jaywalker

I see idiots every day on the roads.

Always wondered why the police don't exploit this as a money maker?

Could make a 'legitimate' fortune handing out tickets to these morons.

Yep, Yes and YES!

How about stopping baht bus drivers with so many people loaded on them that people are standing between the brake lights & the vehicles behind them?

Ah! Who needs brake lights when you [insert excuse here]?

One could NEVER possibly need brake lights when one is stopping!!!! They're just there to look pretty.

If I were a BIB, I could write 50 tickets a day in Pattaya for this, at say 500 baht fine each = 25,000.

Even if (BIG IF) it went to the police department, and 20 cops a day did it, it would add half a million baht/day for a legitimate safety issue = 15 million baht/month.

Ha! The police force might be able to pay their boys a decent salary if that happened.....AND improve safety.

Even if it went straight into a cop's pocket, it would be fine by me, as long as they only gave out tickets/demanded bribes to actual traffic law-breakers.

No, too much thinking involved "You Tink Too Mutt!"

It might even [GASP!] improve safety and the overall image of Thailand! DUH!

EDIT: - Make it a 2,000 baht fine, same as tossing a cigarette butt on the sidewalk at least, probably 5,000 baht would be more suitable as it involves public transportation.

Boggles the mind to read, year after year how the NE people and the government simply doesn't

know how to deal, and how completely unprepared they are to the cold season, I mean, com'on, is this the

first cold season you have experienced in your life? and every year the same story, people die,

people starve, shortage of blankets food, heating etc. etc..

when will you ever learn to prepare for anything in life people of the north? here is a clue,

cold seasons will come every year round this time of the year, let's see the headlines next

year...

Same as floods & droughts.

Re: Cold weather, I was in Surin & father-in-law wears a jacket in the winter! Smart Guy!

He still wears shorts & flip-flops, but he does own a jacket.

I did 4 years straight in Thailand & returned to Florida in December once. I almost DIED....Felt like it anyhow. I was OK, just miserable at near freezing.

Relatives had their thermostats set at 75F/25C & I was miserable.

I didn't die though. I sure as hell didn't eat any poisonous animals!

"In Buriram, the public health office in Ban Kruat district is warning locals against consuming alcohol and poisonous animals to ward off the cold."

And, and, and, don't run with scissors, don't stick your hand in a fan etc...

Crimony!

This clean out seems to be very targeted and very limited to a very small circle of officers, almost as if it is a very deliberate witch hunt based on very specific ulterior motives. Could it be that this is not about reform at all?

Bingo.

What we are witnessing is a PURGE, and has absolutely nothing to do with reform.

Pol Pot (Political Potentate) & Stalin come to mind.

Everyone sits and complains when the boys in charge DO NOT go after the big boys. The moment they do, they start screaming conspiracy. What the hell! Just have to believe people love to complain for the sake of complaining.

Which came first? The chicken or the egg?

If both are corrupt, how does one eliminate the other?

The entire charade is a farce, much like trying to explain to a waiter/waitress you want your food "mai phet/not spicy".

Corruption, like spicy food, is so ingrained in society that any other option is 1,000% beyond all comprehension.

Siam = Land of the Free......It's much like the USA, where it's the Land of the FEE, except at least I'm free to criticize current and past powers that be.

Heaven forbid one develop one's own opinion in Thailand. They'll tell you what to say & think.

Big honking red warning at the top of this screen. How can I ever say anything derogatory, as I don't know anything, as He is not allowed to be discussed.

Not that I have an opinion on it/Him, just, sheesh... Land of the Free my butt.

Reminds me of Kuwait where booze is illegal. I've never seen any country where they sell sugar & yeast in such large bags.

Every supermarket there sells sugar in 20 kilo bags.

They should outlaw pine trees & rice husks as they are both wild plants as well..

Weed should be like booze. Don't drink & drive. Don't smoke weed & drive. Other than that leave the smokers alone.

It's yet another farce ... they either don't see the need and oftentimes won't admit that they actually need foreigners and foreign investment here, and they certainly don't want to "lose control", so any changes will be minimal at best.

I'm still waiting on the UK (and other countries) insisting on reciprocal treatment for us ... but I guess that's never going to happen either ... Vietnam is looking increasingly attractive, along with MANY other Asian countries, whilst Thailand just goes backwards every day. The illusion of progress and modernity here is just that and always has been, whilst in other countries it's becoming a reality rapidly.

Reciprocity is long overdue and if ever it starts I can image the screams coming from LoS.

But...But...But... Thailand is a poor country! They aren't ready to compete fairly on the world stage!

Much like they'd never compete fairly in a farang VS. Thai dispute, be it in a back alley bar-fight or on the world stage.

Archaic laws will never be enhanced with yet newer laws.

They should repeal STUPID laws (as should most countries).

1. Grant 60% controlling interest in a company to anyone willing to be an Entrepreneur. 40% Thai owned seems fair enough & they'd have to pay taxes at 30%.
2. Allow Retirees/Pensioners to own at least 1 rai/half an acre of land & a house on it.

I could go on and on, but just those two above, would see MASSIVE amounts of foreign capital inflow.

Another quality Russian, arrest and deport .send him back to the pond life he emerged from.

I recall back in the 1980's near the end of the Cold War, I was in the US Army in the Panama Canal Zone.

About 25 of us (a platoon) happened to be on a hillside next to the canal when a Russian ship made it's way through.

We all mooned it.

I have since figured out that some Russians are, like most folks in general, decent enough, so I neither love nor hate them.

I dislike Obama, Putin, Prayeth, Thaksin, Busch, Saddam Hussein, Hitler & Pol Pot.

I've met Brit's Australians & Kiwis and Americans & Italians that are a waste of sperm & egg cells. Many Thai's Arabs & Latino's as well.

Most are decent folks though.

I once had a deep hatred for everything British. That was quite short-sighted of me, as I now evaluate people on an individual basis and count some British, Scottish, Irish, Thai, Palestinian, Argentines, Mexicans, Taiwanese, Chinese, you name it, as people I respect & some are close friends.

I've been around obnoxious Russians for sure. Same as all of the above nationalities, including North Americans, Nigerians & Canadians.

Most folks are decent at heart though.......Until they enter politics or join some police force, which is another subject.

Have these guys even had a bail hearing/arraignment? Have they been "officially" charged with any crime aside from maybe illegal immigrant status?

I'm from the USA, yeah it's different in Thailand I know, but... Either charge the guys with a crime or put them under house arrest until the RTP & prosecutor get their "acts & stories" together.

Being charged with murder = no bail. Being detained & investigated for months on end makes no sense at all.

After all, it's a "Perfect Case" & the RTP can do nothing more with it, according to a statement by the police.

If they are guilty then drag them to the nearest tree & string them up. If not, they deserve a chance to defend themselves sooner rather than later.

I'm reminded of that really cool movie called The Village Monster. They called them "Those of whom we do not speak".

Get a video camera/iPhone whatever.

Start shooting videos. Develop a YouTube Channel. Start a blog.

Post each video with a short article on said blog.

Start a Facebook Page about the blog & post videos there.

Use the free version of Mailchimp (Google it), to get folks on your email list, and then keep them updated.

Learn how to use Google Hangouts to interview folks live on camera (again free).

Use the free iRecorder for Skype (Google it), to do audio only interviews.

Start interviewing people. Start providing value, then tour operators and other interviewees will be tripping over themselves to help you.

I'm doing the same thing in a different niche right now. Interviews are nothing more than 10 questions where you talk with someone on the phone (except it's Skype or a video chat on Google Hangouts).

Spend 5 minutes on each question = 50 minutes of content more or less.

Do you know Wordpress? It's a super easy way to do a blog & you can add videos very easily to it.

Get busy & work on that every single day for a month.

Send me a Private Message if you need more help.

It cannot be set up overnight, but then again, Rome wasn't built in a day either.

So the Thai cops admit there is a bit of corruption.

In other, breaking news today, it was announced that the sky is blue and water is wet.

Sorry but Nigerians have such a bad reputation around the world, deserved or not, that they should be made to apply for a visa, even for a holiday, before they are allowed to visit Thailand.

This could help keep some of the less desirable ones away.

So do Russians Chiese & Israelis. Raid their homes, embassies and places of worship with militarized police swat teams? Genius thinking buddy.

I wish a SWAT team would raid those Cambodians near my Mom's house.

30 years ago they were burning crosses 300 yards away from there, which was one extreme I disagree with.

Now foreign folks seem to have taken over the neighborhood. It's in the middle of no where Florida as well. One nephew (I have many nephews & nieces) is a deputy sheriff in the local county.

I keep telling Mom to get him involved. She (78) refuses to do so as "That would be nepotism!"... She doesn't know the meaning of that word 'nepotism', but that's what she's saying, bless her heart.

Arrrgh!

I need to call that boy-sheriff/deputy myself I guess (he's 35 or so) & tell him to go put the fear of his badge into them or get some of his buddies to do so. That boy loves his grand-ma for sure.

Asian culture is quite exotic, and pretty cool, but...

Were they all born so stone-cold deaf that they have to play everything from disco music to Buddhist weddings to Buddhist funerals to Mosques at 5,999 million decibels?

Look up 28707 CR 46A Sorrento FL 32776 USA on Google Earth.

Quite incredible that I can be in Thailand and hear Asian music (which is cool at a decent volume level), over the phone, on my Mother's phone that is hundreds of yards/meters away.

Imagine playing Led Zepplin at that level in a Thai neighborhood. I'd enjoy it. I doubt they would though, so I never entertained the thought until just now.

Sick puppy if you like a police state...different tune with arms turned your direction, wouldn't it be? Surely this was overly dramatic given a noise complaint.

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

Good riddance to those flouting Thai law.

Yes, all violators of the widely respected laws of the Kingdom should be tortured and strung up with piano wire, their faces smeared with soi dog turds, forced to eat sand and drink ammonia, after which they should be paraded in the town square, lashed to spiked poles and shot with exploding bullets. And then they should be taken away to be tortured some more. State violence is the only thing these lawbreakers understand.

"If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." Never was a wiser platitude uttered. I don't know what it means exactly, but gosh, it sounds tough. Hey... and remember, you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs - in a hot kitchen.

You make a great point Gemini... and if may add to it...

They should be broken at the wheel, after spending a week in the stocks, publicly flogged, and dunked in water to see if they float, as only the guilty float. The innocent just drown.

Oh yeah, burned at the stake as well in there somewhere for the Capital Crime of "not having 'proper' papers".

They are after all, from a country NOTORIOUS for having a corrupt government where scams abound, and everybody from said country is, by default guilty due to the passport they hold.

Not that Thailand has any scammers. Not that a Thai can get government benefits in Western countries, not that Obama cares about illegal immigration.

Nope. Only in Thailand where a foreigner can get zero, zilch, nada out of the Thai government should illegals be prosecuted for "breaking the rules".

NOT saying that some rules are not necessary, but when they are so... either not enforced or only, on occasion, selectively enforced, and then hear the "sheeple" screaming "Burn them!"???

I can only say that I'm glad that mob has been fortunate enough to have never been in some other folks' shoes and have had a perfect life.

I'm no bleeding-heart liberal either, yet I've been through a few times where I needed some help, time and a way to make my own path though.

I'm from the USA, and I have never taken anything in the way of a handout from the USA government.

I don't agree with bums what do, but don't agree with the "tar & feathers" approach for someone that has a certain skin color or passport either that has failed to jump thru a few idiotic hoops either.

Back to.....Can anyone point out a victim of anyone that overstayed their visa? Not talking about a scam they might have run, just the heinous crime of staying on one piece of real estate/country longer than what some politician said they could stay?

I've done it. Guess who I hurt? Zero, zip, nada nobody. I overstayed 2 years once. Cost the Thai tax payer zero, zip, nothing nada.

Yet I should be burned at the stake according to many on this forum.

I never recommend that anybody do what I did, and I did it many years ago.

Always do your best to abide within the laws, no matter how stupid they are, but don't vent venom at victim-less "crimes" please?

i dont like the police raiding a place of cult heavily armed

Tough. Seems like a good result to me. Twenty per cent of the congregation busted for illegal immigration status.

I agree with the "heavily armed" bit I'm glad they raided the church considering the outcome...

Doesn't say much for the 'Faith' of the 20 illegals when they can thumb their nose at the law of the land and feel ok about worshipping their god! Seems like their fair faith is about as valid as their god! (Since he/she didn't do anything about it either! - Or maybe... that's why the cops came??)

Nothing wrong with rounding up THOSE kind of hypocrites! I hope they unceremoniously get shipped back home... Thailand is probably better off without them I would think.

Perhaps you could point us to the verse which says you should have a valid visa. Plenty of versus condemn much of what you just said, blasphemy is what that's called.

Yes, the Bible, Koran & others can be interpreted in many ways, yet that pesky bit about not having your papers in order and passports & visas does seem to be absent except in the laws of corrupt governments that want to fleece all & sundry, ie: THEIR SHEEPLE.

I was recently "pulled over" by a city policeman in the USA for "looking suspicious".

His first words were "Show me your ID!".

I'm Caucasian, cop was Caucasian. It was 11:15 PM & I was walking down a sidewalk.

Very much reminded me of the World War 2 movies where the Gestapo would say "Show me your papers!".

==============

Still waiting for any logical debate on who the victim is/who is being hurt by someone that over-stays their visa in Thailand. Not like a foreigner can apply for asylum nor government aid in Thailand.

Anyone? Anyone?

Quality Thai Jasmine rice is somewhere around 15 - 17% protein (I think). My dogs LOVE fish.

I go buy the cheapest sardines I can find from BigC. The wife slops a can or two in there with the rice, and the dogs are fat & happy (Golden Retrievers).

We often mix raw ground pork in there as well.

I have mango trees that drop mangoes all the time & they eat them as well. Seem to love them!

Unlike the bananas & watermelons they eat just because my wife & I eat them, they actively murder mangoes all their own.

They leave the skins & pits everywhere & just eat the pulp, which is what humans eat after all. Cannot say they are lacking vitamin C.

My friend has a Maltese mutt that goes crazy over lettuce of all things! Super cool, healthy dog too.

Dude! Hang on to them!

I once spent several years overseas (from Florida), and landed back in Chicago with ZERO local change/coins/currency.

I quite happily took off down a tollway in my rental/hire car with NO USA currency!

I saw a sign that said "Toll Booth Ahead" and freaked out! I pulled over and had about $1.25 in USA quarters buried deep in my computer bag. Whew! I next had to pull over in search of an ATM in a seedy area of Chicago.

Normally, I think ahead, but that bit of forgotten change came in handy that day.

Keep them for a rainy day Mate!

It was an evangelical church for pity's sake.

If they expected to find drugs in such a place then their intelligence gathering unit is short of intelligence.

These people actually believe their is a god and do not look kindly upon drug use at all.

As for proper documentation, well that's another story....they'd probably say the Bible is all the documentation they need or some sort of BS or other.

Why would someone who believes in God not approve of drugs. He made them as part of creation for our use and enjoyment. Th first miracle of Jesus was to turn water into wine. Perhaps you are confusing people who believe in god with those right wing christian groups who promoted their view of the bible in 1870 USA and onwards, primarily to support the grain/booze business.

I saw a Thai man wearing a shirt with a big pot leaf on it in Big C Ramkamhaeng once that said, "God invented Weed. Man invented Alcohol. Who do you trust?"

Not sure if he even knew what it meant, but I told him, about his shirt, "Jing-jing. Chope maak".

He just grinned at me.

As long as I am not hurting someone else, be it having a beer or taking a toke of some bush that grows wild, that I can grow in my back yard, I fail to see the harm I am doing.

No matter what your religion, or if you are agnostic or atheist, I'm sure we can all agree on the one concept of doing no harm to others, and treating other folks the way we'd like to be treated.

============

As for visa over-stays, can someone enlighten me as to where the victim is here? Anyone. anyone? I feel like Ben Stein.

If I may comment on other drugs, cocaine... I freaking LOVE IT! Too much. I quickly realized it was for losers after about the 3rd time I tried it 30 years ago.

Acid/LSD - see above about coke... been there done that, cast it aside.

Mushrooms... Scared the be-Jesus out of me the one time I tried them. NEVER AGAIN!

Heroin & meth/yaba. You could smack me in the head with a bag of either one & I wouldn't know what they are, as I've never seen them.

I do like my beer though, which, in moderation (don't drink all day every day and never drink and drive), hurts nobody.

Just a few things to add to hopefully make it go smoother for you.

Don't dress like a bum, shower, shave etc or trim your beard.

If you show up looking like a Bob Marley wannabe, smelling like Osama Bin Laden that's been living in a cave, expect a little more scrutiny than if you show up looking like somebody with less than half a brain.

Don't look like a back-packer they could care less about. I mean, take a little pride in your appearance.

Smile a lot, show up an hour (or two) earlier than you normally would, smile at the passport lady or man, and say "I have overstay. I must pay fine" before they say "You have overstay, you must pay fine".

Next be prepared to go spend 20 minutes more or less taking care of the fine. Smile a lot & be patient (SHOW UP extra EARLY for your flight).

Pay the fine & head off to your flight.

I'd stay away from trying to extend it with 75 days over-stay. Just leave as described above as best you can, and as soon as you can.

"reportedly in response to noise complaints" In Thailand someone complained about noise? That is got to be the first time ever I heard of such a thing. I can often hear the average Thai wedding or funeral 5km away from my home. Never mind the temple most days of the week. If they rent a speaker system by god they will get their moneys worth out of it. Of course all noise complains are handled by swat teams with drug tests in Thailand.

YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GIVE ME a break! Noise complaints???

SWAT uniforms to raid a church?

I could rant for days on end here about noise in Thailand, or Asia in general for that matter.

Would you believe some Cambodians moved in, in Florida, about an 8 - 10 minute walk from my Mom's house (over a quarter of a mile), and have parties where I can hear the music over her phone from thousands of miles away? It's TRUE!

==================

I have no particular love nor hate for Nigerians, but I have found that "most" folks that take at least an hour a week to go to church (I do) are a wee bit better than your average clown.

Don't get me wrong. I'm no Bible-Thumper, nor am I a hypocrite...Drinking a beer & smoking a cigarettes as I type this, but one does meet a better class (overall) of people at church than one does in a bar.

I LIKE bars too though, but I don't go overboard with either one (church, nor bar).......I haven't been in a bar in almost a year, yet have spent.....errr...have probably spent close to 100 hours in a church this year.

As for those spouting "Burn them at the stake!" because they over-stayed their visa's. Please explain to me who the victim of this "crime" was?

I'm from Florida. My Dad's 1st cousin was a Grand Wizard of the KKK. He had Klan rallies across the street, replete with 25 foot tall burning crosses back in the early 1970's.

I was raised in a highly racial discriminatory environment, yet I overcame it and see racism as utterly stupid.

This entire thing has a derogatory racial end to it, in my opinion.

Then again, much like the Thai police, everybody thinks all Nigerians are evil because of the actions of some of them.

......But raiding a church in SWAT gear????

Remember the poll ran sometime earlier this year, yes here in Thailand, that said

68+% of those polled found nothing wrong with corruption, as long as you could get something out of it...... I found that extra shocking...

How do you fix something that is wrong, if the majority doesn't see anything wrong???

Your last line/question really is quite the quandary. Not having a go at you, but democracy IS majority rule, is it not?

I'm from Florida, so cannot help but compare what many see as flaws in Thailand, to what happens in the USA, where the exact same things happen every day.

The commonality I see, is that ALL governments are corrupt the world over. The locals embrace it, the world over. I recall seeing Thaksin passing out 1K baht bills in Isaan once

Tell me this is not "Vote Buying"???

============

Now, popping the top police thug in Thailand is pretty much unheard of, yet somebody made Nixon resign, and let's not forget he was pardoned by the next guy in charge (Ford).

Corruption is EVERYWHERE (I would guess every government in the world).

What I hate is the sheep that come out spouting "But it's the Law!!!!" every time some benign Thailand visa over-stayer or marijuana smoker comes to light, when both are victim-less "crimes".

I read over and over again here, "Their country! Their rules! Respect them or LEAVE!", in a country where it's blatantly obvious that most cops can be bribed, bribes are expected & the majority of the populace believe it's OK, maniacs drive like maniacs, one can barely walk 10 feet in Pattaya without coming across an illegal activity (usually victim-less - Beach Rd girls)...And the next article one reads is about where there was a victim of murder or mugging, yet the local cops were either inept or asleep or both.

Their country! Their rules!

Bars stay open past the appointed time (again victim-less unless they are disturbing the peace), Mom & Pop stores sell beer at the [aghast] unheard of hours between 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM, as well as on "no booze can be sold" holidays, and on and on and on.

The never-ending "Crack-Downs" that last between 2 days and 2 weeks etc...

Yet some member here will scream bloody murder "IT"S AGAINST THE LAW!" if somebody asks how to take care of a visa overstay, on, of all places, a website named after visas in Thailand.

Sorry...Rant over.

I'm sure the new head of the DSI, or any other official for that matter, will not comment but it would be nice to know if this case has just suddenly appeared on the radar or was it known about, suspected or even hinted at previously.

The question cannot be answered because it would beg the question why was nothing done ?

I'm sure many will suspect that political affiliations, loyalties etc may have something to do with the current action and possibly why nothing was done earlier.

The current head of the DSI was appointed only last month. Maybe one of his enemies delivered his head on a silver platter to the new DSI. This is Thailand so just about any story you can think up is plausible.

Yes. Same same the world over though, as this article mentions happening elsewhere.

I like your Dr. Ron Paul quote RametinDallas in your signature.

What kills me is the masses all over (many are here), that blindly do whatever "The Government" says to do, no matter how stupid it is.

They continue to spout "but it's the law!".

Granted, any functioning society needs a few rules, but when they are selectively enforced, it tends to make them all pretty damned stupid.

In the USA, there is precious little one cannot be arrested for, if the cop wants to screw with you.

In Thailand they have a giant "Law" called Lesse Majeste where they can sweep up anybody they want to on an allegation, which I am still waiting to hear details of in this case.

I have no love nor hate for Thaksin, but, aside from his arrest warrants in Thailand, he has the ultimate in Freedom, which is more than one passport.

ok everybody here knows monks can not touch women

but what if farang women suddenly touch monks?

Then the monk will be infected, hence mist leave monk-hood and become a common man.

Must become a ladyboy (that SHOULD be be the rule).