Walker88

I find it schadenfreude-ish that tucker could not get accepted at any Ivy League university, and tried to get into the CIA but he was rejected. His real mother abandoned the family when tucky was 6. His show was cancelled on CNN and not renewed, and he was fired from MSNBC, which he described as leading to a professional meltdown. I would guess that such failures and hurts are behind his hateful performance art, his lying, his misogyny, his racism, and all of the other character flaws that form his personna.

I would bet tucker's audience has an average IQ 1-2 standard deviations left of the mean on the Bell Curve. I would bet his audience also earns a std dev or two less than the average US worker. I would bet tucker has upwards of 95% of all US Incels in his audience. Really, what network WOULDN'T want that kind of demographic ! LOL. Chewing tobacco companies, latex doll makers, bankruptcy lawyers, and the Pillow Guy are probably chomping at the bit to see where tucker lands.

When someone lived a life that was so helpful to total strangers, one can only imagine what comfort he gave those he loved. Sad that he is gone, but I doubt Ubonjoe left any good thing unsaid to his loved ones.

Cynical, but I tend to agree. The odd thing is Prayut could just remain quiet, knowing he always has the Coup Card to play yet again. Hardly seems likely he's 'one and done', should the need arise to 'secure Prayut's Thailand's future'

Never met the man, but was always impressed with his breadth of knowledge and endless patience, often dealing with the same questions over and over again. Doubtful he can be replaced as a contributor, and assuming he was just as helpful and patient in all of his life, doubtful he can ever be replaced in the lives of his friends and family. RIP, good man.

Maybe this topic is already dead, but just in case..... If you are not feeling fatigued, then you are not working out too much. If you were damaging your mitochondria, it would evidence itself in low energy levels, quick tiring, and general fatigue. You should be okay. There is so much new research regarding the benefits of exercise and the best way to exercise. I follow a lot of folks like Dr Peter Attia, Dr Andy Galpin, Dr Andrew Huberman and others, as they seem on top of the latest research. Peter Attia claims that bar none, strenuous exercise is the #1 thing a person can do to increase longevity and healthspan. Exercise should combine both cardio and heavy resistance training. I'm a lifelong gym rat, doing roughly the same routines I did when in school and university playing sports. I was lucky to have done many things right, and with new research I just tweak my routine a little. This is what I tend to do: Gym days are 3 per week, though on "off days" I might run stairs, do pushups and situps, do planks, etc. This is a bit controversial, but I do not stretch before weights. I use low weight at first and move slowly to fire the muscles and warm the joints and ligaments. Some research indicates stretching before lifting is more likely to lead to injury. After I know I've fired the muscles, I move up the weights with each successive set. My last set is usually something I can do maybe 3-5 reps max. I try to lift to within a rep or two of failure. Exercises include bench, a variety of dumbbell exercises that work every muscle in the shoulder, leg presses, lat pulldowns, dead lifts, farmer's walk, sled pushes. I never sought bulk, but my goal was always strength and stamina. Bulk has only a loose association with strength. More important is the number of mitochondria per muscle cell. I used to do the bench with defensive lineman, who outweighed me by 50+ kgs, but our lifts used the same weights (I was a wide receiver in American football, a point guard in basketball, and a sprinter + high jumper in track.) I needed explosiveness, so that is how I lifted. One needs to be a bit careful lifting the way I do, because injury is more likely when explosion is the goal, but overtime one's body adjusts to (maybe) being out of proper position. (Ido Portal suggests doing some things with purposely bad form because it trains the body to adjust for what happens normally in the course of sport or even work around the house. Rarely is one in perfect position when going up for a rebound or pass, or lifting heavy boxes off a shelf.) Explosive exercise using high weights does many things for the body. It results in higher production of testosterone and HGH. It stresses mitochondria so they become more efficient. It produces lots of lactate, which has an amazing property of helping restore the blood-brain barrier, something that deteriorates with age and allows all sorts of nasty things to get through. Lactate seems to signal the epithelial walls along the blood-brain barrier to repair themselves. So---go for the burn. The body also can use lactate for fuel, as it reconstitutes it into ATP. A workout should involve about 30% of the time in anaerobic activity, or Zone 4. If your heat rate max is 170 bpm, that means spending time in the 130-160 range out to max out hormone production and lactate. Having a good cardiovascular system, which strenuous exercise promotes, also just helps feed the brain. Despite being maybe 1-2% of total body weight, the brain uses 25% of all energy. It makes sense to keep the tubes working well. As for diet, the better in shape one is, the more carbohydrates are necessary. This flies in the face of keto, but remember most people who go on a keto diet are not in good shape. Someone in the top 10% in terms of fitness burns through first phosphocreatine, then carbs/glucose. For those out of shape, the equation calories in = calories out for weight maintenance is not exactly right, but the more in shape someone is, the closer that equation fits. Another interesting aspect of exercise is that it can make up for poor sleep. A sedentary person who sleeps poorly tends to see a rise is blood glucose and can become pre-diabetic or Type II diabetic (which greatly increases the chances for everything from heart disease to cancer to dementia). Strenuous exercise seems to reduce the glucose effects of poor sleep. Of course quality sleep is the goal, but this also means that exercise is a must even when one has slept poorly. No excuses. Supplements can play a part on the margin. Most sports physicians now recommend everyone supplement with creatine, as it not only helps with workouts, but also seems to have some benefits for cognition. Many also recommend collagen peptides, as these help maintain ligaments and tendons. Another highly recommended supplement is Omega 3. Personally, I take 5gms/day of creatine, I mix collagen peptides into a protein shake, I spread out about 2 gm/kg of body weight of protein throughout the day (Dr Valter Longo argues against too much protein, as it triggers mTor, but amino acids stay in the bloodstream for maybe an hour, so the time between last meal and breakfast is plenty of time to let mTor settle down). I also take Omega 3, zinc in the morning and magnesium before sleep, tart cherry extract before sleep, a combo of NAC and glycine (usually late afternoon or before sleep, as too close to a workout can rob some of the benefits of the exercise), and I cycle ashwagandha to keep cortisol levels down (again, except soon after exercise). All of this seems to work. I've never had the flu, but I did test positive for Covid for 2 days. I haven't had a common cold in maybe 20 years. My BP is 105/70, resting heart rate is 55, body fat is 12%, VO2 Max is 46, and fasting blood glucose about 65-70. Some is genetics, but I like to think most is because I am extremely disciplined about my gym work. Finally, I would forget your concerns about hurting your mitochondria. Your body will tell you. You must already be in good shape, so just keep doing what you do and enjoy the longest healthspan possible.

Not inevitable. Another response is, "You don't trust me !"

I do not envy your position. Obviously you know your situation better than me, but I would really start looking out for myself. Maintain total control over your personal items like bank cards, passport, car keys, etc. If you have joint bank accounts, take some cash out for yourself, even open a second bank account in your name only. If as you say she is bipolar or suffers some other mental condition, you may well be in danger. Of course you likely know better, but from what you have written, I would be cautious. I would also retain a foreign lawyer, as I have heard tales of Thai lawyers acting in ways that would get them disbarred in countries with rule of law. She has not treated you well nor with respect. You have been her meal ticket, yet she treats you as an inconvenience. Maybe that realization is difficult at your age and with your years together, but the picture as you have painted it says she is neither worth the trouble nor the risk. You are worth more to her dead than alive, as with you gone, she has all the assets and total freedom to do as she wishes. Maybe her family and the village would side with you, but I would want to be damn sure of that. We all have our own experience in Thailand, or have heard all the stories, and my impression is that the pecking order goes Family, Thais, then foreigners. I wish you good luck and clear-headed thinking.

I hope he can crunch numbers. I hope he knows how to market his business Unless he's American, I hope he knows Thai people he can trust 100% Numbers: He's going to have rent, staff, social security, VAT, electricity, water, CGS, maintenance & repair, computerized point-of-sales system, licenses (alcohol, music, food), accounting firm, insurance, even a sign tax....all of which add up quickly. He'll also have forced days off, like Buddha Days and election days. What's his price point? Does he even know the wholesale cost of bottle and draught beer and spirits? He also has to factor in acquisition cost and any renovations he plans to do. Marketing: Why is his business different? Is he Mr Socialable? Will he employ the most beautiful cashier on Buddha's Green Earth? Will he pay up for a killer sound system and play the sort of music that drinkers want to hear? If he is just selling cold beer, big deal. Why is his shop more fun to hang around than his competitors' shops or the steps of a 7-11? If he's American, he can own under the Treaty of Amity, allowing him 100% control. If not, 49% is his limit, with Thais making up other owners/directors. He will need to hire 4 Thai workers for every foreigner he employs, which means at least 4 (assuming he's a foreigner). He'll also need a Work Permit, even if he's just a Director or Investor, and he'll need a Non-B Business Visa. I might not know the specific costs involved in bars, but I do have an idea about other costs/hassles that come with owning any business in Thailand. If I was to guess, I'd say precious few bars in Pattaya are profitable. If he's realistic, has a sharp pencil and a good spreadsheet, and a novel idea, perhaps he can break even. Odds are quite long, however.

I accept that. You're happy in your own (fore) skin, and I'm happy in my lack of it.

We may differ in our opinion, but getting circumcised as an infant seems infinitely easier than getting vaccines, hoping my sex partners have been vaccinated, and either enduring a course of antibiotics (that disrupt gut bacteria for upwards of a year) or being responsible for someone else having to endure that. Incidentally, my circumcision had nothing to do with religion nor cosmetics, and I wasn't born 100 or more years ago. Enjoy your foreskin, and I'll enjoy my lack thereof, as well as being "2 to 8 times less likely to catch HIV from heterosexual sex" (per the quote in my earlier post from the BMJ).

I don't feel mutilated any more than I feel mutilated because most of my umbilical cord was cut, leaving me an "inny" and not an "outy". I feel quite good, in fact. Accept that most of us who had it done don't feel the least bit bad about it at all, and in fact are happy it was done.

Interesting the voracity surrounding this topic. Mine was done as an infant, and I'm happy for that. Anyone who argues I experience less sexual pleasure might as well argue men experience less sexual pleasure than women. There is no contrafactual way to know this. If you enjoy the act, then all is well with however one is hung. Mine, as it is, has been very good to me. Perhaps it's a natural bias, but I much prefer the appearance I happen to have. Easy to maintain, too. To each his own. Readers might want to Google HIV and circumcision, as medical and health entities such as the US CDC and NIH, the WHO, and others report that circumcised males are far less likely to contract HIV and other STDs. Here's a quote from a Year 2000 article that appeared in the British Medical Journal: "compelling epidemiological evidence from over 40 studies which shows that male circumcision provides significant protection against HIV infection; circumcised males are two to eight times less likely to become infected with HIV." And one more quote from the Cleveland Clinic*: What are the benefits of circumcision? Circumcision has several benefits. Not only does it help aspects of penis health, but it can improve hygiene. That’s because a circumcised penis is simpler to clean and wash, especially for children. The specific health benefits of circumcision include a lower risk of: Certain penis conditions: · These penile disorders include balanoposthitis (inflammation of the glans and foreskin), paraphimosis and phimosis, when the foreskin gets stuck out of place. Cervical cancer for partners: Female sex partners of circumcised men are less likely to get cervical cancer. Penile cancer: Men who had circumcisions are less likely to get cancer of the penis. Sexually transmitted infections: Men who had circumcision have a lower risk of certain STIs, including HIV. Urinary tract infections: UTIs are more common in uncircumcised males. *For those who don't know, the Cleveland Clinic is one of the most famous hospitals in the world. The average well-to-do Middle Easterner might come to Bumrungrad for treatments and care, but Middle East monarchs and princes regularly go to the Cleveland Clinic.

In Myanmar---a renegade province of the Middle Kingdom according to official Chinese maps---this 'benefit' to host nations is best exemplified by what China tried to do at Myitsone, an area in Kachin State where two rivers meet. Under SLORC, China was given permission to erect a dam at Myitsone. First, 15,000 Kachin had to be forcefully relocated, as their land would be under water. Next, China hired a total of two Burmese citizens to be involved in the project (the then-father-son team who owned Asia World, and who also were allegedly major drug lords). The remainder of the labor force---100,000 men---were to be exported from China. Oh, and ALL of the subsequent power to be generated by the dam was to go to---where else---China. The Kachin Independence Army did not take kindly to this project, as one might expect. It took a couple of targeted assassinations of Chinese engineers to bring the project to a halt.

We had a President who didn't know what the Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor was all about, didn't know China and India not only share a border, but had a war over it when that POTUS was alive. He also thought there's a country bordering India called Nipple and another named after a command to an attack dog: Sickem. I guess what a Thai woman knows or doesn't pales in comparison to the lack of knowledge by a guy who had the nuclear codes to 7,800 warheads. Ignorance is relative.

I think he'll get an offer from Stormfront or maybe David Duke, but he'll end up on Russia Today There's always a market for those catering to two standard deviations left of the mean on the IQ Bell Curve. In fact, that was the thrust of Roger Ailes' Business Plan for Fox. Ailes argued to potential investors that regular network news is far too high brow for the low IQ demographic, and while individually most are unsuccessful, collectively they represent an attractive target for certain advertisers. Ailes argued---and history proved him correct---that a network geared toward the ignorant would capture them all and win the TV ratings war. The Business Plan also suggested putting on Talking Heads from 2nd tier or lower universities, since they would be able to relate better to his target market. Only Ingraham (Dartmouth, the beer-drinking Ivy) slipped through.

What drives tucker to be a conman and a liar? What could be the motivation to be one of the worst people on Earth? I'm going to guess it's deep personal insecurity. If there is such a thing as White Privilege, tucky is the Poster Boy. The heir to one of the worst foods ever concocted by mankind (Swanson TV dinners), tucker still could not get accepted to an Ivy League university. I have no doubt that haunts him to this day (before anyone asks, yes, I was accepted at Harvard, Brown, Wharton and everywhere else I applied, both undergrad and grad school). He's a natural to continue his racist, sexist, misogynistic and fascist rants on Newsmax or Russia Today. Heck, he gets more air time on actual russian state tv than putin himself.

I do enjoy the 'official-ness' of such raids. Last year I was visiting Nana Plaza and early in the evening police performed a 'surprise' raid on agogos. Each agogo had to produce 5 women to take a urine test ("Okay, who's not using today?"). Each test was marked with a bar and a woman's name, and all were placed neatly on a large table just inside the entrance to NEP. There were maybe 50-60 beakers containing bargirl urine, and a number of officers sat bolt upright behind the table. I thought that some wag just walking into NEP might think that the police had established a new money-making fetish business. "I'll take a beaker of #250 from Butterflies, provided it comes with a Certificate of Authenticity".

Is that opinion based on your decades of experience as a Climate Scientist?

If there was a free and vibrant press, plus opposition parties with some power, this sad incident would be more fully explored. For example, why does the alleged perp have so many weapons? How can he afford 2 million baht worth or watches? Of course those are not actual questions, because everybody in Thailand knows the answer, just as everybody in Thailand knows it will never never never change.

You have a funny history in this thread. One wonders....... I'll get this out of the way so as to move you past your first question. I am rich. Lucky, yes, but quite rich. Retired hedge fund manager, among other things. (Yes, I know I'm lucky. When I was born, where, to whom, etc., were not choices, but enabled me to get where I am. Intellect, appearance, athleticism, even ambition are largely genetic. Life ain't fair.) Fortunetellers provide a service I do not need. I know the scam, as I've seen it done by a true pro (a TV "magician" I happened to know). Some are better at it than others, but all are hucksters. Religion strikes me the same way, and I know it results from the same need, which is to hope that the Universe is not random. Things like virgin births (an alibi for infidelity), previous lives (violates entropy, inter alia), eternal life in some paradise (the epitome of boring), magic underwear (I applaud an illiterate huckster who manufactured the first post-Renaissance belief system that caught on, at least in Utah), requiring women to dress like giant eggplants at puberty, or deities that are involved in one's 4th grade daughter's math test result, make me both smile and scratch my head, especially when otherwise intelligent people buy into the schtick. This human need (though it's not a universal human need) for fortune tellers, monarchs, deities, even dictators is all born from the desire to get a leg up on existence and a hope that somebody somewhere knows something or is in charge. Even a bad god or dictator is better than total randomness, because even with a malevolent being, there's always a chance to make a deal. No deals can be made with randomness. No deals is disconcerting for many people, thus the ongoing businesses of religions, fortunetellers, amulet sellers, etc.

That sounds nice, but I would bet against it being true. I worked two different careers that involved living the expat life. Both careers were high income, though the second was extremely high income. My expat colleagues were university educated, many with advanced degrees. Successful men. The majority of their marriages broke up and hubby took a local wife. The rate of divorce back home is supposedly 50%. The rate of divorce for expats coming to Asia is likely far higher. 75% would not surprise me. Japan, South Korea, Thailand, the Philippines....almost all countries save for Hong Kong SAR...are divorcee makers.

Not on the downhill run yet. Maybe when I am my view will change. Haven't yet made any kids and don't intend to do so. Plenty of kids already in the world. I have lots of assets and no detailed will, which might be irresponsible, but unless I get struck by lightning, no harm done. Anyway, I'm told you can't take it with you, so those left behind can fight over what I'll not longer need. I wouldn't want to spoil someone's life by taking away their challenges by making them rich. The only thing I need to worry about is the business I bought and the staff I employ. Should my demise come unexpectedly, my business will be an ongoing concern. They know how to run it. Two things I hope never change....my discipline for extreme exercise, and my innate curiosity. Doing "stuff" requires good health, and exercise is the best thing one can do for extended healthspan. There is always something new or interesting to learn, too. So much knowledge is being discovered nowadays that one should never get bored. I appreciate that my learning, for example, particle physics is essentially of no value, but it's interesting and the math is challenging, and what is life but taking on new challenges and testing one's limits. As a kid with a question, I had to ride a bike to a library, pour through cards, and hope the book I needed wasn't loaned out. Today, we have almost the entire body of human knowledge at our fingertips on the internet. Incredible time to be alive. I had a kid sister who passed from non-small cell lung cancer. Fought it for 6 years, beating the odds. She never smoked, always exercised, was the nicest human being I ever met...yet she was struck down in her prime. Her dignity and gratefulness made me feel both inferior and inspired. She would have loved to have the days continuing to be granted me, and damn if I'm not going to embrace them. Many good people got shortchanged. Those of us above ground should live what others never had a chance to enjoy. Don't wallow in self-pity or regret. Yes, lots of life is dumb luck, but to beat cliches to death, play the cards you're dealt, grab what you're able to grab, and go live.

double post

I've lived and worked in a number of countries. I would say Thailand stands out as a place where 'normal' is a bit more difficult to locate. Granted, many of the folks I met in other locales were working, whereas Thailand has many idle or retired farangs. Working folks tend toward normalcy, even if it is a facade. The idle and retired just show who they are. Many expats seem to come to Thailand to escape themselves or chase a fantasy of becoming, in old age, the babe magnet they never were back home. They carry their problems with them along with some unrealistic dreams. If they arrive on these shores with a drinking problem, Thailand will exacerbate it. If they came thinking women's groins would quiver at the sight of them, they are in for disappointment. Many who came to 'live the dream' find it to be a nightmare. Thailand is a magnet for many types of people: dreamers, the forlorn, criminals on the lam, the broken who hope to salvage what's left of their life in a tropical land filled with lovely women. Then reality hits, often leading to bitterness. Of course some come here seeking plain old variety and the chance to enjoy a culture quite different from home, but such people tend to be less visible than the tatted, obese guy in a bar solving all of the world's problems in the loudest voice possible. I can count on one hand the number of expats who struck up a conversation with me in a restaurant or bar who were 'normal'. Most have me calling "check bin" when I've been selected as the day's target audience. Recently a staff member of mine returned from her first trip to a Western nation. Her first comment upon returning was, "I didn't know so many farangs were so normal and nice". That confirmed for me what sort of magnet Thailand is. On balance, it does not attract the best of the best (forum members excluded, of course).