Thomas J

3 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

I don't want Thailand overrun by Europeans because I understand this will pollute Thai culture and lead to conflict. Likewise, when in America I don't like being overrun by Latin Americans because this will pollute the culture and cause conflict.

Cultures have changed for centuries with borders and language also.  In all previous cases this was caused by conflict with the victorious taking over the land and absorbing the conquered territory.  Now for the first time, the West is actively embarking on policies that not only promote self destruction of their culture but financially supporting it. 

In 1924 following huge inflows of immigrants the USA passed an immigration act that limited entry into the USA by ethnic group.  It limited annual immigration by region to 2% of the existing population of each ethnic group.  It did so to allow time for the immigrants to assimilate and to prevent the existing American Culture from being flooded with immigrants from one region thereby transforming it.  That remained until 2005 when liberal Ted Kennedy spearheaded a movement to replace the 1924 immigration act. 

I believe Thailand is smart in restricting entry if it also wants to preserve its culture.   Any nation that is swamped with entrants from a single foreign region is not promoting immigration but rather cultural suicide. 

The Immigration Act of 1924 limited the number of immigrants allowed entry into the United States through a national origins quota. The quota provided immigration visas to two percent of the total number of people of each nationality in the United States as of the 1890 national census.
 

3 hours ago, grumbleweed said:

They've no need to worry, under current conditions Guantanamo Bay looks a far better option

And you can be in a bar or on a beach in Cuba with a glass of beer or some Caribbean rum. 

3 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

On another level, the only reason I might purchase electric would be if I lived in the city and had a house I where I could easily charged the car......would not do any long journeys until all the infra structure is sorted

Yes I agree and those are exactly the regions where it will be the most difficult to implement a heavy concentration of electric vehicles since many live in apartment buildings that lack the home charging stations. 

I have no idea if the support system for electric cars is sufficient to handle repairs either.  I would certainly be hesitant that my car needed repair and there was not sufficient technicians or parts immediately available.  I know this, batteries last only so long.  As an electric car ages I fully anticipate its value to plummet as purchasers recognize the huge inconvenience and expense of replacing the batteries.  Also you see it already where early electric cars got only 150 km on a charge and now upwards of 500 km on a charge.  Purchasers of used electric cars will have to assess whether it is more cost effective to not buy the old model and replace the batteries.  If that depreciates car values in electric cars more quickly it is yet another reason against the purchase of an electric because of the loss in value. 

Don't know.  Don't own one.  Had a Lexus Hybrid that cost me $10,000 more and I got no better gas mileage and nothing more when I went to sell the car.  At my age, I will continue to buy gasoline. 

I find it hillarious that it was just a few short months ago, the world health organization and many in Thailand were proudly proclaiming their efforts to contain the coronavirus were so effective and a model for the rest of the world.  Now with the same policies in effect Thailand is experiencing what most of the world has already gone through.  However worse in the sense that most of the world had the good sense to order vaccines to protect their citizens instead of just closing the 7/11's at 9 O'clock as a remedy. 

Does anyone else remember this headline from the World Health Organization


 

21 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

Prepping for the engines that the conspiracy theorists claim "burns water", but the petrochemical industry has quashed?

I don't know, but throughout the ages new technology has naturally replaced old technology as consumers easily saw the advantages.  There was no need for subsidies or mandates.  Cell phones soon made land lines obsolete.  4K television replaced traditional analog TV.  

You now have governments I suspect colluding with companies to create and mandate a demand for electric vehicles no matter what.  If electric vehicles were truly superior they too would be favored by consumers and soon internal combustion cars would be a relic.   Instead you have governments providing huge subsidies and mandates to force the use of electric cars.  I suspect that this in part is due to a collusion with companies who will make trillions converting with new electric products no matter how economically inefficient they are.   

I have no problem with electric cars but I do question their practicality.  I certainly would not take a long trip in one out of fear of not finding a charging station and somehow the idea of sitting for upwards of 30 minutes to get another quick charge of 200 KM does not sound appealing.  I also question with 90% of the electricity coming from coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear is this not just changing where the pollutants are being burned.  I also wonder why the environmentalists cry over every tree that is cut which are renewable, but somehow cheer when precious metal lithium needed for the car batteries is mined.  I also wonder if one of the unintended consequences of electric cars is spills from batteries involved in car accidents to say nothing about the environmental consequences of recycling or disposing of spent batteries. 

The push for electric cars seems to be a momentum driven by Soviet Style command and control government policy rather than driven by a superior technology.  You don't suppose those who would benefit from conversion to electric cars might be lobbying to get policies imposed that would make them trillions do you? 

Now what do you do when you arrive at the charging station almost out of power and you view the following

12 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

330 million people already. Seriously how many more Latin Americans do we need here? These are the most desperately poor people in the region, what possibly can be done with these people here? I'm seeing them fill up fast food chains and gas stations. Not a very good life for them and they're going to be resentful eventually.

You are correct.  My point was the USA needs immigrants but it does not need more unskilled labor. Computerization is already automating many unskilled jobs out of existence.  The outright lie about doing jobs that Americans refuse to do.  No, they won't do them at $6 an hour which is about what the farmers want to pay.  I might like to run a hospital with paying nurses $10 an hour too.  Does that mean I should get to transfer desperate nurses from the Philippines because they will do the job that Americans refuse to do. 

The USA is a huge food exporter.  So what the current policy of letting in millions of people who will work in the fields does, is provide a livelihood to the farmer so he can sell his product overseas.  Now that is great for the farmer but when you have the father, mother and 3 children the $36,000 a year just to educate his children through high school is a cost that the farmer is imposing on society so he can sell cheap fruit. 

There is a shortage of labor in the USA in "skilled" profession.  We need more engineers, boilermakers, welders, plumbers, electricians, people with skill that can command enough in compensation to be self supporting. 

We do not need millions of people who can not speak English and with less than an 8th grade education that will be a burden on the USA to provide services to allow them to live.  Additionally, when a person can not support themselves legally their only choice is to engage in an endeavor that makes more money, often illegal activities such as burglary or drug trafficking.  All a person needs to do to attest to this is look at the large urban cities where minorities living in poverty thrive by selling drugs.  Look at the violence that is associated with that. 

If you look at China, a nation with 1 billion people.  They will allow immigrants into their country if you have skills they need.  Those with engineering backgrounds are in high demand particularly if they can speak Chinese.   So they are demanding that to enter China you need a skill they require not come because you want to. 

I didn't hear any reports that he had any information on the Clinton's.  Maybe the Clinton computers were running McAfee antivirus software. 

John McAfee, perhaps the world's most notorious American expat, suicided age 75

 

10 minutes ago, kurtmartens said:

You missed the first set.  I don't choose to live overseas, I live overseas because I work overseas.  I choose to not have this discussion with you though anymore ..

Now that makes no sense at all.  You didn't "choose" to live overseas but you work overseas.  Did someone force that job on you or did you voluntarily accept it.   Did they hide the fact that you would be located outside the USA?   Again, if you don't like that, you can always make another choice. Get a job back in the USA and that solves everything.  

Just now, kurtmartens said:

I choose Thailand because I married a Thai and we didn't want to live in Dubai anymore and I can work remote. 

Notice your words " I choose"  When that occurs there are consequences and no you are doing the opposite. You are "asking what your country can do for you"  

As repeatedly said, you are free to make more choices.  You can choose to continue to complain about what the U.S. government should do or you can get on a plane fly back to the mainland or Guam and get exactly what every other U.S. citizen is getting.  

If the U.S. government stationed personnel in foreign countries than I agree with you that they owe it to those people to make special accommodation to get them the vaccine. However if it strictly the choice of the expatriate to leave the USA and live abroad, then they should be willing to accept both the positives and negatives that come with that decision. 

16 minutes ago, kurtmartens said:

Well you continue to miss the overall point,

No you are the one who misses the point.  If each and every country in the world took the approach you are suggesting and that is to send vaccines to service their expatriates you would have a nightmare.   I also never there were no countries that were not doing it.  I did say the fact that two countries France and China chose to do so does not mandate that the rest of the countries in the world do the same. 

Again, you are the one who sounds like a bitter expatriate because the USA does not chose to treat you with special accommodation for the fact you live overseas.  When I chose to come to Thailand I knew that there were certain amenities including U.S. healthcare that I was going to lose.   The fact that you are here is of your choosing and if getting the vaccine is an overriding concern of yours, hop on a plane and go back to the U.S. mainland and demand you get exactly what every other citizen in the USA has been provided.  Vaccine in the locations that the U.S.A. government chose to distribute to, not to the locations demanded by expatriates flung around the four corners of the world. 

Perhaps I am older and I remember the words of JFK



 

I can only think that these businesses are ravaged  I believe the Thai government will learn that it is fairly easy to destroy businesses and tourism and substantially more difficult to bring it back.  

Businesses particularly those that are tourism oriented respond to demand.  If there are tourists businesses which include restaurants, attractions, bars, etc open to service them.  Without tourists there is no reason to throw even more good money away assuming they have any left.  Now it becomes a chicken and egg situation.  If I am a tourist why come to Thailand if a substantial portion of the tourist related activities are no longer operating and conversely why should those activities revive themselves until there are tourist to support their business.   This takes years not months. 

2 hours ago, kurtmartens said:

There are 8.7 million expats globally

That has to be a figure for US expatriates only.  Why do you feel the USA should be the only country that provides for its citizens.  My use of the 75 other countries is totally appropriate.  If the USA should provide for its citizens abroad why not the UK, Australia, Canada etc and of course each of those countries would require separate negotiations with all of the countries spread throughout the world.  Nonsense it is easy. 

Again, you made the choice to live abroad.  Now suddenly you don't want to be treated "equally" you want special treatment because of your decision.  A U.S. citizen living in the USA can not fly to any other country in the world and expect the USA government to make the vaccine available to wherever in the world they choose to visit.  Same with you.  You are treated absolutely identical to every other U.S. citizen.  Go to any hospital or pharmacy that is providing the vaccines to US citizens and you too will get one.  The fact that you have to get on a plane to do it is really no different than then person in the USA has to get into their car to get it.  It is just a matter of cost and the degree of inconvenience and that sir was caused by you.  So don't expect special treatment because you chose to live outside the confines of the borders of the USA. 

7 hours ago, ICELANDMAN said:

Durian war, need more tanks again Vietnam.

Actually they will be launching a torpedo barrage against Hanoi as soon as the new Royal Thai Navy attack submarine the Covid 19 is delivered. 



 

6 minutes ago, kurtmartens said:

t would take very little effort to provide the vaccine to expats would want it outside the US.  I still pay my taxes, why shouldn't I receive the benefits that folks living within the US receive?

I don't know where you get your information that "it would take very little effort"   You have upwards of 200 different countries in the world.  I have no idea how many have residents here in Thailand but lets say it is 75.  That means you have 75 countries all trying to work out logistics with Thailand to supply the vaccine, get it shipped to Thailand, and distributed to all regions of the country and make arrangements with facilities throughout Thailand to inject in "only for citizens of their country"  And you think that would require little effort.  As to why you shouldn't receive those benefits that others get in the USA, wake up in the morning, look outside, you and Toto are not in Kansas anymore.  That was your decision and decisions come with consequences. You are also not being denied any benefit due to other USA taxpayers.  Show up in the USA and you will get exactly what they got,  Free vaccine at centers throughout the country.  They did not get the benefit of flying to another country and able to get the vaccine at the location of their choosing.  Neither should you. 

  You have expatriates flung to all corners of the globe and it should not be the responsibility of the USA government or any government to shield them from the "inconvenience" of their decision.  

10 minutes ago, ricklev said:

Thanks.  I have a printer/scanner if I have to.....  Easier just to pay a shop with a document feeder.

Yes I bought one with a document feeder a few months back for the same reason.  Not too expensive about 2,500 THB for a Patum which so far seems very good. 

3 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Alot of cynicism. Why not direct that animosity towards the incompetent ones, who have put us all into this position to begin with? 

 

And please enlighten us with your creative solutions to this current mess. Just wait? 

I am here in Thailand because ' I chose to be here"  To now expect that the USA or for that matter any country moves heaven and earth to make things convenient for those who choose to live outside of the home country borders is ludicrous.  If the vaccine is so important to you, there are flights leaving to the mainland, or Guam.  Inconvenient, expensive, yes.  But that is not the fault of the USA.  

I am a citizen also of the USA, I certainly don't expect them to smuggle vaccines and even if they did, there is no way they could conceal them being distributed.   I am patiently waiting for when the private hospitals here have a supply of either Pfizer or Moderna.  If as time goes on, it appears that vaccines are readily available quicker in places like Singapore, and there is no quarantine requirement to return to Thailand, I may consider flying there.  Yep, expensive, yep, inconvenient but just like Medicare does not cover me here in Thailand, I don't expect the USA to try and locate every expatriate sequestered in locations throughout the world and make vaccine show up at their doorstep. 

Now the questions are how many doses did France send to Thailand and how many were dedicated to French nationals, and most importantly if the numbers don't match, what happened to the remainder of the vaccines not directed towards the French.  

My understanding is that France sent Johnson & Johnson and so far, I have not seen any sign up for Thai's to get the J&J vaccine.  What a mystery. 

Symbolic of Thailand's move to get things moving. 

Did you know your phone most likely already has a scan feature.  I know Apple phones have a Notes app that includes PDF scan.  I would guess that in the Apple Store or Playstore on Android there are numerous free apps to scan.  You can also convert a picture .jpg file to .pdf online by running it through a conversion program.