sidneybear

The last time I had any of those problems was with an old Morris Minor. It belonged to my mum and I used to fix it for her in exchange for driving lessons and driving it around after I passed my test. That was back in the 80's. ICE cars are incredibly reliable these days.

Which takes a whole 5 minutes, and you're good for the next 500 kms.

Eeeew, someone got out of bed on the wrong side this morning. I'm not an English teacher, although I do have a great amount of respect for the teaching profession.

Certainly EVs are fast until the battery goes flat. They sound a bit like a washing machine though, give me that visceral snarl of a turbo any day.

All good points you eloquently make, although I'd differ on a couple. Firstly, saying that you're aligned with the UK conservative party doesn't really reveal much, because the UK conservative party these days is merely a marketing machine that has no politics or ideology of its own whatsoever. It merely morphs parasitically onto whatever fads or band wagons it thinks will get it short term support, and I'd challenge you to name a single conservative thing that it's done in recent years, decades even. Secondly, I do understand that liberal minded westerners are affronted by the way Thailand goes about its politics and its methods of ejecting bad actors from its political system. Many will cry foul and point to their own countries as role models, although they're not really role models at all, given that parties that call themselves conservative (see above) have themselves been usurped by the Left and are no longer conservative at all. What kind of democracies are these really? In Thailand's case, the end justifies the meas: yes, it's messy, but the outcome is a well ordered and safe society that we all enjoy living in, along with its charmingly preserved culture and traditions. Thirdly, we shouldn't underestimate the power of Thailand's institutions. There have been changes at the top, but Thais are fiercely loyal to the uniform and the sovereign, regardless of the humans who occupy these positions. Any dissent against this is rightly struck down, along with any politicians who tries to exploit such dissent and incite division for political gain.

I wish you all the very best of luck trying to live in Thailand then. You'll need it.

All true, but I do wonder why anyone would live in a country, in old age, where they can't afford medical treatment. It's only a matter of time before we blow a gasket, after all. I do agree that patience might be wearing thin on westerners though, especially given the amount of preaching the west does, while failing dismally to keep its own house in order. Thais don't like that, which is why I'm always polite and respectful towards them.

Do you have one? I'm genuinely curious. And yes, that 270 HP of unabashed materialism does make me smile when I put my foot down.

Of course you're right that a government thar hates foreigners could get everyone kicked out or fleeing Idi Amin style. Thailand has always been a tolerant place though, so I think that scenario is highly unlikely. Most of the rule changes this far have been incremental, but I wouldn't advise anyone to up sticks and live in any country where they can only just meet minimum visa requirements. People should be over these minimums by a very substantial margin before they consider retiring abroad.

Thailand has pathways to PR and citizenship, which is something that many other countries don't offer. Those on temporary visas must show that they can support themselves, and those that can never seem to have any problems staying on. Only the borderline cases, those with just enough money to qualify for visas, are at risk from rule changes.

Thanks for your concern, and that's not a bad idea.

Well, the newspapers here are full of stories about: people getting stranded; range anxiety; people waiting hours queuing for charging looking longingly at others filing up with petrol in 5 minutes; people wishing they hadn't bought one; people complaining about the astronomical prices of replacement batteries, and; people complaining about massive depreciation on second hand sales. You enjoy your EV, if you actually have one. I'll stick to my 270 HP turbo ICE that I can drive 500 km and fill up in five minutes.

Show me an industry that doesn't lobby and donate to governments. They all do it, but the green industry is awash with subsidies and venture capital at the moment, until governments on the receiving end get forced out.

That's why extended families exist in Thailand, and are such a nice way of caring for the elderly and repaying them for all the sacrifices they made back in the day.

I agree that EVs may be practical for shopping and short runs, until you have to spend more than the car is worth on a replacement battery. Make sure you don't try to sell it second hand too, because it will be worthless.

They're being propped up by various carrot and stick government policies at the moment. Wait and see what happens when the public realises the true cost of Nut Zero and start throwing their governments out.

The only question is whether the military or judiciary does it. Looks like the judiciary had fired the first shot.

Well, the sky hasn't fallen in yet.

True, Thailand is a good place to be. I don't understand why so many frothing Liberals, lefties and pensioners here think that the sky is falling in. They should try living back in the west - people are having to choose between heating and eating.

That's a fact. Most of them are sad cases, so whinging is all they do.

Most politicians do marketing and PR, but at least he spent the time to show up.

Stock up on popcorn.

Spot on. EVs are a rich man's toy, and do nothing to save the planet.

I think you've hit the nail on the head there.

Masonic handshakes generally aren't used in everyday life. They're one of the modes of recognition when asked specifically to prove that you're a Mason, when you turn up at a Lodge where you're not known, for example.