LetsGoJoe

So why has Sweden suddenly become the crusader of 'cash-protection'? 

A few months back a book became available for free-download to the public domain called The Great Taking, by David Rogers Webb, a very dark prediction of what may come to pass in the global financial markets, in the not so distant future. This book has apparently seriously spooked the investment & portfolio management world. The author is an American who moved to Sweden and bought a small farm. In 2011 he had a meeting with the Swedish Minister and State Secretary for Financial Markets outlining the disturbing patterns arising in the financial markets and the apparent sinister objective being pursued. Connecting the dots now, I have to wonder if this 'cash-protection' scheme from the Swedes is directly or indirectly related to the author and his book..?

It's a disturbing read, recommended to anyone who is concerned about protecting their financial future.

The Swiss are really making the news lately.....not in a good way either.

I went to a Cannabis Symposium is CM recently where a big player in the industry was giving a talk on the pending change in regulation. He says it will happen and would be at least 1yr for any sort of implementation to begin. This guy (American) has 15 cannabis shops on Sukhumvit alone and said whichever way the regulation goes he is not concerned as he was originally set-up as a "medicinal" store front and still employs the key personnel.

1 hour ago, mikebell said:

From the article you quote:

 

'It offers great advice on masks that protect us from PM2.5, soot or wildfire smoke. But then it says this this about surgical masks:'

I bought a pak(6) of 3M-KN95 masks specifically for the burning-season, inexpensive, comfortable and rated for PM2.5. So far, the breezy-conditions and perhaps the new "rule" of needing a fire-permit 😁 has been keeping the AQI at a fair level here in Chiang Mai.....so far.

11 hours ago, steven100 said:

you can't tell the truth here ...  If your hotel is dirty,  or the service isn't good ... you can't say anything. ...

if you go to a restaurant and the meal was well below what should have been provided, or the table waiter is rude or the service is non-existent ....  you can't say anything. 

 

you must lie .... 😂

No....you just smile and leave.

It's still been unusually chilly in the mornings here in CM, much like winter.....the days, however are definitely summer-temps but with clear blue skies....the "smoke-season" has yet to show up. strange indeed, but very pleasant....so far.

There's this line from one of Leonard Cohen's songs: "Everybody got this broken feeling, Like their father or their dog just died". ......my Dad just passed a few days ago at 95, my Brother is thinking of deferring the funeral to May when me and the Fam go back to Canada....."broken feeling"?......nope, more like "the ship just came in feeling"....Thanks Dad!!....I'll have more than one on you 🙏

18 hours ago, jossthaifarang said:

This guy has mental issues, he doesn't belong in jail, he belongs in a mental institution

.....or back to where he came from... The Great Woke North 😁

On 12/29/2023 at 4:39 AM, Deserted said:

What was it over I wonder?

Perhaps a case of a Chicken trying to get to the other side of the road on a cross-walk.....not always an easy task on Beach Road.

Not only are there Chinese police, but Chinese police STATIONS in Canada!....not to mention the military as well.

The world is their oyster....it would seem.

On 3/13/2023 at 6:59 PM, NorthernRyland said:

What kind of burning are you talking about exactly? I live in the north and spend lots of times in the mountains and I don't see the hill tribes burning those steep plots like you're mentioning. I do see them burning the forests for foraging and general rubbish though which is the cause of most of the smoke I believe. The general squalor of the Hmong is pretty pathetic in general but that's their fault and if you held them to higher standards it would help everyone.

 

Anyways, why should we be so concerned about these particular peoples needs and lack of ability? This literally affects millions of people so I find it hard to find any sympathy for them.

 

 

Have you been to Tak?....a few years back I did a motorcycle trip; CM-Mae Sot -Sukohthai-CM, took a nice back road off the 105 that ran east, parallel to Hyw 12 from Mae Sot. Beautiful green and lush mountains all around for many kms, then suddenly, what appears like a lunar landscape, yet mountainous, opens up in front of us. As far as the eye can see are denuded hills - it was jaw dropping,we had to stop to take it in. The sheer Hercules hand & foot machete labor involved in the forest destruction of whole mountain-sides was impressive to imagine. As we continued to ride through this area we only saw a hand-full of hills that had active crops on them, the vast majority appeared to be abandoned or rendered infertile after likely only a few crop rotations, which assumed to be mostly corn. We saw people working the harvest, sacking and rolling bundles of corn down the hillside to a fleet of waiting trucks.

So who's responsible for this age old slash and burn farming practice?

None other than the Hmong, who are well know to be the most systematically environmentally destructive Tribe in the hills. They are not all poor and squalored.

Many are very well organized and financed by big corps. such as CP to grow the crops on scale that they want... the environment be damned.

The area we rode through that day is only a fraction of the environmental destruction in Tak province, and it continues as they are forced to move to the next mountain as the top soil is quickly exhausted of its nutrients. So the clearing and the burning follow suit.

The Hmong are not solely to blame, they are only availing opportunity handed to them from Big Corp. and made possible from the blind-eyes of the gov. and local forest management - Corruption 101.

This just reflects one of many issues that contribute to the overall poor air quality. With agriculture taking up 49% of land-use in Thailand the AQI problem is not likely to be resolved anytime soon....or later.

Chiang Mai has become infamous over the years for obvious reasons, but to be fair look at a fire map or have a peak at the AQI of other provinces, it becomes obvious that not only is the entire upper-half of the country a smouldering fire-pit but the neighboring countries as well. If the CM Gov. were able to completely stop man-made burning within the province, CM-city, being in a basin, would likely still fill-up with smoke. There are numerous places like Pai or Mae Hong Song for example that are by far consistently worst than Chiang Mai, they are not on the international radar as is BKK & CM.

In short, the burning IS far worst in Thailand than indicated from the PM2.5 in CM.

As an avid motorcyclist for decades here I have come to refer the Toyota Commuter vans as 'Death on Wheels'.

A relatively new scourge on the hwys are the hopped-up Iszuz pickup trucks that transport farm produce - very aggressive drivers.

Geeze!...I left my ???? in 2021....guess I'll be stay'n home again this new years. ???????? ......????

From what I understand, "cashless" is not 'cash-free' entirely.....the Gov. mentioned to keep smaller notes in circulation to maintain the cash-driven grass-root markets that are a vital source of survival for many in this lop-sided economic realm.

Pure digital-currency is a profoundly bad idea.....except for those who control it.

22 hours ago, Dogmatix said:

Anutin doesn't really want more restrictions or medical only, like he says,  but he needs a solution that will satisfy conservatves and head off the pressure for recriminalisation that would be a disaster for him and his supporters with huge investments in the industry.

mmm....who would of thought there is a direct 'vested-interest' in the industry by top Gov. employees!  ????

At tourist central in Chiang Mai is a Turkish joint, run for years by 'little-Mohamed', who's staff are all Pakistan or Bangladeshi Muslims. He is very aggressive with his business and told us that his staff are all on "special" permits. ????

4 hours ago, nobodysfriend said:

 

That chinese writing on the shop makes it just too obvious ...

I'm assuming the logic in use is..."for Chinese, by Chinese"....where's the problem...???????

I wonder now if Sheesha is going to be included into the government line of approved-logic...??

Geeze, that klong-water is already over-priced!!

On 6/17/2022 at 7:23 AM, Bert got kinky said:

 

Yes, they are reporting about it on thairesidents.com with the headline 'Fight erupt as customers wait to buy marijuana.'.

I strikes me that there are quite a few on this board who underestimate how popular the decriminalization of cannabis is with the Thai public.

 

 

Is the excitement in regards to ganja being a  potential 'new' money-maker or is it for personal-consumption?

My experience and understanding of 'local' Thai people (my neck of the woods) over the years is that 'fire-water' and amphetamine (younger-crowd) is about as wide as the intoxication pendulum swings.

I've never been asked to 'score' nor have I ever seen any Thai smoking. Ya, of course my circle isn't very wide, but you'd think after 15yrs here I'd come upon it at some point, since I do partake myself.. My overall impression is that this has always been a country of alcoholics .

On 6/15/2022 at 6:29 PM, jollyhangmon said:

 

... here the current leader with a solid 1000B per g ... gettin' a bit ridiculous, fancy names though, 555 ...

 

 

Ridiculous, yes!...right up there with the 1000b hand-job...but,hey, whatever the market will bare, ...the Ganja GoldRush is on !!!