DonniePeverley

Start fining those without masks would be a good income generator.

Then Thailand better start handing out payments to people to stay at home, because that is what they are doing in the west and China. Payments for closed business, payments to industries effected, payments to the entertainment industry and their staff so they can resume when things open. If these payments were not given in the west and China, then people wouldn't have accepted the lockdowns. Thailand has given virtually nothing away to it's population.

Not for tourists. This is another unfortunate tourist who is set to be locked up for 14 days in a tiny hotel room. The hospital linked to him was full, so he's dumped here.

This was literally last week, and countless other tourists being sent to hospitals (or isolation units).

Countries with their borders sealed are still seeing massive omicron waves. Thailand's borders are not sealed - they have porous boders into Mynamar, which are in turn porous into India. India is seeing a massive wave of Omicron infections at the moment, and this will eventually seep into Myanmar and then into Thailand. Targetting tourism (which is vital for the Thai economy) is low grade xenophobia playing to the crowd. Thailand are treating this new Omicron wave just like the original variant. You cannot do this. You have 300,000 daily cases in France, 480,000 cases in the USA, 200,000 cases in Italy - you can't lock this many people up daily. Targetting tourism is like cutting of your nose to spite your face. What is the end game here then? Just seal borders forever?

Very misguided. They are planning as though this was the original variant. Omicron is going to rise in massive numbers and using field hospitals and isolation jails is unpractical. France yesterday reported 300,000 cases in one day, USA almost 500,000 cases, Italy 200,000 daily cases, India's rates going back to over 100,000 daily (and likely to double in numbers) - you can't physically jail this volume of your population. They are still planning things as though it was the original variant - targetting tourists, isolating positive patients, targetting hospitality (but not malls),etc They clearly have data from Europe and USA, yet are not adapting their approach.

Omicron going up everywhere in the world, but not Amazing Thailand.

Exactly my point. Many would accept paying 2000 Baht rather spending 14 nights in a prison hospital.

This would always happen when nothing happened to that Isreali guy who did the same.

France just recorded 320,000 cases

He's going to have to stop looking at covid rates.

I went for a massage the other day, and there were a couple of foreigners there - Russian and American, neither wearing a mask. Two elderly women massaging their feet. I actually told them to mask up - the look of sheer disgust and outrage i got from them was astonishing.

They need to be practical and allow no masks outdoors, especially on beaches. The risk of transmission outdoors is very little. HOWEVER, indoors many tourists are continuing to refuse to wear masks. FINE THEM. Thailand never misses an oppurtunity to fine tourists (see litter fines, scooter fines, etc) but for this they are bizarrley turning a blind eye to it. FINE THEM !

Yet thousands cross Mynamar everyday from the porous borders - which in turn has porous border into India. Thailand as usual chopping of it's nose to spite it's face.

You can't just keep locking down. The cycle of cases rising ---> lockdown ----> cases fall ----> open up ----> cases rise ----> lockdown There is a percentage of the population who won't be affected by any restrictions and will demand it - but a vast majority of the people in Thailand will be suffering. You can't just wreck the economy perpetually. They talk a good talk and say we must live with it, but when it comes down to it they simply don't. There has to be an end game here.

Stopping tourism makes little sense. Omicron is already set in Thailand ... all you are doing is causing economic damage, and simply just delaying the spread. They do nothing about the Mynmar porous border, but will needlesly wreck their economy by banning tourists (or put up obstacals targetting them).

Package companies in the EU / Europe operate under different rules than merely just 'selling tickets' - they have to ensure the safety of their passengers, and are responsible to get them there and back (along with other standards). This might be an alien concept from someone in Asia or USA.

With Omicron coming Thai authorities will have to review how they plan to isolate people - it will be unsustainable to force everyone into different forms of hospitals. Also let's face it, some of these hospitals will abuse the tourist who comes armed with a mandatory insurance policy that is just easy money. There is no excuse to force people into a hospital if they are asympotomatic, especially as Thailand now cannot achieve zero covid.

Shudders at the thought of mass Chinese tourism destroying the beauty.

What changes next year ?

So do you just keep cancelling everything every year? Because this isn't going to go away.

They all love the rhetoric of 'LIVING WITH THE VIRUS' but when it comes to it, most countries in SE Asia instinct is to lockdown and not live with it, even it's going to be impossible this time.

Loads of prostitutes in London, Paris, Las Vegas (legal), Berlin (legal), Dubai, Tokyo, Delhi, Los Angeles. Good luck on this.

Thailand will not be able to halt the spread of Omicron. It will come into Thailand via the porous borders from Myanmar, which in turn has porous borders into India. They may well make some tokenism gestures like ban tourism, urge people to wash hands - but the major thing they need to do is make sure everyone is vaccinated, and have their medical system working at full capacity. Anything else will be just delaying the inevetible.

Thailand can't stop Omicron - it's going to come in through Myanmar (which in turn will get it from India). They have to essentially make sure there health capacity is geared up, those unvaccinated are vaccinated. Any measures they put in place simply delay the full spread.