jerrymahoney

I moved to Thailand full-time -- after 15+ years of visiting and volunteering -- because I was bored in the USofA. Also I got tired of the calculus that when you meet someone whether male or female, they run the equation in their head: Can this person benefit me more than I can benefit them? And if the answer is NO, then it's goodbye Charlie. In LOS nobody really knows who you are unless you want them to know who you are.

Well to explain would require more than I will post here. But as far as going incommunicado, that was their choice not mine.

I do know why. But that is their choice. But 'twas not the only choice.

Sometimes having ones bridges burnt was not your choice but the other side's. A very definite: Don't call us. We'll call you. if ever.

Yes and that place for me will be here in Thailand.

My first long-term stays in Thailand were as a skilled volunteer at a Thai NGO under patronage of the (then) King of Thailand. So I got to see a bit of what's what and who's who that the casual tourist would never see before the above suggested 3-month practice run.

the thread title is: "Who got bored in Thailand and went back?" That's like the topic of 'Who looks older than their age?' and most every response gave their stories of how they look younger than their age.

I think there is only a remote possibility that Trump could win the 2024 POTUS election. But I do not consider it a ZERO possibility.

The Misfits Movie whistle.mp4

https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/president-general/ OCT31 2023 I don't care what you consider to be touching. As far as I am concerned, Jack Smith and Fani Willis et al are just a side-show compared to the unfathomable prospect of Trump again in the White House January 2025.

I agree. Polls are unreliable one year out from the general election especially when they don't say what you'd like them to say. My favorite unreliable polls were those that preceded the 2016 general election when the discussion was whether Hillary Clinton should be addressed as Madame President or not. I was caught flat-footed on that under-estimation of DJ Trump and I am not going let it happen again.

Subject: Security Alert – Worldwide Caution, October 20, 2023 Location: Worldwide Caution Event: Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution. U.S. citizens should: Stay alert in locations frequented by tourists. https://th.usembassy.gov/security-alert-worldwide-caution-october-20-2023/

To the tag-team above: OCTOBER 26, 2023 Democrats' Rating of Biden Slips; Overall Approval at 37% WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Joe Biden’s job approval rating among Democrats has tumbled 11 percentage points in the past month to 75%, the worst reading of his presidency from his own party. This drop has pushed his overall approval rating down four points to 37%, matching his personal low. At the same time, Biden’s approval among independents has declined four points, to 35%, while Republicans’ rating remains unchanged, at just 5%. https://news.gallup.com/poll/513305/democrats-ratings-biden-slip-overall-approval.aspx

My first time marriage ever at age 70 to a Thai girl who, growing up as the daughter of an RTP cop, tends to be more out front swinging than being at my back.

From that same above Bloomberg swing-state poll:

Hey they just nominated the unknown Mike Johnson as Republican Speaker -- why not for President?

Noted. I hope you are right and the polls are wrong. The US 2024 Presidential election will largely be decided in only 7 swing states. How 2024 Swing-State Voters Feel About the US Economy — In 10 Charts October 27, 2023 Democratic President Joe Biden has sought to make his economic agenda, dubbed “Bidenomics,” the centerpiece of a likely rematch against former President Donald Trump. The economy is top of mind for many Americans, according to an inaugural Bloomberg News and Morning Consult poll of swing-state voters, but Biden is facing headwinds in his reelection bid. The vast majority of voters in seven states likely to decide the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election think the economy is heading in the wrong direction. And Trump is leading Biden in five of those seven states, according to the poll, although his lead in each state is within the margin of error. https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-us-election-key-state-voter-polling/

Yes and while you folks are having a good time with the comeuppance of Mr. Donnie Boy in his criminal and civil trials, on multiple mainstream polls he is shown as beating President Biden in the NOV 2024 election. https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/president-general/ update d 28OCT2023

My favorite lines from the The BIG Country (1958). Note McKay (Gregory Peck) is a wealthy former sea captain. At his welcoming party: Well, Mr. McKay, how do you like this (Texas) country? I like it very much. Did you ever see anything so big? Well, yes. - You have? What? - A couple of oceans. Well, I declare! Excuse me.

Well I hope you are right. But with just about one year to the NOV 2024 Presidential election, and with Trump the presumed Republican nominee barring catastrophe, and with Trump leading Biden head-to-head according to some current mainstream polls, I would hope to have more going toward that end than hope.

Section 40 Assessable income is income of the following categories including any amount of tax paid by the payer of income or by any other person on behalf of a taxpayer. (3) Fee of goodwill, copyright or any other rights, annuity or annual payment of income derived from a will, any other juristic act, or court decision. https://www.rd.go.th/english/37749.html

I don't know why -- but this ain't comforting: https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/president-general/

what --- Netflix?

Maine police were alerted weeks ago about shooter’s threats Updated 5:16 AM GMT+7, October 29, 2023 Police across Maine were alerted just last month to “veiled threats” by the U.S. Army reservist who would go on to carry out the worst mass shooting in the state’s history, one of a string of missed red flags that preceded the massacre. Two local law enforcement chiefs told The Associated Press that a statewide awareness alert was sent in mid-September to be on the lookout for Robert Card after the firearms instructor made threats against his base and fellow soldiers. But after stepped-up patrols of the base and a visit to Card’s home – neither of which turned up any sign of him – they moved on. “We added extra patrols, we did that for about two weeks. ... The guy never showed up,” said Jack Clements, the police chief in Saco, home to the U.S. Army Reserve base where Card trained. https://apnews.com/article/maine-guns-mass-shooting-lewiston-warnings-4d5066230b500c152a7dd0d3e4d13f1b

Stephen King on Mass Shootings: We’re Out of Things to Say Oct. 27, 2023 Mr. King is the author of numerous works of fiction. He lives in Maine. There is no solution to the gun problem, and little more to write, because Americans are addicted to firearms. Representative Jared Golden, from Maine’s Second Congressional District, has reversed course and says he will now support outlawing military-style semiautomatic rifles like the one used in the killing of 18 people in Lewiston this week. But neither the House nor the Senate is likely to pass such a law, and if Congress actually did, the Supreme Court, as it now exists, would almost certainly rule it unconstitutional. Every mass shooting is a gut-punch; with every one, unimaginative people say, “I never thought it could happen here,” but such things can and will happen anywhere and everywhere in this locked-and-loaded country. The guns are available and the targets are soft. When rapid-fire guns are difficult to get, things improve, but I see no such improvement in the future. Americans love guns, and appear willing to pay the price in blood. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/27/opinion/stephen-king-maine-shootings.html