NanaSomchai

They killed the golden goose and you have seen nothing yet.

Bolded the relevant parts of your quote for added emphasis. They killed the golden goose. You can thank "Big Joke" for that.

What a nightmare. Sounds like the damaging disaster they unleashed on Sihanoukville, Cambodia. They turned the town into a chinese-only monstrosity.

The smile of a Great white shark.

Hopefully.

This, at 2000%. There's a reason why they are called the "zero baht tourist", because they effectively spend 0 baht on Thai soil during their journey. Everything is all inclusive, fully pre-paid back in the home country, including local transportations etc (hence why so many of their busses are clogging in front of Wat Chai Mongkol in Pattaya). The narrative the last time I looked into this was; when they are in China and are booking their all inclusive tours they are being told three things: - 1) Thailand is not safe, do not carry either cash or credit cards with you, in case of an unfortunate event, we will help you (for a fee of course). - 2) Not carrying cash with you also means you won't get ripped with the exchange rate, you save money. - 3) Everything is inclusive and pre-paid, you are walking in groups, you don't need to interact in English or with the Thai locals. Right but the current government is not seeing that, they are not having it, so there.

This mindset does not apply to your average Somchai, it's quite to the contrary actually. We see them across the country burning their wages on payday then crawling around and begging for "help" and resorting to loans/pawns the next remaining 29 days of the month. In this country it's all about the instant, it's right here, right now, quick, make a quick buck, they even say it themselves in pidgin English "tomorrow may not come".

How can they possibly sell what they don't have to begin with?

Just like your average bargirl who charges you 1,000 baht for a full night of "pay4play" and is okay with adding an extra 500 baht charge for not using a condom, should you ask her. It's money that they want... at any expense... This country is doomed.

Oh yeah don't get me wrong, I have received my fair share of threats and am aware I can return to the Kingdom whenever I feel like it. I just don't see the appeal, eight years wasted with the first Thai wife then another 3 years wasted with the second Thai wife, same results, same outcome, as the Thais would say "same, same but different". I'm done at least for the time being, I'm not even close to retirement age. - Countries that are on my list to visit (or where I have interests in) before retirement age: France, UK, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal. - Countries that are on my list to visit (or settle down slowly) after retirement age: Italy, Greece, Malta, the Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia. So even at the average rate of 3 to 5 years per country exploration, I still have plenty to experience on my bucket list, Thailand is just scratched off the list and I've already owned homes twice in the Kingdom. Thailand? Veni, Vidi, Vici.

Which is why I'm now being extremely cautious; withdrawn any remaining funds I may have had in any Thai banks, removed the ex's from my rental contracts across Europe, switched SIM cards and email addresses, closed down LINE accounts, closed down Facebook pages and dropped friends left and right. I have zero intentions of returning to Thailand, no intentions to jump right back into it. Once I get to retirement age? We'll see. But right now? Not.

The only hope this Kingdom has. Thugs, convincted drug lords (in Australia, even served 4 years of jail time) and thieves, yet their biggest theft is the FREEDOM of the Thais, they robbed them of any hopes, any future in broad daylight. We're not even mentioning how they promised and sworn how they would tackle the rampant corruption problem across the Kingdom, yet all they have accomplished is making it worse while lining up their pockets. That we are about to find out soon enough, my inner gut are telling me we have seen nothing yet. (think Joe Ferrari on a larger scale) A coup calls for another coup. The question is; Who will have the nerves of steel to stand up? Indeed, indeed, indeed. Thailand is the laughing stock of the ASEAN region. Think of how they weren't even invited in the last pro-democracy Worldwide event against corruption which was held a few months ago. This. Get to meet hi-so from neighboring countries and ask them what they are thinking of their Thai neighbors. Guffaw. Victory to the next generation! Millions of jobs lost, Thousands of lives ruined.

This. 6000 times. !@#$ Brexit.

I know better. I've been in those shoes... ...twice. Being ripped off once by a Thai wife and her family can be an unfortunate incident, being ripped off twice is a pattern. Hence why I've left Thailand mid 2018 with no intention to (ever?) return. Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me.

With a lot of brown enveloppes being handed out. Yeah, there you are. Lots of brown enveloppes recipients, therefore lots of brown enveloppes to hand out.

Let's face it; as long as there's a constant influx of cheap issan "working girls" with weekly arrivals, I'm sure a lot of these "foreigner" wouldn't mind living in their "ghettos".

Okay... next? Okay... now what? Uhhhh.... okay? AKA; more paperwork! Indeed, the writing is on the wall. Brace yourselves for more and more restrictions along with ludicrous requirements. Pretty much. Caucasian tourists are clearly the least of their concerns now. It almost feels as if they were telling us "Thanks for supporting our economy to boom and thrive for the past 40 years but now that we are on par with neighboring countries economies, you're not needed (read: wanted) anymore. Go home.". There you have it, I've been singing on this forum for months now that this was going to happen. Thailand is the next new Cambodia to the Chinese, see what the Chinese have done to places like Sihanoukville, you will see what's coming next to places like Pattaya, Rayong, Hua Hin, Phuket, etc, welcome to Chailand!

prosTATe

I just don't get why you people will not "let go" when it comes to anything Thai related. - The exchange rate is absolutely NOT in our favor. - Traffic and commuting in Bangkok has gotten worse year after year. - The PM2.5 pollution in larger cities has peaked to borderline unbreathable levels (and very little is done to prevent it, let alone tackle it). - The price of goods has been continuously increasing by an average of 15% every 5 years back to back. - The Highest constitutional Thai courts have handed out a judgement essentially stating that dual pricing foreigners was deemed acceptable. - "Pay 4 play" relationship with local females has become way more expensive than it should be, it is now almost on par with Eastern European countries (which for some of us, defeats the whole purpose of even going to Thailand to begin with). - Ladies of the night constantly glued to their phones 24/7 having as many as 20 different "sponsors" at a time. - Pesky vloggers, bloggers roaming just about everywhere across the Kingdom, with their cameras pointed in every directions at mongers then uploading footage to YouTube without even blurring people's faces, etc, publicly naming and shaming anyone who dares adventuring themselves in seedy areas or engaging in nightlife activities. - Consumption of alcohol beverage on the streets, on the beaches, in public parks, near/in front of official buildings, near Temples and just about everywhere in public is slowly becoming illegal, with some years having up to 21 religious related holidays per calendar year during which the sale/use of alcohol is outright frowned upon. - Immigration hurdles have become drastic as time goes on, reinstating of the dreaded TM-30, TM-5, TM-whatever, clamping down of visa border runs, clamping down of "education visas", the SHA+, Test & Go, Sandbox, Thailand Pass, permanent ending of Visas on Arrivals. - Road carnage numbers on the rise, "Road Safety" should be of a national concern in the Kingdom, very little is done about it. - Health Minister flat out calling foreigners "dirty farangs" and stating they should "kick us out" during an improvised press conference. - Currently elected officials being in office in (allegedly) fraudulent ways and manipulating/re-writing the Thai constitution as many times as necessary in order to remain in power endlessly that would make Vladimir Putin blush. - PayPal withdrawing it's operations from Thailand, soon to be followed by Transferwise and other fintech online services, it's only a matter of time. - Cryptocurrencies being "looked into" by the central Bank of Thailand, they are trying to restrict/forbid the use/buy/sale of Bitcoin and all other digital currencies (because they figured they cannot get their cut). - Neighboring country Myanmar in War with itself, the Thais navy/army are not helping or doing their part, better yet they are sending civilians back across the border to... their demise. - Amnesty International being outed of the Kingdom which should raise a major concern for anyone reading this very post. - Rabies from Soi dogs infection rates are on a sharp rise, so are dengue fever outbreaks from mosquitoes bites while the Zika virus is out of control in remote parts of the country, very little is done about it. - The Kingdom being turned into a Police state slowly but surely, cameras being added left and right, biometrics systems are now in use at 100% of the 74 points of entrance/exit from the Kingdom, lèse majestés laws are being brought in full force, defamation laws are being used to either sue or counter-sue anyone at any whim. - No land ownership for any of us, etc, etc, and the list goes on and on and on... What else do you people need to take those rose tinted glasses off and realise that the Thailand of 1990-2000's is gone for good, Thailand is no longer the land of smiles, Thailand is no longer a cheap booze/partying/fiesta/mongering destination. Thailand is no longer a bang for your buck. Not a bargain anymore. Move. On.

Oddly enough there are only 6 passports in the World that would be considered as "a strong passport" for Thailand and I can safely bet you're not the holder of one.

Spoiler alert: Portugal and Sicily both are better than Thailand under two conditions: 1) IF you can somehow speak or at least understand the language (the English proficiency is extremely poor there) AND 2) IF you aren't after hookers or young "friendly" females (there's a real shortage of available women, even for short-term relationships or pay4play) in both aforementioned places.

As a friendly reminder (source: Wikipedia): Manat Bophlom, now known as Thamanat Prompow, was convicted of conspiring to import heroin to Australia. The ruling was handed down on 31 March 1994 when he was sentenced to six years imprisonment. Manat served four years, then was deported upon his release.[19] BBC Thai reporters traveled to Downing Court in Sydney to view court records. Forbidden to make photocopies, they translated a relevant court document into Thai as proof of the conviction that Thamanat continues to deny.[20][21] Deputy Prime Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwon asked the Thai people to leave the past in the past, saying the case has already been cleared up and that it was a matter concerning one person that has nothing to do with the nation.[22][23] Thamanat claims he will sue the Sydney Morning Herald for defamation,[24] although he declines to respond to their reporting.[25]

Any cents from me that might somehow make it's way into either Prayuth's or Prawit's or their affiliated Junta's goons pockets is the real deal breaker for me. Besides, as a quick reminder: https://www.traveloffpath.com/the-philippines-officially-reopening-borders-for-tourism-february-10/ https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/philippines-reopening-tourism-intl-hnk/index.html https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/travel-news/philippines-to-reopen-to-fully-vaccinated-tourists-from-february-10/as89214845.cms https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/philippines-reopen-february-vaccinated-foreign-tourists-2022-01-28/ https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/philippines-to-reopen-in-february-to-vaccinated-foreign-tourists/47300408 Take your hard earned money and your valuable time elsewhere. Period.

Not entirely true. FYI the Thais have tasted "pursuit of happiness" under Thaksin's administration.

Same with Italy, the eastern side of France, the whole french speaking region of Belgium (aka Wallonia) and Spain the first year.