Toolong

Thanks for your reply. I feel in some regard that you may have a more 'informed' view than I do, particularly re my hasty & possibly unfair assertion that all embassy staff and the declarations they issue in public are.......to be considered as just plain disingenuous, zionist maniacs etc.. So I do accept your comments as not only interesting but probably nearer the mark than I may have been. I am forgetting that apparently the majority of Israelis do actually see Netanyahu as......well, what he is: a political hustler whose personal & political credibilty is NOT at all in accord with the reaĺ, long-term interests of the Israeli state. Your point about Netanyahu's resemblance to Trump, in many, easily discernible ways.....is spot on. 👍

'Israel's Options'....? It's narrowed down to one now: Israel's 75 year immoral and horribly unjust occupation of the land on which the indigenous Palestinians rightfully call their homeland......is over. Not over now, of course. But it will be, even in my lifetime.....and I'm old! 🇰🇼

Sterile, diplomatic protocol & nothing more. Those who serve the state of Israel (so not Isrealis) at embassy level are, at best - and I'm kindly allowing for a very, very slight degree of doubt here - only about 1 single millimetre to the left of the furthest far-right-zionist-war-criminal you can imagine......Bibi Netanyahu.

Sorry, pomchop....don't actually know the answer to that, as I have longer-stay extensions and am not familiar with all the TM30 requirements & rules regarding other visa types, ie tourist. (Tbh....don't even fully know the requirements & rules re my own visa/extension type....it's all very confusing - to me anyway!)

Re this idea of a land promised to the chosen ones by God himself, I heard the wonderful George Galloway yesterday describe such a thing thus.....(or nearabouts).....as 'God as a real estate agent'. I should make clear that George did NOT make that remark in support of such a notion, but as a means to highlight the wicked absurdity of it. And yes, Emdog, your point about 'Religions poison everything'...., is an idea that is getting harder & to oppose, very quickly.....though sadly not quick enough to save countless lives.

Know what you mean.....???? ......but respectfully disagree, because there are ways by which a wai can convey a clear message - in this case, disapproval - without having to state that message, which may worsen such situations very badly. I've watched how the Thais do this to good effect. In fact, I'm now quite good at it myself! ????

Yes. (Not as brave as one might hope for, ideally, but Thailand and its msm media are many years away from 'ideally'......so yes, brave enough to signify something perhaps. ????????)

To be honest, DizzyProtos, it might be best to forget that idea. (To put it gently!) I actually admire you for being 'different'. I once had that spirit in me myself. But while it would not necessarily end that badly......it would definitely not last that long. One night max'. There's no such thing as 'stealth camping' on beaches like those you had in mind. Secluded, forested areas......maybe.....but beaches? Too much hassle. But if you go for it anyway.....good for you. ???????? (Interesting how you'd do a TM30!)

'Cleansed'? I hope you and I never, ever meet. You and I are both human, and as such we often morally stumble in our way forward. Many times I've taken questionable positions that I've unconvincingly used to justify my foolish remarks or actions. Mea culpa big time, but I've always figured it out right in the end with some honest reflection....and maybe at cost. The Palestinians trapped by Israel, in Gaza, are NOT stains on the floor to be 'cleansed' and wiped off. Only bloodstains perhaps, and those stains are already getting the world attention the Israeli-lovin' western msm can't hide.

'Mis-steps' by MF? Not so. At all. (Though I concede much could have been 'lost in translation'.) Mis-steps occur when you make choices and they turn out to be the wrong ones. MF had no choices.....no options....to do anything other than what they did. Forced by crafty design to back themselves into a hopeless corner. The title of this Thai PBS piece refers to potential 'tragedy' for MF. The tragedy is for Thailand, plain and simple. (And I say that with great sorrow.)

If it was me in the same situation, I think I would not be able to resist feeling compelled to - at the very least - go back to the apparent cowboy outfit , and as politely but straight-forwardly as possible, just state your concerns, showing - if necessary - the pictures your other party showed you & what they refer to. If they don't exactly react in the most contrite way, mai pen lai, but let it go. Smile, walk away....and 'take the high road'.......so to speak. No big confrontation required at all. You'll feel better for having done it and your bike's future maintenance better assured by never going back to that particular 'authorized' dealer.

'......the land will always be in her name.' Sorry to be dim, perhaps.....but who's the 'her'? You mother in law or your wife? Who's the 'both'? (Sorry, just ambiguous.) If it's your wife and the place is in her name, then can't she simply bequeath it in her will to whomever she chooses, thus potentially precluding 'nasty' family getting their hands on it via next-of-kin default? If the 'her' is the MiL, then it's complicated, yes. Just two things occurs to me, PattayaGuy......and that's that if YOU'RE thinking about this, then to be sure your wife's family will be thinking about it, or have long done so, too. And also.....with genuine respect to your good wife, does she 100% share your own views on this? Will she totally back all efforts on your part to stop house eventually going to her kin? Like Wanderer555 advised, I'd 'go slowly and seek professional assistance'.....if that assistance is required. And good luck. I can certainly empathize with you in your situation.

'......advising the owner to maintain a separation between his political views and personal life'. Of course, that's how you would like it to be..., right, Pornthip. Along with the other senators with their pieces of silver long deposited it their fat bank accounts. Oh, dear, this so unThai......to question the moral superiority of the Thai elite! Why should you be blamed for your sins in this 'personal' context? Pornthip, since your elite-puppy Suthep led the (your) elite coup against Yingluck's govt in 2014.........it became, for me anyway.....ALL personal. If I, as a falang, feel that, why shouldn't a Thai restaurant owner, an actual Thai.....wherever in the world.......feel what I feel....x10 ? Own it. Own your complicity in this shambles, you fake 'Kon dee'.

Could be......but I was thinking more like, 'Why worry?' ????

It's possible that your friend may know something (or think he does) about his situation, now or to come, that he's not telling you about. Maybe he knows or senses that he won't have too much time left. Hereditary conditions (particularly cancer) can kick in around his age. I'm 63 and expecting something like that will appear on my horizon at some point soon. That may NOT be the case with your mate, but whatever.....I say good for him. Do whatever you gotta do, fella! Chok dee????

'It don't amount to a hill o' beans anyway!'

Great reply. Thanks, dingdongrb. Very interesting comments. Re the Budweiser factory policy on sipping suds on site: I hope it doesn't reflect too badly on me to say this, but I kind of liked reading that and thinking a bit nostalgically about it, although it sounds wildly crazy these days to have such a policy. I'm old enough to remember those days and gotta admit I miss the different, more-relaxed vibe then. (Example: did 5 months in traction in UK hospital in 1981. Was permitted to booze my heart out, smoking was fine, non-stop and wards & corridors always had a blue haze of baccy smoke floating around the ceiling areas! How that was once perfectly acceptable, it is impossible to imagine now. Oh, for the bad old days!) Yes, microbrews are the way to go if you want to enjoy the better things in life more. ???? PS: If I ever encounter a 'Clydesdale' in TH, I'll try it out.

With respect, dingdong, having lived near a Bud brewery & having mates who worked there hardly fully explains why it's a 'chit beer', unless you missed something out. I'm really, genuinely interested to know. I'm not 'trolling' you or anything....honestly ????. I've never tried other US beer brands (unless Corona is US made) so I don't have the advantage of being able to compare. Anyway, I have a kind of 'back-up' policy (so to speak) of only drinking one can of Bud if I'm drinking say, 3 or 4 cans. The others are definitely superior brands, so compensate for any deficiency inherent in the Bud, which is always my first can! Re judging alc content? I admit I just assume it would be as per stated. Maybe I'm being naive. Maybe Budweiser QC ain't as good as I imagine. ????????

So a lot of people say, but I'd politely disagree. I find the taste more than satisfactory tbh, and while the price is only a few baht more than Singha per can, you get the full 500ml + a reliable 5% alc content every time.

Glad to see your post, Kannika. Thought I was the only one wise to this stuff. By stuff I mean this kind of low-down, sneaky 'kee-gong' scamming going on to squeeze every satang of profit they can. ('They' being the big brewery monopoly boys in TH.) First got a whiff of their games when (about 10 years ago) it suddenly went from 330ml to 320ml & 640ml to 620ml & 500ml to 490ml..............just like that. Overnight. Excuse? Brewers don't wanna raise prices, so keep the price stable but reduce capacity. Nonsense.....prices went up anyway......and profits went higher still. So, being a bitter & twisted saddo.....but also a man of principle, I switched to foreign brews, like Asahi or Budweiser (it ain't bad!!). Put my intake back at proper levels, ie, 330ml or 500ml per can. A bit pricier but then....I figured I was worth it! ???? Will end this with a helpful (I hope) tip, KannikaP...... and anyone else out there who drinks their beers from.....bottles. Tip is this: try cans. Taste is measureably better imo. (It IS different anyway, definitely, but 'better' is for you to judge of course.....and yes, I know.....if you're drinking outside somewhere, it's all bottled, so it's for those folks like me who drink at home a lot. ) Cheers.

Indecisive, vague ambiguity in others can just be so darned annoying for me so I generally resist using hackneyed phrases like 'it depends', as a sure-fire....but - for my sins - I really can't respond to this query without using it to offer my honest viewpoint. (Yeah....boring comment, I know ????, sorry.) But will add this: to paraphrase the old nursery rhyme line......when Thais are good, they're very, very good, but when they're bad, they're wicked. (Sums up my own experience actually, married twice to Thais. Former spouse: totally wicked. Latter: couldn't wish for better.)

A bit tangential, forgive me, but based on personal situation I find myself in after recent purchase of (a relatively modest amount) Thai gold bar bullion, I'm wondering how others who also make such purchases of physical gold keep it & keep it secure. Some may think it wisest to pay for a bank locker.....others may have 10 ton safes, etc., but some, like me, may prefer to.....well, let's say.......'make their own arrangements'.....so to speak.....in a manner once very familiar to our human ancestors! Of course I'm NOT expecting anyone to reveal anything at all about their own circumstances that would reveal too much or allow even the tiniest modicum of risk.....simply to answer my query (you might even think I'm out of order in asking.....I get that!) so perhaps I'll distill it into a single safe-enough, unintrusive question: do you think the bank lockers rentable in Thai banks are an ok deal, security-wise? Which, apart from the fairly reasonable cost of renting, present no greater risk of loss in a potential failure/collapse of the bank itself? Or not?

I also drink 4 small cans of beer per daily intake (well, actually...these days have gone more for 3 of the larger 490ml cans, which is slightly more than 4 small) but have 2 consecutive days off to give the liver a break. Plus I eat well and get exercise. Personally, I weigh it on balance as 'moderate' enough, while allowing me the immense satisfaction of mellowing out for a few hours at the end of the day. (Btw....the 2 evenings off are tough, but it's a 'sacrifice' I'm prepared to bear.....just!????)

The incalculable harm done by such underhand, egregious, 'law-fare', against those special few in this sad, benighted country who offer reason for hope & optimism.....is tragic. And one despicable individual stands out as particularly culpable......so called 'activist', Srisuwan Janya. If I felt more assured that my comments would not be censored (& understandably so) by AN moderators, I would indulge in the most vulgar hate speech (the like of which I promise you you ain't ever heard) against Janya and the gangsters who control him. But then, Pannika's (imo) only temporarily a victim of this unjust ruling. Such rulings now can one day be binned & done away. Her day, like Pita's, is yet to come. Shame we'll have to wait so long for it......unless it gets decided sooner, on the streets....so to speak.

Don't spend it, brother.........end it. And as you back away, never to return, do it Thai style, with a deep wai and a winning smile. What's best for you is yet to come, somewhere down the road. Bon chance!