Lacessit

I comply with laws that make sense, such as wearing a seat belt or motorcycle helmet. The accident statistics take care of those who choose not to. Don't come to me for sympathy if you become a paraplegic as a result of your choices. There's no law which requires me to drive defensively, I do it for self-preservation. I agree there are some laws that are stupid. Invariably people find ways to work around such laws. I don't believe in cheating people, I pay for what I want. OTOH, I take every cent I can get in government pension, having paid truckloads of taxes in my working life. I come from the pre-Boomer generation, and have realised some of the morals/ethics my parents and teachers taught me were valuable, others were foolishly naive.

That might have started the current predicament.

We got to know each other quite well.

I have had a runny nose and sore throat for about a week now. The runny nose was like a river initially, I have now settled into being a yellow snot factory. Not COVID, tested with a kit a couple of times. Definitely a lurgy going around. As the medicos say, a cold either lasts two weeks, or a fortnight.

That behavior is not unique to Thais. I remember an Australian who died in Chiang Mai. His son and two daughters turned up out of the blue at his deathbed. He had no contact with them for two years previously. They took charge of all his assets, and departed after a low-cost funeral. The Thai woman who had been taking care of him for at least a year got nothing.

Given your clothing size, perhaps their ribs are first.

I have listed them in a previous post, not my problem if you don't want to read what does not agree with your opinion.

If you are looking for a response to conspiracy theory, forget it. Putin made the choice to invade Ukraine, now he is wearing the consequences. I was taught practice is the noun, practise is the verb.

That could be part of the Russian thinking, although the Donbas coal could also be coveted. 60 billion tonnes of reserves. Most wars are theft writ large, and Putin is quite practised at stealing from others.

The Afghans had Stinger missiles, courtesy of America, and used them very effectively. As for tanks, the Afghans did not need them. They exacted a heavy toll on Soviet tanks and tracked vehicles with land mines. You may be right about Gorbachev, hard to say.

I can't take you seriously either, if all you can do is post insults to people. If you think I am not posting facts, refute them with your own research, or shut up.

The Ukrainians have every reason to believe Putin has genocide in mind for them, with Stalin's Holodomor as a demonstration. There are already reports of forced deportations in occupied areas. It's a powerful motivation to never surrender. The drain on energy and resources is obvious, Russia has lost more troops over 18 months in Ukraine, than it did in 9 years of war in Afghanistan.

Plenty of reality-deniers as well. Do some research before posting utter twaddle.

Russia is not on an official war footing because Putin is concerned about the domestic repercussions. There are plenty of Russians who remember Afghanistan, which is why he uses the BS " Special Military Operation". Are you able to refute any of the facts I posted?

Russia has already lost. Western aircraft made up 70% of Russia's domestic fleet. They will now have to cannibalize planes to keep them in the air, as spare parts will not be forthcoming. John McCain once said Russia was actually a big gas station. The European markets are gone, possibly until there is regime change. Replacing them with Chinese and Indian buyers is fraught with logistical problems. Western companies and expertise have abandoned Russia, meaning any oil wellheads in the permafrost are going to be freezing over due to lack of effective maintenance. Russia has lost 4000 tanks and 8000 armored personnel carriers in Ukraine, about $30 billion worth. It has also had a fall in arms sales, as countries who buy are seeing how technologically inferior Russian weapon systems are. Russia has lost over 1 million men of military age, fleeing the military draft. That includes some of their best and brightest citizens, otherwise known as a brain drain. The Russian military has lost massive prestige, such that former Soviet republics still in the Russian orbit are thinking of secession. When a country with a GDP of USD 1.8 trillion stops publishing basic financial data, what does that say about the state of Russia's economy?

IMO assassinating Putin or Kim would achieve nothing. Any leader replacing them would be just as bad. Both dictators have spent decades eliminating any dissent, and promoting those who have proved their loyalty. In that environment, a change in mindset by any successor is highly unlikely.

I don't regard any days in Thailand as wasted, except perhaps when I am transiting through Bangkok. OTOH, I do consider I wasted many years of my life in Australia.

2 or 3 village girls as well.....

The River Styx was the main river in the Greek Underworld that separated the realm of the living from the realm of the dead, which the ferryman Charon had to take the souls of the dead across. I assume you are inferring life in a rural Thai village is the realm of the dead.

I am not sure he would even qualify as semi-fiction. Carl Hiassen is one of the funniest commentators on Florida development I have read. John D MacDonald wrote some very good fiction on some social aspects of America, "One More Sunday", "Condominium" and "Barrier Island" are examples.

Not bitter, just pointing out dogmatic generalizations are a specialty of yours. Prices are no guide to quality of service. My regular massage lady in CR ( 150 baht/hr, I give 200 ) provides clean linen on the pillow and mattress, plus fresh ironed clothing. I would not be surprised to learn your 200 baht Bangkok bargains come with clothing and linen that has been used half a dozen times.

I agree, although Bangkok won't be one of those places unless the Thais start copying the Dutch. Think of the river system of Thailand as a giant bathtub. Joining up to form the Chao Praya river, culminating in Bangkok. At 1 metre above sea level, it's the drain hole.

Apart from Bangkok, I have been to other big cities such as London, Madrid, Tokyo, New York, Chicago and Hong Kong. Too many people, I prefer the smaller cities. While I have explored a fair bit of Bangkok, it simply does nothing to excite me.

Bangkok also has year-round air pollution, being one of the world's biggest traffic jams. At least it's only 3 months in CR. I don't remember mentioning food in my post. However, we all know you like to be an expert on everything in Thailand.

Each to his own, Bangkok is a place I sleep for one night prior to getting the hell out of there.