WDSmart

"...3:00 AM on January 22nd, along Soi Yensabai in South Pattaya," says it all for me.

I just pay my local Immigration Department 1,000 baht to send me my 90-day Certificate by mail for the next 12 months. I do that when I get my one-year extension. They've always done that, and I usually get it about a week before the deadline. I know you can do this online now, but I do it this way to ingratiate myself with my local office. I want them to "like" me so they will hopefully give me a "benefit of a doubt" if I screw up and need something fixed.

Hamas: Oct 7 was 'necessary, normal response' to 'Israeli conspiracies'. I don't think the Oct 7th Hamas massacres were either a "necessary" or "normal" response to Israeli conspiracies, but I do think there are extreme, right-wing Israeli (Zionist) conspiracies to complete the Jewish takeover of the land that was once called Palestine.

My opinion of the purposeful eradication of dogs in any particular place is it shouldn't be allowed, and any attempts at that should be punished severely. We (humans) are already eradicating many species of life on this planet through our hubristic activities. We certainly shouldn't be allowed to start doing that purposefully.

Not me! I looked at their belly buttons...

Why do people continue to wear gold?

The one in the right corner is okay, too...

A declining birth rate is a good thing. I wish it were a world-wide statistic. Humans have greatly overpopulated the Earth, and that's part of why we are destroying the Earth's environment.

First of all, I was not "screaming" racism. I was merely agreeing with the article that the song lyrics, the ones highlighted, did have a racist quality in that they were focused on the Thais. Everything alluded to, prostitution, etc., exists in all societies and all races. As I said in my first comment, I did not view the song and didn't intend to, so I accept your judgment that it was presented as "light-hearted." Many racist comments are delivered that way. They are meant to be funny by those making them but are often not seen that way by the group targeted. And second of all, and most importantly, I don't think spouting derogatory comments is helpful, necessary, or justified when expressing your disagreement with someone.

Perhaps, but mine was not a derogatory remark like yours.

There's enough information in the article, including quotes from some lyrics, to justify my statement.

Yes, I hear those arguments, too, and they bear some consideration, although "soi dogs" might not actually be able to be considered indigenous to Thailand's beaches. Most, maybe all, were initially brought here by....humans. The bulls, however, mentioned in this article's post are indigenous to Thailand's hillsides. And I do agree that "humans" are indigenous to Thailand, at least as far as I know, but the number of humans that now occupy Thailand and the technologies that humans have brought and use are not. But, because of our (humans') hubris, the lives of animals and plants don't matter. All we (humans) want to do is be as comfortable as possible without considering the costs to the environment (climate change) and biosphere (soi dogs and bulls).

Yes, the song (I assume, I have not listened to it) is probably racist, sexist, and insulting towards a particular group of men and women. Many songs, both contemporary and old, are - especially songs in this type of genre.

No, the problem is that people have invaded the bull's domain, built a road there, and now drive annoying-sounding and dangerous-looking motorcycles there. What else could you expect?

I see a lot of negative comments about this ritual, but has anyone thought to do a follow-up on the followers of this man to see if they did indeed receive charm and good luck?

I devoted the entire last chapter of my book, Jihadi: Path to Heaven, to giving my description of heaven. It consists of six blank pages. In other words (or the absence of words), there's nothing there.

Here is my story... About a year ago, I was shopping at a Tesco (now Lotus's) shopping center and had a shopping cart full of items. I carry all my money (about THB 10K, credit/bank cards, IDs, etc., in a small pouch that I usually wear around my waist. I had put the pouch in the small basket at the back of the cart while shopping, and when loading all the other items in my truck, I forgot about the pouch. I didn't notice it was missing until I arrived home, about a 30-minute drive from the shopping center. I immediately returned to the shopping center and looked for my pouch in the parking lot. I'd been gone about an hour. Not finding it there, I went inside to the Tesco Information Counter and asked them if anyone had turned in a pouch. They said "Yes" and asked me to identify myself, which I did with photos of my IDs I keep on my phone. They gave the pouch back to me, and it had EVERYTHING in it - NOTHING was missing! I asked for the name of the person who turned it in, but they could not (or would not) give that to me. So, now, I always put the keys to my car IN THE POUCH so I can't leave without it!

I use Bank of America in the USA and both Ayudyha (Krungsri) and Bangkok Bank here in Thailand. I've never had any problem transferring money from BofA to either bank. I usually get the money the next day. There is a $40 minimum fee, so I also use Wise for smaller dollar amounts because it's less expensive, but Wise takes a couple of days.

You’ve never been forced to go to the Pizza Company… I eat at the Pizza Company in my local Lotus's shopping center about twice a month. I always have a Caesar salad and usually some kind of spaghetti dish, but sometimes I have a pizza. I usually order a "meat deluxe, double cheese, and no pineapple." It's not the best I've ever had, but it's okay.

The center part looks DELICIOUS!!!!

I've NEVER had a BAD pizza...

An obvious first-degree murder...

I've ordered hundreds of items from Lazada over the past several years. I probably order at least one or two every week. I've NEVER had any problems with any of these, and when I have returned a few items, they were readily accepted and refunded promptly.

With our phones, who wears a wristwatch anymore, anyway?

I always put on my emergency lights and move to the side (left) for any vehicle flashing emergency lights. Usually, I'm the only one, and often I get honked at for doing that.