StayinThailand2much

1 million? Yawn, at least make it interesting. How about a billion dollars as someone recently won in the U.S. Powerball...

I think the Thais are used to that, as things here have never been different. Most leaders did enrich themselves while they were in power, had a firm grip of the country as (military) dictators, or both. And the few who didn't, did not last long in power. IMHO this won't change until the masses are both, better educated and thinking for themselves.

Yes, some topics (debt, tourism, economic outlook, etc.) seem to be posted twice or thrice from different sources within days...

Makes you wonder how 'safe' the commercial banks are...

Both being out of their control.

Good to know. I'd imagine that the difference in procedure is because of Vietnam's and Malaysia's different visa policies.

Thanks.

Well, that may be true for individuals, but I read that the opposite is more likely, i.e. younger/future generations having a lower IQ due to different, less challenging and demanding lifestyles. Yes, they may be more acquainted with anything IT, and the latest gadgets. But how many of them will have read as many books in their youth as some of the older folks did, and how many were as active as kids, rather than just being glued to their smartphones all day?

Good to know, thanks. So, if I were denied, instead of being detained, could I just ask Immigration to let me go back airside to make my own arrangements for a flight out?

How do you 'depart voluntarily', I wonder. You're at arrival, but can't enter the arrival hall, or get to check-in or departure...

Yes. I've been following Thai politics since about the first time I travelled to Thailand. I've walked among the Red Shirts and Yellow Shirts, and saw the chaos at the time. Out of interest, I just read up on Thai politics in the 1990s... Guess what, it was quite similar to the 2000s and early 2010s! History really seems to repeat itself in Thailand over and over again, every 10 to 15 years or so. And as long as there is only a tiny upper class, and 90%+ of indebted 'have-nots', I doubt it will change. - Would anything have changed under a Move Forward led government? Guess we'll never know.

"New Thai PM could be elected on August 4, but…" ... they have to wait for Thaksin.

LOL. Are you suggesting that they didn't have the guts for brown shirts, so they picked red as a poor-man's brown instead? Anyhow, at least the 'black shirts' were wearing ϟϟ colours...

LOL. You mean 'Heil ...!'? - I remember the picture of Thaksin in a photo-montage on a website (Mango Sauce), raising his arm on TV, with a bottle of Chang on top of it, and the text below reading: "Thaksin at a rally, reaching for a Beer Chang".

It's all about $$$$...

My prediction is that he will either spend only a short time in jail, or, possibly, none at all.

Yes!

But probably will only get worse. If banks continue lending like this, then soon we will read that households are not 560,000 baht in debt, but 650,000.

Must be 'somebody'...

'Democracy', and amassing more wealth for their leader, his family and cronies, to the detriment of everyone else...

Back to the early 2000s. Sometimes Thailand feels like a movie trilogy...

Funny, I anticipated this right after the election... I should really buy lottery tickets!

Well, this (blacklisting and deportation) is what will likely happen, thanks to China seeing SE Asia more and more as their 'backyard', and Thailand happy to comply...

With 'stewardess' it sounded funny, or would you go to a 'flight attendant strip club'? LOL

Nice relatives!