jaywalker

24 minutes ago, Dexlowe said:

And still I say, wow! What a life. If that is what you have to do to live in the country ... !!! Wow! I lived in suburban Thailand for 30 years and never once felt the need for that level of security.

Well you're not the "Headman/Headwoman" of a village either.

I daresay you aren't a drug dealer either & do not associate with druggies.

You'll most likely be just fine, but, it's better to have it & not need it, than need it and not have it.

I had a well-to-do (now deceased) friend in BKK who had a large safe next to his bar. He had a giant house. We got hammered one evening, talking about gemstones, so he decided to show me his collection. 

First thing out of the safe was a .45 pistol.

He said, "Yeah, I'll open the safe if somebody makes me. But this puppy is the first thing they'll see."

He also kept a half timber wolf, half malamute dog, that weighed about 170 lbs and stood 4 feet tall at the top of his head around.

That mutt tolerated me, but didn't really like me. The old man had flown to Fresno California to get that dog after his house was burglarized once.

This wasn't in the woods. It was off Pahonyothin, near the Ari BTS. 

4 minutes ago, smedly said:

Just right too - I have done the same and add to that - I have a motorbike that I don't use at night when drinking so it is either walk or a motorbike taxi, finding a MB taxi driver that is sober in the small hours can be extremely difficult, it wouldn't be the first time I have told a driver to stop when it became very obvious he was plastered 

I had a dirt bike/enduro Honda 350 back in the 1980's. Never took it on the asphalt, but there was lots of dirt roads where I'd ride it.

Learned my lesson young about pounding a few beers & trying to handle a bike. Never again. Luckily all I hit was a barbed wire fence (that wasn't there a week earlier).

-----------------------------

That one MB taxi is the only one I ever had a problem with out of the hundreds I've used though. I'd be too worried about falling off the back of one if I was plastered.

A friend once told me something about them that made a lot of sense. Pick the oldest one there who has no road rash. He's been at it a while & knows what he's doing.

11 minutes ago, leeneeds said:

If there're 10 million drivers all put to a test of rules, skill and safety ,

how many would reach an acceptable level to retain their licence? 

That needs to be the starting point,

before tackling the kindergarten

 

Yeah, tackling both at the same time would be akin to chewing gum and walking.

Joking aside, it's tough to teach an old dog new tricks. CONSTANTLY harping on driving safety from an early age is a great way to start.

Cigarette smoking is demonized ALL the time in the US these days, whereas it was just accepted that EVERYBODY smoked in the 1960's. Now folks look down upon smokers.

In Thailand, being around crazy driving is like a fish being around water. They have no life experience of anything else.

Demonizing careless driving from a young age is a great start, but I say again, they have no qualified teachers with life experience of sane driving habits on that front.

and...of course, as always....it all revolves back around to lazy cops that selectively enforce road rules which allows the craziness to continue unabated.

4 minutes ago, smedly said:

sounds daft but I believe

 

I wonder how many that attended this seminar drove home over the limit

 

Another serious problem is people using mobile devices while driving, I would guess that mobile use is likely the highest contributor to accidents on Thai roads and combined with all the other issues makes for a very poor outcome on the roads

I grabbed a moto-taxi one night at Bali Hai pier Pattaya. TRAFFIC out the wazoo & the guy's phone rings.

He answers it. I tapped him on the shoulder & told him to let me off. Thorasab mai dee motorcy. (Telephone no good motorcycle).

Started yelling at me "I am Thai!  Can do what I want!"

Fair enough, but not with me on the back.

1 minute ago, Misterwhisper said:

Talk, talk, talk, and seminars, seminars, seminar, and one ineffective crackdown after another. It's all so tiresome.

They should form a committee to resolve the issues you bring up.

2 minutes ago, Misterwhisper said:

My, my, what an illustrious line-up of countries Thailand finds herself in - and in fact dons the crown. Well done! You must be sooo proud to be number 1. Finally an area where you are the undisputed world leader. 

Thailand is the HUB of ALL.

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Don’t worry I can clarify

Ah, it was just a (another) misunderstanding.

Reminds me of another saying.

"Don't worry. We're from the government, and we're here to help".

1 hour ago, webfact said:

in the US those on probation in some states are obliged to carry a breathalyzer kit around with them and can be tested at all times.

No idea how these work on a motorcycle, but...

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An ignition interlock device or breath alcohol ignition interlock device (IID and BAIID) is a breathalyzer for an individual's vehicle. It requires the driver to blow into a mouthpiece on the device before starting the vehicle. If the resultant breath-alcohol concentration analyzed result is greater than the programmed blood alcohol concentration (which varies between countries), the device prevents the engine from being started. The interlock device is located inside the vehicle, near the driver’s seat, and is directly connected to the engine’s ignition system.^[1]

An ignition interlock interrupts the signal from the ignition to the starter until a valid breath sample is provided that meets minimal alcohol guidelines in that state. At that point, the vehicle can be started as normal. At random times after the engine has been started, the IID will require another breath sample. The purpose of this is to prevent someone other than the driver from providing a breath sample.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignition_interlock_device

3 minutes ago, PatOngo said:

7-7-7..........there.........fixed!

Nah, now, they are finally Numma 1, Numma 1, Numma 1!!! Hub of road carnage.

11 minutes ago, webfact said:

Under the measures, officials said they would crackdown on drink driving and people breaking the speed limit, The Nation reported.

OOOOOH!!!! Another "Crackdown"! How original.

11 minutes ago, webfact said:

children from kindergarten age will be taught about road safety.

That makes sense, as that's about the age they start driving.

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

I also wonder who the driving instructors will be? Just folks that have been around & grew up in the Psychotic World of Thai Driving is all they've got.

10 minutes ago, Get Real said:

This man will not spend one minute in jail. He´s so smart so he will be recommended in the next re-shuffle. 

Yeah, he was probably planning to use the money the other guy owed him to buy a $300,000 USD watch.  

9 minutes ago, Dustdevil said:

The average subcontinentals are not familiar with lining up. At Dubai's international airport they have to be scolded and redirected by the Arab ground staff. The Pashtuns from Afghanistan are still in the dark ages. I was on a Fly Dubai flight from Qassim to Dubai and the flight attendant, an Arab woman, had to tell the guy to flush the toilet!

I worked in Abu Dhabi for a spell. Not a bad assignment...except for the Indians. Especially the one's that think bathing is a waste of water.

They'll walk over you trying to stand in line. I had to school more than one of them on what it meant to wait his turn, but it's hopeless when there's 40 or 50 of them & there's only one of me.

Also their habit of standing half an inch behind you when they do bother to stand in line.

I went to pay my phone bill one day. It was 1998 & they had ONE machine in the entire city, where I could key my phone number in, then slide some currency into the machine.

I'd always go at 2:00 PM, as the whole city shut down between 1:00 & 5:00 PM & the phone company lobby where the machine was located would be deserted.

I suddenly smelled something that smelled like wet dog fur & felt something touch my elbow.

An Indian was standing 1/2 an inch off my back, counting his money for the machine.

In this HUGE, EMPTY lobby, he just HAD to jam his smelly nose up my ass. I went ballistic on the guy.

What a retard. Deserves to rot in prison. What if he'd killed an innocent child (or anyone else for that matter)?

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I used to hang out with a guy in Florida when we were in our early 20's (partying, chasing women etc). We went our separate ways & 25 or so years later he set fire to a house. The old man inside died. No idea if he meant too commit murder, but he did. Convicted of 1st degree murder.

He's currently serving LWOP (Life WITHOUT Parole).

I hope this scum-bad gets the same.

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Don’t speculate too much about it,” said Worawit. 

If we want your opinion, we'll beat it out of you.

11 hours ago, BuaBS said:

Repression to tax/fine people more . And that why we like it much better here. Well untill those f.. speed camera's came to Thailand .

Don't worry. 90% of them won't work in a week or two, provided they actually install cameras & not just empty boxes that look like cameras.

2 minutes ago, overherebc said:

59th Street Bridge Song

3 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

Suggestions as to what tune could be played on the road at Petchabun?

Duplicate post

1 minute ago, bluesofa said:

Suggestions as to what tune could be played on the road at Petchabun?

Anything by Megadeth would work.

16 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Flooding during the parade! Been kept pretty quiet. I didn't see anything on here about it. Pity as I'd have enjoyed the laugh.

Once again, Pattaya authorities prove they couldn't manage a piss up at a brewery, as we used to say in the service.

Perhaps they should have had the parade along the Jomptien Beach Rd instead.

 

Did the sand they deposited along the walkway where it got washed away before vanish along with Pattaya's "reputation"? I remember that thread.

 

 

Here ya go.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Thais not yet in the habit of driving safely

It's like Eskimos being used to the cold or camels being used to the heat or fish being used the water.

The Thai populace is just used to psycho driving habits & daily carnage. Very few know of any other experience.

6 minutes ago, Get Real said:

Except the 5K, value of gold 100K and a mobile phone! 

I guess we can skip the hospitals and CCTV. Just send out a nationwide question to all gold shops to report anybody trying to sell a 100K gold necklace. That will soon give results.

They'll be bleeding too.

2 hours ago, Dexlowe said:

Sleeps with a gun under her pillow???? Wow! What a life!

Better be glad she did!

Yep, an "EVIL" gun was used for...*GASP!* GOOD!

44 minutes ago, Samui Bodoh said:

If a person does not have the skills to acquire new skills, then they are likely to become unemployable rather quickly.

They already know everything!

Thai will be the Lingua Franca soon etc...

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I've worked with some Thais in the past (was hired as a trainer/consultant), & tried to show them proper, expedient, efficient ways to do things.

They had ABSOLUTELY NO INTEREST in proper, expedient, efficient ways to do things.

They just didn't want to learn. Fairly young guys too, between 20 & 30 years old, so it wasn't like trying to teach an old dog new tricks.

1 hour ago, ClutchClark said:

 

The poll asked why visitors were here so it seems to make sense they would not ask full-time residents. 

I know if some random person on the streets of BKK or anywhere else in Thailand prefaced a survey with "Excuse me Sir. Do you live in Thailand or are you just visiting?"

#1 - I wouldn't answer & if I did, I would LIE thru my teeth.

"I just fell off the last 747 that landed. Been here 36 hours. I love everything about Thailand."

The only people that piss & moan about Thailand are anonymous internet folks, & 99.999% (errr, make that 396.3%) would not say anything negative to a Thai stranger.

11 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Rest from work         52.3%

Tourism                     46.8%

Visiting friends          13.1%

Trade Shows             11.1%

Seminars                     8.9%

Visiting relatives          8.1%

 

Another 10.5% said they were in Thailand for meetings, business, governmental business among other things.

Add the above = 141.9%

Add the figures below = 396.3% 

11 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Asked about the best thing about Thailand the foreigners said:

 

82.8%    Tourist places

79.7%    Nature and the environment

79.1%    The safety of the food

77.5%    The economic development of Thailand

77.2%    Infrastructure - such as airports, Skytrain, MRT and mobile networks.