bob smith

if a copper ever asked to see my passport on the street out here i would initially decline and continue walking. if he pursued me i would whip my phone out and start to film him for my own safety, asking him why he is stopping a random person on the street who isnt committing any sort of crime and why he thinks this is appropriate behavior. if he still insists to see my documents at this point i will then get out my photocopied documents that i always carry with me, all legal and up to date and tell him that if he ever bothers me on the street again for no reason I will put in a formal complaint with his superior at the station he is based. it goes without saying that I would never even engage with a police officer without knowing his name, badge number and station.

and i've heard the thai apologist whines for about the same time too. some people never swap the rose tinted glasses for a pair of real ray-bans ????

i sometimes wonder when these democratically elected western officials pose for pictures with authoritarian despots, do they really know the whole backstory of what is going on in the country and how they came to power? this kind of thing isnt good for any democratic leaders PR profile in the long run.

what does it matter if it is 1 or 101? the police are once again being far too heavy handed and putting people off coming here by their tough guy approach. who wants to holiday in a police state?? I know I wouldnt.

they never do mate. you can lead a horse to water.....

the following excerpt from the article above would suggest otherwise: " Some of the foreigners were unable to present their passports and they were taken to the Pattaya Police Station for questioning."

great advertisement for potential holidaymakers this high season. "come to Thailand, where you will be treated as a potential criminal the minute you step foot off the plane. oh, and don't forget to leave a big tip before you leave." the morons in charge haven't got a bleedin' clue!!

regarding all the negativity about england goin out early etc, correct me if im wrong but last 2 competitions we have got a final and a semi. granted our friendly games recently have been shambolic but competitively we have been raising the bar.. sod it, COME ON ENGLAND!!!!! ????

i agree. i watched his speech in full yesterday and he was just making a load of excuses. seems his pockets have been well and truly filled by Qatari backhanders..

according to your profile you are based in bangkok. traffic is pretty bad too there i heard ????

the one that will be on tv tonight! ????

im sure many around the world are interested. its my own personal demographic that isnt, which is strange because they are all mad on football.

with all the horrific controversies surrounding the games it seems hardly anyone is up for the world cup this year. i think in hindsight it was a terrible idea to host it in Qatar, with their appalling human rights record and relative size of the country. most of my thai buddies arent really bothered either, strange cos they are usually football mad. same with my buddies back home, they are all really deflated about the whole thing. im personally looking forward to watching 2 games of soccer a day. if anything it is an excuse to have a beer and escape reality for a few hours. I will be watching the opening game tonight at 11pm. how about you lot? do you even care about the world cup this year? do you think it was a good idea to host the games in Qatar? i know this post isnt thai related but as we are able to watch the games free here now i thought it would be a good discussion to have on opening day.

Thailand, the perpetual nation of 'becoming', never actually 'being.'

Not sure what the OP is going on about here. I got the 99. Baht special today and it was D lishuss! maybe you woke up a bit too late today m8. Hard lines, try again another time.

I feel your paint right now mate. I really do

did clinton put a gun to peoples heads and force them to take out subprime mortages?? no, of course not. it was the yanks biting off more than they can chew which led to the economy almost collapsing. exaclty the same thing is happening here right now. many thais want to live a lifestyle that is beyond their means and the bubble will burst soon enough.

private debt is what caused the economic crisis of 2007/2008. debt is debt and is a bad thing, public or private makes no difference.

its all the same thing.

dont be daft. how about here?? since you are talking about debt ridden. close to 90% household debt now... the clock is ticking.

i didnt say that, did I? there are many muslim people that live in the UK and pay their way and have a good life. good on them. but those who are crossing the channel by the hundreds daily in their rubber dingys ARE economic migrants and refugees. they are in search of a better life leaving their own war torn countries behind. They are not econmic contributors but are only looking for benefits. maybe one day they will become contributors to the UK economy, but most of them will end up living in a flat funded by UK tax payers with 50/60 others refugees. im not saying this is right or wrong, im just saying that I am not one of them.

the USA is hardly bankrupt lol. they are the biggest economy on the planet.

it is kinda the truth tho, innit?

No. Because in the UK economic migrants, i.e muslims get state handouts when they attain refugee status. I bring money into this country, pay my taxes and contribute to the economy. Big difference.

you can say that again mate. im thinking of going in and staring at my screen for 8 hours tomorrow instead of actually doing any work. maybe then i will be accepted into the fold.