SoCal1990

Isn't the old adage that if it F, F, or Fs then you should always rent and never own?

Mine normally last about 2 years before lime scale eventually destroys them. Yours looks good too, but a bit pricey. I'll try one though. 😃

Bear in mind that the healthcare coverage provided through the Thai Social Security system is generally for services at Thai government hospitals. When a foreigner (or Thai national) pays into the Social Security system, they are typically assigned to a specific government hospital where they can receive medical care. Personally I don't have great confidence in many of the government hospitals I've seen. However, in some cases, if the assigned government hospital cannot provide the required treatment, patients might be referred to other government or even private hospitals, but this is subject to approval and specific conditions set by the Social Security Office. Direct access to private hospitals under the Social Security scheme is not standard practice and typically requires additional private health insurance.

Foreigners working in Thailand and paying into the Social Security system are indeed eligible for healthcare coverage under the Social Security system. The contribution rate for Social Security is a percentage of the employee’s salary, and the cost can be around 750 baht per month, but this varies based on income and current contribution rates set by the Thai government. For those not employed and contributing to the Social Security system, they wouldn’t typically be eligible for this coverage.

When I was a teenager I had a friend who used to go up to girls and say "So, how do you like me so far". Half of them were a bit confused and didn't know how to respond and the other half slept with him. Not sure it would have the same effect in Thailand though. A bit too cocky I think.

Thai women don't require clever pickup lines. Best straight forward approach after saying hello to her with a smile is: "I like you. Do you have a boyfriend?" If the woman isn't interested she will say she has one, even when she doesn't. Then no time wasted and an easy way out for her without creating an uncomfortable situation for either party. If she is interested then she will say she doesn't have one, regardless if she has one or not. And then you are in.

This issue is bigger than left or right.

Nothing is ever achieved by staying in a jail cell.

That is all true, but the US was still aiming for far more than that and didn't get it. Julian Assange had an appeal hearing scheduled for July 9-10, 2024. The hearing would have addressed the U.S. assurances regarding Assange’s freedom of expression protections under the First Amendment if he were to be extradited to the United States. The High Court in London had very recently granted Assange permission to appeal on the grounds that the U.S. has not adequately assured Assange that he would be protected under these rights. Therefore, reports indicate that Julian Assange’s release was simply expedited due to the forthcoming July court date where those First Amendment issues were expected to be aired out, addressed and challenged in a court of law. This court hearing in July was seen as a big potential challenge for the U.S. government, particularly regarding the implications for press freedom and the rights of journalists under the First Amendment and, thus the US didn't want that issue argued in a court of law in a high profile case like this. So it was a US government fear of bad optics that freed him. Thus, as a result, the U.S. quickly agreed to the plea deal that just led to Assange’s release.

Stay in jail in solitary confinement for the rest of your life or sign a piece of paper that says something that you don't agree with and you go free. No brainer isn't it?

They usually are pretty successful at capturing criminals overseas related to financial crimes like MBS and Ross Ulbright. They also got Ramon Abbas and Viktor Bout, but then traded the later for the basketball player.

I'll take that as a confirmation that you never worked for the FBI or the CIA.

The phrase the "USA always gets its man" is not really true, is it? Assange just walked a free man and they fought tooth and nail to get him for nearly a decade and failed. They also didn't get Snowden, who still lives a free man now and at the courtesy of one of the USA's greatest enemies. Yes, they got other high priority US targets like Bin Laden, "El Chapo" Guzmán, Noriega, Saddam Hussein and a few others in the past. But my point is they win some and lose some. Success depends on various factors, including international cooperation, legal frameworks, and the specific circumstances in each case and, thus they don't have the sweeping powers across the world that they would like the rest of the world to believe, which is that they can capture fugitives anywhere. This false belief seems to also have derived from the mindset of American exceptionalism. The belief that the United States is inherently different from other nations, often viewing itself as a beacon of freedom, democracy, and justice, but yet that also isn't really the case. And this ideology can extend as far as to the false belief that American institutions, including law enforcement and intelligence agencies, are uniquely capable and effective in always achieving their agendas. Outside of its borders, the USA is viewed very differently though, far more realistically and much more objectively. But inside the USA the brainwashing is sadly still very strong for many.

So glorious to finally see him freed!

Totally impossible to polish an <removed>:

Here are the unpleasant spewings we can expect from the sweaty <removed> based on past debates from 2016 and 2020: - Aggressive and confrontational - Unintellectual speech patterns - Childish use of inappropriate insults - Focus only on soundbites and avoid providing and substantive data - Evade giving any direct answers - Try to appeal to people’s emotions and populism rather than facts and figures - Ridiculous questioning of opponents legitimacy Did I leave anything out?

When exactly did normalcy fully disappear from American civil society and it turned into this dystopian republic of fools living in some bizarre and fake alternative reality? 🙄 If you can even make it through more than the first 7 minutes of this without throwing up then let me know.

I want to share about something unexpected that just happened to me last night. So it was one of those Saturday nights that started off pretty normal, with me heading out at around 9:00 PM, but then it suddenly took an unusual turn. As it were, I went to hangout at this cool hotel bar that I often visit by myself in the Sukhumvit area on Saturday nights. The place has a live band with a great singer and some decent food. I usually go there just to eat and relax, not really to meet anyone. It's not really that kind of place anyway. But after a few drinks last night, I struck up a conversation with this friendly couple sitting next to me who looked to be having a really good time. They were married, a Dutch guy and his attractive Thai wife. They said they now live overseas but were on a 1 month trip back to Thailand. She was a bit younger than him I think, but not by much. As the night went on, the husband casually suggested that they were looking for someone to join them for some fun in private. I was a bit surprised, but kind of intrigued at the same time. We talked about it for a bit, and I then agreed to go with them back to their place. Now, the understanding with him was clear: they wanted me to get physical only with the wife. The husband was just there to watch and enjoy the show, or so I thought. Fast forward to their place, things were heating up. I was getting into it with his Thai wife while the guy just viewed us from off to the side and touched himself a bit. But then, something totally unexpected happened. As I was busy down there growling out the wife's fish basket, I suddenly felt something else going on. Then I looked down at my bait and tackle where I find the dude lip-locked to my teabag! Damn, I was completely taken aback and didn’t know how to react. This was definitely not what we had agreed. I paused for a moment, trying to process what was happening. Then I decided that I didn’t want to offend the dude or ruin the moment for his wife, so I just went with it until he was finished doing what he was gonna do. Then I immediately got into it full swing with his wife and that was all great. She and I had a good physical connection and he just watched from there on out and thankfully he didn't try to get involved again. I guess what they say is true: you never really know what to expect when you go out for a spin on the town. Anyway, that was my wild night. Has anyone else had a similar experience in Bangkok or something totally unexpected like this happen?

I'm a new member on the site, but I've been reading amusing stuff on here for quite a while, so this is going to be my first post. I moved to Thailand from the USA. I work in the IT field and I've been here about three years now on my own. I was first up in CM for close to two years which was OK, but now I've been in BKK for nearly a year working in our company’s main office. I think I prefer the Bangkok city lifestyle to Chiang Mai. Last weekend I was out with a few buddies from work, hitting the ex-pat bars around Silom in the evening and, after we all split up, it was late, and I was feeling a bit of a tingle in the loins, so I popped over to the Nana area by myself to have a gander. Since it was already after 2:00 AM it was starting to clear out, so I thought I better make a quick move. Thus, I made an arrangement with a couple of really cute girls I saw standing huddled together on the street in front of the Nana Hotel. Turns out they are both deaf, so we could only text back and forth about the details, which was a bit awkward at first, but once we got back to my place, and the bedroom Olympics started, things went off like a barn door in a storm. They might not be able to talk, but they definitely know how to use their tongues for other things and they make up for it in other ways that I shouldn't really write about. Let's just say it was the best threesome experience I ever had. From the two previous 2-girl encounters I had in Thailand in the past, Iv'e found that the girls can be a bit shy or unwilling to fully participate, and it ends up being a bit of a disappointment when switching off back and forth with one sitting on the side and watching while I do my thing with the other one. But this time it was no drama at all and I felt like these two are a natural pair, everything one could really ask for when it comes to P4P action. And since they can't speak at all, I didn't have to deal with any extra chatter, questions, negotiations, etc. After our first hookup, I texted one of them and then had them both come over to my place again one evening last week. It was just as good the second time, if not better. I guess they are close friends or maybe they both stay together, but I'm not exactly sure. They are no stress, don't waste any time, and nobody could really ask for anything more I guess, unless someone likes to get into chitchat with the girls, which isn't my thing. So it's perfect. We even smoked a bit of ganja together the last time to make it a bit more fun and then it was a good laugh for all of us with my failed attempts to try to make some meaningful words in sign language. I am thinking about having them both come to my place again. It seems easy, I just need to text one of them a couple of hours before I want them to come over. They have their own motorbike too it seems, which is convenient. It's hard to think something could really be so perfect like this. One of them even let me visit the back nine the last time, which blew me away. It's so fun with them in general that I'm wondering if I'm simply missing something here? Seems almost too good to be true. I'm keen to keep this going for a while if I can. Maybe at least once a week until I get bored of it. Hopefully they don't suddenly decide to disappear though. I am not the greatest looking dude, but I am always gracious with girls, I smile politely and thank them afterwards and I am pretty generous with them on their tariffs, so I am hoping this helps to keep them interested. Well, if it isn’t already obvious, I'm really stoked about this new arrangement. Are there any big possible downsides to all this though that I'm overlooking?