Walker88

Never did the Nana Hotel in its heyday. Came too late to Bangkok. The Grace, on the other hand, was Jihadi Central for a few years. Lots of who's who from al Qaeda, Jama'ah Islamiya, Moro National Liberation Front, etc. Hambali stayed there for a while, but eventually moved to Ayutthaya, where he was picked up while planning a big attack on Bangkok hotels hosting an APEC Conference. Fortunately, I don't think the Nana Hotel was on the hit list. At least it had that in its favor. Lots of history on those midtown sois.

The little Krackerbamastan KKKristian Speaker has really got his panties in a twist. First he said Biden should resign now, since he is not running (Lyndon Johnson, anyone?). Then he said it's illegal for Biden to not be the nominee, because he won the primaries. Me thinks the lady doth protest too much! Running scared like he's got bone spurs. The Speaker should stick to monitoring his son's phone to make sure the little mutant isn't accessing online porn. The Prosecutor vs the Felon.

The abyss is what the Secret Service agents saw as their future. Even two weeks ago it was clear Biden was going to drop out, and the Dems now are likely to win the White House in November. That means the felon will face all the trials he has tried to postpone, and he is likely going to be sent to live out the rest of his miserable existence in Leavenworth. No SS agent wants to spend his work days in a prison, or the abyss. Even the rubber chicken circuit is better than spending all day around felons like their charge plus others.

Another poster already posted a Pew Research poll to back it up. Because of a former job, I know how Iraq came to be. It was 100% a Neocon fiasco. The agency had believed there was maybe a 15% chance Saddam had WMD, and that number only because it is impossible to prove a negative. ALl of the claims came from one source. The source is what is called a "Walk In", which means someone who approaches intel officers voluntarily to tell them something he wants them to know. The agency named this Walk In "Curveball", which says what they really thought of him. The guy wanted money and resettlement somewhere. The agency kept him at arm's length. Curveball then went to other embassies telling them the same story, hoping he might get money and resettlement from them. Because US intel has liaison relationships with other nation's, the US recieved this reporting. The agency realized it was just Curveball. VP Cheney called the liaison reports "corroboration"{, even after he was told it was just Curveball again. Cheney got then-DCI George Tenet to go along with the ruse of attacking Iraq. Tenet wanted DCI to be a Cabinet Level position, so he could be at the Big Boy's table in the West Wing. Cheney then set up Gen Colin Powell to be the fallguy and fool. The UN speech claiming 'proof' of WMD was written. An analyst at the agency named Tyler Drumheller edited it to facts and the actual agency assessment. Cheney re-edicted it and told Tyler to get lost. Powell, unaware he was presenting lies to the UN, gave the speech Cheney intended. The Neocons got their war. The Neocons also were responsible for the 20 years in Afghanistan. After 9-11, the agency advised to take out the terrorist training camps, try to get ObL, and then go home. A few weeks at most. A couple of agency officers wrote a white paper predicting EXACTLY what would happen if the US entered into any greater involvement in Afghanistan. They said a war is unwinnable and the US would end up spending $trillions being bogged down, eventually either having to define 'victory' and then say we achieved it, or else just leave. The Taliban was always going to win. The white paper was ignored, and twenty useless years followed. Again, it was Repubs and Neocons behind both disasters.

Say hello to President Harris! She might pick MI Gov Whitmer as her VP, which would make all the MAGA's junk shrink even tinier that their love muffin cult leader. Two women running the US! E M A S C U L A T I O N ! I think all the competent Secret Service officers assigned to the felon suspected Biden was going to step down, so they bailed. Under President Harris, they know all the trials of the felon are back on the table, and nobody wants to spend the last miserable years of the felon's life watching over him in Leavenworth. It's morning in America again !

Why? Lyndon Johnson did not resign when he announced he would not seek re-election. Felonistas know their cult leader just lost. By the way, a POTUS who wins a second term cannot run for a 3rd, so in the now extremely unlikely event the felon wins, should he resign on Inauguration Day and let the country get a taste of JD?

Isn't that Brit Hume, the guy into Latex Porn? Scratch a felonista and find a pervert. Harris has at least 30 IQ points on the felon, and in a debate would put her prosecutor skills against the pathological liar and make him go apoplectic. Undoubtedly the cult realizes their dreams of autocracy died today. The felon must know that, too. No more self pardon. ALl the trials will take place. We're moments away from the felon frothing at the mouth screaming on his Truth (sic) Social "UNFAIR!" and "RIGGED".

I see the silly cult members in the House are saying Biden should resign right now, "since he is not running again". Using that cultish lack of logic, I suppose every President who wins a second term should immediately resign, since he or she would be unable to run for a 3rd term. Obviously the cult in the House knows this is really bad news for the felon, so they are scrambling to come up with new ways to attack. I wonder just how foolish they can look. They always surprise, as their idiocy knows no bounds.

If the UFC or WWF were running the next debate, they would tag it as: "The Prosecutor vs The Felon" (assuming it's Harris) I see some arguing already Harris is not competent. I guess they don't know her. I'd guesstimate she's got >30 IQ points over the felon, plus infinitely greater knowledge of the issues facing the country and the world. Harris never had to rely on the lie, "We've got the best plan ever, and in the next two weeks we'll be announcing it. I think you'll be surprised at how great it is; some people are saying...blah blah blah felonspeak" Some of Harris' questioning of people called before Senate Hearings might be on YouTube. I watched many of them on C-SPAN. She is good. Logical, tough, relentless. In a debate, she would emasculate the felon, make him even smaller than Stormy said he is, make him look like a fool, make him go apoplectic. The felon is likely sweating right now, because he was counting on avoiding consequences for his crimes. Lose and he cannot pardon himself. The Jan 6 business will come to trial. Georgia will come to trial. The fake elector scheme will come to trial. The stolen documents case will return and go to trial. The over/under on when the felon mouths 'UNFAIR!" or "RIGGED" is 2 days.

The range of outcomes in the debate had two fat tails, both of which bode well for the Democrats and badly for the convicted felon. One fat tail was that Biden would be as he was when making the D-Day speech; the other was that he would appear feeble and uncertain. The latter became reality. Because of that, he has dropped out. It's July. It will take some time to select a replacement, which means less time for the cult to come up with negatives and their silly attacks. The felon now faces an entirely new challenge, and his insanity, pathological lying and self aggrandizement will look really bad against any rational, competent and stable opponent, whether that is VP Harris, Gavin Newsom or anyone currently on the candidate radar. With the felon as the opponent, the bar for competence, sanity and rationality is set quite low. The felon's insanity hid behind Biden's dementia. No more hiding. The felon is going to look as bad as he really is, and the entire electorate will see it in the cold light of day. Joe Biden chose country and democracy over self. He should be honored for that, and history will judge him kindly, both for the astonishing economy that is the best in the world among free and developed nations, and also for his patriotism. After the debate I opined that the Dems just won the White House. Today, that has become much clearer. It's morning in America again! Elsewhere, I bet Putin had to go change his underwear after Biden's announcement. Putin's puppet preferred candidate is toast.

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Yes, on Deepika Padukone. I also found appealing the Palestinian journalist Rula Jebreal some years ago. Some might take exception to her politics, but I never got past her face to even hear what those politics might be. I used to enjoy a CNN Intl talking head named Kristi Lu Stout, partly because we share an alma mater. I ran into her in Hong Kong, and I realized she is one of those women the camera really doesn't like, or doesn't like enough. In person she was absolutely stunning, tall and lithe, elegant, and with facial pores the size of a Higg's boson. Pure porcelain, buffed with diamond powder. Blend intellect with natural beauty, and I'm smitten. My kryptonite. Never clasped on to the women media promotes as beauties, including many you mention. It's marketing far more than reality. Zendaya is not too bad, though nothing spectacular. Still, if I awoke and found her next to me, I wouldn't call the cops. Oh, and Joan Crawford in her 'cleaned up Christian' phase in the movie "Rain" when the sanctimonious preacherman Walter Huston couldn't resist her. Lovely. Gotta add a little more, though maybe a personal preference....the Olympian Dibaba sisters, Genzebe and Tirunesh. Loved watching them run.

But weed shops....... The sole purpose of alcohol is not to get high, but the sole purpose of weed is to get high. People drink beer because it tastes good. Same with wine. Nobody smokes weed for the flavor. Apparently stoned is pious and spiritual, while drunk is not. Nor is alcohol breath, even if only one beer.

Funny topic. I recall reading an article many years ago about a study some sex clinic like a Johnson and Masters did. They had 'volunteers' to see who could go from flaccid to ejaculation in the shortest time. The 'winner' took 11 seconds. The 'winner' was also 83 years old. Now THAT'S a guy fit for the office of Presidency! I took that as a challenge, In a few decades....well, records are made to be broken. Stay fit, keep body fat under 15% and stay far from diabetes Type II, and you won't be either shut out of life's greatest game and purpose, nor be a customer for Big Pharma.

Ah...excuse me, J.D.....but.... P A K I S T A N The official name is The Islamic Republic of Pakistan They have nukes. Their nukes are actually protected better than the nukes in neighboring India.

Older posters here, or people with older parents, know all you really need in the event of a nuclear holocaust is your school desk. BTW, Ms Jacobsen's book is both expert and scary as hell. She writes of the vortex created by the explosion of a hydrogen bomb, noting that a person 40 miles away would be sucked up in it like in a tornado. By next January, we will have two world leaders crazy enough to bring about nuclear holocaust. Don't put off doing soon what you might never be able to do. (According to Gen Milley, one previous world leader wanted to nuke China after he lost the 2020 election, hoping a State of Emergency would allow him to remain in power. The former leader subsequently said Gen Milley should be executed for treason because Gen Milley told his Chinese counterpart the DoD would prevent the former leader from doing it. Gen Milley, then-SecDef Esper, and DCI Gina Haspel teamed up to prevent anything like that. Then-VP Pence even spoke with those folks to discuss invoking the 25th Amendment, but Gen Milley assured Pence things were under control. Gina Haspel has gone quietly into retirement, but I know whom she is NOT voting for in November, based on her direct personal experience.) Go hug your kids.

As Dubya said while sitting listening to the felon's first (poorly attended) Inaugural speech, "That's some crazy sh!t there". Big Pharma needs to work 24/7 to develop something to treat what ails you. You've got some Next Level lunacy working there, pork.

Perhaps you missed it, old man, or your dementia is worse than Biden's, but the shooter was the typical AR-15 toting lunatic geek, besides being a registered Republican. The FBI has 'searched for a motive', when the obvious is staring them straight in the face: batsh!t crazy. The guy who shot John Lennon didn't suffer from BDS (Beatles Derangement Syndrome); he was just crazy. The guy who shot Reagan wasn't a 'woke liberal', he was just crazy and thought he would impress Jodie Foster. Sometimes, it isn't politics; it's insanity. You should understand that. Now you might want to ask WTF the SS was doing when a building 130 yards away from where the felon was lying speaking wasn't covered by them. Don't know if you own or have fired an AR-15, but with scant practice, one can put an entire 30 rd mag inside two inches from 130 yards. With more practice, inside an inch. You might 'thank goodness' the punk was a bad shot. I do remember the guy who hammered Nancy Pelosi's husband, the Coast Guy guy who made a list of people he planned to assassinate (using on his spreadsheet the nicknames the felon had given people like "Pocahontas"), the guy with the van plastered with pics of the felon and praise of him who sent bombs to media and individuals critical of the felon, the guy who took exception to people aiding all those "murderers and rapists" in migrant caravans and went and killed many Jews at a synagogue that had a program aiding migrants, plus the goobers who stormed the US Capitol, beat 140 cops and set up a gallows to "hang Mike Pence" all came from the ranks of the felon. Maybe the felon's vitriole and lies promotes much more violence among his cultists?

There is a not-so-hidden irony in this tale (besides some truly incompetent SS agents). The clown judge in FL threw out the stolen documents case, where the stolen documents included some classified HCS (Human Clandestine Sources). While the possible Iran plot to get the felon could have been from SIGINT sources, it's quite possible it came from HUMINT. News of the dismissal of the case where the felon was reckless and cavalier with, inter alia, HCS docs sends a chill to clandestine assets and potential assets around the world, as exposure of their identities (as HCS docs would) puts both the asset and their families under threat. Iran hangs spies. Putin feeds them into a furnace alive while their wife and children watch and listen to dad's screams. Guaranteed the agency is going to lose existing clandestine assets and potential ones because of what the felon did and how the clown judge tossed the case out. The next Iranian plot to get him might not be discovered, leaving an already-incompetent Secret Service in a deeper hole. Also, case officers are human. There is outrage over the dismissal of the case. It's even possible that the next field operative who comes across such intel will decide to take some built-up leave and never report the intel. (The implications of the stolen docs dismissal are much more serious, as a good deal of valuable intel also comes from liaison contacts with friendly foreign intel services. They will stop sharing, fearing exposure of their own sources, such as when Israel lost a penetration of ISIS because the felon mouthed off to FM Lavrov and Ambassador Kislyak in the Oval Office. The US will get less intel about terrorist plots, black market fissionable material being peddled, suitcase nukes from the old USSR being sold, plus the usual things about foreign military capabilities and all the usual kind of intel that impacts US defense policy, spending, weapons development, etc. If and when a dirty bomb goes off in London, Paris or New York, or al Qaeda biochemists release a biopathogen that wipes out millions, it is possible a clandestine asset who never was could have helped prevent this. So be it.

Yes, I guess my description narrowed it down to one place. Apparently it is like that virtually every night. I understand the owner is an American guy. He has created quite the destination. I never expected spotless bathrooms with a full time attendant. As we departed, we became more and more 'han sum', as other bars were hungry for customers. Oddly, the walkways and stairs in the entire complex are packed with people, but popping our heads into a few places as we departed gave a very different picture than the top floor venue. As I noted, Soi 4 and the bars along that street, from Sukh to NEP, were also packed. Someone above tried to 'educate' the OP about the women in such places not really liking him. I suspect finding a wife is not the goal of most customers. Personally, I enjoyed the atmosphere, and since I brought no faux morality into the place, I took some pleasure in seeing the women can make quite a lot of money. Good for them. They have accepted what the job demands, and weighed it against the needs of their family, and for many it sounds like a kid back home, fathered by a guy who did a runner. Not sure it's an every night thing, but I was entertained enough to visit again. There's also giant screens running a variety of sports, so something for everyone.

I'm not old enough to have bad eyes, so what I saw last night is in stark contrast to what I've read here. A couple of friends came to town, and after dinner they wanted to see some 'nightlife'. I took them to Nana, and hit a famous agogo on the top floor. By 2100 there were no seats left. Late comers could only walk around hoping to be in the right place at the right time, kind of like looking for a parking space at the Mall days before Christmas. Low season? What's that? On the stage were perhaps 100 women, some tatted some clean skinned. Many were quite lovely and void of any Covid Kilos. Prices are not so bad for drinks, considering what I suspect the operating costs are, and unless one is a skint pensioner living on a tight budget, it hardly impacts the wallet. The visitors had a few women come sit and chat. Good people skills. The women seemed to have honed their craft well. The atmosphere was like a typical holiday. The crowd was largely young East Asian, plus lots of 30-ish Westerners. Not too many of the 'fat, old baldies' that one would think are the usual customers. I watched a fairly endless stream of women changing from bikini to street clothes and heading out the door hand-in-hand with their temporary spouse. Neither prices nor any Neo Morality seemed to get in the way of it being a participation sport. Tales of its demise are wildly exaggerated. The women make some serious money, enough to be the envy of the typical Western pensioner. Watching how many were going out the door, and having heard their fee for services to be rendered, plus how often they claim to be taken out, a good many of the women in that club are likely making $5000 a month or more. In a nation where per capita income might be $8000 per year, these women are killing it. I'm beginning to realize that when I see a tatted woman coming out of Chanel or Prada, bag in hand, she might not be the daughter of a general or senior politician, but rather a modern day woman of the night, enjoying the fruits of her labor. Demand looks to exceed supply, and these woman are living a John Stuart Mill life. I spoke with one who is a uni student by day and works a few nights a week at that venue. Her extracurricular activity covers her school fees, room and board in BKK, and what the family needs back in Isaan. She was wearing at least two 'baht' of real gold, too. I'm sure some save, while others probably blow their monthly take plus some. Not everyone is aware they have an expiration date. I picked up the tab for a few beers, plus what my 'generous' visitors bought for their lovely friends. The bill was quite clear, noting each drink, and if it was for a woman, her name and badge number appeared under the drink. The point-of-sales system looks pretty good. The bill matched what I had watched coming to the table, no there was no padding. 7000 baht total, which seems quite fair for the entertainment the three of us enjoyed. Much cheaper than a single Taylor Swift concert ticket, not that I would ever want one. Everything is relative, and if one has kept ahead of worldwide inflation, it's quite reasonable. About 2130 we left, and it was a scrum getting down the stairs, out of the Plaza, and then trying to get up Soi 4 for a taxi ride home. Empty and dead the area was not. Also, there's probably no better time to be a bargirl, as plenty of flush customers can fill their coffers. I would guess the pensioners are prices out of the market, but between South Koreans and Western 'digital nomads', the women have a large enough customer base to make hay while their sun shines. One can look down on them for what they do, if that fits one's faux morality better, but not having grown up poor in Isaan, trying to care for grandma, a couple of unemployed drunk uncles, useless rapper-wannabe brothers, etc., I cannot judge.

Other than a precious few like John von Neumann and Mozart, most prodigies such as this lad end up accomplishing little. Not sure why. Maybe brilliance requires more than good neural circuitry, Inspiration has to be part of it.

For a few thousand years tatts were a fringe item in most nations. Suddenly they became a fad so that folks could be different by being like everyone else. When TV 'vote you off' shows emerge where tattoo 'artists' do their best, you know it's a fad. Fads end. The tatt fad seems to have peaked a few years ago and is slowly fading away, except for those 'individuals' who got caught up in the fad. In the last few months, when I've gotten lost and walked past an agogo or two (sarc), I have noticed an increasing number of un-tatted women. @scubascuba3 noted the same thing. My current girlfriend has flawless unmarked skin. It is astonishingly beautiful. I have also had women tell me "I'll never get one", which I did not hear a few years ago. Also, some women with tatts have told me how they regret getting them, and point to an un-tatted woman and say "I wish I still looked like that". Tatts are not a hairstyle or piercing; above a certain size, they are for life. (Just in case anyone asks, I am 100% loyal to my girlfriend, and if I ever enter an agogo, she is by my side on those very rare occasions.) Personally, while people are free to do whatever they want with their bodies, in my opinion nobody looks better with a tatt. I also see old expats sporting fresh tattoos, when their money would have been much better spent on a gym membership and their time at an AA meeting. Up to them, of course, and none of my business, but I cannot make myself not have an opinion in the same way I cannot not have an opinion about eating balot or live-monkey brains in a Chinese or northern Myanmar restaurant. There is a good deal of new research, driven by the fad, that indicates tatts can be dangerous. The skin---dermis and epidermis---is quite thin. Ink often goes below the dermis, where the body attacks it as an invader. It cannot break it down. Cells migrate, and ink-filled cells end up collecting in the lymph system. Some of the ink is carcinogenic, while many people develop an immune system response such as Lupus. A few more years down the line and I suspect an epidemic of autoimmune disorders. Untatted Thai female skin is a wonder of existence. Such beauty in both color and smoothness. Thai women tend to have fewer moles and spots that many Caucasian women have. It seems a shame---in my opinion---to mar it with pics that remind one of Tigers-Painted-on-Black Velvet that is always on sale in suburban Holiday Inns on bleak Saturday mornings.

The President swears an oath to protect and defend the Constitution, against all enemies, foreign and domestic. The President has some leeway in determining what constitutes a threat. For example, it is the President who authorizes drone strikes against suspected terrorists in the tribal regions of Pakistan. The convicted felon, per the 'reasonable man' standard, engaged in Sedition against the US. The felon represents a much greater threat to the homeland than some jihadi in Quetta. The conservative Supreme Court justices have effectively obviated the Founders by making a President somewhere between a monarch and a pontiff. They are also a threat to the intent of the Founders and to US ideals. Biden might as well use the ruling and have the felon and the conservative justices executed. He would be defending the Constitution and the nation as the Founders intended. Immune.

Because he tells you.