dbrenn

In any country in the world, people who appear to be rich are targetted by thieves. Try walking around <insert US/European city name here> at night, wearing flashy clothes and a nice watch.

On 4/2/2020 at 5:46 PM, RichardColeman said:

Just seems to echo the rest of the Thai people - general lack of financial planning for the future. And these girls generally have 2-3 more income than most thais

This is not a Thai thing - hookers the world over are generally uneducated, are supporting poverty stricken families, and many have substance or gambling addictions.

If you look at other social groups in Thailand, you'll fine that most of them are very thrifty. To say that most Thais can't manage money is nonsense.

Another "Thais hate us" post.

Thais reflect the temperament of the observer. Treat them with contempt and they'll do likewise. Show friendship and courtesy, and you'll find how nice most Thais are.

6 hours ago, RotBenz8888 said:

He'd stopped all foreigners from entering, so the virus will soon disappear. Clown.

So has pretty much everywhere else - I'm in Australia: only residents admitted and citizens can't leave!

7 minutes ago, White Christmas13 said:

The numbers are not confusing but meaningless for people who

don't live in Thailand.

Very true. But this is Thaivisa.com - a forum aimed at people who live in Thailand, or who spend prolonged periods in Thailand.

Look at it another way - in the US, the death rate is 1,000 people per 100,000 for 60 years olds. In one year, that means there is a 1% chance you'll die, even without coronavirus around. I don't see every 60 year old running around in a panic though - there is more chance that they'll die of anything else, then coronavirus .....

1 minute ago, faraday said:

But it wasn't a fair election.

Tell me one that was.

12 hours ago, White Christmas13 said:

Why compare it with road trauma not every country has lunatics driving.

Do you struggle with numbers? Let me explain again.

Those who choose to live in Thailand (there's the clue - not elsewhere) live with the threat of road trauma day in, day out. But we panic when a threat presents itself that carries no greater risk of death. For instance, I've lived in Thailand for 30 years - if each 5 years carries a 0.16% risk of death, then 30 years = 4.8%. Much higher than coronavirus, but I don't see people panicking or banning cars. Have you ever wondered why this is?

Do you get it now? The numbers might be confusing you, I understand.

9 hours ago, White Christmas13 said:

time to take your medicine

Posters whose only contribution to a debate is ad hominem insults, rather than engaging in the subject under discussion, would be happier talking to little small children.

29 minutes ago, gargamon said:

Your quote was "Unlike the Spanish Flu, which had a mortality rate of up to 20%". I see nothing even remotely close to that number in the wiki you say you used as a reference...

Various sources ... the up to 20% mortality rate was perhaps localised to certain territories, I'll concede. And, again, measuring these things was much more difficult back then.

http://www.influenzavirusnet.com/1918-flu-pandemic/mortality.html

https://interestingengineering.com/the-1918-spanish-flu-and-what-it-cost-humanity-a-timeline

Now, perhaps, you'll concede that the flu virus was just as nasty, or more so, than this coronavirus? Earlier, you were refuting the advice of a qualified virologist with barstool-medic claims that the flu was somehow benign.

Will this be worse than Spanish Flu? Only time will tell, but I doubt it because of advances in healthcare, and the peculiarity of Spanish Flu in that it targeted the young and fit.

18 minutes ago, gargamon said:

Where do you get the nonsense you spout?

"The World Health Organization estimates that 2–3% of those who were infected died (case-fatality ratio).^[51] It is estimated that approximately 30 million were killed by the flu, or about 1.7% of the world population died.^[52] Other estimates range from 17 to 55 million fatalities"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

 

2-3% for Spanish flu, 2% for Covid-19.  Hmmm.

If you think that I'm talking nonsense, then why are you quoting my sources?

It's common knowledge that Spanish flu was a pandemic back in 1918 - we'll both have to concede that statistics were much harder to measure back then, as most countries didn't share information to any great extent, the computer database hadn't been invented, etc -- hence, the large range of estimates depending on where you read. But let's not split hairs here, and just accept that it was a truly awful pandemic that devastated the general population, killing vast (30,50,100, who knows) millions of otherwise healthy people, targeting the young and fit as it seemed to do. Unlike COVID-19, which seems to behave more like traditional flu and is more dangerous to the elderly than the young - so far.

Spanish flu was a humble H1N1 flu virus though, and something similar could pop up any time. You were saying that the coronaviruses are nastier than the flu? How wrong you were, if you don't mind my saying so.

2 hours ago, rabas said:

Flu can't spread to 4 billion people. No one has immunity against nCoV2019.

Spanish Flu (1918) spread around the world, infecting nearly a third of the entire world population, with estimates of up to 100 million dead - a higher death toll than WWI and WWII combined - at a time when the global population was 1.8 billion. Average life expectancy in the US dropped by a whopping 12 years because of it. It was a regular 'H1N1 influenza A' flu virus, but a very nasty one that targeted the young and fit.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/magazine/2018/03-04/history-spanish-flu-pandemic/

We should never underestimate the power of nature, and how easily it can kill us. But nearly all of us will survive this coronavirus, unless it mutates into something nastier of course. Then again, we might all get killed before that happens - an asteroid could come crashing through the ceiling as I type this.

Anyway, enjoy the rest of your weekend, and try not to worry too much.

20 minutes ago, christophe75 said:

 

What is happening in Europe, in Iran, again show the same patterns : the virus is everywhere.

 

It's true that there are a lot of people - perhaps walking among us - that are infected and haven't yet developed symptoms.

My doctor (a virologist, of whom I spoke earlier) also told me that:

1) There is probably no stopping it now - it's in the general population and quarantine is unlikely to have any further effect

2) The lucky ones will be the people who catch it first - if you are in the small minority of cases who develop complications, then there are only a limited number of ICU beds

3) If you catch it later on, when everyone else has it, the ICU is likely to be full and your standard of care will be lower, with corresponding increase in mortality risk

He went on to cheerfully tell me that this is nature's way of bringing down house prices to levels where people can afford them, and restoring wage growth (I'm in Australia at the moment).

A lot of people will die - especially the old and the weak - but then again 62 people die every day on Thailand's roads, and around 1,500 per day die from other causes, and we don't really notice that. Unlike the Spanish Flu, which had a mortality rate of up to 20%, and targeted the young and fit, people in reasonably good health are unlikely to cop it this time around.

58 minutes ago, Kelsall said:

People do not necessarily become immune to the virus after getting it.  Reinfection can occur.

 

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2020/02/21/COVID-19-reinfection-cases-on-the-rise-in-China/4291582219521/

 

 

The article states "according to China state media", and we all know how reliable they are..

48 minutes ago, gargamon said:

Your doctor is probably correct about regular viruses like influenza, cold, etc. But this one is a coronavirus. All coronaviruses(SARS, MERS, Ebola) originate in animals and have not been in humans before, and cannot be categorized the same. We just don't know how they will act. For those that believe this is just a different flu, sorry, wrong.

I think you missed the part about him being a doctor, PhD in virology ..... he knows a lot more about these things than barstool medics like us. 

It's not the flu, but it's a variant of a coronavirus, i.e., something that is understood and has been studied before.

Don't panic. Whilst getting sick with this thing sounds very unpleasant, there's a much higher chance that something else will kill you.

12 minutes ago, UncleMhee said:

So being born is scary now......

Exactly. So to should be all the bad habits that could kill us.

Keep calm, and carry on.

51 minutes ago, gargamon said:

The latest I've seen says even after you catch it, get sick and recover you can still pass it on to others.

My doctor (who specialised in virology) told me that:

1) Symptoms appear up to 14 days after infection

2) Infected people are shedding the virus (potentially infecting others) for around 3 or 4 days before symptoms appear, and for around 3 or 4 days after symptoms disappear. So, if it's possible to isolate all the infected people, or if an increasing number of people (having had it) are immune to it, then it will vanish quite quickly just like the flu.

So you can pass it on to others after you recover, but only for a few days. People don't carry it long term in the same way as they do for diseases like HIV or hepatitis.

On 2/21/2020 at 3:34 PM, Thaiwrath said:

I think the western females like them, because it doesn't make their ar*e look so big ! ????????????????

Bullseye

Whilst it may be technically possible, I wouldn't do it. Thai bureaucracy is creaky at times, and you might fall into unexpected administrative black holes in the future, where, for example, a new set of officials or a different part of the government refuses to recognise the change. 

On 2/27/2020 at 3:11 PM, ParkerN said:

This is a real worry for passengers, and it doesn't help very much with my somewhat dismal (learned) view of Thais. This country and it's dismal people collectively really are the pits. Useless for anything that matters.

And Thais, no doubt, have a dismal view of you too.

Why on earth do you spend your time on a forum dedicated to Thailand? Are you a masochist, or do you have a chip on your shoulder over some endeavour in Thailand that you've failed at? I've always found Thailand a great place to live and work - try to improve your attitude and you might be successful in Thailand too.

3 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Absolutely wrong. There will be an uprising and big changes. Just wait. 

That's what Thaksin said.

On 2/23/2020 at 10:40 PM, OneMoreFarang said:

Really?

I think lots of Thais welcome foreigners.

Obviously there are some who don't like foreigners - just like in many other countries.

 

Who of us has experienced hateful Thais? I remember one guy years ago in a food center who was shouting at every farang he saw. And everybody ignored him. That's the only hateful guy I remember right now. I am sure if there would be many of them I would remember many of them.

Agreed. Thais are in the main tolerant.

On 2/22/2020 at 8:07 PM, CharlieH said:

Some interesting recommendations and thoughts in the "what are you watching now" topic.

That said, Movies like music is very much a personal thing, I didnt like the latest Tarrentino movie , I thought it was boring.

 

Too much budget restraint and CGI, no real locations, decent actors etc, its all manufactured conveyor belt stuff and re-booted story lines from previous incarnations. There are a few out there but few and far between in my book.

I've also enjoyed past Tarantino films, but agree that the latest one was so boring that I switched it off less than half way through. 

Recent Hollywood films are much too long, riddled with scientific inaccuracies and are all so sickeningly politically correct and woke. I've given up on them.

15 minutes ago, Somtamnication said:

Kudos to him; I did it after Bush 2 was elected. A letter from the IRS clearing me of taxes and  you are all set! Easy Peasy. The only regret I ever had was no more chocolate frosties at Wendy's!

Agreed. But the main problem with US citizenship is that you are still taxed even though you don't live there. 

Not everyone wants to be a US citizen, hard as it is for some people to understand.