TroubleandGrumpy

When we lived in Chiang Mai it was nowhere near as 'sticky' as down south or here in Isaan. The mountain air draws the humidity away quicker than elsewhere in Thailand. Playing golf up there was great - I rarely sweated as much as I do in all the other places.

The issue I find with the heat in Thailand is not the heat - it is the humidity - especially during the rainy season. In Australia it gets very hot - very very hot - but the humidity is often very low. Moisture in Australia is very quickly drawn up and away - but that is not the case here in Thailand. That is why the temperature is only 32/33 but the 'real feel' is 39/40 at times. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/355379518/figure/fig14/AS:1080398557782027@1634598497360/Temperature-Humidity-Index.ppm https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Anil-Gupta-9/publication/355379518/figure/fig14/AS:1080398557782027@1634598497360/Temperature-Humidity-Index.ppm At 80% humidity at 31 degrees it actually equates to 41 degrees. When the body cannot release heat due to the 'dense' air, it sweats more than normal to compensate.

The Europeans still buy fossil fuels from Russia - that is what Trump is saying - they want USA to hurt its economy to support their war, but meanwhile have they switched getting fossil fuels from other sources - no !! Because they would costs too much !! If Europeans want Trump to seriously damage the USA economy - then they can go first. Despite a range of sanctions and the threat posed by dependence on Russian energy, in the third year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, EU imports of Russian fossil fuels in particular remain largely unchanged, totaling EUR 21.9 BILLION - a 6% year-on-year drop in value but merely a 1% year-on-year drop in volumes. https://energyandcleanair.org/publication/eu-imports-of-russian-fossil-fuels-in-third-year-of-invasion-surpass-financial-aid-sent-to-ukraine/

I guarantee you that you are talking 'moonshine' mate. I want you to think about this - just for a minute - it wont hurt mate - I promise. Imagine you had never been to school at all and could not read or write - and that you did not know about not getting stuck on one question - and other things that you knew - how well would you have done in that IQ test when you were young?? Being educated gives you the ability to do better in IQ tests than not being educated - end of story. Someone with a decent brain who has not been educated at all will not do as well at an IQ test as an idiot that has been educated. That is my point - IQ test result are inherently biased towards those that have been educated - and it is not a true test of thinking ability or memory recall or rational and logical thought processes.

The IQ test has nothing to do with where you were born and what family you are in. It was designed for kids - to identify the smart ones from the idiots. Many times there are brothers or sisters and one is a Tradie/Cleaner and the other is a Doctor/Lawyer. Genetics is only a small part of the IQ test results - otherwise of course brothers and sister would all be the same IQ. Education is the single biggest factor that affects IQ test results. That does not mean all kids all learn the same at the same school - some will want to learn and will work, and some do not and would rather party, screw or get some drugs. That is one reason why Asians who have been to schools in the West have a higher IQ that other groups - it is not genetic it is because they tend to be better focused on doing well at school - or they get beaten by their parents 🙂

Yes they do indeed - there is a definite narrative of Israel hate in many people's comments - often without realising it. That is the sad reality of woke liberals - they are all about feelings and nothoing makes them 'feel' than having a bogey man to target their inner hatred towards - hence anti-Trump and pro-Hamas lunacy. I think the most ridiculous example of their lunacy is the 'Queers for Palestine' protestors. Meanwhile this is what they actually do to gays in Gaza. But ISIS were even worse - they executed them and even threw them off buildings. https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/middle-east/palestinian-territories/1660138495-exclusive-gay-man-who-fled-gaza-speaks-about-experience-with-hamas

What goes around comes around wokes - and it is coming back at you big time - 4 years and then another 8 years. By the time the GOP has been fully reformed and removed the rest of the RINOs, the Dems will be an obliterated shell of what they once were - all powerful, all corrupt and all deceitful. The Dems corrupted control and influence over most parts of the US Federal Government Departments (those that are left) will be destroyed. This example is but one of the many episodes where the Dems weaponised the legal and judicial system against those that they hate - meaning anyone who disagrees with their lunacy. Only those States were they have kept importing voters for decades will remain in Dem control - but a lot of the decent good people and their businesses will have left - especially California.

I have been watching this one for a while now - like in Thailand there are a lot of anti-western locals who dont want foreigners living in their country so it is taking time to get approved and created. I hope it goes ahead, and that they dont set the $fees as high as Thailand did, or they will get the same number of takers - very few normal people and several Chinese/Russian etc. criminals.

I understand. But that is not now, and it is not the normal situation. For things like illness or accidents there is no way to negotiate - there is a set charge. But yes a daily room rate for a long term stay could probably be negotiated in some Thai Govt hospitals. My wife's Mother had a procedure done and when I asked about the cost of a private room for her to stay for 5-6 days in recovery (the wife did), I pushed back on the initial 'falang' price they gave, and she negotiated a discount (the private rooms were mostly empty).

Excellent points. If only more AN members had as good an understanding of the situations that they so vehemently comment on and then argue about.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligence_quotient Me thinks you were a plumber or a cleaner.

IQ is a BS 'test' that was designed to measure a person's ability to think and thus learn. Once a person has passed the age of about 16-18 their IQ test results are very much influenced by their education - the better educated they are, the higher they will score in the standard IQ tests. That is why the current western world is full of over-educated idiots who have a degree and think they are intelligent and can run a country or company, when they should be plumbers and cleaners - especially those in subjects like 'gender studies'.

seems a woke liberal - always playing the race card

Can you let me know what situation you are in and what age. Are you in Australia now. Have you reached retirement age and can claim the Pension? Are you in Thailand now and thinking of going back to claim the Pension and then return here?

All Democrat woke liberals are ignorant - I am glad you have accepted that and have publicly admitted it - now you have the chance to get over the addiction and live a normal life. But remember - you are an addict and as soon as the woke media headlines a story about the poor oppressed minorities or about Trump, you will feel the need to empathise and respond. But you must resist and think rationally and logically. Remember - they are woke liars and it is all about sucking you into their cult by using your feelings - both of your empathy feelings for people getting hurt, and of your dislike of people like Trump. And always remember this - only a fool would demand that they like someone before believing they can do their job well - and only a woke liberal would allow that feeling to dominate their lives. Youtube is one source - multiple news channels - from CNN to Fox - I listen to them all to see and hear what they are saying. And I must say that the BS on Fox Shows like The Five is nowhere near as delusional and full of hatred like that on ABC's The View - they are insane. Did you see when they interviewed Arnold recently - he did not go with the narrative at all and a couple of them clearly showed their distain and hatred. Many years ago I was asked what I think makes the woke liberals so angry and full of hate towards Trump. The answer back then is the same as now - it is a 'movement' very much dominated by women and therefore it is all about feelings. Most women live their lives completely dominated by their feelings towards things and people. When they do not like someone, it does not matter what they do, they will find ways to dislike him/her. The same is true in reverse - women will find ways to like the things a person does (and not see their bad things) if they like the person. Most women have a lack of logic and rational thinking - any 'normal' man married to one for many years knows this fact of life.

So it is all the fault of the tourists for accepting over-inflated rip-off pricing?? That is just unbelievable - but Thailand is amazing and anything is possible here.

I hear you and understand those reasons - the smell alone is enough, but the poverty and squalor is hard to see without being affected - especially given that the vast majority of Indian poor people are lovely. I was astounded at how the people could be happy despite living in such abject poverty that it makes everywhere in Thailand look like Monaco. It certainly had an affect on myself that was dramatic and long lasting - I just dont want to ever see it again (or smell it).

I dont think the fear is that Iran will use one - IMO the fear is that they will give one to their radical terrorist organisations that they support, and let them do it - and deny it was them that supplied it. Imagine if Hamas had access to a nuclear weapon - even a small one like the W54 would have catastrophic impact if they somehow snuck one into Tel Aviv.

None - I live in a gated community in a big City that has no/few tourists. But do you count a City of about 500K people as 'the sticks' ?? I would have thought that designation is for those living on remote villages or small rural towns.

ROFLOL. Are you for real? Negotiate pricing with a Thai Govt Hospital?? Who exactly would you do that with - and where have you done that ??

Where were you located - I was in New Delhi. D o you know what I am talking about when I mention what you have to experience to know about it??

They tried that during Covid - it was ignored and rejected by most, and they dropped it. But if the Junta again takes over Thailand, I expect them to do it again.

Anyone that argues price discrimination is not real or significant, needs their heads read. Or better still, they should read this legal court case outcome. And that was a Government hospital - Private hospitals charge Expats way more than they charge to Thais. https://dancham.or.th/thai-court-rejects-dual-pricing-case-from-expat-in-hua-hin/#:~:text=According to press reports the,not mentioned by the court.

Absolutely - a friend of my wife did too. But what I suggested was that she take out some of the money anyway and use it to pay for things - she had the PIN. But it took a long time for her to get the rest - minus fees and charges - she agreed to accept them rather than argue about it - a few thousand baht all up. I have told the wife that if I do pass here, she is to immediately transfer 99% of the money into her bank account using the online banking. If she is ever asked I have advised her to say that I said to do that before I passed - and it is in my Thai Will too.

Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of scammers - I hope they go broke. Deliberately charging Expats 2-3 times what they charge locals is disgusting and although illegal, is allowed. Most hospitals were setup to attract foreigners in the 90s - by being cheaper than USA, Japan and Korea. Prior to that they were for the wealthy Thais and those with insurance - in the 90s the numbers jumped bigtime. But like all things in Thailand they have rested on their laurels and have not modernised or upgraded. While the medical world has moved forward in many ways Thailand has not. India is now more modern and also cheaper - and they all speak English.