TroubleandGrumpy

Ditto - great to see them getting arrested too. Saw a Vid yesterday of a women refusing to leave her car when surrounded by ICE Officers - they smashed her window and then dragged her our kicking and screaming. Armed ICE Officers warned all nearby people to stay back or they will be arrested and they risk getting shot. Hard ball is the only way to play with these delusional fools - they are endangering the lives of ICE Officers for politics. That is totally unacceptable and must be completely stamped out. Peaceful protests are fine, but interfering with them arresting anyone, or endangering ICE Officers doing their job, must be shut down with force. Protest and convince People to vote against this at the next elections - that is how it works in a Democracy. Trump is no threat to Democracy - it is the Dems who are that - they are encouraging their delusional fools to commit illegal acts to stop the Trump Admin enacting its mandate. The Dems also use lawfare and other legal tactics to stop the Trump Admin, because the Dems dont care what the People voted for - they only care about their own beliefs and narrative. They will do anything (legal and illegal) to stop Trump and his Admin making the changes they were elected to make - because they know that once all the illegals are removed, a huge chunk of their voter base will not longer be able to vote.

I heard that the Trump Admin is going to force all recipients of SNAP and other Welfare Programs to re-apply for their current benefits. Under the current shared arrangements, the Blue States have been handing out Welfare to illegals (for their votes) - hence why the Blue States do not enforce Voter ID. Because the money is Federally funded, the Trump Admin is going to force all applications to be apply and be vetted by themselves - anyone not 'approved' (or does not re-apply) will have their payments stopped. The Trump Admin is directing the Federal Dept to not allow the States to manage the applications and approvals for obvious political reasons - for their votes.

We finally agree about something - 5 zip - unless rain stops play and/or Joe Root and Ben Stokes have a great match or two. Likewise, unless Woods and Archer can break through the Aussie top 5/6 they are going to get smashed. Great to see Nathan Lyon in the squad - probably his last series at 38. Only a few more wickets to become the 2nd most ever for Australia. But no Test player from any country will get past the GOAT (Shane Warne) - I am excluding that chucker from Sri Lanka.

Mainly Chinese IMO. And that includes those that have come here since WW2 and Mao's takeover and have taken over. If every person of Chinese origin (current and last generation) were removed - Thailand would become a be a great place again. The Thais have their faults - but they are nothing compared to the Chinese mafia/families that run this country solely for their own benefit and without any care about the negative impact on ordinary Thai people.

Careful - that sort of logic can be very damaging to the woke's mental health.

Pity they cannot deport all the woke Judges like her - at the least they should be charged and disbarred.

Yes Indeed 🙂 They are saying it was a 'mistake' - but it was not by any means a mistake - it was what the <removed> sufferers at woke liberal media organisations have been doing since 2016. A mistake is turning left instead of turning right - what they did was a deliberate act by a woke liberal media organisation. Exactly who did the editing - she certainly did not do it.

Same except for a few minor age issues - but I am almost 70 - knocking on wood too. Do whatever you have to do to maintain medicare in USA - when you are 70+ things start 'falling off' and 'repairs' here in Thailand can be very expensive. And have a Plan B - return home before you get too old - dont die here.

I think that is why two senior BBC managers were forced to resign - they are the scapegoats to alleviate the legal and political fall out that is bound to happen. However, just like the public owned/funded ABC in Australia, they are biased to the core woke and there is only one solution - defund them from taxpayer's money - let them sink or swim in the cauldron of public opinion and support. The NPR organisation in USA has reacted to the Federal funding cuts by closing parts of its business and restructuring - it aims to continue using commercial funding and donations from donors. The same thing should be done to the BBC and ABC and all other publicly funded media organisations - they are staffed by 80-90% left wing voters who are basically public servants.

Delusional insults that I refuse to respond to. Why are there so many woke lefty nutters from UK on this forum - is it something in the air?? The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) is a public corporation owned by the Government - it is not owned by shareholders, any private company, or any individual. The BBC is owned/controlled by the UK Govt and is accountable to the UK Parliament (Minister). It was 'corporatized' to remove the public service management structures - but it is still owned by the UK Government - who fund the organisation together with the fees from licences (collected by the Govt).

Serious issues - take two chill pills

You got issues mate - take a chill pill and relax.

Seems like you have it sorted mate - love your 'offices' 🙂

I suggest a possible solution - when you next arrive do so with the longest Tourist Visa that you can obtain (not a 60 days Visa exempt). Assuming you have decided where to stay, go to the Immigration Office in that Province and talk to an IO. Explain you want to stay long-term and ask him/her what you need to do - bank account, application, documents etc etc etc. They should tell you what to do - and then you can come back in a few months and apply for a 12 months extension of the Visa you arrived on. That is what I did the last time I moved here - rather than applying from home country. Then you can stay as long as you like, and you can get a single or multi permit to leave and re-enter as often as you like and keep the 12 months extension valid. There are lists on this forum, but always best to go see the local Office and ask them (varies office to office).

You are more patient than myself - of which I was recently reminded with a reprimand recently 🙂

Thanks. Unlike some - I HAVE been here a long long time. Plus I worked with many Local, State and Federal Government Departments and Agencies in business for many decades and therefore I understand easier than most how they operate.

Agree - somewhat 🙂 It is because there are no Immigration Visas in Thailand - all Visas are types of Tourist Visas under the Immigration Act (hence they are all Non-Immigrant Visas). This was explained once many years ago by an Immigration Manager in a Youtube interview. All Tourist Visas are valid for a maximum 90 day stay - therefore 'technically' under the Law everyone has to report every 90 days. The maxmium period of usage validity for a Tourist Visa is 12 months - hence the annual renewal/extensions. For Visa like Elite and LTR etc the Office than runs those Visa Programs either does the reporting on the person's behalf (LTR), or organises all the paperwork for them (Elite). Because the Immigration Department itself, through the Immigration Police, manage all other Visas, the 90 day report technically has to be done- and they are not going to do it of course. To remove that requirement would mean changing the Immigration Act/Law - and doing that sort of thing in Thailand is extremely difficult and takes a long long time - so it is has never been undertaken. Many other countries also have a similar Immigration Act/Law situation and they have set up a centralised Office/Group who manages all long-term Visas like for Retirees - and they work very well in response to changing circumstances due to that centralised and focussed management. We all know Thailand is not a real country as such. It is a Kingdom of Provincial Thiefdoms who each run things their way (or the highway). This is reflected in many things like Immigration and the Banking system and frequent Toll Booths on the same Tollway, and etc etc etc. Also this is reflected in the public service itself where the Health Department changed the rules/penalties about alcohol consumption unilaterally and without consultation, and they are trying to get that changed or even reversed and it will take months. Actually, the Maryjane situation shows it best. There are many reasons why these people cannot organise things - the disjointed, uncoordinated and dysfunctional structures of the Federal and Provincial Governments are a major part.

Why do Yanks often think everything is about USA? And why do they respond so literally to everything? Asking for a friend mate 🙂 I have said I am returning home when I am 75+ - obviously you missed that. I have said insurance companies here often cancel or reduce policies when you are 70-75+ but they all put up premiums massively. You also do not know that in Australia Medicare is free for all - and if you can put 2 and 2 together - I intend returning when over 70-75 due to the very likely huge medical costs we all incur when we enter 'the end game'. Some of us drop dead, but most take years of illnesses before we keel over - very sad that many Expats here dont plan ahead, run out of money for medical costs, and so they 'opt out'. Yes I got that mixed up - Florida does not have income taxes - and they are looking to remove property taxes - my bad.

You said it yourself - you are not speaking the truth because you do not know it. Online reporting is a problem and everyone living here knows that over the years since it was introduced it has been problematic at best.

Whatever you do, if you do decide to get a bank account for the 800K deposit, do not use Bangkok Bank. They have implemented draconian rules (only in Thailand would this happen) and they have locked my 800K up for 4 months after the date I was approved for an extension. Use another bank - Krungsri is OK and what I am using. Either that or Kasikorn IMO. But IMO the first thing you need to decide is where do you want to retire to Thailand and where in Thailand - big issues for the retirement extensions - each Immigration Office in a Province is different - as are the banks in each Province. If I was younger and single I would probably not retire to Thailand right now - I would try a few places and other countries first. In Thailand IMO there are only 2 places to live in Thailand and that is in/near Pattaya or Chiang Mai. Bangkok is extremely hard to get around - the BTS is OK but when you then have to walk/taxi it becomes very hot and tiresome. Phuket is too expensive and full of tourists (10 million a year on a small island) and worst scammers in the country and also extremely hard to get around. The rest are much less in terms of services and infrastructure for Expats - I would not be here except for my lovely Thai wife - same for 99% of Expats in Isan and other locations. Try each place for a while - note the smoke in Chiang Mai can get troublesome, but it is also there in Pattaya and everywhere else in the country too - Dec to March. I would then try Vietnam and Philippines and Malaysia (Penang) and Indonesia (Bali) - 1-2 months at a time would be enough - then decide where. Philippines Malaysia and Indonesia have existing retirement Visa packages - check them out. Thailand's is all over the place and I have a feeling that after the next election things will change again. Plus Thailand is changing their income tax system for money earned overseas from a remittance-only to a global-basis system - it will take a few years though. Do not commit to Thailand by buying a property for many years - only rent until things become clearer - it could get better and it could get worse. Until 2015 when the Junta started making changes, Thailand was great - not so much nowadays - and they still impose reporting to Police every 3 months, and none of those other places do that. I only visited Philippines for a few weeks, but given their consistent and fair dealings with retired Expats for the last 15+ years (compared to Thailand), that is probably where I would try first. But the new kid on the block is Vietnam and they are making all the right noises - many blokes have moved there from here already - never been there myself as 15 years ago they were 'closed' - they dont have all the Expat services and infrastructure as Thailand or Philippines (yet). IMO keep visiting places for the next few years before deciding - and for Pete's sake avoid getting hitched up to a local girl for a few years at least. Do not let them move in with you - they will never leave (willingly) and you will have to walk away - and keep your personal details secret from locals and other Expats alike.

2pm to 5pm sales of alcohol are banned. FACT.

Common sense really mate - I cannot understand how anyone can logically have any other view on those things.

Not true - because you never lived here you obviously do not know that the online system frequently fails. For me it has about 50/50 and when I ring local or Bangkok Immigration they never know why it does not work - no one knows. Last time I lodged the document online and if you ever did that you would know they give you a PDF copy of your online submission. When it was rejected - 'missing data' - I printed that exact document out, signed it manually, and took it to the local Office - after waiting etc. it was approved - the exact same document I lodged online which was rejected, was approved by the local Office. Secondly, in terms of Thailand being a place to live, one of the many downsides, compared to all other nearby options, is that Thailand forces all Expats to report to the Immigration Police every 90 days - that in itself is not a good thing. I have some contacts in Philippines and Bali (Indonesia) and they laugh about that - I believe Communist China and Cambodia also force Retired Expats living there full-time to also report every 90 days like a Parolee. If Thailand was genuinely interested in long term retiree Expats, they would not impose such a draconian requirement. As far as I know the top retirement destinations in the world do not force long term retirees to report to Police every 3 months - 9. Italy 8. Greece 7. Malaysia 6. Spain 5. France 4. Mexico 3. Costa Rica 2. Portugal 1. Panama (International Living). Can you name me other countries that force regular reports to Police for Retired Expats?? As for all the other things you stated - no comment except - as per the reactions - wrong again.

What a lot of the lefty loonies are missing is that Trump is suing as a Citizen of America - he has the legal right to seek defamation remedy against the persons involved and the owners of the show itself (UK Govt). What is happening right now in so many cases and situations in USA is that the left are being held to account for their past behaviours and tactics - defamation, lawfare, deceit, illegal stock trading, lying to House and Senate Committees, and this includes the media. Like most lefties who believe that killing Charlie Kirk was OK, they have acted in ways that are illegal - but they see them as justified because of their political beliefs. Interfering with ICE removing illegals is getting them arrested and Federally charged and some will spend time in a Federal jail - this is a massive shock to lefties who think they can do anything they like to achieve their political aims. After all - who can blame them after all the riots when Clinton lost and when BLM started and many other cases, when there was very little legal punishments handed out - the local Democrat politicians in many cases saw the riots as justified. But when conservatives (stupidly) enter the Capitol to protest they are arrested and charged with (unarmed) insurrection and many jailed. The next step (2026-2028) in this process will be the arrest and charging of Democrat politicians who have committed illegal activities, including inciting their supporters to riot and to block ICE Agents. The punishment of illegal activities is what will stop all the BS that has been going on for far too long by left wing politicians and supporters. Not saying it doesn't happen on the right - just nowhere near as much. George Floyd was killed and there were massive riots and people were killed. Charlie Kirk was killed and there were no riots - the only violence was lefties destroying shrines for Charlie and things like the recent attacks against TPUSA members at Berkeley Uni. There is one side in USA politics that needs to be pulled down and punished - and it is obvious to anyone which side that is.

A fool and his money ....................