KhaoYai

It depends on what you're looking for - if you like the bright lights of Pattaya or Phuket, you probably won't like Koh Chang. If you want a quiet peacefull time, you'll probably love it. There is some entertainment available - mainly the Sabai Bar where you can have dinner on the beach and watch a Fire Show, it then changes into a nightclub/disco later on - obviously subject to covid restrictions. There is a beer bar area almost opposite that bar and several others dotted about. I've always gone in what they call the 'Green Season' (rainy) and always been lucky. Only on one occasion did it rain all day - most of the time when it rains, it absolutely siles it down for an hour, the sun comes out and that's it. If you're there for a week I'd do the tour, if its running, boats leave Koh Chang most days and call in at Koh Mak and then on to Koh Kood. Kood is absolutely stunning with the best snorkelling I've ever seen. The accomodation prices at some resorts on Koh Kood will make your eyes water. There are some reasonably priced rooms but they sell out fast in normal times - check booking.com (Koh Kood & also spelled as Koh Kut). Conversely, on Koh Chang there are some absolute bargains in the green season - mainly on better class rooms that can be had for budget room prices. Not sure if this is allowed so the mods might remove it but this place usually has some great rates and excellent rooms: http://www.ramayana.co.th/ Lots of info here: https://iamkohchang.com/

The fact that NATO countries have sent billions of dollars worth of arms to the Ukraine suggests otherwise - as does the fact that NATO has stated it has 'red lines'.

I seem to remember reading that many people said the similar things about Germany in 1938/9. Its far more than that - try reading other news from around the region as I did today. Putin has far bigger aspirations - he's still testing the West to see how far we'll go. He's spent years covertly de-stabilising the region, making allies and backing separatists. Why do you think he's been doing that?

Now on that, I don't agree apart from on the football bit. I watch the BBC news channel quite a lot and they've rarely mentioned Africa recently - they have at least 5 journalists in Ukraine at the moment and their coverage has been excellent. They rarely report on anything until its been verified and when they do, they say so. For some strange reason their has been very little 'military coverage' in this war - very few satellite images or drone videos. For example, I am absolutely certain that the Americans will know exactly what happened to Russian ship, Moskva - they have intelligence satellites over the region most if not all the time yet nothing's been shown. I thought that was just a BBC policy for a while but the other channels are just the same. It may well be considered secret but its been available in other recent conflicts. Al Jazeera - well they are an islamist channel. However they are singing the same song as most on the war in the Ukraine - who isn't? Well RT for one and I don't blame the UK and other countries for taking them off air. There should always be room for an alternative view but not total lies and propaganda.

I'm shocked that we almost agree on most of that. Where I disagree is that although you don't use the term 'all of us', its implicit throughout your post and I can't agree - we are not all programmed that way. Greed does not exist in all of us but where it does, it's the root of all evil. Greed for money, greed for power, greed for whatever, selfishness - it exists and those of us that are not programmed that way simply can't understand it. I for example, could easily have made a lot more money than I have in my life but that would not occurred without cheating in some way. I know 2 or 3 people that have made it big and not one of them did it without either criminal activity, under-paying their staff, lying on their tax return, handing over brown envelopes or some other form of nefarious activity. Its a myth that hard work alone leads to riches. I've raised myself from what I was born into but that's as far as it goes, I've never had the slightest craving to be rich - just to have enough. Nor could I possibly cheat anyone, use them as a 'step up' or commit any other similar form of activity, I just wasn't born that way. That does not mean I'm an angel, far from it but I've tried to help people all my life and yes, I've been sh&£ on as a result but I can't and won't change who I am. People do things to others that are just not in my DNA. As I say, we are not all programmed the way you say but perhaps by knowing that you are as pessemistic as I am about the survival of our species, I can understand but not agree with, your apparently 'couldn't give a damn about things that don't concern me' attitude. Yes, I'm pessemistic but I'm not hopeless, I have 5 grandchildren and I must hope that for their sake, this world sorts itself out somehow. One other slight disagreement - I think climate change is entirely relevant in both a negative and postitive way. Negative in that those involved are totally distracted at a time where we are reliably told that if we don't act now, we will 'miss the bus'. Positive in that as a result of the desire to remove reliance on Russian fossil fuels, several countries are speeding up their renewables programmes.

I despair - sometimes I switch from watching news organistations based in Europe, mainy the BBC and watch stations such as Al Jazeera. All Jazeera is not exactly known for its support of the West so I believe listening to their perspective might just add a little balance to the current conflict in Ukraine. Today they have been running a special report regarding the situation in the the Balkans. I don't want to go off topic but what I heard today helps to explain who are and who are not, the trouble causers in eastern Europe. It also makes a nonsense of Putin's claim that the war in Ukraine has been caused by the threat of a NATO member on his border. Apparenlty the situation in the Balkans is on a knife edge once again - stirred up by Milorad Dodik a known Putin sympathiser and who, its said, is receiving backing from him. I had missed this but in March 2021 the Russians threatened they will be forced to take action if Bosnia & Herzegovina continues steps to join NATO after the organisation 'officially recognises three states which have formally expressed their membership aspirations: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Ukraine.' Bosnia Herzegovina is clearly not on Russia's border. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enlargement_of_NATO It seems to me that unless Putin and his cronies in other countries can somehow be removed, at some point in the not too far distant future a major war in Europe - even WW3 is inevitable. Why the hell can't people just learn to live together? We have a much bigger crisis to deal with if we are to survive - climate change. That has no political, religious or economic allegiances. Climate change will affect us all - even the greedy and selfish. Those who don't care about anything unless its on their doorstep (for example Thailand) will have to realise that actions taken thousands of miles away affects them. Its no longer sensible to not care about things unless they directly affect you - the world and the actions of its inhabitants are all inextricably interlinked. I'm pessemistic that we will ever either have a largely peaceful world or tackle climate change. The most intelligent species???

Right so she's in a very different position to my friends.

Trying to look at it from Putin's point of view (if that's possible) - he's in a diffcult position. He's lost in the North but will not mention that or say it was part of his strategy in some way. He must now be worrying that he may not win in Eastern Ukraine if Ukraine continues to receive arms from the West. He therefore reverts to making threats again but what are his options: Nuclear? His losses would be greater and having seen how his conventional weapons perfom, there must now be doubts regarding Russia's nuclear capability. I believe that any nuclear attack on Ukraine would surely bring NATO into the conflict immediately. Chemical? Again, I believe that would trigger a NATO response. Attack the incoming arms deliveries? Probably more likely but again he risks NATO becoming involved. However, the man is unhinged and therefore unpredictable. He is also, finished politically if he doesn't gain anything from this war so he may getting more and more desparate.

You don't say what your daughter's salary is or her other circumstances. I have no reason to doubt my friends that tell me they can't afford to buy and that it would take them 25 years to save up a deposit. I think its the deposit that's the biggest problem although a mortgage payment of 9k per month is almost double what they pay in rent at the moment.

Yes, I'm aware of both those items. However, as I said, its not clear if the UK has sent weapons unilaterally or through NATO.

I don't know how Russia has the nerve to threaten the US and others that they must stop supplying arms to Ukraine or face 'unpredictable' consequences. They say its helping prolong the conflict - more like putting them on the backfoot at the moment. Prolonging a conflict that they started without any justification - they should take note that very few people outside Russia believe the rubbish they put out about why they started the war.

I retract that, I have no evidence that shows whether the UK has sent anything through NATO or unilaterally - I simply think they have.

Correct - maths was never my strong point ????. But 25% of 25,000 is definitely 6250 and according to my friends it would take them 25 years to save the 300,000 deposit.

Yorkshire Tea......................pl...ease.

Leaving 14,000 for 2 people and 1 child to live on? I wouldn't do that. You're a Brit - don't you remember the 25% rule?

The UK has sent a lot of arms to UK through NATO.

Maybe but there are some offering Test & Go packages in Korat.

I do.

Clearly you wouldn't

God I hope you end up in dire straits one day.

Thank you for that.

If people had felt that way in 1939, where would we be now? Yes, there is a percentage of people that care only about themselves and can't look at the bigger picture or the longer term. Thankfully, as the generousity of the people of Poland etc. has shown, such people are in the minority - as you are here.

I very much doubt you live in Ukraine.

No they cannot - not simply 'if they want'. They can buy a house if they can afford it and a sizeable portion of the population can't. I have several Thai friends that cannot afford to buy a house and all they see is that possibility moving further away from them. Are you aware that many people in Thailand work for 10,000 baht per month? One of my friends has to work over every night to boost his wage to 15,000. His wife earns around 10,000 - are you suggesting they can buy a house on 25,000 per month? The normal working week for many in Thailand is 6 days and many work 10 hour days just to make ends meet. How would you suggest a Thai person does as you did and takes on an evening job?

I don't for one moment, believe that the current conflict has much to do with NATO membership alone. In my view it has everything to do with meglomania, paranoia and empire building. At the moment Putin already has 2 NATO members on his border - Estonia and Latvia. If he takes Ukraine he would then have Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania as well - all NATO members on his border. Would that not be an even bigger threat? The threat by the way, exists only in Putin's mind - NATO is a defence organisation and its actions are triggered if any country attacks a member so even if Ukraine was a member, he would not have a problem as long as he didn't attack it. He has put out several reasons for his 'Special Military Operation' and NATO membership is only one of them. However, he has for years, claimed that Ukraine does not exist as a nation, he sees it as part of Russia. There's plenty of reading available on the subject, some with differing viewpoints but after reading quite a few variations, I came to the conclusion that he simply wants Ukraine back where he thinks it belongs. Urkaine's attempts to join NATO and more lately, the EU have shown him that Ukraine is moving further away from Russia his chances of returning it to the fold are diminishing. As I'm sure you know, you cannot believe anything that Putin says - he had no intention of invading Ukraine remember? You have to examine the history, other events in the region and his statements to both his government and the Russian people. Putin used to have a friendly Ukranian leader in his pocket, as he has in Belarus. It is no coincidence that he invaded Crimea in the aftermath of the Maidan Revolution in Ukraine where it became clear which way the Ukranian people were looking - towards Europe. There have been several Russian exiles on TV recently giving their take on Putin and his actions and one, his name escapes me, has it exactly as I concluded above. There have been several world leaders with similar traits to Putin over the last 150 years or so - all lunatics and all expansionists. In Putin's case I believe he just couldn't take Ukraine moving further and further out of his grasp and the Maidan Revolution showed him that he was unlikely to ever be able to install another one of his puppets in Ukraine again. He's spent years spreading a narrative to the Russian people that the EU, US, UK and several other countries are all anti Russian and by and large, they've taken it in (a little surprising seeing as many of those countries. especially Germany have been buying increasing amounts of Russian gas and oil). I believe that it was therefore, fairly easy for him to convince his people that he had no choice but to invade Ukraine and 'liberate' it from the 'Nazis' who he says are controlling it. Putin knows that in reality, the determination to have real democracy in Ukraine, established in the Maidan Revolution, is very strong - unlike the quasi demcracy that he's engineered in his own country. The only possible way he can regain control of Ukraine is militarily. Whether he planned that to be by increments or whether that's just the way things have panned out is hard to judge but it seems that he grealty under-estimated the Ukranian military's will to fight. In the light of how badly things have gone for him so far, I believe that once he established a 'Land Bridge' between Crimea and Western Russia he will try to negotiate an end to hostilities on the condition that he keeps control of all the territory he's gained. I think that Ukraine is very unlikely to accept that, I just hope that they aren't pushed to accept it by their Western 'allies'. That would be a big mistake - he'll be at it again in a few years.