koratkarlos

With this condition the government is legalizing hemp which is effectively doing nothing. Only words. Maybe the enforcement of weed use will relax with this law. You know I don't inhale. Maybe that's OK.

Yes, OK. They are not fully reporting. But they are locking down the country again, cancelling Test&Go, placing alchohol restrictions on business, forcing many small businesses to close, etc. etc. So if this is so smart why all the restrictions? Yet another contradiction.

I bought the same one, Yuwell YX301 from Lazada. For me the readings are not very reproducible and it tends to depend a lot on exactly where you place your finger. But it does appear to be accurate once you get everything positioned. In also is important to make sure your fingers are dry. I would probably buy another brand again, but maybe I am the problem as is usually the case. Good luck. I use it exactly for what you intend to. It calms the misses down when she thinks she has COVID.

Looking at some accounts tonight I received this notice on transferwise basically stating a limit of 50,000 THB on accounts other than Kasikorn Bank, Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial Bank. This was effective Jan. 7th. My last transferwise transfer took an extra day. I heard about this but did not realize that this now is in effect. I believe it is related to money laundering. Anyway, if you guys have any information regarding this it would be most helpful as I plan on transferring some cash this month. Thanks as always.

300 x 0 equals zero. The focus here is wrong. They should make Thailand a happy, welcoming place.

I am truly sorry to hear this. How can the government state that 35.17% of the cases are Omicron when it takes 1 to 2 weeks to get results which show negative but because maybe they are positive you must go to our jail. I really hope that people considering travel to Thailand now get to see this real world experience. It is just not in control. I do not believe the posted daily COVID numbers. I see many people out disregarding social distancing at this time, although mask wearing remains pretty good. But it is not clear how much masks help with the Omicron spread. And then this government thinks it is doing a good job. Wow. The best thing for now is either get jabbed or stay at home. I do not trust these numbers.

In my humble opinion the education system here must improve for this society to become high-tech and high income.

This is an interesting question. Is there really a plan for a path forward. I am not sure. A long time ago I arrived in Phuket shortly after the Tsunami. I met an English couple who knew Thailand well and were making charitable contributions to the natives who had lost their homes from the Tsunami. They explained to me that the government was not interested in helping the natives as their main goal was to retake the land for property development. Could COVID be a new wave Tsunami? Another excuse to let the common folks suffer so the government can take more control of the country? I sure hope not. But this could be the way. And how convenient to blame foreigners and alchohol for a virus that globally nobody really has control of. What an easy way out for the long lunch today.

I like it here in Thailand. Where I live it is peaceful and basically I am left alone to do as I please. But when I think about Thai society I get angry. Because of the double standard. Because of the hiso wealth and people like my wife's parents getting like 800 THB/month to live on. Then you see this guy Anutin at home with no mask, no social distance, telling people that it is their behavior that is causing COVID to spread. And then he mandates business closures affecting many lives. And these social restrictions will have no impact on the spread of the virus except maybe slightly delaying the timing. The longer you live here the more you see this double standard in society. But what gives me hope is that most of the Thai people are still happy as the government robs them of their livelyhood. I truly hope that some real Thai leaders evovle that can think and get stuff done. There are many good people here and Thailand can have a good future if put in the proper direction.

This virus is no one's fault. It is just a molecular bundle that has out-smarted civilization. It is time for the governments let people live and make their own decisions about COVID. Get vaccinated, stay at home or take a chance and live normally. Whatever lockdown imposed will have little impact on the eventual outcome.

The US has suffered severely from COVID. So your point is well taken but I can not agree with it. The US has certainly exceeded Thailand in testing, vaccine development, vaccine deployment and variety of therapeutic treatments. They also have donated vaccines to other countries unlike Thailand. Oh yes, the US economy has not crashed either. So for these and other reasons I think your statement is not correct. I trust the US numbers and medical technology much more than what is filtered here in Thailand.

No stopping the Omicron freight train. It is too late to do much except maybe get vaccinated or live in total isolation. At some point in time the governments have to get out of this and let people decide what they want to do and how to live. The intervention of government is no longer helping any of us.

As Will B Good stated age profile. It is also my understanding that there was a lot of prior COVID in South Africa which built up some natural immunity. I think SA also had some more effective vaccines. But you may be right and have a valid point. Time will tell.

It is crystal clear what will happen. Testing will remain only for walk-in very sick people. Unless you are a farang, then you have COVID and you will get tested. So numbers will remain low, although slightly rising, not too much to look bad but enough for people to believe that Omicron is here. Then Anutin will claim such complete control of the situation. In fact so good that he should be PM. But the truth is that COVID OMicron will rage through Thailand, like everywhere else. And the claimed heroism is actually ignorance. And I hope people will see this and vote appropriately. But here in Thailand thoughts are reality and not coupled to the truth. So in the end most of us will get COVID and truthfully unless you live on a secluded island your main option is vaccination. We can only hope that this flavor is truly like a common cold with no long term issues. For me I am vaccinated, still stay home, have my booster scheduled but am getting very tired of the anti socially masked world we live in. May it end soon. Happy New Year to all.

The under-reporting of numbers in Thailand do not go well with their new "Thailand Trusted Destination" campaign. It is pretty clear what is happening here. Most people can see through this propaganda. It does not bode well for Thailand. We should know what the truth is so everyone can make judgements concerning their daily lives.

I am an American and married to a Thai woman. As you must attend a meeting with your wife at Immigration every year I agree with the forum and suggest you do this yourself. I thought about getting help but by the time you get together all of the necessary paperwork you might as well just finish the application. It does not take so long. And I have found Thai Immigration to be professional and polite at all times. It is 100% about getting the paperwork right and having the cash. You can do it!

Spot on. You would think they might think about checking the numbers and math. The 20-30 day does not equate to 92 total. It is really hard to believe the numbers posted regarding COVID. And this is unfortunate as it affects how I spend my time. I just want to know the truth.

Today was the first time I have seen road block inspections in my neighborhood (Doi Saket, east of Chiang Mai). It looked like a show to me. Every day I drive here in Thailand I get angry. There are two things I hate the most; 1) how close they tailgate you when you are not driving fast enough and 2) how the people do not yield, slow down or steer towards their side of the road when the road narrows and they are coming from the opposite direction. Anger every day. I think this annoucement is rhetoric. Enforcement and education are needed.

Certainly we all hope that this is the case. But I am not so sure this can be concluded yet. Omicron has spread in countries that have had high exposure to the virus (S. Africa) or pretty good vaccinations (England). I am concerned about Thailand as some of the vaccines used do not seem to protect against Omicron and none of the vaccines seem to last very long. Anyway time will tell. I just hope that they do not lock down the country again as the economic consequences far outweigh the health risks at this point in time.

From my reading today it appears that 1) Sinovac offers no protection from Omicron (a limited sample study out of Hong Kong) and 2) the hospitalization rates for unvaccinated people are 11% lower for Omicron compared to Delta (data from England). If these observations are true cases and hospitalizations should reach prior peak levels. My guess is by late February. But will they report it. And will the country lock down again. Uncertain times ahead for sure.

My Thai wife's parents get 800 THB/month each from the government. And I see the Hiso driving expensive cars and all the money going to the government and military. Not to the people. If I were Thai I would join the protests. And this is what makes me angry living in Thailand. My life is good here. And when I ignore the politics perhaps it is perfect. But when I think about the income inequality I get angry. It is not fair. But amazingly, the poor Thai people are happy. Happier than my rich American friends. And with their wisdom I am learning to ignore the political BS, both here and everywhere, and live the simple life that makes Thailand so special

It is pretty clear now that we are not going to stop this virus. We must learn to live with it and in my opinion at this point in time social isolation will only briefly slow COVID down. Besides vaccination our only hope is that mutations render the virus obsolete. Maybe some of the new medicines will work. Now we must wait and see. Enjoy your Christmas and New Year. COVID is here for awhile

Does anyone know the official booster schedule policy in Thailand? From my reading I have seen booster after 3 months second dose AZ, Sinovac. Sinopharm 6 months after double dose of Pfizer/Moderna. But I have seen different numbers also. Can private hospitals bend the rules for Moderna boosters. Thank you in advance.

Arrogant and stupid. A very dangerous combination.

Perhaps the real issue here is how dangerous will Omicron be to a population vaccinated with Sinovac/ Sinopharm. I am not sure that this has been determined. Nonetheless, it is too late. There were many migrants from Myanmar entering Mae Sak. Tak this morning. The politics must also focus on this influx of people also. We will continue to stay home and not travel until this Omicron wave is better understood.