Etaoin Shrdlu

Yeah, I remember those days and the protest songs. Needed some of that attitude to keep GWB out of Iraq and Afghanistan.

I think Israel has largely turned the corner with respect to its Arab neighbors. They aren't the ones threatening Israel at the moment. In fact, the Saudis and Jordanians assisted in knocking Iran's drones and missiles out of the air on their way towards Israel. It is the Iranians, not the Arabs, that are supporting Hamas and Hezbollah against Israel. So, no, Israel will not use nukes against its Arab neighbors. Iran may be something different, however.

No, they're too wealthy and well-connected politically.

Yes, exactly! I think the difference is that CP sees the 7-11 stores as their main distribution network and not a "convenience" for the busy or lazy.

This website may help: https://www.comparitech.com/blog/vpn-privacy/internet-censorship-map/

If your partner and daughter are American and are based here in Thailand due to your daughter's studies, then they would probably be best served by getting annual medical insurance policies and not travel insurance policies. Thai-based insurers usually offer less generous coverage, and some of them may not have favorable claims-paying attitudes, so your best bet may be to find an offshore health insurer. Pre-existing conditions may be excluded or attract an additional premium depending upon the insurer's underwriting guidelines. Your situation may be a bit different if your stays in Thailand are short. Travel insurance may be ok if you only expect treatment for urgent care and don't need treatment for anything long-term. Travel insurance will also exclude many pre-existing conditions. You'll also have to consider how travel insurance might interface with your US insurance. If you have insurance in the US and would expect to be repatriated in the event of serious accident or illness, make sure any repatriation or medivac benefits under the travel policy are sufficient.

Thanks, Jim. If I understand your post correctly, you're stating that only the portion of an IRA that represents actual post-2023 earnings would be taxable if brought into Thailand? This of course brings us the LIFO/FIFO issue as you state. How does taxation of remitted IRA distributions compare with remittances of defined benefit plan distributions? I think the RD has stated that an IRA is a self-directed pension and would be taxed the same as a traditional defined benefit plan. In other words, the entire distribution would be assessable income. Or am I wrong on this?

I think this would depend upon timing of the remittance. If one were to withdraw money from an IRA in 2024 and remit it into Thailand in 2024 and were tax resident in Thailand in 2024, then Thailand would have first claim to taxation on the funds. The tax paid to Thailand would be deductible from 2024 US Federal taxes by virtue of the DTA. If the funds were withdrawn from the IRA in 2024 and US Federal taxes were paid on the withdrawal and payment of tax could be proven by virtue of US Federal tax returns filed and 1099 forms, and the funds were remitted in 2025, then I think relief could be claimed under the DTA and any US taxes paid could be credited against Thai tax that might otherwise accrue for the 2025 tax year. But I'll defer to @Jim Gant on this one.

This has happened to me as well. It can take a while for registered post to clear customs at JFK and get sent to the USPS intake facility.

This has been tried before. It was called the South East Asian Treaty Organization (SEATO) and was started in 1954 by President Eisenhower and John Foster Dulles as an anti-communist military alliance. The headquarters were here in Bangkok. It lasted until 1977.

Insurers based in Thailand only offer fairly standard travel policies and as far as I know they all require that the policy incept before travel commences. There are insurers, mostly based in Europe, that offer cover that incepts after travel has commenced. Here's an offering from Allianz: https://www.allianztravelinsurance.com/travel/post-departure/saving-money-with-post-departure.htm. I haven't read through the entire description, so I don't know if this product would cover American citizens in the US. You'd have to check. Another possibility might be to get short-term medical cover from an insurer in the US. https://www.uhc.com/individuals-families/short-term-health-insurance. I suspect this may require a US address and may come with other restrictions or requirements, but it seems they offer cover for as little as one month. Good luck.

Selling securities in Thailand requires a license and I suspect obtaining the license wouldn't be easy or cheap. Thailand has a reputation for being the home of boiler room operations that swindle people out of their money and only the very foolish would entrust their wealth to someone operating here. This article is over twenty years old, but still gives a glimpse of what goes on: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/jul/27/johnaglionby I used to receive unsolicited calls from all kinds of "financial advisors" back in the day. I suspect that a copy of a chamber of commerce directory fell into the hands of these types, or they got hold of a business card. In my opinion, they're in the same category as the Nigerian princes.

Yes, this kind of situation can increase not only that individual's own exposure to loss, but also his neighbors' as well. This could result in his neighbors losing their insurance as well unless regulations prevent it.

Two of my daughters played basketball in high school here in Bangkok. They very much enjoyed the sport and were gracious both when their team won and when their team lost. The only time they questioned the fairness of a game was when they had to compete against a team that had trans women on the squad who towered over everyone else and were much stronger. In my opinion, sport is perhaps the one area where discrimination based upon biological sex is warranted, at least when size and strength are significant factors. There may also be subtle differences in neurological abilities such as spatial cognition and motor skills, but I don't know. I also am aware that both the WNBA and NCAA women's basketball use ball that is one inch smaller in diameter than the ball used in the NBA and men's NCAA basketball, so there is recognition of differences based upon sex.Why make only this distinction end not one regarding trans women? I am not against trans people participating in sport, but I don't think that their participation should come at the expense of biological women.

Bike looks like a Norton single.

Yes, the app will enable the camera and you'll be asked to center your face in the screen and perhaps blink or show your teeth to make sure the camera isn't pointed at a photo of you.

I see that this story is about homeowners in California. The Golden State is known for its strict regulatory environment when it comes to insurance. This is usually good for consumers, but it can backfire, too. It seems that Cali does not allow insurers to charge higher rates based upon increased risk on a property, leaving only non-renewal as an option to balance their portfolio. Here's an article describing the situation: https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/california-news/wildfire-home-insurance-natural-disaster-climate-change/3230089/ and a key paragraph from this article: "Unlike other states, California does not let insurance companies consider current or future risks when deciding how much to charge for an insurance policy. Instead, they can only consider what's happened on a property in the past to set the price." The bit about using aerial surveillance to gather underwriting info is a bit troubling, but I guess if it legal and cost-effective, they'll do it until stopped by law or regulation.

About question #2 My sister owned a horse for many years. He was a very smart horse. As far as horses go, he was a genius. My sister kept in in a stable. You could say that my sister's horse was a stable genius. When my sister's horse faced away from me, it reminded me of a different "stable genius".

Reminds me of back in the day when Bernard Trink used to give advice on when Foodland had canned Dinty Moore beef stew on sale.

Read up on the nitrogen cycle and how it applies to a new aquarium: You need to start with a very small number of fish for the first thirty days or so while the tank cycles. Once it is mature, you can add fish. If you have too many fish in a new tank, the ammonia produced by their waste will kill them before it can be broken down into nitrites (less toxic) and then nitrates (even less toxic) by bacteria. It takes time for the population of bacteria to grow to the level necessary to consume the ammonia and nitrates. As a general rule of thumb, it is advisable to remove between 10 and 20 percent of the water in an aquarium and replace it with fresh water each week. I have used Bangkok tap water and have not had any issues. I suspect village water will be ok as the chloramine used to treat the water has probably dwindled to negligible amounts while sitting in the cistern or tank at your house. Also, there is a limit to how many fish can be accommodated in a tank and it depends upon the amount of surface area and aeration provided. It is quite common for fish bought in the market to have parasites and fungal infections. I may be best to keep new fish separate in a solution of anti-fungal medication for a day or so. There is a lot of info available on the internet, so do some checking and I think you'll find lots of answers.

I remember Stan. Also Crazy Jeff.... Really a bunch of characters there.

I think you're correct. Woody may have been the one that bought out the others, but I'm not sure. I do remember Peter, but I didn't frequent Chequers that much.

Yes. Nana was a much different place back then, but so was Bangkok for that matter.

I'm sure it goes back at least to the 1980s. It had been there for a number of years when I first found it in the early 1990s.