way2muchcoffee

Companies and organizations I've worked for here in Thailand calculate the annual income for an employee, determine the annual tax burden, then divide that by 12 and deduct this amount every month. So if a person doesn't earn enough to be taxed nothing will be withheld except for social security payments if the employer is registered.

Most poorer Thais use the locally produced sea salt.  You can pick it up in most town markets.  It has no iodine.  It is very cheap compared to the iodized salt sold in grocery stores.  It's not that the iodized salt is really expensive, but every baht counts when you aren't earning much.

Many Thai can afford to shop in a Tesco or a Big C market. There they buy fish sauce or other salty liquids that they use for cooking.

True. Nevertheless, most salt I've seen in homes in the villages has been bags of sea salt. Not only cheaper, sea salt also tastes better. Too bad it's not iodized.

Over 4,000,000 bt annually to get into the highest tax bracket.

Cheers. That's about 330k baht a month. 60000 people? Does that sound right?

Sounds low to me. There are probably another few hundred thousand who earn that much or more but pay little or no tax for various reasons.

Evidently only about 2% of Thais are affected by iodine deficiency. Fish sauce doesn't provide enough iodine. Check out this article.

http://www.idpas.org/pdf/2140CombatingIodineandIronDeficiencies.pdf

Here are a couple of excerpts.

Two iodine and seven iron compounds were tested for use in the fortification of pure fish sauce, mixed fish sauce,and salt brine for cooking as a means to combat iodine and iron deficiencies.

Micronutrient deficiency is a public health problem in most developing countries [1, 2]. In Thailand, irondeficiency anemia affects such vulnerable groups as pregnant women and children, with prevalences as high

as 70% in some rural areas [3]. Moreover, although the overall revalence of iodine-deficiency disorders is low in Thailand (2.1%), food-based strategies are needed to maintain this level, as well as to reduce the revalence of iodine-deficiency disorders in areas where it remains high.

Over 4,000,000 bt annually to get into the highest tax bracket.

0-150k = Exempt

150-500k = 10%

500k-1 mil = 20%

1 mil-4 mil = 30%

>4 mil = 37%

Everyone pays VAT though. There are also land taxes, corporate taxes, fuel taxes, import taxes, transportation taxes, auto-licensing taxes, etc. etc. etc.

Most poorer Thais use the locally produced sea salt. You can pick it up in most town markets. It has no iodine. It is very cheap compared to the iodized salt sold in grocery stores. It's not that the iodized salt is really expensive, but every baht counts when you aren't earning much.

Private security guards in thailand are nothing but a joke , it is classed as a low end job with no training needed . The police need to be paid more so they concentrate on fighting / solving crimes , not just doing ' jobs ' that will make them money .

That won't do any good when they can make more through extortion than the government could ever hope to pay them in salary.

Just wanted to thank all of you for the very interesting read.

Most Central stores carry Timberland.

The rules are the rules. If they are found guilty and dissolution is mandated by law than that is what must happen. If they are found guilty and dissolution is only an option then the judges will exercise discretion and do what they feel is appropriate. If they are found not guilty then that's it, at least with respect to this case.

You're confusing a symptom with the disease. Burning Pattaya would do nothing.

You still have Bangkok, Phuket, Hua Hin, Chiang Mai.

... and Kanchanaburi, Cha-am, Samui, Koh Chang, Koh Samet, and if you want to include the karaoke joints you have about every city in the entire country.

What else were they expecting by attacking the army?

Not to mention the year-long bombing campaign, the hospital invasion, the kidnapping, the death threats, the assassination attempts, the blocking of roads, the setting up an armed camp in the city center, the illegal search and seizure on private citizens in their cars or on foot, the terrorist grenade launch on the BTS, etc.

Blimey it would be good when you lot realise that Pattaya. Phuket, Nana and Ko Samui are not the real Thailand.

They are areas of Thailand that the lowest form of pond life congregate (Thai and Foreigner).

And that means Upstanding people like TV posters sometimes get bashed and robbed. .

Of course i am not saying that every body who lives in these places are pond life.

There are many,many Good, wholesome Thai's and Foreigner's alike who live in these places.

I think you are mistaken. There is no area that can be called 'the real Thailand'. Tourist areas are one aspect, Bangkok another. The north is quite different from the northeast. Remote rural areas are quite different from the provincial ampher muangs. The deep south is different from the rest of the south. Island life differs from mainland life. These differences are all just different aspects of 'the real Thailand'.

I was attacked by two guys with machetes near Klong Tan. It occurred at about 9 pm. Nearly lost a finger and the tip of a thumb from blocking one the machetes arcing toward my forehead. Bad business. Totally unprovoked.

I was also stabbed in the stomach with a 6 inch blade several years ago during a mugging near Saphan Kwai. Fortunately nothing vital was punctured and the wound was able to be treated with a number of stitches. I suspect it was because I, a foreigner, dared to enter one of the Thai go-go bars on Suthisan.

These things happen. My bad luck I guess.

My older brother, who also lives in Thailand, made a nasty comment to my gf (now wife) many years ago. He said, "Maybe you should leave my brother alone and go back to the rice farm to pick rice". My wife was hurt to the point of tears, which quickly turned to anger. I was quite angry as well and let him know it. He was drunk at the time and felt bad about it, but there is no taking back a comment like that. It definitely put a strain on all the interrelationships.

My wife was terribly hurt and refused to speak with him for a few years. Fortunately they reconciled, long ago, and today they are pretty good mates. My brother and I now are careful not to make any judgments or comments regarding our respective choice of girlfriends.

Does anybody's Thai wife think its a load of <deleted> with awful acting?? My wife of course loves that crap

My wife reckons it is hilarious that I waste so much time reading such crap on Thai Visa.

That's generous of your wife. Mine gets downright angry at times.

A Thai lady married to a western man for 30 years............................ has that ever happened????

Probably will never happen for you. Pretty offensive comment.

I prepare quality lessons. I prepare quality project work. I teach well, at least according to my students, their parents, and the administration. I get decent results.

What I cannot do is ensure that students do the homework on their own. What I cannot do is ensure students don't attempt to cheat. Can I improve? Of course. And I endeavor to every day.

-- snip

Well done ,I think its time for many foreigners to understand NOT to interfere in Thailand politics. After all we are only guests here . Hope this story will be set as example for the future.

What a load of rubbish. This guest thing is getting a bit lame. Many of us have been here for many years, have families here and are helping with out extended families. Are you implying that we should hand over our money and behave like little puppies? Of course everyone has to have some political views, if we did not care what was happening to our adopted home, we would be no better than animals.

It's one thing having views, it's another thing to incite hatred. There is a clear difference, and that's a person's attitude. The video clip posted portrays a particular side to both of their attitudes. Whilst we don't know them personally, it does lead one to draw their conclusions on the type of people they are, and on face value, it's not a good impression.

I agree entirely with what you are saying, about someone inciting violence. But surely, those of us who have lived here over many years, and have paid our dues are entitled to our views on what is happening in the country. This excuse of us being guests in the country is rubbish. I wonder how Thais would feel if they were treated in the same manner in the west. Double pricing, not allowed to own a house etc. etc.

Of course we are entitled to have views and express them. What we are not entitled to do is to defy a state of emergency and join an illegal demonstration that repeatedly violates the law and engages in extreme violence against security forces and civilians.

If you have a look here you will see that Thailand spends nearly 30% of the annual budget on education. This is higher than any other nation.

http://www.visualeconomics.com/how-countries-spend-their-money/

I'm afraid it's more a question of quality rather than quantity.

I've stated this before on other threads, but I personally do not believe the education system in and of itself is to blame. I believe it is the poor parenting and various aspects of Thai culture that ensures the education system fails the students. I make these statements and observations after working in Thai schools for nearly a decade.

No matter how good the teachers, resources, or materials used in the classroom, unless the students are motivated to do their homework, study for tests, and do those things necessary to learn without cheating or copying then all that time spent in schools will not achieve the desired results.

I am not saying that the education system is perfect. There is substantial room for improvement and I think most teachers and administrators, Thai and foreign alike, are trying to do just that. Sure there are some dinosaurs in the ranks who rely on poor teaching and management methodologies and get poor results. These teachers and administrators will eventually leave the field as they retire and are replaced by new ones who have been trained in more modern and effective techniques.

If you have a look here you will see that Thailand spends nearly 30% of the annual budget on education. This is higher than any other nation.

http://www.visualeconomics.com/how-countries-spend-their-money/

Nice summary.

So rather than a puppet of the military, he is a collaborator? - OK - I think it would be pretty difficult to tell the two options apart.

I think as far as the Oxford Uni thing is concerned, you have a good point. I think it would also help to look at the circles he used to hang around in at Oxford - I'm told they were basically the ultra right hoo-rah Henri set.

I believe old Boris what's-his-name the Mayor of London was one of his pals.

Anyhow I'm sure his instincts are to patronise rather than fraternise with the Thai electorate

Evidence to back up you assertions will of course be forthcoming.

Erm ... what do you want here backed up? That Abhisit went to Oxford? That he was a classmate of Boris Johnson? That Boris Johnson isn't a champagne socialist nor working class hero?

The kind relation between the Democrats and the military? That it is indeed somewhat difficult to tell it is being a puppet or collaboration apart?

That Abhisit don't fraternize with the electorate but rather stands for policies of patronizing?

For what you need 'evidence'? Where are exactly your doubts that something of it could not be true?

I probably wasn't clear. I was looking for evidence specifically of who were Abhisit's close friends during his time in the UK. I was also wondering how one is to distinguish a colleague or classmate from a close friend.

There is a further point to be made in that each person is unique. I have friends from a wide variety of political and social persuasions, ranging from ultra conservative to extremely liberal.

Deeral has made some comments on 'Abhisit's friends' on various threads. It was this that I was asking about. Mostly I was just curious what his sources were and what precisely they stated.

So rather than a puppet of the military, he is a collaborator? - OK - I think it would be pretty difficult to tell the two options apart.

I think as far as the Oxford Uni thing is concerned, you have a good point. I think it would also help to look at the circles he used to hang around in at Oxford - I'm told they were basically the ultra right hoo-rah Henri set.

I believe old Boris what's-his-name the Mayor of London was one of his pals.

Anyhow I'm sure his instincts are to patronise rather than fraternise with the Thai electorate

Evidence to back up you assertions will of course be forthcoming.

[...give the man credit, if you believe strongly in something, stand up for it...

And be willing to accept the consequences of violating the law.