jaywalker2

The current restrictions have had no effect on either alcohol consumption or traffic fatalities.

apartments

A "cashless" society is just a way for the big financial institutions to screw you -- guranteed. Right now in Thailand, you can transfer money for free online but not using an ATM. That' s an enticement of course. Once you get enough people going cashless, just watch the service charges increase. You'll lose on the fees and the exchange rates (if you're using an foreign card). And they can keep increasing those fees because you won't be able to do anything about it. How much is the charge on a credit card now? 2 or 3 percent? Prepaid debit cards in the US can charge as much as 5 percent. Only with cash do you know exactly what you're paying.

I've been locked down by Facebook twice in the past two weeks. No explanation in either case other than the generic "suspcious activity."

You're like a frog being boiled in water. Just look at what Canada did to the truckers during the Covid 19 protests.;.

Me speak good English kimosabe

No, there's no longer any penalty for for not buying health insurance. The Republicans did away that just after Trump took office.

I also liked it very much. Based on a true story, it doesn't really aim at being realistic. All of the Indians speak perfect English, for example. But despite the mannered presentation, I found it quite an emotional experience. And I think I'm in love with Emily Blunt.

It is pretty bad but it's a Dwayne Johnson/DC superhero movie so you should know what to expect. That said, the CGI is okay.

Most amusing was Thomas' justification for striking down gun laws. He opined that no laws could be constitutional that did not exist at the time the Constitution was promulgated.

I had two implants and, like you, was anxious about the surgery. It turned out to be much less arduous than a root canal.

I always love these quotes. Stuffed in a freezer, mouth duct taped -- but other than that there were no suspcious circumstances.

I quit coffee for a few months and switched to chamomile tea. Now I've gone back to coffee. I haven't noticed any difference either way.

Market fundamentals haven't mattered much for some time as Central Bank policies have been driving the market. If the FED stops raising rates, the market will probably surge. If it continues tightening, expect more volatility, Stocks aren't cheap but, as I said, nobody has cared about valuations in a long time except old timers. That said, I watched a podcast between Howard Marx and Joel Greenbatt. Marx was talking about how his investor son-in-law had convinced hm that valuations didn't matter for faangs because they were going to keep growing at 20 to 30 percent indefinitely. Since then, Amazon has lost a trillion dollars in market cap. META is down 70 percent. The only faang that has held up fairly well is Apple, which is only down around 15 percent. Is Meta a bargain now? How about Amazon? I have no idea. Chinese tech stocks have been killed even worse. The Shanghai stock market has surged 26 percent in the last couple of weeks and if history is any guide there's more to come. But, as the man said, "Do you feel lucky, punk?" Look at all the people who have been wiped out buying tech and crypto and yet there still hasn't been any capitulation (as can be seen from this forum). That's what scares me.

Now. What happens if QR codes become ubiquitous? If cashless stores become the norm? If two-factor authentication using a phone becomes compulsory? If you need some form of digital payment system to make simple payments? Maybe this won't happen for 5 or 10 years but this is certainly where we're headed. The Thai government just announced it.

That's exactly what they want to get rid of, all those aspects of the underground economy that they don't control. It doesn't matter that you like cash. Modern governments don't care what its citizens want. They only care about what expands their power base. QR codes, digital payment systems, digital I.D's. Thailand has already tried to implement most of these things, it's just that their level of technology at the government level isn't very good . But that's the direction modern societes are moving in. The motto of the Great Reset: You will own nothing and you will have no privacy but you will be happy.

They're already required to make public their stock trades but what does it matter if their are no restrictions on what trades they can make: There are no insider trading laws for members of congress.

Yes, of course. Members of congress should not be in a position to benefit financially from their policy decisions.

It's been all over the Internet. The stock trades of Paul Pelosi in advance of policy decisions by Congress even motivated a bill to ban stock trading by congress people and their spouses (A vote was blocked by Pelosi). Just one example: https://www.businessinsider.com/nancy-pelosi-stock-trades-congress-investments-2022-7

And an even more amazing job of enriching herself through the highly suspect stock trades of her husband. I, for one, am glad she's gone. It's time to get rid of these octogenarians.

In China, you have to get an okay from a QR code before you can travel, shop, do just about anything.

It's not whether you have a smart phone but whether you want to be tied to your phone in everything you do. Everything you do from accessing the Internet to all your financial services are becoming dependent on that damn phone.

It's going to be fun times when a solar flare or emp attack knocks out the grid. Sooner or later it's bound to happen.

My girlfriend contacted the one we went to before and she said it's still in business in Lat Prao between sois 61 and 63. So the government shops haven't closed just the one she used to use. Come to think of it, I might go and have a new pair made.

I read a lot of books --strictly ebooks though. I haven't read a physical book in years. I don't read as much as when I was young but that's to be expected I guess. I think most people probably read a lot, only they're skimming Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and online forums. These distractions are a waste of time but most people seem to prefer them to more productive activities.