Callmeishmael

I always wondered what would be the issue to turn MAGAs against Trump? Would it be the massive expansion of executive power? Would it be the expansion of heavily armed police (ICE)? Would it be the attack on the US's already inadequate healthcare system? NOOO... it's Epstein's client list! 🤣

My wife has applied for, and received, two tourist visas for trips to visit my family in the US. The first was back in 2005 and the second was in 2019 (a 10 year visa that we haven't actually used yet). She doesn't have a job, but she does own land and has a history of international travel - Laos, Japan, Singapore - without overstaying or misusing her visa. Also I have a job in Thailand and we just visited the US during school breaks. The process of applying was not easy, but I did it all myself and she was granted the visas without any problem. I believe that the fact that our marriage is long term - from 2003 to now - helped.

Possibly because 'assisted suicide' is a bit more common in Russia than it is in the US!

Does anyone notice who's missing from this thread? Or maybe he just has a new new name!

Third parties in US politics almost always act as spoilers. A conservative 3rd party will help the Democrats, a liberal 3rd party will help the Republicans. Right now the only one talking about a 3rd party is Musk, who will probably be more conservative than liberal. Musk's party will probably appeal to "tech bros" who are not classic conservatives on all issues. Right now the only liberal 3rd party is the Greens, who don't have much of a voter base in the US.

Although people are asking why there weren't adequate weather warnings, there is another factor that no-one seems to mention. https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-efforts-predict-weather-hit-133342621.html For those of you who don't like to click links or read complete articles, here is the relevant quote: "The Trump administration has axed thousands of jobs from NOAA, the National Weather Service's parent agency, leaving many weather offices understaffed," also: "A lot of the weather forecast offices now are not operating at full complement of staff, which means that you're really putting an extra burden on these folks. I don't know how much that was a factor in what happened in Texas this weekend."

It's true though. With the exception of Rand Paul all of the deficit hawks have simply put aside their principles and voted for the biggest deficit spending bill ever.

Most of the 'painful' provisions of the BBB won't take effect until the end of 2026 - after the midterm elections. So the Republicans will be insulated from the consequences of the bill. Also the fiscal ill effects - the increased deficit - won't be felt until there is another president. The BBB is basically an economic time bomb that will hit the US hard in the coming years.

When you have low readings or if you feel faint, you might try 'slow breathing'. Breath in while you count slowly to 3 to 5 - whatever feels comfortable for - then hold your breath for the same count, then breath out for the same count. I found that my blood oxygen levels would shoot up by about 5% when I did. I spent four days in an ICU after a heart attack and so I had plenty of time to watch my blood oxygen meter!

While young people in general tend to have less trust in Mainstream Media, the real gap is between Republicans and Democrats. Here is a recent Gallup Poll:

They don't have to actually close the straits, they just need to one tanker with a drone or missile and shipping insurance will become prohibitively expensive.

The Sinovac Vaccine was produced the old-fashioned way! Of course, it is about as effective as a saline shot....

The only positive that I was expecting from Trump 2.0 was his reluctance to get into wars. Unfortunately, it looks like he will not be able to resist the temptation to play with his high-tech toys!

Chuwit rises from the grave! I just love Thai politics.

Why is there a picture of me in this thread! lol

Banks are usually reluctant to repossess small rural properties. If someone can talk to the bank, they will usually set up some reasonable payment schedule. One of my wife's uncles (through her ex-husband) died leaving an mortgaged house to his daughter. My wife called them up and negotiated a repayment schedule for the daughter. She finally made the final payment just a month ago.

I certainly haven't noticed any improvement! But I usually don't drive in the areas mentioned.

I would guess that this was cargo carried aboard a ship that broke up and sank a few decades ago. The 'nearby coral' dating doesn't really sound convincing.

I wonder if Joe Rogan ever thought that he would become the official channel for government announcements?

฿2,000? Just sit outside any provincial government school at opening or closing time and you will see dozens of teenage students and their friends coming and going on motorbikes without wearing helmets. I suspect that none of those kids could come up with ฿2,000 on the spot. How are they going to enforce this? I guarantee that they are not going to impound the bikes and make the parents come in to pay!

I suspect that the key words here are "silence U.S. citizens and companies". This is all about protecting Facebook and Google's right to collect advertising revenue and do targeted marketing. By phrasing it as a "freedom of speech" law, they can disguise their true intent.

Easy - before I had a cat I had to set mousetraps every night and they were frequently full in the morning! After cat - no rats at all.

I have no animals in my house... my cats deal with them before I even see them!

He's still healthier than that panther he killed.

Now that Cannabis is legalized in Thailand, do Thai customs no longer check baggage for it? Or do they check for it and then just tip off the police at the destination?