GammaGlobulin

Sure. But, sometimes, The Iceman Cometh Not to your floor. Maybe we need to adjust to this new world, after the pandemic. The changes wrought by the pandemic of 1918 were also similarly gut wrenching. Years ago, over 40 years ago, I could make a call to the local shop and some guy would arrive in minutes to change a lightbulb, not in Thailand, but in Taiwan. Such a thing is impossible, these days. I expect there will be many changes following the end of this pandemic that we never would have imagined three years ago. Still, hopefully, we can just make do with less, as Buckminster Fuller suggested years ago. Thankfully, we no longer need to worry about Tuberculin Tested milk, at least in Philly.

I completely agree. Even for large orders of food from Tops weighing 100 kilograms, we always need to go down to the lobby, just for the security of other guests in our building. This is a rule that everybody abides by. But, of course, there are always ways around the rules, without compromising security. If one is too lazy to get dressed to go downstairs, then it is possible to lower a wicker basket on a rope, if the food has been prepaid, or if one just wants to lower the cash down to the delivery person. But then, there is always the risk of something going terribly wrong....

Why would you expect room service from Panda or Grab? The least you can do is to rent a condo with a doorman. Just tip your doorman USD500.00 every Christmas Eve, and he/she will carry your orders from the lobby to your door, throughout the year. By the way, how much pampering do you really need in order for you to finally feel satisfied that you are top dog? Next thing you know, there will be those here who may wish to have the Grab drivers spoonfeed them, as if they were infants or paraplegics.

No comparison! Chiang Mai will never be underwater during the next 40 years. And even during the next century, or millennium. Chiang Mai, therefore, wins, hands down. Anyway, 40 years from today, please post this topic, again.

If the OP leaves too many of his Jimmy Choo Shoes collection outside his bungalow, they might get stolen, or worse.

Good to know. Thank you. I will proceed, as usual, with or without further guidance from you, then?

The fact that he played American Football, probably says it all. "What to Know About C.T.E. in Football" The disease has been found in the brains of more than 320 former N.F.L. players. https://www.nytimes.com/article/cte-definition-nfl.html#:~:text=know about C.T.E.-,What is C.T.E.%3F,to the head have ceased. Unfortunately: "C.T.E., which can be diagnosed only posthumously, has been linked to a host of symptoms, including memory loss, depression, aggressive behavior and, sometimes, suicidal thoughts. It is a progressive disease, and the symptoms can arise long after the hits to the head have ceased." So, we will need to wait until this guy dies before we know for sure?

Yes, but you might have investigated further, as did I. He intimated that those who chose other countries should not return. I had the same question as you about what this guy actually said, until I investigated the matter further.

If Not Obama, then it must have been his wife. My memory has been playing tricks on me lately, due to the change in weather. Forgive me, please. (Or, maybe it was Abraham Lincoln who attended?) Anyway, Columbia, Harvard.. Obama ain't no white trash. Ain't no Trump, neither. Speaking of white trash.

Oh. I see. Pardon my abtuseness.

Why choose between them? Just include both on your honeymoon. But you will need to decide which will be your xiao taitai, 小太太....!

Anybody know? For no cash... Where can I get a GALAXY S22 ULTRA? This is not a joke. I need one for posting thoughts on ThaiVisa. My Note 4 has seen better days. Tks for any constructive advice, forthcoming.

Absolutely. Definitely she counts. She is ethnic Chinese. Most of my friends are Han, however.

Or, more likely, he is "one of us", an Alien who finds it more convenient to just pretend to be Canadian. You can tell that this is true just through appreciation of his otherworldly sense of humor.

YES. I do recall things starting to go downhill. I believe that this decline happened concurrently with the declining influence of the founders of Google. It's a shame, really, because..... Google was once the Shining Beacon of the Hill, of all companies, Worldwide. Such a shame, truly. I still use Google for important work, and I could not live without things like Google Docs, Sheets, Google Meet, and so much more from Google. However, even more recently, it has become most apparent that Google Search is much less useful for basic research, and it once was super useful. This is gone. This is gone, and continually deteriorating. YES, The original thrill of using Google is gone. Younger people, these days, are unable to compare today's Google with what Google once was. The thrill is GONE. I totally agree with you!

My Dear Friends, What is the LaoBaiXing, anyway? “Baixing (Chinese: 百姓; pinyin: bǎixìng; lit. 'hundred surnames') or lao baixing (Chinese: 老百姓; lit. 'old hundred surnames') is a traditional Chinese term, meaning "the people" or "commoners."[1][2] The word "lao" (Chinese: 老; lit. 'old') is often added as a prefix before "baixing".[3] A confederation of tribes living along the Yellow River were the ancestors of what later became the Han ethnic group in China.[4][5] Several large tribes, including the Huangdi tribes (Chinese: 黄帝族), Yandi tribes (Chinese: 炎帝族), and the Yi tribes, formed an alliance that consisted of roughly 100 tribes. This alliance is the origin of the baixing (Chinese: 百姓) or the "hundred surnames." Around 2,000 Han Chinese surnames are currently in use, but 19 of these surnames are used by about half of the Han Chinese people. About 87% of the population shares 100 surnames.” Knowing what we now know about the predicament of the Chinese People, just how much empathy do you feel for the average commoner in China, today? As for me, I have spent most of my life in Greater China. Most of my friends are Chinese. It bugs me, year upon year, when I see the commoners in China making the best of a very bad situation that never needed to happen, if only the guy with the Little Red Book had not taken power in 1949. After so many years, since soon after World War Two, so many lives, so much human life has been completely wasted. Now we are seeing a sudden, though probably temporary, resurgence in activism and protest in China. This is a symptom of the great frustration felt by people who just want safety, security, a modicum of freedom, and a better life for their families. But, how would you feel if you were forced to live in such circumstances as those in China? Could you hack it as well as the average man in China? My guess is probably not. You would probably totally FREAK OUT and go Bonkers. So many foreigners do, when they are forced to live in the same conditions as the LaoBaiXing. Most foreigners in China live very privileged lives, and they always have an escape plan for when the going gets too tough. These days, during recent years, the repression of basic and simple freedoms is increasing. And, living one’s life under such conditions is really not so easy. Therefore: Don’t you feel great sorrow and empathy for the LaoBaiXing? I know that I do. Life is truly TOUGH, my friends; please believe me. Here in Thailand, by comparison, everybody lives a relatively charmed life. There is no question, really, concerning this fact. You would not disagree with this statement if you were compelled to spend 10 years in China, in some random city, and in some random socioeconomic level of existence in China. You gotta actually live there to understand what life is like in China. And, you gotta live like a LaoBaiXing, and not as a foreigner. Sorry for this overly-long piece of scribbling, but I got carried away with this topic. However, if you really want to know: The question posed in this Topic is…. Do you believe that any amount of activism and protest engaged in by the Chinese People will be enough to significantly alter life in China, one inch? Personally, I believe that the powers that be in China now have such rigid and complete control over the People that no amount of activism will have any appreciable positive impact on the lives of the commoners, the LaoBaiXing. Don’t you feel sorry for these people? Can’t you empathize and cry more for the downtrodden 1.2 billion people who are now under the thumb? I love Chinese culture, and I know many people living in Taiwan, Hong Kong and China. They all want the same thing. They want to be left alone to improve their lot in life, and that of their next generation. They want education. They want a better life for their children. They would sacrifice almost anything for the betterment of their children’s future. But…No matter what they do… Under the present regime… Their lot in life may not change, appreciably… Don’t you cry for them, sometimes,... Knowing their lot in life? Best regards, GammaG

I hope you are, indeed, referring to nothing more than an infection of your staff, which is usually easily curable, and not a more serious staph infection, some strains of which can be life-threatening. Or, maybe you are just dealing with an infection of activism among your staff at work as they beg for higher wages during this inflationary economy we are all experiencing?

Nice to see you back in fine fiddle, and also that you have still not lost your form.

To the OP, if I may be so bold as to address you directly: Concerning the recent spike in activism in China, will you start a new Topic addressing this? Or, should I? I know you can write a better Topic about Chinese activism than I. Your serve, your honors, Sir. Will you have at it?

Sure. You are allowed. In the UK, they say coloured. In America, they said The colored. Not just a matter of spelling. Plenty of activism devoted to the word colored in recent years.

Regarding Ingrid and Ingmar, isn't it true that the Bergmans were always better in Black and White?

But, what about, Peter Lorre Eyes? I cannot get enough of Peter.

Farang does not mean Foreigner! For example, Indians are foreigners. But in passa Thai, Indians are not Farang. Indians, in passa Thai, are Kek. I'm sure you can understand the logic of this. If not, then just spend an hour searching on Google Scholar.

Let's please just wait and see how this issue continues to evolve over the next two years.

Of course, I agree with you 100 percent! We are absolutely doomed by immutable human behavior which, in turn, is directed by hardwired characteristics integral to the structure and evolution of the human brain. 100 percent, I agree with you.