Somjot

1 hour ago, Evil Penevil said:

This is the crux of our disagreement.  I see the actions taken by the IDF in Gaza as necessary for the defense of the Jewish homeland.  The nature of urban warfare and Hamas' policy of hiding its members and weapons among the civilian population are responsible for civilian deaths.  It's Hamas, not Israel and the IDF, which should be condemned for the suffering of civilians in Gaza.

If the protection of a homeland, no matter from which people, demands the intentional execution of children by shots in the head and the chest, the murdering and burying of help workers, the raping of prisoners, the execution of starving people begging for food, then maybe one day the question might come up if that homeland is really worth it

1 hour ago, Evil Penevil said:

 

If a member of AN supports Hamas' stated goal of destroying Israel, then that should be made clear.  If they are unknowingly  aiding Hamas through posts condemning Israel, then I'm right in trying to open their eyes.  Do you want to be "useful"  to Hamas and "supportive" of its cause?  

 

I cannot imagine that any member in here supports the destruction of Israel.

Congratulations

you have just sacrificed 2 million Gazans

because basically you are saying do not criticise or condemn Israel, no matter what it does or which atrocities it commits because by doing so you are aiding Hamas, you are useful to Hamas and supportive to their cause.

1 hour ago, Evil Penevil said:

 

 

I am NOT equating criticism of Israel with antisemitism.   In fact, I believe the opposite, as I wrote in an earlier post.

And yet you are opposing any person who is criticising the mass murder of Palestinians in Gaza and call them antisemitic

1 hour ago, Evil Penevil said:

It's the intent of the criticism that determines whether it is antisemitic.  If the goal of the criticism is to persuade listeners or readers Israel has no right to exist as the homeland of the world's Jews,  then it is antisemitic.  If its purpose is only to register disagreement with  the Israeli government's policies and actions or indicate disapproval of some aspects of Israeli society and the lifestyle of its  people, then it isn't.

Siding with the civilians in Gaza who have been killed, shot, bombed, tortured and raped and asking for those who committed these crimes to be persecuted, does not deny Israel`s right to exist.

And that is another stupid phrase which has somehow become a litmus test

Does Israel have a right to exist?

The answer is no.

No country has the right to exist, because countries do not exist.

Czechoslovakia peacefully turned into Slovakia and the Czech Republic in 1993.

So, did Czechoslovakia not have the right to exist? Are those who caused that separation criminals?

People have a right to exist.

And the people in Gaza have been denied that right for almost 2 years.

23 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

 

True, Hamas does not include every Gazan. However, the likelihood of a Gazan being allied or part of one of the other  militant groups is rather high;

  You  will never acknowledge that hundreds  if not thousands of the   so called "innocents" were in fact irregular  fighters or deeply integrated into the Gaza war machine. And even when they are not, they are tacit  participants, assisting in logistics and supply, information and support, or just used as intentional human shields by their militant families. 

22 hours ago, bannork said:

According to the BBC:

 

The UN's Human Rights Office has condemned the high number of civilians killed in the war in Gaza, saying its analysis shows close to 70% of verified victims over a six-month period were women and children.

 

 One of the main principles of International Humanitarian Law is the rule of distinction. 'Distinction' demands that belligerents and fighters at all times distinguish between civilians and civilian objects on one hand, and combatants and military objectives on the other hand, so as to protect persons not taking part in the conflict.

@Patong2021

I do not doubt that a huge part of Gazan population sympathizes or even supports Hamas with logistic, supply and information.

I mean, what do you expect from people, who have been kicked out from their land and homes and forced into Gaza, then were directly occupied from 1967 to 2005 and since then are ruled by Muslim terrorists from inside and a terror state from the outside, controlling every access by land, sea and air of that open air prison.

And with almost every year a 3 to 4 digit number of killed Gazans while the number of killed Israelis was always 1 or 2 digit.

However, this gives no armed forces the right to kill them because they do not count as combatants.

A combatant is someone actively fighting in a war and therefore a legitimate target for the opposing side. A combatant fighting in an armed conflict or war must be carrying arms.

If he has disarmed himself and capitulated, he is a prisoner of war and therefore protected by law.

A person who does not wear arms and does not actively take part in an armed conflict is  a civilian, no matter if or in which way he might have supported the armed forces on his side.

Civilians are protected under the law of war and must not be harmed. Collateral damage should be exceptional and not the rule.

8-year-old kids, even when collecting food no matter if for their families or for Hamas fighters are civilians and cannot intentionally be shot in the head or the chest.

Minors going to a market with their parents are civilians and cannot intentionally be targeted by drones.

A 5-year-old girl, Hind Rajab, hiding in a car next to the bodies of her murdered family is a civilian and cannot intentionally be killed.

Help workers approaching that girl to save her after they got permission by the IDF cannot be killed.

Unarmed people starving for months and reaching out for food cannot be killed even when they step out of the line because they are civilians and therefore protected by international law.

A 24 year old man with Down syndrome, Muhammad Bahar, is a civilian and cannot be killed by some trained dog from the IDF.

Elderly people are civilians and cannot be forced to put on a vest with explosives and walk into tunnels to neutralize booby traps for the IDF.

Unarmed help workers cannot be executed and buried with their cars because they are civilians.

Old people, disabled people, women and children, no matter if they have hair in their armpits or not as long as they do not carry weapons are civilians and cannot be killed.

I have so many more examples but I guess by now you get the point.

It is not only the sheer numbers of dead people in Gaza.

It is also the numbers of those cases which can only be described as atrocities and which should not be committed by a country, which calls itself the only democracy in the Middle East and its army the most moral army in the world.

That is the reason, why so many on our planet are opposing them and not because they are Jews.

Don't mistake being human and believing in human rights with being anti-Semitic.

Interesting development in this sub-forum.

More and more members being able to see through the lies and misinformation we all grew up with and raising their voices.

Leading to this echo-chamber of the "Israel is right even when it is wrong" fraction becoming increasingly uncomfortable for them and their double standard.

7 hours ago, Bkk Brian said:

What makes you think they want to stay?

 

Almost half of Gazans willing to leave, survey finds

Almost half of Gazans may be willing to apply to Israel to help them leave to other countries, according to a survey on Tuesday that also showed significant support for anti-Hamas protests.
The survey by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research was based on polling of people across the Gaza Strip and in the occupied West Bank between May 1-4, some six weeks after Israeli forces resumed operations in Gaza following the breakdown of a brief ceasefire.

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/almost-half-gazans-willing-leave-survey-finds-2025-05-06/

https://archive.ph/8sByG

What I don't understand is, that Center is based in Ramallah, which is in the Westbank and their data collectors are instructed not to enter areas of combat.

How did they get reliable information from Gaza? I mean nobody gets out or in.

And what perfidious method do you use to differentiate between reliable information and lies from Palestinians?

According to you, every information coming out from Gaza is untrue as Gaza is Hamas controlled, and Hamas are all liars.

How do you know this is not from Hamas?

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/07/01/israel-limits-entry-of-baby-formula-in-gaza-as-infants-die-of-hunger_6742899_4.html

While waiting to enter Gaza on a medical aid mission, an American doctor watched Israeli security forces confiscate the cans of powdered baby formula packed in his luggage. The vital product is desperately lacking in the Palestinian enclave, where about 50 children have died of hunger since March.

PS: I know, this article is behind a paywall

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/07/01/israel-limits-entry-of-baby-formula-in-gaza-as-infants-die-of-hunger_6742899_4.html

It's a Killing Field': IDF Soldiers Ordered to Shoot Deliberately at Unarmed Gazans Waiting for Humanitarian Aid

IDF officers and soldiers told Haaretz they were ordered to fire at unarmed crowds near food distribution sites in Gaza, even when no threat was present. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, prompting the military prosecution to call for a review into possible war crimes

■ Netanyahu, Katz reject claims, call them 'blood libels'

Nir Hasson

Yaniv Kubovich

Bar Peleg

Jun 27, 2025 6:03 am IDTUpdated: Jun 27, 20255:43 pm IDT

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2025-06-27/ty-article-magazine/.premium/idf-soldiers-ordered-to-shoot-deliberately-at-unarmed-gazans-waiting-for-humanitarian-aid/00000197-ad8e-de01-a39f-ffbe33780000

On 6/25/2025 at 7:07 PM, Evil Penevil said:

 

I am a diehard supporter of Israel and I most certainly condemn the killing of civilians, Israeli and Palestinian, by Hamas.  The disregard for Palestinian lives shown by Hamas is indeed dreadful and should be condemned by everyone.  

That is very praiseworthy.

But how do you see The disregard for Palestinian lives, cities, hospitals, help workers, doctors, journalists, schools, refugee camps, children`s lives, and, and ,and shown by ISRAEL? Should it also be condemned by everyone?

If yes, why haven`t you until now?

If no, why? 

13 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

 

Yeah slow to 160 when i have to.

Good one.

Can`t remember how many speeding tickets I have paid in the last years.

Best way to contribute to Thai economy.

In the past I did it by donations for the poor people of Isaan payable in the charity offices in Soi 6.

But, hell, we all get older, don`t we.

3 hours ago, FlorC said:

Yes I've read that , but why didn't the cat run away when the car stopped ?

Probably scared and calling for Mama to come get her. An adult cat would run.

15 hours ago, JimHuaHin said:

What is this love affair between Thai kittens and cars, especially car engines?

 

Almost every time a neighbourhood cat has a litter of kittens, they seem to find my car, and get under the hood, thus requiring close engine area inspection before driving.

They feel safe there, as it is difficult to access for bigger probably hostile animals like dogs or horny male cats, who would kill them so their mother would let him mount her, which she would not alsong as she is taking care of her kittens. Mama cat puts them in a safe place before she goes for hunting to feed them.

22 hours ago, Magictoad said:

We, the UK, the USA, the EU and the rest of the world owe a massive debt of thanks to Israel, their people and their leaders and the IDF.

Absolutely, Israel is our best friend and perfect ally in that area, where all those backward countries are our enemies..

..... which would neither be backward, nor our enemies,  if we would not have bombed the <deleted> out of them, telling ourselves that we are freeing people from the suppression by their leaders or taking their weapons of mass destruction, which we knew, they did not have, what not really mattered, as we were only fighting Israels wars, killing Hundreds of thousand innocent civilians and sacrificing our own young men and women but let`s not get sidetracked by trivialities.

So, yes, go Israel go, but don`t take us with you. Fight your own wars.

On 6/13/2025 at 7:25 PM, Lewie London said:

Right, let’s have it straight, people bangin’ on like Pattaya’s fallen off some cliff, like it used to be Victoria’s Secret down Walking Street and now it’s just leftover Greggs pasties in lipstick. Nah, mate. Pattaya’s always been built different. First time I rocked up there, what, thirty years ago, I clocked it straight away. It weren’t full of young stunners prancin’ about, nah it was mostly plumpers and old boilers even then. Half of ‘em looked like they’d just clocked off a shift at Debenhams. Old, haggard tarts, slappers, and sluts. The young ones? They were rare, like finding a decent pint of bitter in a Bangkok Irish bar. And if you did spot one in the high-priced go-gos, she was already booked by some Swiss bloke with orthopedic sandals and a gut like a sack of schnitzel.

 

And it made sense, didn’t it? The old boys, mostly Germans with ponytails, French geezers with dodgy moustaches, Brits lookin’ like they’d been left out in the rain, they weren’t after the young hot ones. Nah. They wanted the older ones, the ones with less ambition, ones who wouldn’t leg it first time they spotted some Yank flashin’ dollars about. Marriage material, they called it. Settle down, buy a shophouse, open a little cafe servin’ chips and Chang, job done. The young ones? Nah, too much admin. Always eyein’ up the next geezer with a bigger wallet and a better set of dentures.

 

Bangkok’s where the worldies were, always has been. If you wanted the ten-out-of-tens, you got yourself to Bangers. Or maybe one of the islands if you fancied a bit of that salty-air vibe. Pattaya? Nah. Pattaya was the retirement home of the game. It’s where Bangkok’s ex-stunners went to finish their careers, yeah.

 

So now you get these mugs moaning, “Oh the girls in Pattaya ain’t what they used to be.” Mate, what, you think it used to be full of? Instagram models? Get out of it. It was always Doris and her mates from the provinces, makin’ ends meet, lookin’ for a geezer with a bad knee and a pension. Always has been, always will be.

 

If you want the top shelf, you don’t shop in Poundland, do ya? Pattaya’s always been Porkerland. Great fun, plenty of bargains, but don’t complain when the packaging’s a bit battered and fallin' off the scale. Know what I mean, bruv?

I disagree.

Same as you would not expect a premium steak at Kiss Food, you would not find a stunner at some cheap bar or the famous coconut bar.

Back in the day same as today the girls knew their values and worked at a place matching it.

That could be Gogo bar or a body massage.

Things have changed though.

In 2001 the new government started a war on substances and difficulties to get them raised proportionally to the BMI of the girls.

And after the tsunami 2004 Pattaya exploded as nobody dared to go to Phuket for quite some time.

So I would say, Pattaya has become much larger since 30 years ago, much better when it comes to accommodation and food, much worse when you think about traffic and there are much more girls than there used to be, with as usual 5 to 10% stunners, as many horrible ones and the rest is just average.

Yet there has been one major change: the smartphone revolution.

Long gone are the times when you could shag a girl, while she was talking with her boyfriend back somewhere in Farangland.

So one can say Pattaya has lost its illusions but also its delusions. I correct that, there are still too many delusional guys out there believing in the one true love.

When the land itself rejects them.

This should once and forever settle the dispute about who is really indigenous to that land:

A study titled “Hypersensivity to pollen of Olea europaea in Israel“ was conducted by researchers affiliated with Kupat Holim, Zamenhoff Allergy Clinic in Tel Aviv, Israel. It concluded that 66% of Jewish Israelis are hypersensitive (allergic) to the pollen of native olive trees, compared to only 16% of Arabs in Israel.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8836344/#:~:text=Positive skin reactions to olive,scarce (P < 0.003).

Nature does not lie.

On 6/4/2025 at 7:25 PM, Nick Carter icp said:

 

   The babies funeral is today 

Didn't survive 

 

 

That is heartbreaking.

A cynical person could say "well, they lived on stolen land, they had it coming" or even joke about it like "yeah, but the settlers were using them as human shields, so that`s ok". followed by a "flatten the settlements!"

All I see, is a mourning family and Hananel Gez, a young father and husband in agony, who first lost his beloved wife, Tzeela Gez and after days of waiting for some good news from the hospital, was deprived of the hope, their baby might survive.

Their names should never be forgotten (I could not find the name of the baby, so I guess, the parents hadn't decided yet).

His pain his pain is unimaginable.

Now multiply that pain with 17.000.

That is the number of the dead kids in Gaza.

The 30 or more murdered kids on the festival on October 7, the Bibas boys, Ariel and Kfir, and now the Gez baby, all of them caused huge outcries in our countries.

And what is our reaction to 17,000 killed children – silence.

And this is what I fail to understand.

„If I were to remain silent, I would be guilty of complicity.“

Albert Einstein

Silence is complicity – and so is silencing.

18 hours ago, Bkk Brian said:

Its a well recorded fact that Hamas takes aid and then sells it on at huge profits, I am not going to repeat the numerous links to that. As for your disbelief on the above, that's no surprise coming from you and your claim that its only an excuse for atrocities.

I do not doubt that, as it is a common practice of the military to confiscate goods to finance or feed their soldiers and afaik Gaza has no other military.

But I am generally mistrusting anything the IDF states, as they have a well documented history of telling lies.

I would love to have a civilized discussion with you, from which we both and others could benefit but it would have to be without your personal attacks ("no surprise coming from you ...") or branding by others ("Oh, look, he wrote "FGM is horrible but not originating from Islam"; he must be Pro Islamist and Pro Hamas") and without the cancelling of criticism towards Israel.

We both know, this is not going to happen.

And we also know that all those methods like constant repetition, framing, branding, cancelling and personal attacks are most likely used when lacking strong arguments.

Seriously, if you have looked at all those news and reports coming out from Gaza and the West Bank and watched all that footage with an open mind, without filtering out those, which are not in favor of your agenda and you are still fully and uncritical siding with Israel, then at least in my opinion you have either completely lost your sense for justice, morals and ethics or more likely in this particular case you're applying an extreme double standard.

You surely have your reasons for that and they're not my business, but you should ask yourself if that is the world you want to live in.

Because once you support or apply branding, framing, cancelling and the suppression of critical voices and accept a double standard, where those attacks on Gaza and the West Bank and Lebanon and Syria and Iran and Yemen are called self-defence, it is just a question of time until all that will be applied on you.

On 5/23/2025 at 7:48 PM, Bkk Brian said:

He should have a word with Hamas

 

BREAKING: Video shows Hamas looting the aid trucks entering Gaza.

Under international law, Israel not only has a right, but a duty to not send aid if Hamas steals it.

 

The video states "thieves intercept an aid truck".

How does he know it is Hamas and not some very desperate people.

And even if true, so it is better to let them die from starvation before they pay too much for the food?

Let them die before Hamas gets their money and buys weapons?

Again no proof for that, as usual, plus if they die Hamas will get their money anyway.

Only excuses for atrocities.

52 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

 

   This attack was by members of the public , family members of the deceased retaliating for the murder of the pregnant woman 

Yes, I understood that.

But the woman was killed on 14th of May and the IDF finally caught the murderer on the 17th of May and killed him.

By the way, other than in your statement, the baby survived.

However, the attacks of the settlers took place after the murderer had been identified and put down already, so again, what is the point?

An innocent woman was murdered, the perpetrator got what he deserved and now the settlers, who have illegally taken that land from its legal owners are taking revenge on them, despite they had nothing to do with it?

Your article says, the IDF had killed the attacker of that pregnant woman already and arrested several suspects, who might have helped him.

So what's the point of this response, except collective punishment of innocent people, while the (hopefully real) perpetrator had been punished already?

5 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

 

In order to get Permanent Residence in Thailand or Thai citizenship some evidence of being able to speak Thai is required.  The vast majority of expats here are non-immigrant, so there is no requirement to learn the language.  Similarly the UK visas in this thread can lead to Indefinite Leave to Remain and UK citizenship, hence the language requirements.  It would be nice if the UK offered 'easy' annual extensions of stay for various purposes like Thailand!

I know that; I have permanent residency for almost 20 years now, never seriously thought about applying for citizenship though.

However, my comment was meant to be some kind of critical remark to all those westerners living or spending most time of the year in Thailand, yet ranting about foreigners in their own country, who won't integrate and don't speak the language.

Most expats may legally not be immigrants, so there is no requirement to learn the Thai language but factually they are, as they are spending most of their time here and one reason for those language requirements is to be able to master any everyday situation, an ability, which so many expats lack. Consequently their whole everyday life depends on others, who can be some kind of life partner, who may have her own interests or some agency which definitely has its own interests.

4 hours ago, ronster said:

There are literally whole areas in the UK where a lot of people speak little to no English. See it on the UK news a lot when they are interviewing people from these areas and they aren't speaking English. Most seem to be of Pakistani or Indian origin .

Isn't that just disgusting?

Same in the country where I live. Foreigners wherever you look, none of them speaks the language, let alone being interested in learning it, have no respect for the culture and mentality, the majority of them being men. They are out on the streets every night in a loud and aggressive way leading to brawls almost daily and are  permanently chasing women .

By the way, I live in Thailand.

On 5/3/2025 at 8:31 AM, FolkGuitar said:

They cost about 3,000 Baht here, but not all dentists seem to be able to make them.

or are willing to.

I personally refuse to give any of these dentures to my patients as they pose an enormous health risk.

There is a reason why they always put some clasps on the other side and connect them with a sublingual or palatal bar:

Swallowing and inhaling.

This denture can always come off unexpectedly for example when eating some sticky rice or while jogging. If you swallow it, it won't be easy to get it out of your stomach but worse than that if you inhale it, you're in big trouble.

And so is your dentist, if he has not informed you about all the risks and made you sign a waiver.