swissie

Male "white voters" can vote for someone like Hillary Clinton. Will they vote for a "black Hillary Clinton"? You know the answer. The missing 5% will change the world.

If your hospital bill exeeds your liquid assets, the Thai Family will not remember your last name.

AND: White voters can vote for someone like Hillary Clinton. Will they vote for a black "Hillary Clinton"? The missing 5%?

Some Farangs tell their Grandchildren that Jomtien Beach has nothing to do with Pattaya.

This time I am with you. But: Not enough time and money to "build them up".

What is your first choice?

No, it won't happen.

The very fact that somebody is as honest as you is rare. Respect. Like most other Farangs, I came for the girls and not for the temples. As a PS: I know a lot of Pattaya Farangs that regularily send messages to their children and grandchildren that they are enjoying the "Thai-Culture" of Pattaya. Forgetting that those children and grandchildren are well aware why elderly Farangs prefer to settle in Pattaya and not in Scottland.

Yep, agreed 100%. Plenty of places to settle away from Sodom and Gomorrah in Thailand. A visitor or a permanent Farang resident of Pattaya knows why he lives in Pattaya and not in eastern timbuktu . Make America great again? To the native Thai population in Pattaya I can only say "keep Pattaya great". What made Pattaya great? =The Sex-Industry and absolutely nothing else. If the Thai-Locals want to "clean their image" and take up fishing again, fine. Except there are no fish left in the bay. The "fish" are onshore with a non Thai passport.

I am confident, that Farangs that have lived here for a long time know in the meantime if they want to stay here and can afford to stay here (health insurance, for example). All others must have left already.

Not Kamala nor all other potential Democrat contenders are "capable of majority". Not enough time and money left to build up a charismatic democrat contender. The "male white voters" can vote for a person like Hillary Clinton. Will they vote for a black Hillary Clinton? Come November, the US will become a Monarchy. Donald the 1rst.

Ever since the age of enlightenment, "Christiam Churches" have lost members in Europe, especially in the last few decades. Not so in the US. Especially TV Evangelist gather more and more followers. They are a major "political factor". Their interpretation of the Gospel turns them into Religious Extremists, same as some fractions of the Muslim community. The point is reached, that no atheistic politician would ever be elected into higher office in the US. The agenda of those religious zealots is simple: Turn back the clock 200 years. All based on a Middle Eastern God that created the world in 6 days and repeatetly said that he was the God of the Isrealites only AND NOBODY ELSE. Amazing how the God of the Israelites determines the political future of a modern day society like the US. Must conclude that the age of enlightenment and the age of reason was prevented to gain entry "in the heartland" of the US for the last 200 years, up to this day.

Currency exchange rate?

Must add: This is a Thai to Thai constellation. Not necessarily applicable to Farang/Thai circumstances.

ANY "repo-admistrator" of ANY bank can give you a deal. a) Show interest by contacting them frequently (establish personal contact). b) Show, that you have the CASH to close the deal quickly. c) Thats all it takes. Banks want to get rid of "repos".

Officially yes. BTW, every major Thai Bank has a "repo-section", as part of their web-site. According to my step daughter (working for a Thai Bank), the "book value" is as flexible as a rubber band. A case in point: An interested buyer with cash in his hand finds the price of the "repo" too high. The Bank then finds out that a recent hailstorm has caused extensive damage to the roof, therefore the "book value" of the object must be lowered accordingly. Buyer and Bank both happy. Thai legislation is as firm as anywhere else according to the letter of the law. This until the Thai legislative "rubber band" comes into play.

The magic of OPM (other peoples money). A good part of the world economy is based on it. More specific: One can buy 10 tonnes of Copper with a downpayment of 10%. Subject to a "margin-call" or forced liquidation if the price drops 10%. Not so in real-estate. If one keeps up with morgage payments, the Bank will not issue a "margin-call". = Market "downturns" can be outlasted as opposed to ones Copper position. As an example. Therefore, no other segment of the investement universe has offered more secure ways to profit from "other peoples money" than the real-estate sector. And: Globally, real estate has become more pricy, no matter where you look. Even in Eastern Timbuktu. Thailand/Tropics: The climate does much harm to buildings. Due to construction standarts, buildings in Thailand age faster than European women. Something to be considered. In the olden days our Grandfathers told us "Go West to make your fortune". They should have said: "Buy some real-estate somewhere and hold on to it" instead. Preferrably in Monaco, when it was a fishing village. Or Pattaya when it was a fishing village.

WINE, WOMAN AND SONG as an alternative. Looking back at my career as an investor. Since 1970. With 10% of my money I traded, the rest I invested Warren Buffet style. The latter turned out OK., Now at 72, "long-term" investing becomes questionable, as I don't have too much "long-term" left for myself. The last time I found true "opportunities" was after the crash of 2007/08. Today "everything" is high, flirting with the upper end of the expectational envelope. I have no children, my inheritance will go to some friends, old geezers like myself. Therefore, the temptation to invest in WINE, WOMEN AND SONG as an alternative becomes stronger by the day. ---------------------------------------------------- PS: The term "expectational envelope" I have created. In the future, economists will use the term "swissies expectatorial envelope" frequently in TV shows. Needless to say, I secured copyrights already.

Most definitely. Go around ringing doorbells. Half of the names are Spanish. Go around and listen to people. Half of them do not *roll* the R anymore like the original "immigrants" from Europe did The "spanish R" sounds like a machine gun in operation. Even in the second generation. Do you think that all those immigrants, that can't roll the "R" properly, will be willing to play "the second fiddle" in the US for the next 5 generations?

I have read the above with interest. Amazingly, few Farang investors will ever get the chance of reading this. The urge to invest something in Thailand would be greatly diminished. (the obstacles for "safe investing" in Thailand for a Farang are too numerous to mention here). For starters: An investemnt in a country where the currency is not "freely convertible" represents a fundamental weakness of an Economy.

Few really wealthy Farangs settle in Thailand permanently. Mostly elderly Farangs that have realised that the cost of living in Thailand is lower than in their home country. The British would call it "lower class citizens". Of course they bring along their upbringing, their mode of communication and the way one behaves in public. To Thais, this is often perceived as "rough and uncivilised behavor". Accepted 20 years ago as the Farangs wallet was the only deciding factor. But not anymore. The general "discruntlement" of Farangs may find it's roots in the fact that "Female Companionship" costs 200% more than 20 years ago. In the meantime, nobody believes that the Thai Temples are the reason to settle in Thailand. PS: By citing "lower-class" is not limited to the UK, as every country has it's "lower-classes".

Next time around: Any presidential candidate in the futue will have to nominate a vice president with hispanic roots. As a pre-requisite for success.

The Democrats wanted an additional 5% of "the black vote".

Ahhh, the "swing states" and the "voting district hokus pokus" etc etc. I have tried to explain the "voting mechanism" in the US to Europeans. Nobody understands it. Still based on "Electorates" arriving by pony-express in Washington D.C.

I used to live in the US for almost 20 years. Current polls show, that it will be a close race, meaning that about 50% of voters will vote for Trump (otherwise it could not be called "a close race").