Lacessit

If it's a Thai-sized condom, I am sorry for your loss.

I wear a mask out of courtesy to others, it does not worry me if other people do not. Three vaxxes plus having had a mild three-day bout of COVID, IMO a repeat infection is only going to boost my immune system. I do not wear a mask when I am exercising, that's stupid. It will be interesting to see how the percentages shake out after June 1, both in terms of mask observance, and COVID infections. My guess is most COVID-infected people are self-testing and self-isolating, the only ones visible are those presenting at hospitals.

You're making sense, just don't expect it to take hold on this thread.

You were definitely asleep in maths class when ratio was explained. It doesn't matter what the relative populations are, it's the gun deaths PER 100,000 PEOPLE that matters.

Australia still has 14 guns per 100 civilians. Confiscation would mean zero guns per 100 civilians, perhaps you were asleep in English class. When I owned guns in Australia after Port Arthur, I had up to four of them, all legal. I'm just wondering when Americans will stop lying to themselves about the purpose of semi-automatic assault rifles, because it certainly isn't hunting or target practice.

Australian gun laws obviously work, the country sits near the bottom of the chart with one death per 100,000 population. The USA is twelve times higher. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/gun-deaths-by-country Australia has 14 firearms per 100 people, the US is top of the tree with 120. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estimated_number_of_civilian_guns_per_capita_by_country The math and probability calculations don't need an Einstein.

Please tell me how training children in shooter drills in schools helps them understand trust, love and care.

The blame belongs squarely with a culture that feeds on paranoia and fear. Families break down all over the world. That's a classic look over there argument. If America wants to do something, it must eliminate the semi-automatic weapons available. Australia has done it, the UK has done it, and when was the last mass school shooting in either country? I once was talking to a guy as we drove through Philadelphia. His household contained 19 firearms. When I asked why he needed so many, it was to protect his family from criminals, and fight the Communists when they invaded. They are taking their time coming. Face facts, most gun owners have guns because they like guns. It gives them a sense of power. The statistics are households that have guns are much more likely to have suicides, accidental gun-related deaths, or be killed in a robbery. Burglars don't want to kill you, they just want to steal your stuff and get the hell out. That's what home insurance policies are for. The pitiful excuses I see posted on this thread makes me think there are many Americans who just refuse to grow up.

AFAIK it was only closed for a few months in 2020.

We all have different ways of looking after our Thai partners. My GF will be the wealthiest woman in her village after I cark it, although she does have very good reason to keep me alive for as long as possible.

I sometimes wonder if there is any motivation to close a sale, aren't the salespeople on commission? Our washing machine carked it, we go looking for a new one and knew what we wanted. Go to first store, model we want is on the shop floor. Guy keeps trying to upsell us, no, that's the model we want. Can't sell it to you, why not? We don't have any in stock. It'll take a month to get new stock. So what's the point of having something on your shop floor if you can't sell it? At this juncture, my GF loses patience and walks out. Not often I've seen a Thai do that. Next store we go to, a saleswoman convinces my Thai GF the different brand she is pushing is cheaper, bigger, and with a longer warranty. Delivered to the house that afternoon.

I might be able to live on 13,000 baht/month if I bought no luxuries, played no golf, and did not shop in Big C. I would have to stop supporting my GF, and sell my car. I might be able to keep my scooter. In the last years of my life, I fail to see why I should deny myself anything within reason, or save money so my heirs can spend it instead. That would be stupid squared. I suppose I could feel good by posting on ASEAN about how thrifty I am.

All that BS for 650 baht?

What am I missing? If I have a current "O" retirement visa/extension, a re-entry permit, and a MOPH vaccination certificate, why do I need a Thailand Pass? Or a Certificate of Entry? Seems to me it's just another bureaucratic layer, what purpose does it serve?

I have not heard of too many foreigners who are living here on 13K baht per month, most IME are in the 50K-100K baht/month area, except the real skinflints. Thailand has a long way to go before it gets to be as expensive as Australia. Show me a condo apartment in Australia, with condo swimming pool, that I can buy for AUD 40,000.

I would prefer to look at the Hawke government as a better example. Traditionally. Labor governments have always been reforming, and Liberal governments dedicated to the preservation of the status quo. The only meaningful reform of the Howard government was gun control. Privatisation of aged care facilities in Australia has been a disaster for the elderly and their families, all the owner operators care about is their bottom line. IMO with Dutton at the helm of the Liberals, they will spend a long time in the political wilderness, unless he undergoes a road to Damascus conversion. That gives Albanese a lot more leeway. Getting back to Thailand, I've just bought a takeaway chicken biryani dinner. The shop/restaurant is run by a couple in their seventies, the guy speaks good English and we occasionally have a discussion. He has been outside Thailand. I asked him when he planned to retire. He said they will keep the shop open for as long as they can, they have no savings to retire with. He and his wife get the government pension, which does not even cover the shop rent. Village Thais can manage quite well on 2500 - 3000 baht/month income, 600 baht/month once they hit 60 is an insult.

It depends on whether Albanese sheds the small target body armor he took into the election. Mention socialism to an American, and most start frothing at the mouth.

True enough, a fair bit of bartering goes on in my GF's village. Having said that, there are bills such as electricity that can't be paid for with chickens.

*Deleted post edited out* Why is it so hard for you to understand Sandy Hook, Uvalde and all the rest of the mass shootings in America result from the ready availability of semi-automatic weapons such as AR15's to all and sundry? How many children would have been killed if a shooter had only a bolt-action weapon with a five-shot magazine? Sorry, I'm tired of looking at BS excuses.

In Australia, there is a clear differentiation between for-profit aged care centres, and state-run ones. The most obvious one is the difference during the COVID pandemic, where the death rate in the for-profit centres was an order of magnitude higher. What was jokingly referred to as food in said centres was another issue that surfaced in a Royal Commission into aged care. As well as both sexes left in soiled adult diapers for hours because corners were cut on staffing levels. It's a compelling argument for socialism, although that word is anathema to most Americans. Which is somewhat ironic, given one of the most socialist organizations on the planet is the US military. Personally, I am betting on my Thai family taking care of me.

IIRC, Robert Heinlein "Stranger in a Strange Land" came up with an interesting concept. Partner up a 15 yo boy or girl with a 45 yo adult. The 45 yo teaches the younger partner all they know of life and sex. Split up the partnership when the 15 yo reaches 30, the 60 yo retires from the field. The 30 yo joins another 30 yo for the purpose of procreation, to ensure the survival of the species. I seem to remember the objective was zero population growth. When the 30 yo's get to 45, they split again, to educate the 15 yo of either sex. Looking back, I think I would have loved to have had a 45 yo woman teaching me how to bonk.

Changing diet and eating habits can help a lot. I was on Somac ( pantoprazole ) for many years for gastric reflux, I have not needed it for at least 3 years. Some of my experience-based rules: 1/ Eat early in the evening, no later than 7 pm. Retire to bed at 10.30, so there is plenty of time to digest. 2/ Avoid fatty and rich foods. Vegetables that grow above ground are best, small portions of protein. 3/ It's better to feel a little bit hungry after eating, than full. 4/ Alcohol in excess is bad news. 5/ If I must have dessert, it is fruit or yoghurt, easily digestible. 6/ I have a glass of water with half a teaspoon of baking soda every night before going to bed. That damps down any residual stomach acid. 7/ A glass of water by the bed to sip on if my throat feels a bit raw during the night. I'm not saying these rules will work for the OP. However, they do work for me.

Many elderly rural Thais have assets by way of houses and land. What they do not have is meaningful income. They are reliant on their children to support them. I know what I give my GF each month is distributed around the family members to help them, so I don't understand why the Thai government treats foreign retirees like lepers, instead of thanking them for helping Thai families survive.

The dissertation on hirsute pubics encountered in each nationality is interesting, although I suppose it varies depending on the socio-economic group one is consorting with. I quite like Thai food. However, for someone with your opinion of it, may I point out most Thai cities have a range of ethnic restaurants. The most common are Japanese, Italian and Indian. I think most Thais are decent people, apart from the ones currently in power. It's a matter of adjusting one's expectations to their culture. Permit me to doubt there are any countries that meet all the criteria you describe. Certainly America and the UK don't.

Not enough to make me want to move there, given the comments w.r.to personal security and crime. Coming up to 12 years here now, can't say I have ever felt threatened. I guess it's only people that go looking for trouble that find it.