Trip Hop

I was shot down by a couple of posters on another thread when I suggested that the authorities might not be letting on the true picture? However the same as yourself, I find it rather strange that despite there being numerous stories from different sources on the street and an obvious visible increase of testing in public places, apart from the official figures released above, there appears to be total radio silence from officials regarding the same? Normally, they would be shouting from the rooftops to say, ‘look what we are doing to protect everyone’?

The 0.9% will most probably be from its previously contracted state from the month before which really won’t be an increase overall if the economy has contracted more than 0.9% to start with? As other posters have stated, most probably due to the increase in tourists from the now defunct ‘test and go’?

I have thought this for a long time, ever since I done a quick analysis of the figures during the last wave? I don’t have the figures to hand but what I can remember is Thailand having a mortality rate several times higher than the rest of the world when compared to to the amount of declared positive cases? It may have been the simple explanation that indeed whilst the virus wasn’t transmitting as much in Thailand when compared to the rest of the world, it was proving more deadly? However, when you factored in the official number of tests carried out, it suggested what you are saying to be true? There again, this is ‘Amazing’ Thailand?

The police and other officials just do or say as they are told by them above them in the food chain, it’s the way it’s always been. On the saving face note, did you not read a little while back about a certain government minister saying that he had this and Omicron was no match for Thailand?

Yep, in exactly the same way that on numerous occasions they have stated that they found no evidence of prostitution in Walking Street? Let’s be honest, saving face is more important than anything here?

I wouldn’t quite go as far as to say certain people might be happy for this to happen but it is well known that some have little regard for those they regard as below them? Their problem is though that through their rose tinted specs, they don’t understand that if they take away certain existing elements of Thailand, it simply won’t be ‘Thailand’ any more and a lot of tourists simply won’t come due to there being far better places in the world to visit? However, they may not be that worried about whether they have tourists or not, so this may not be relevant?

Any customers that are left will just move over to the normally less busy bars as appeared to be happening in Soi Buakhao last night with the testing presence around Tree Town? This process will then just roll over whenever a bar is deemed to be busy enough to require testing of its customers? No one with any sense are going to submit to mandatory testing, knowing what may be lying in wait for them?

Found it a little alarming last night that upon checking in to our usual hotel off Soi Buakhao, that even the receptionist told us to be careful with Covid in that area? As stated by previous posters, the word on the street paints a totally different picture to what the authorities seem to be letting on at the moment?

I don’t think you’re alone in this? I drove through Soi Buakhao last night and at the front of Tree Town there was a big testing operation set up with police presence. Now I don’t know whether it was for voluntary testing or a requirement for entry to Tree Town itself and there was no way that I was stopping to ask? What I can tell you though is that all the bars in Tree Town itself which had been rather busy for the last 2 weeks previously were all rather empty and the ones on Soi Buakhao that hadn’t previously been very busy were ram packed with falangs. it was also a bit alarming when the receptionist of our regular hotel that we had booked for the night, told us to be careful with Covid as there was a problem in that area? This pretty much echoing what a friend had been told 2 days previously by a bar owner that he is friendly with? I guess we won’t know the truth or severity about this for a while but from the hotel & bar owners opinion it appears that the problem is a lot worse than the authorities are letting on?

My original post stated that being vaccinated does not guarantee that you will not get infected and that you will not pass that infection on. By your own words, you have admitted this? However, instead of just admitting that what I originally stated is correct, in order to try and justify your argument, you have sidetracked this by harping on about vaccines reducing the risk of infection to which my original post made no reference to whatsoever? You insinuate that I’m confused or uneducated, yet you’re the one that can’t even understand the context of my original post? ???? Now, do you want me to lend you a shovel for that hole you’re digging for yourself?

So basically what you are saying is being vaccinated does not guarantee that you will not get infected nor that you will not pass that infection on? Exactly what my original post basically said if you read it correctly? So why pipe up?

Is there a reason that you didn’t or cannot answer my questions?

Serious infection I would agree. Stop totally any level of infection and the possibility of infecting others I would disagree. Check out the WHO website or any other recognised health organisations and they state that at present there is no evidence to conclusively support that being vaccinated stops you being infected and passing that infection on? If this was the case, please explain double jabbed a asymptomatics passing on the virus? Also explain my mate catching Delta and passing it on to his Mrs, despite him being double jabbed with Astrozenica only 6 weeks previously? ???? Please also explain as to why in the western world, double and triple jabbed people are still being expected to isolate if they come into close contact with a confirmed infection? Surely this wouldn’t be required if things were as you state? ???? By the way, I’m not an anti-vaxxer, I’ve had 3 shots of Pfizer. I just don’t like people thinking that just because they’ve been vaxxed, they’re totally immune to it and can’t pass it on to others?

Ask yourself a simple question? If you have a flu vaccine, does it stop you getting the flu? In simple terms no, you still get the infection but your immune system is stronger to fight the virus so it has less effect on you? The same for any vaccine. And if that hasn’t sunk in, explain this one Einstein? I have a very good mate, a school teacher who as such was one of the first after healthcare workers to be double jabbed. 6 weeks after his 2nd jab, he caught Delta. As he said, it was like a dose of the flu that knocked him sideways for 2-3 days before being like any other bad cold. He still caught it, the infection was confirmed by PCR? The vaccine didn’t stop him giving it to his Mrs either, who by chance was self isolating at home in readiness for a hip operation. Therefore she couldn’t have got it from anywhere else? If you search the WHO website or any other recognised health organisation, you will find that there is no substantial evidence whatsoever at this moment to support that the vaccine will totally stop you getting infected and transmitting that infection on? If you find some, please enlighten us?

It wouldn’t unless you were an average Thai and it equates to a third of your daily wage? I can’t think of anywhere else in the world where this is the case?

Not quite but along the lines of? Exponential in simple terms means anything that multiplies by a power more than 1. So if you were to use say a relatively small power of 1.01, that would mean that for every 100, after the 1st stage you would get 101 and after the second stage you would get 101 x 1.01 etc? Whilst a power of 1.01 would result in very little actual growth, it is still technically exponential? The OP’s original post is somewhat contradictory though in that he mentions the square root of exponential? So if you were to take a base number of 2 and raise it exponentially by the power of 2, after the 1st stage, you would have 4. However, if you then took the square root of this, you would end up with 2, i.e. the number that you started off with?

And judging from that piece of nonsense, neither do you? ????

What you think the current situation with Omicron is down to tourists alone? ???? And you think ‘tourists’ will come under 3 day quarantine rules? ???????? The biggest Covid risk to Thailand is its porous borders and the stigma/forced state isolation of any Thais that are unlucky to catch it? If the rules weren’t so draconian, people would be more willing to come forward if they thought that they had it and it could be monitored far more accurately. And for the umpteenth time, whilst vaccines are great, they do not stop you catching and transmitting the virus to others. They merely reduce the risk of yourself requiring medical treatment.

Something along the lines of this but according to him it’s not just the antigens. It’s something to do with Omicron being that in the initial day or so after being infected, even a PCR would fail to detect? The full thread is here and an interesting guy to follow who appears to know his stuff?

I was reading an interesting post on Twitter yesterday by Dr Michael Mina in the states, who appears to have a balanced view and has advocated using LFTs for screening for a long time. He was discussing that people were complaining that LFTs were not picking up Onicron in the first day or so, as you have described yourself? However, he explained further that this wasn’t the LFTs fault, it was something to do with the genetics of the particular mutation and that exactly the same problems would be experienced with PCR if tested at the same time?

It’s dead to what it’s normally been like for the last 10 years over Xmas/New Year pre Covid and one of the reasons that I’m not there now myself? I’m good friends with about 6-7 Thai & farang bar owners in Lamai and for over a year they’ve all telling me it’s dead as a dodo. The Outback is closed and there were 2 people in the Bondi Bar last night. There’s a couple of bars open in Had Lamai 1, the Boxing Ring and Dogsh!t Alley but hardly any customers? <deleted>, even McDonalds have closed their doors? Not that McD’s is a big loss but it is a good measure of exactly how dead the place is compared to what it used to be?

That is fine if the people with colds are being paid to sit at home, which for general workers in the infrastructure industry is very rare? However in places like the UK, if that approach was taken, nothing would be built on time, costs would spiral and everyone would be wondering why their taxes and everything else was going up? I’ve got 30 years under my belt in UK construction and I think I could count on my fingers as to how many days in that I’ve actually had ‘off sick’? For a heavy head cold or the flu, there’s nothing like dosing yourself with some flu remedy & vitamin C, wrapping up warm and getting out in the good old British winter weather to blow it out of you?

So they’ve only been counting for about 4 days then? ????

Spoke to a mate earlier who arrived on Samui yesterday and he said it’s dead?

As many posters have stated on numerous different threads, if you are familiar with Thailand, you must be mad to travel here at the moment, for the possible forced hospital isolation and associated financial risk alone? However, there are some including myself who after 2 years are happy to take that risk due to family/relationship or business reasons? For your average Thailand newbie, I would say it’s all the extra paperwork, insurance costs etc when there are countries that are far easier to travel to and who’s systems, should you fall ill, can be expected to behave in a similar way to your home country?