MangoKorat

Do you see it changing anytime soon? I don't, not without a civil war to rid the country of the current military and I really don't think the downtrodden Thai people have the stomach for that. Jeez I'd absolutely love to be wrong. Not that I want to see war but I really think Thailand deserves a real democracy where all have the chance to develop and progress. I just don't see it happening without one. One thing I find slightly different now - since a certain person died, is that more people are prepared to come out and say they are being used, being denied real self governance and all that goes with it.

I'll bet a pound to a penny the woman had money.

I've had enough 'morning' shocks thank you. I now demand to see them without make up before agreeing to a date. ????

Never.........really? We can all feel so much safer knowing the BIB can 'discover' such things.

???? How do do work that out? Some parents will have sufficient but many parents, I'd say the vast majority, will only have enough money to last a matter of weeks. Have you any idea how much the Thai state pension is for someone who has earned below the tax threshold all their lives? I know one woman who receives 900 baht per month - how could anyone live on that? Many have never paid Social Security. Its easy to say they should have - we are not in their position.

I was asked to pay what I considered a large amount to marry my 21 year old uni graduate girlfriend. I spoke to her mother who said Sin Sod was part of Thai culture and asked me if I respected that. I told her I did, but would she in return, show respect for my culture where Sin Sod doesn't exist and agree to 50/50? She would not so I told her that she could not say she respected my culture However, this woman, the mother, was a genuinely good person and not at all the sort that was out to rip me off. I am still in touch with with my ex MIL to this day - 15 years and a divorce later. For some odd reason the matter of Sin Sod was never mentioned again, I was never asked for it so obviously never paid it. Just as well really as the marriage didn't last long. Knowing what I know now and the strange fact that Sin Sod was never mentioned again, I suspect my now ex wife had a lot to do with the amount asked. Amongst Thai's, some see it as part of the culture but many these days, seem to regard it as an old fashioned tradition. Most of the couples I know that have married in the last 10 years or so, have had had the Sin Sod handed back after the marriage - it was purely for show. I know of one foreigner who was living in Thailand and refused to pay Sin Sod for his girlfriend so they were not allowed to get married - at least not with the parents blessing. The couple decided to just live together and are still together to this day. Its an emotive subject and whilst Sid Sod is a part of Thai culture (a dying part IMHO) - the motives for it are often part of an entirely different tradition - the tradition of 'Farang Milking'. In this case the guy should simply say, I love your daughter, I want to be with her, I will take care of her and raise a family with her but I am not paying Sid Sod. The reaction will speak volumes. One thing we all should remember though - there is no effective 'safety net' in Thailand so to speak, pensions are usually painfully low etc. etc. The daughter will be expected to 'take care' of her parents in their retirement - if you marry a Thai, you become part of that commitment too.

No 'might' about it.

It doesn't really matter what contributes to PC. Again, I would remind you, I am now and have throughout this thread, referred to people who already have PC or have not been checked. If they have it, testosterone can be dangerous. Therefore, I believe it would be sensible for anyone who is considering taking any form of testosterone, to be checked for PC before doing so.

Thank you.

Again you are promoting views that claim its OK for Prostate Cancer patients to take testosterone. For every website that makes such claims, there are a hundred oncologists that would strongly disagree.

You should not take anything for granted. Testosterone, in all its forms is readily available online and over the counter in Thailand. As men get older and 'certain parts' don't work as well as they used to - some men will believe the glossy ads they read that tell them testosterone will turn them into a stud again. Some also take it to aid building muscle. If that person has Prostate Cancer without knowing it - they can be causing themselves a great deal of harm.

What you need to realise is that many members 'skim read' - what they are likely to read into your wrongful dismisal of my post is that I was wrong. As evidence, I would suggest that you also 'skim read' my post because nowhere did I talk about testosterone increasing the risk of Prostate Cancer. What I said was that people should get checked for the disease before they consider taking testosterone. To that end I would repeat: Before taking any form of testosterone, men, especially those over 50, should get checked for Prostate Cancer. Many of you reading this will actually have PC now and not know about it - some may never know they have it. The majority of men that get PC, get a low grade of the disease. Taking hormones like testosterone can increase the activity of an existing cancer. However, if like me, you are found to have an agressive form of the disease and you take testosterone, it can be very dangerous. When I was first diagnosed with PC my oncologist told me I absolutely must not take any testosterone or medications containing it. Even now, 8 years later when my cancer is dormant, my oncologist says I should not even consider testosterone.

Actually my diet is fine - I attended to that a few years back due to other health issues.

Disgraceful, you should not spread disinformation! Especially when its disinformation that concerns one of the biggest killers of men over 50. I said nothing about the 'risk' of Prostate Cancer, I said people should get checked for it before taking any form of testosterone. Many people have PC for years without realising it. Do you have PC? I do and I can tell you that testosterone feeds PC. Its not exactly that but that's the easiest way to describe it. That is why Hormone Therapy is used as a treatment for those with low grade PC and as part of the treatment for those with higher grades of the disease. Hormones, usually female, for want of a better term are given in order to block the body's production of testosterone. This information is not from any so called website, its from personal experience. I had over 2 years of hormone therapy - 6 months before Radio Therapy and around 19 months afterwards. The doctors wanted me to have 3 years worth but its not particularly easy to deal with and I stopped it early. That's from personal experience but if you want to quote websites - there are thousands that explain treatments including Hormone Therapy. 'Most prostate cancer cells rely on testosterone to grow. Hormone therapy causes prostate cancer cells to die or to grow more slowly.' https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/hormone-therapy-for-prostate-cancer/about/pac-20384737

I'm no doctor but I wouldn't mess about with blood pressure - I just learned the hard way. A couple of months back my GP told me my BP was a bit high and that I should monitor it for 2 weeks at home and get back to him with the results. He said I might have to go onto medication as I was at risk of having a stroke. My BP wasn't massively high - can't remember exactly but something like 144/90. I agreed I'd order a machine and carry out the monitoring - I did get the machine but was 'getting round' to doing the monitoring. Long and short - last week I went dizzy at work and had to sit down for a while. Next day when I got out of bed, I couldn't stand up without falling over. All my movements seemed much faster than they really were and my legs wouldn't go where I wanted them to - thought I was just tired so had another 3 hours sleep, woke up, got out of bed - same again but worse. Eventually spent the entire day in hospital having brain scans, ECG's etc. to finally be told that I'd had 2 T.I.A.s (mini strokes). My BP 4 hours after the T.I.A.s was 185/125. I'm now on medication forever - not a problem. I consider myself lucky - it could have been far worse - my father had a massive stroke at 56, lost the sight in one eye, never walked again without a stick etc. etc. Being on meds is a small price to pay I guess. By the way, anyone taking testosterone should make sure they don't have Prostate Cancer first - testosterone feeds Prostate Cancer.

Don't see the point in being in a relationship if either partner is going to 'play away'. If that's what either of you want, there's no shortage of willing partners in Thailand. Just stay single and have a ball.

Real Gentlemen's clubs exist just about everywhere in Thailand. However, you need to be Thai or the guest of a Thai to gain entry. The portion of 'The Business' that we, as foreigners see, is minute compared to what actually goes on in its various guises. Even if you were to locate one of those clubs and gain admission, I doubt you'd wish to pay even the extortionate drinks prices, let alone anything else. Thai's pay because in general rich Thai's are far richer than rich foreigners + they think they gain major face by paying ridiculous prices. I'll give you one clue if you're hell bent on finding one - many of the high end golf clubs have one.

Agreed. I used to have 2 passports and on one occasion was able to see the I.O.'s computer screen. All my entries on both passports were shown. This was pre fingerprint days so I guess the two were linked via other passport details. Now that you have to provide fingerprints on entry, the system, provided it wasn't written by somebody's brother in law, should pick up any entry you've made on any passport.

This could get interesting. According to a mate who tried to do business with the Thai military a few years back the price of whatever has to be inflated to allow for the 'return' of some of it - if you get my drift. Apparently that part of the 'transaction' takes place at the ordering stage. Should they need to cancel the sub deal or change it as per the potential 'barter deal' they are suggesting, the sub manufacturer will only be able to return the portion of the deposit that they actually have - the rest having been 'returned'.

7000 baht fitted for a power steering rack is mega cheap compared to UK prices - Thai prices take some getting used to but I think that's still a good price. If there's any play in the bushes on your existing rack, new seals will be wrecked in a short time. Some bushes can be replaced without stripping the rack and sometimes come as part of a kit - bushes and seals. However, at 220,000km on Thai roads, I think I'd be replacing the rack as per Transam's suggestion but have you checked out the Nissan price? I've been very surprised at Thai dealer prices on two occasions in the last few years - 6500 baht for a Honda Civic brake master cylinder compared to a UK dealer price of around 15,000. Then, I wanted a lockset for my bike - ignition, tank and seat. Due to potential language problems at Korat I decided to buy a lockset back in the UK, that was until the Kawasaki dealer quoted me £407 (19,000 baht)!! I got a set back in Thailand for just over £140 (6200 baht). Worth checking the dealer price - you could be surprised. Alternatively, try GP Autoparts in Bangkok - they can usually offer aftermarket or OE parts for most cars at superb prices and have an English speaker available. Used them a few times and they've been excellent - original Mazda pick up front bumper (in Mazda packaging) - 2000 baht and in stock! https://www.gpautoparts.co.th/en/home-page Any of you guys that have a Chevrolet - GP are the only official parts stockist in Thailand now and they've had everything that I've wanted in stock.

The green pipe is of far superior quality - I used them when I installed my hot water system because the blue pipe is not suitable for hot water. I'm sure they are not too difficult to use in a new build but they are a real, and I mean real, PITA to use in a suspended ceiling or any other confined space. The reason is that joints, elbows and t's etc. are 'welded' to the pipe using an electric 'welding' machine. To use that without burning yourself (especially) in a confined space, you would actually need 3 hands. Being a poor man, only equiped with 2 hands, my arms were quite badly burned by the time I'd finished my house. Still, being the stupid farang who insisted on having hot water, I shouldn't complain too loudly. I learned to make up as many runs as possible on the floor before installation but that is not always possible. The green pipe is not cheap when compared to the cheap and nasty blue solvent weld stuff, nor is the welding machine but at least I have that for my next project ????.

I can't speak for Thailand because every country seems to use their own plumbing systems but 3/4" and 1/2" is pretty standard in UK domestic water systems. The size however, is where the similarity ends. Pipework in the UK is either copper or plastic push fit. Copper using soldered joints and compression fittings - plastic using matching plastic push fit joints - although joints exist that take copper to plastic. I've never seen the elbows in your photo used in a domestic water system - usually used for gas.

Maybe by an engineer. In terms water pipe, (for the most part) joints use the external size in order that common joints can be used. I've been buying 15mm and 22mm copper pipe most of my life in one way or another and I've never heard anyone call it copper tube. This was a simple request, can we not turn it into the usual AN fight?

Thanks for that - exactly what I was looking for. If I'm reading that correctly an 18mm (internal) pipe measures 22mm externally give or take .15mm for a standard pipe?? The internal measurement then reducing according to what quality of pipe is selected (PVC 5, 7, 8.5 etc).