know Thailand produces computer parts but which Thai computer brands are there? Where is the Thai Samsung or Acer?

None of this would happen if Thailand didn't depend so much on tourism. If only they had an educated population that supported high technology industry...

Good strategy. No officer will want her distracting his men.

I hope they don't keep their 10,000 baht per person promise. The economy is bad enough as it is.

Climate change? What climate change? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change_in_Thailand

Agree that if she has been "spoilt" then cash may not be required, but it is traditional to give gold in such cases. https://www.thaiembassy.com/thailand/dowry-in-thailand#:~:text=Legal Advisor,expected in the Thai culture.

OMG, is this summer or is this a trend? Source: USA Today.

A dowry is a normal part of Thai culture. I paid, but my in-laws gave it all back after the ceremony. That's just how nice they are. I don't think you should give anyone money in Thailand and expect to get it back. Why would you feel bad if the grandkids get iPads because you gave the money to the in-laws? You aren't stupid if you gave the money knowing it was a dowry, not a loan.

I can understand that Thailand is a small country, in terms of global influence, and they need to keep some semblance of neutrality. By making friends with everyone, hopefully they wont get dragged into a war that doesn't concern them.

Do Thai people really want the kind of tourists that come to Thailand because it's a cheap place to get smashed on alcohol? I don't think so. First it was Bill Heinecke promoting a change in the law for more alcohol guzzling in his hotel properties. Now, property owner Sretta joining in about more freedom during the afternoon to get pissed legless in public but without comment on the number of families it destroys. Personally, I don't care for the balding drunks who come here to get p*ssed and I know many Thai people agree with me.

Well. one of the problems of living in Thailand is that many good movies don't come around. Do I remember correctly that Star Wars was not shown in Thailand when it first came out? I still go to see action films in the cinema as those seem to be the main types of movies shown, but really, nothing intelligent makes it here. It might be a good idea to have a long thread of good new movies on AN, with a brief review of why each is worth watching. That said, my bête noir concerning modern movies is how dark they are - please don't recommend anything that remains so dark the viewer has no idea what's happening on screen for a length of time. 😞

Unfortunately, any Thai government would lose a lot of face if it were proven that the Thai police were incompetent or in the pay of a local dark forces. Moreover, the fact that the condemned are Burmese makes it more important to show that foreigners are bad, Thais are good.

I read the article and it seems reasoned and factual. I think racism has been getting a free ride for too long. I don't know what the percentage of black people is in Scotland but having a voice in parliament would have been helpful to race relations. As for the law, it was passed legally by a majority of MSPs and is going to be no better or worse than the people who uphold it. I agree with many here that the definition of hate needs to be precise for the law to make sense.