Lacessit

I'm not sure what your post has to do with the topic. Be that as it may, there are a few inconvenient facts obstructing your view of a multipolar world. 1/ The USA is self-sufficient. It can feed itself, and fuel itself. 2/ Russia is heading towards being a failed state. If the Ukrainians don't achieve that, sanctions will. The ruble is becoming toilet paper. 3/ China is utterly dependent on imports to survive. A couple of nuclear submarines interdicting shipping through the Malacca Strait is all that's needed. 4/ China is also dependent on trade with the US. The only reason the CCP is not aiding Russia militarily - they are terrified of sanctions. 5/ I don't know where you are getting your GDP figures from. Mine say the combined GDP of the US and EU is $40 trillion, that of the BRICS $25 trillion. China is about 70% of the group's GDP. Note: It's all in USD, the world's reserve currency. 6/ Dictatorships such as Putin and Xi are always sclerotic, because no-one wants be the bearer of bad news. When such entities become dynasties, the results are evident in places like North Korea. People there are starving. 7/ Your assessment of resource availability is incorrect. For example, China controls about 90% of rare earths. That is only because the CCP is willing to foul the countryside with the toxic mining by-products. In point of fact, rare earths are not all that rare, and Australia has deposits which are an order of magnitude richer than those China is mining. I don't disagree some nations have an axe to grind, it's getting a suitable grindstone that's the problem. With everyone rushing towards renewables, I doubt fossil fuels will be a sufficient lever. While you may be right about the UK being a basket case, it's GDP at $3 trillion is about the same as India.

Bigotry and snobbery are alive and well.

The Chinese pump the fish full of water. Then sell them by weight.

The fuel specified for the 2006 Honda Jazz is regular ULP, i.e. 91 octane. That points to something else being the problem, such as water, the fuel filter, or injectors. In Thailand, it is not unknown for smaller gas stations to increase their profit margin by adding water to gasohol, as the ethanol/hydrocarbon mix can tolerate water up until the point it separates into two phases. It's why I always buy my gasoline from high volume, main highway businesses.

The only businesses that care if their customers gain in weight are weight loss companies. IMO some four-eyed bean counter seeking a bonus or promotion decided to cut the size down, and hope consumers would not notice. I don't buy them because they can sometimes extract teeth fillings.

I can't touch type at all, and it does not matter.

Useful knowledge, thanks. I was not aware A&E in Thailand was that efficient. My GF tends to favor clinics over the government hospitals due to the wait times, which may be different in the provinces.

I have never been asked for money by my GF's family, who are quite poor. I occasionally give them some money, or employ a nephew for odd jobs. As I am twice the size of any of the family, maybe they are too frightened to ask. Dealing with social media is simple. Either don't be on it to begin with, or block it.

You presumably are not Thai, hence not getting a doctor for 30 baht.

The Thai food banks are the temples, the monks give out food. There is very little social welfare in Thailand, most Thais get 600 baht/month when they turn 60. Health care is 30 baht; however, it's usually a wait of 6-8 hours at government hospitals. I know a woman who must be in her 90's, I see her on the road walking between villages. She gets food and a few baht for helping with funeral services, cleaning up after the parties.

Nice, but I would not call it shuffle. Hip swivel, yes.

What makes you think labeling a poster as annoying will change their behavior? If I have had enough of a poster, I either put them on ignore, or just stop reading their posts.

IIRC some of your posts directed at me don't display any class either.

I suggest you look at the ratio of likes to posts as well.

I relate more to this. The guitar solo is one of the best of all time.

Are your origins why you have a censorious and judgmental attitude about farangs and bar girls?

Gimme a break here, my specialty is chemistry. I scraped through on maths examinations, although later became quite proficient in statistics.

IIRC my first encounter with computing was actually a Friden calculator, when I worked in iron ore mining ( 1966 - 1972 ). Before that, I was using a slide rule, which I still have. A far cry from a smartphone, where the calculation function is a very minor accessory in a sea of apps.

I was not a computer nerd, my first exposure to computers was in 1976 when I switched fields from glass manufacturing to steel. At the time, the steel industry had computers running on perforated paper tape. My typing may be laborious; however, I do have patience. Staying alive is only worthwhile if there is also quality of life.

There are people in this world for whom more is never enough. If your former friend does not want to do anything about her exploitation, neither can you. Find another massage shop with more acceptable labor practices.

I go back as far as the first Amstrad, CPC 464 with 64 KB of RAM. Green text on a black screen. Being a one finger typist, I never wore out a keyboard. I can't say tact is in my skill set.

Keep an eye out for sidewall and tread cracking. Loads of tread or km are not as significant as age in the Thai climate.

I only buy Michelins, IMO they are much better than other brands in wet conditions. More expensive, it depends on what one thinks their life is worth.

This is Thailand, not the UK. Used car prices are manipulated. Having said that, the average asking price for a 3-4 yo full electric MG ZS is about 650,000 baht. https://www.one2car.com/en/cars-for-sale/mg/zs?fuel_type=Electric The 2023 new MG ZS is 1.2 million baht. That's a depreciation hit of about 150,000 baht/year. I bought a 2 yo Mazda 2 for 440,000 baht. RRP new was 600,000 baht. Depreciation 80,000 baht/year. After 3 more years of my ownership, the insurance company values it at 350,000 baht, my depreciation is 30,000 baht/year. Obviously, both ICE's and EV's take the biggest hit in their first 2-3 years. After that, the depreciation of an ICE slows down. IMO the asking price of a secondhand EV will continue to fall off a cliff. Everyone knows what life to expect out of an ICE. Plenty of 20 yo cars on Thai roads. It's too early to tell how many km will be racked up by an EV, which means there will be a lot more buyer hesitancy.

I prefer just moving my bowel.