Walker88

At the Federal level maybe----maybe---he could avoid jail if convicted, but in Georgia, conviction = mandatory jail. 5 years minimum for RICO convictions. One of the US' major democratic allies---South Korea---has jailed 3 former leaders for crimes. Certainly the US can do the same if/when trump is found guilty.

Ah, that was already tried. In fact most of trump's probelsm---and these charges---are BECAUSE he ran and lost. He could not accept being what his dad constantly called him: a LOSER. The important thing is that the law be followed, no one is above it (the US isn't the UK where the monarch is above the law per the Magna Carta).

If you read the indictment re 6 January, his own (R) appointed staff testified to the grand jury that trump knew he lost. He's just a self-serving child who has zero appreciation for democracy and US ideals. He will have plenty of time to think over his wrongdoing, because the cases against him are pretty airtight. The classified documents case is a slam dunk. RICO in Georgia looks pretty good, too, and that carries a mandatory 5 years, which likely means life for an obese 77-year old.

And it was 'tyranny' when AL Capone was indicted. More 'tyranny' when Jeffrey Dahmer was indicted. Yet more when the Feds went after the Unibomber. Since you apparently need a reminder: 1) trump stole TS/SCI, SAP, Codeword, HCS and RD documents. He had zero right to them, and it is puzzling what a country club owner and wedding planner needs with those docs. Oh, and he cannot 'declassify in his mind'. There is a system requiring an extensive paper trail. Then trump lied about returning them. 2) trump was intimately involved---according to his own (R) appointed officials---in the scheme to send fake electors to the Electoral College, in lieu of actual votes. He also dog whistled his goobers to DC, knowing full well they would behave badly, which is to say as trumpers. While his terrorist goobers attacked the US Capitol and threatened to hang the VP, trump sat on his bloated behind and did absolutely nothing for 180 minutes. 3) trump tried to pressure election officials and the SecState of Georgia to 'just find me 11,780 votes', while his co-conspirators threatened public poll workers 4) trump paid off Stormy Daniels so she wouldn't---inter alia---say publicly before the election "Not frreakishly small, but well below average'. trump sat back and let his bagman---Michael Cohen---go to jail for following trump's order. Rule of Law is not tyranny. It is the US system. If you don't like it, perhaps you prefer weaponization of the military, like Mr. Prigozhin just found out about.

Politically? You mean stealing classified documents, and then lying about it? Or maybe you mean fomenting an attempted coup on 6 January 2021? Or 'just find me 11,780 votes'? Or paying off a pornstar while letting your bagman go to jail for what trump ordered? That kind of 'political'?

Here's trump...aka DeVante Parker, NFL wide receiver, who comes in exactly at 6'3", 215 lbs. The resemblance is simply uncanny.

Fani Willis' Georgian "March to the Sea" is going to join General Sherman in folklore. Sherman took out the racist rebs, and Willis' is going to take out the anti-American, anti-democracy trump-scum.

We all have different priorities. My greatest pleasure comes from being fit, agile, lacking any aches and pains, being full of energy, full of testosterone, having a powerful immune system, and---if I'm honest---having muscular definition. Other people prefer to let their taste buds control their behavior, and they're willing to give up the things important to me. To each his own. Certainly I see plenty of expats with 100+ cm waists waddling around from table to bar to table, 'living the dream', and most likely hastening their departure from this brief existence, while feeling pains in the knees or back as they move toward the box or urn. That's their choice. I never had a sweet tooth, so was never tempted by cakes and pies and candy and ice cream. Not consuming those things isn't any sacrifice. What I do seems to have benefits. I haven't had a common cold this century, and although I did once contract Covid, it lasted one day and my only symptom was pain in my legs that reminded me of the growth spurt years. Some of my health is the result of good genes, some because I wasn't stuffed with antibiotics when I was a kid, and some from my active lifestyle and eating habits.

The twice impeached, indicted for 91 felonies, convicted sex offender, convicted charity fraudster trump should have been denied bail. GUARANTEED he's going to dog whistle his goobers so they go after prosecutors and jurors. Innocent people just doing their jobs are going to be put at risk, as others already have, because the corrupt, whining, mouth-flapping 3 year old in a bloated 77-years old's decrepit body, is going to tickle the goobers so they do his wet work.

Step aside, Nick Nolte; there's a new Most Infamous Mugshot !

I can see Xi getting Ceaucescu'd. Over the past few decades, expectations of the man in the street have skyrocketed. All of a sudden everything is changing. Covid was bad enough. Now China's major asset---property---is going to collapse. Evergrande is belly up. Country Garden is belly up. Millions of Chinese pre-paid for condos that will never be built, and their money is not going to be returned. Add to this 20% youth unemployment, and Xi has a problem. The SOEs are a sword of Damocles hanging over the nation's finances, too, while the BRI is turning out to be a costly boondoggle. Maybe Xi (or President Eleven as the world's greatest polyglot trump calls him) can resurrect Nanking and focus attention on the traditional bogeyman. Maybe he can redirect anger toward the White Devil. Maybe he can drum up support to go after that 'renegade province', the island over which the commies have governed for a total of zero seconds. The door is open for a Party adversary to go after Xi. Bo Xilai still rots in jail, so it won't be him, but the trough has lots of thirsty commies anxious for their chance to get richer. Xi might consider a disguise...like stopping the constant use of Commie Black Hair Dye. He might also think of the late Wagner CEO Prigozhin, and remember how dangerous flying can be. The next few years in China are going to be interesting. I don't think it is going to become the world leader so many prematurely anointed it. A command economy with very fallible humans thinking they can fully control it, rather than letting the market do its thing, seems not to be the answer to the 21st Century.

The situation in China is severe. Evergrande, and now Country Garden are going mammaries up. Xi even will have to address the issue Millions of Chinese pre-paid for condos that now will never be built, nor will the buyers get their money back from the developers. Toss in youth unemployment of 20%%. While all that is likely to lead to social unrest, the traditional CCP answer is to fabricate a foreign bogey man. Often that bogetman has been Japan, but Xi has many choices. He could start a territorial dispute with other nations who claim parts of the South China Sea, or maybe take aggressive action on Taiwan. Then there's always the US. Maybe disputed lands with russia, too. Xi will choose whatever he thinks might rsonate the most internally. Oh, then there's the long simmering issue of bloated and indebted SOE's. External tourism will be the last thing on Xi's mind.

Look, maybe that's the word in your trailer park, but the reality is different. POTUS, only, had the authority to call out the National Guard, not Speaker of the House. trump sat on his fat a$$ for 180 minutes while his goobers beat Capitol Police and went after the VP to hang him. trump did NOTHING. It really gets old teaching your goobers the truth.

"they" LOL. tucky is such a little putz. Start a conspiracy and see if the goobers buy into it. Of course they're dumb enough to believe it. 91 felony charges, with plenty of (R) witnesses suggest trump dies in jail. Curious when he turns himself into authorities in Georgia, he might get a surprise and be refused bail, as his statements show he fully intends to intimidate witnesses and public officials doing their job. His dog whistle BS is so transparent. Just like 6 January, the coward gets others to do his wet work. I suspect more likely he will be instructed to keep his flap shut, lest his bail be revoked and he gets jailed pending trial. I bet he would no longer insist on a 2026 trial date if jailed now. Lock him up. (That's not my quote; I borrowed it from 'someone')

There was collusion with russia. Having an AG who prohibits real investigation, whitewashes the report, and then a Senate with an (R) majority who would never convict one of their own, does not equate to innocent. manafort, as campaign manager gave internal polling data to konstantin kilimnik, who gave it to the GRU's Internet Research Agency (ironically run by now possibly dead prigozhin), who then microtargeted voters in swing States with fake stories on HRC. roger stone was in constant contact with Wikileaks and knew the dates and material Wikileaks would leak. trump even noted that in one of his rallies. THAT is collusion, or better said, willing cooperation. Oh, and this was in the majority (R) SSCI Report. Perhaps you missed the article on all the graft trump family members and trump got while he was serving and his daughter and SIL were ostensibly serving as public officials. It makes anything Hunter might have done look like stealing a cookie from Grandma's jar.

They aren't coming for the moo ka ta. They aren't coming for Nana Plaza (at least not the women) They aren't coming for the temples and pagodas (it's haram to step foot in infidel 'false' religion sites) They are coming for Bumrungrad (obesity in the Middle East now exceeds even the USA). Also, being a hypochondriac is part of ME culture. They used to come for al Qaeda-Thailand Chapter at the Grace Hotel (Hambali of Jama'a Islamiya was a guest until he moved to Ayutthaya, where he was captured). Not so much on Sukhumvit proper, but in areas along Soi 4, there are now Muslim sharmoutah, should any man be in the mood for trying out a potential new wife. The OP is right that their numbers have skyrocketed along Sukhumvit (though he was prescient by 9 years). One can see packs of giant eggplants waddling down the road, their happy young daughters in party dresses seemingly unaware that as soon as menstruation commences, they will be mutilated in their nether regions and forced to wear the eggplant outfit until death. These young girls also may end up as wifey #4, like it or not, and may already be betrothed, despite never having bled. Heck if it's good enough for the guy famous for being driven out of the town he would eventually make wildly famous, it's almost 'spiritual' for a man to imitate that deviancy. Oh, sorry, statutory rape is okay if done for 'religious purposes'. One oddity that always strikes me is that truly strict Muslims do not consider Buddhists human beings, as Buddhists are not 'of the book'. Jews and Christians are merely 'misguided', unaware that the Last and Final Prophet, Peace Be Upon Him, followed on from the Old and New Testaments with an improved version of reality. Absent a belief in one of the three books, a being is lower than a porcine. I'm not an adherent to any ancient superstitions, but I hold particular contempt for ones that are evil and oppressive and which have zero chance of reflecting the reality of existence. In any event, since they're spending money, it's all good for us infidels, no matter if 'our book' is in the nightstand next to the hotel bed, or was written by Christopher Hitchens.

Coffee and a couple of protein bars before a few hours in the gym. Time to go.

I have allegiance to the ideals that are at the core of the US---which is a work-in-progress toward total equality under the law. I have some pride---despite not choosing my place of birth---that the concept of every human being having equal value under the law originated, in practice, in the US. Yes, the Founders borrowed it from Locke and Rousseau, but the first place it was put into practice was the US. The Founders could have chosen the Magna Carta as the foundation document, but instead took the free ride, that monarchs get under the MC, and put everyone on the same footing (again, a work-in-progress). That is why the idea of 'special simply by being born', as countries with monarchies have, is anathema to me. When people have to pretend some monarch is great, when all evidence says they're somewhere between mediocre and deviant, something is quite wrong (I'm not insinuating anyone in particular, but historically there's been many deviants, from kings to queens to even popes. The Borgias are the quintessential example.) Sadly, not only does work-in-progress require 250+ years, a certain percentage of Americans have lost sight of what US ideals are, and instead have joined a cult and have been fooled by a Snake Oil salesman. The most shocking thing is how transparent and self-serving the clown trump is, yet somewhere around 40% still think he's worth more than a bucket of spit. Thus, because so many of my fellow citizens have become losers, my allegiance is floundering. I feel the US is like Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront: "I coulda been somebody; I coulda been a contenda"

That 'sleepy' guy, who has been a gaff machine since birth, has delivered the lowest UE in 55 years, ended the trump Recession, got a bipartisan infrastructure Bill passed, reduced prescription drug prices, and re-energized NATO after trump tried his best to destroy it. Also, Joe might slip going up the stairs, but there's no toilet paper stuck to his shoe like trump. I doubt Srettha will do half as much as 'sleepy'..

Tough to understand the draw Thailand has for Muslims. Maybe it's the medical facilities? Certainly when I go to Bumrungrad for my Work Permit Medical Certificate, I think I'm in Riyadh. It isn't as if they are all coming for: ---the moo ka ta ---the temples (haram alaykum for stepping foot inside one) ---the agogos (at least the women) ---shopping (Dubai is much cheaper) Strict Muslims do not even consider Buddhists to be full human beings, as they are not 'of the book' (Jews and Christians theoretically have the same deity, but just fail to understand said deity sent His Last and Final Prophet, Peace Be Upon Him, Accept No Substitutes). I feel a certain sadness when I see Muslim families walking about, their young girls in party dresses and seemingly happy and carefree, though who will, as soon as they menstruate, spend the rest of their Earthly iteration dressed like giant eggplants, even being subject to a 4-wife marriage if hubby so chooses. I do not care for any religion, and certainly in 2023 it's high time to put aside all superstitions, but as Sam Harris says, some superstitions are worse than others. Eh lan wa seh lan to Thailand !

One percent of the population owns 75% of all assets in Thailand. With this election that 75% will asymptotically approach 100%. The other 99% just have too much household debt, so they cannot be trusted with possessing anything. Their 'betters' will correct this, for their own good. (double entendre intended).

Russian ruble is falling again. Last week it breached 100/$, though some official support has come in. How long can that last? The ruble drop will impact Phuket RE. China is a major concern. Evergrande filed for bankruptcy protection in the US, and Country garden, another major RE developer, is missing interest payments on debt. Millions of Chinese have pre-paid for property that now is never going to be built, and since the companies are bankrupt, they are going to end up with no money and no property. Not sure how the CCP is going to deal with that. Youth UE in China is 20%. Not good. It's looking increasingly unlikely Chinese buyers are going to support the Thai RE market. Seems a good time for buyers of Thai RE to sit on our hands. Having observed several RE bubble bursting (Tokyo 1990, HK late 1990s, US 2008), my experience indicates most markets fall 50% or more. Let it breathe.

Can you do that in London? New York? Sydney? Tokyo? Then why would anyone think it's okay in Thailand? I do see Westerners doing it, even in Bangkok. Some are heavily tatted. Not a good look, and unlikely to make Thais any more smitten of foreigners. Tying into another topic about TAT's latest target demographic, I really don't like seeing women dressed as giant eggplants, either. I guess if one founded a religion where upper body nudity was dictated by one's deity, maybe it would be as acceptable as eggplant suits.

Some hear say he hates the West. Not sure, but he does love those Westerners' technology, as it was that tech that became the source of his fortune. It isn't as if any Thai or Chinese had any hand in inventing telecommunications.

Mixed. On the one hand there's nothing she could do since he was already dead; OTOH it's pretty Machiavellian that her coaches decided to keep such intimate knowledge knowledge from her. I suspect whatever she feels would be different: 1) If Spain had lost 2) If she was told beforehand, decided not to play, and looked back five years from now