bobbin

Currently, nearly every major trouble spot on the planet, involves radical Muslims.

What does that tell you about their belief system?

The question is, what does the word radical actually mean in this context? Many will cite verses from the Quran in order to claim the 'radicals' are acting in a way contrary to their religion, whereas the radicals will also cite the Quran in order to justify their actions. The radicals may have a minority view, which loathsome though it may be it still has a coherent basis in scripture. I surmise that 'radical' in the context used means the application of Islam in a manner secular civilizations find abhorrent.

P.S The kidnapped girls were Christian, in case that is not obvious from the media.

http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2014/05/boko-haram-only-kidnapped-the-nigerian-girls-because-they-were-christian/

Gradually but explosively, what Boko Haram, the Islamist terror group, has been doing in North East Nigeria has penetrated the mainstream from the social media. On 14 April Boko Haram (meaning ‘Western Education is Forbidden’) abducted more than 230 girls from a boarding school. Most are still missing. Abubaka Shekau, Boko Haram’s leader, obligingly gave a videoed explanation: ‘I abducted your girls; there is a market for selling humans. Allah says I should sell – he commands me to sell.’

I await the main schools of Islamic jurisprudence informing Abubaka Shekau of his misunderstanding forthwith.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/09/us-nigeria-girls-saudi-idUSBREA480MU20140509

Organic?... Pattaya?....

Dear God, the hipsters are moving in...

Slightly off topic but surly related...........

I am more than a little frosted that less than six months ago I bought a "real" copy of windows 7 pro and MS office for my ASUS laptop. I paid roughly 9,000k for these. Now, of course, MS has came out and said that they are no longer going to be supporting windows 7 and thereby forcing us all to transition over to windows 8.0.

My question is this, how long do we truly have before security is an issue for using windows 7.0? Hell, that was my number one reason for upgrading to a "real" copy of windows. So that I could maintain the upgrades and maintain some sort of internet security for online banking.

On topic question I think as anyone planning on buying a new laptop should at least (I think) be asking this same question...............

Advice truly and greatly appreciated. And yeah, I am still a little pissed over buying this to then find out shortly it would no longer be supported as Bill Gates needs to restock his treasure chests. . Fricken MS...........................................................

Whenever I see Bill Gates getting attaboys for donating money to charity, and he and his foundation do donate millions, I think Good For Him........... It is not his money he is donating, it is ours.

Gotta love a long rant based on incorrect information...

BTW, it is his money and he is giving it away. He and his wife will be doing good things long after they pass away due to the massive amount of money he has and will be donating. Unlike that other guy.

There are consumer laws, and a consumer protection board, the fact that the laws are not enforced is no excuse. They are not enforced because the enforcers are probably paid off by the businesses that have a monopoly in Thailand.

Not making an excuse, just pointing out that we have to deal with reality as it presents itself rather than how we'd like it to be.

Stupid people pay more, fact of life, no nanny state can prevent that without making life miserable for everyone.

Again, this is not about stupid people or overpriced items, this is about intentionally falsifying price labels.

bring your own scales to the market if your unhappy with the weights weight it yourself at checkout ,see how far you get

im guessing thrown out by security ,the poplice wouldnt entertain such a "crime" especially if it was brought to their attention by a farang

if you think its stealing ,try and make a police report and let us know how it goes .............buy a 1kg of grapes ,take it the copshop with a scales and tell them it only weighs 400g and youve been robbed over half of your grapes

right it's cheating speedtripler..

Weights and measures have been part of commerce for a long long long time.

Next time you buy a bike, better hope the manufacturer didn't short you 100cc.

Edit. Maybe a bad example as most bikes have less cc than the model name states...

Sagami Original non-latex. 65 baht each. Some Family Marts have.

I bought 3 last month at BigC Extra...

They are not baked, they are fried in oil like donuts.

Vile! The layers of croissant dough are saturated with the frying oil, so every bite releases a nice squirt of oil..

It was very interesting to read what Brits think about the Russians. I am Yakutian guy, but my wife is Russian, we live in Thailand two years. I don't like bars, I prefer Irish pubs. I drink vodka and whiskey with the close friends at home, it is our tradition. I have read Shakespeare, Conan Doyle, Walter Scott, Orwell, Tolkien. I like English Rock. Most Russian people have good attitude to Brits. For last 20 years the Russia and Russian people very changed, but the "Iron curtain" remained in our heads.

I had to Google what Yakutian meant. What I came up was images of Asian looking women (pretty ones), who'd I'd place as Chinese if asked. If so, you're probably not one of the "Russians" meant here, I reckon what's meant by it is the Caucasian Igor-type, who's head Arnie would bash in in the old cold war time movies and the James Bond mistresses they drag around.

Yakutia is located in Eastern Siberia. Yakutian people are more like the Chinese, but the language is similar to Turkish. I am Russian citizen thus, in Thailand I am Russian. I agree our girls are beautiful http://vk.com/id219632443

Damn, those are some fine-looking women..

How long would it take to learn Yakutian, and would it do me any good?

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

You don't sound like a very safe driver to me. Did it never occur to you that your actions might infuriate the driver of the van you are teasing, so much that he might do something really stupid thereby endangering the fare paying visa running passengers. Why don't you just grow up and let them pass.

I do infuriate them for sure.

I enjoy that.

The visa runners endanger their own safety by using these drivers.

As I said, I calculate the "risk" factor.

I take "risk" very seriously.

Visa runners know the risk.

Visa runners know there's a high chance of these drivers having alcohol in their system.

Visa runners know there's a high chance of drugs of some description in the drivers blood.

Yet they choose to take the chance.

I don't.

I drive myself.

I accept your comments though.

I am not as responsible as most, but ..... "This Is Thailand" YaY

The more exposure this thread gets, the more flack you are going to get. Better buckle-up.

The passengers of these vans are always innocent. Too bad their method of transport fails your approval.

To make a game of, anticipate and plan these staged encounters marks you as irresponsible and immature. All of this fun is taking place at highway speeds. Doubled if on a single-lane highway.

Hey! I like Strike Back.....

The amount of (almost) pseudo sex he gets on that show might require blowing off some steam........

Wow!

I'm glad to hear it's real, because I was really impressed (while allowing for a hoax).

What a combination...Cosplay and Rock and Roll!!

Will never die! Although a little short of oxygen these days....

^^

Is this girl actually playing and overlaying the originals?

I watched a couple of her vids and to a non-player of the guitar she seems to be in sync...

Or have I been had?

Yes, Khun Paen, you did screw up, very badly. Let me introduce myself. I'm the co-ordinator of this organization in Chiang Mai www.LannaCareNet.org Perhaps you should have read our website and contacted us before you did what you thought was a kindness for this man.

There is a reason he's receiving SSDI income. He has a disability of some sort that prevents him from working and he probably requires on-going medical attention. Did you know that as part of SSDI he gets free medical care in the U.S? Yes, he has "early access" to Medicare, before age 65 by going on SSDI. Surely you know he won't receive free medical care in Thailand.

I just helped someone on SSDI return to the U.S. after five months in Thailand. That person needed dialysis, which she received free in the U.S. She didn't realize how much it cost in Thailand -- half her SSDI income. She tried to skimp on the number of times she had dialysis each week, ended up in hospital (more medical bills she couldn't pay) and nearly died.

Also, did you explain to this guy how to get his SSDI direct deposited to Bangkok Bank? Many SSDI recipients keep their U.S. bank accounts, access them with an ATM card and pay 150 baht and a poor exchange rate each time they get money from the machine. Poor way to manage money. A lot of people like this "homeless" guy manage to lose their ATM cards, too, and get cut off from their SSDI income. Very little (actually nothing) the U.S. consulate can do to help them get a new ATM card from their U.S. bank.

Oh and for those worried about how he'll handle his visa -- yes, it's a problem and it will limit his ability to rent a room, open a bank account, obtain medical services (even if he has money), etc if he's on overstay. Fortunately, the U.S. consulate will provide consular services to overstayers (other nationalities don't want to help lawbreakers) and unless he does something really fragrant, he won't get arrested for simple overstay, but he will be more vulnerable to be shaken down for bribes by cops every time he has an interaction with one. That's right, he could be hit by a tuk-tuk as a pedestrian and find himself having to pay a 10,000 baht "fine" to the cop he asks to help when it's discovered he's on overstay. It's happened to our clients. The cop won't arrest him because they won't want to be responsible for his medical care!

You mentioned he's a U.S. Vietnam vet. If he's over age 65, he could get a VA low income pension -- did you help him to apply for that? Also, there a VA 24 hr hotline for homeless vets. California has a system of assisted living homes for veterans -- did you investigate those for him?

Every month our organization helps about 4 - 6 men (they're almost always men) who fit the description of the man you "assisted". In many cases, these men die horrible, painful, premature deaths in filthy conditions because they lack funds for early diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions that are entirely treatable. Things like infections from abrasions received in a motorcycle accident, skin cancer that was never treated, early warning signs of a stroke that were ignored because there was no money to go to the hospital, etc.

Yes, OP you've done something very, very bad. All you can do now is to stop others like him from making the same mistake and learn more about the social services available locally to help men like him.

Nancy, I'm sure your heart is in the right place, but please resist the impulse to always save us from ourselves.

People do screw-up, and organizations like yours are there to try to pick up the pieces. It's good what you are doing and you speak wisely about potential problems. This man coming here would probably benefit from speaking to you when he arrives. But think what you are sending him back to before overemphasizing the negative.

Interesting.

The OP has nothing to apologize for in this instance. IMHO.

He connected on a human level with a man. He did not buy the plane ticket and deliver this man to the airport.

That man has heard a message. That it is possible to live an entirely different life. The life he has now is in no way worth hanging on to. He had the initiative to research and budget his income to purchase the air ticket. He has been to SEA as a young man so it's not a complete unknown.

It may be that the Philippines, for it's ability to provide veterans benefits, or Cambodia for more relaxed visa requirements, is a better fit for him. That is for the future.

That's a horror story!

You must be stressed to the max.....

Maybe it's the water here.

A couple of days ago I was sitting in a KFC. The next table over was a young tom/dee couple. The tom was feeding the dee and much cuddling, all initiated by the dee. She was a total hottie.

Then i noticed that one of the employees, very feminine, was definitely hitting on another employee, short hair, playing hard to get. Lots of head-slapping and grooming by the dee/employee. They were working only a couple of meters away from the other tom/dee couple. Not behind the counter.

So much for no PDA in Thailand, like we were told so many years ago....

On second thought, maybe it's the hormones in the chicken!

note to self...less KFC.

Friendship carries it. Located on the racks at the checkout counters

+1

More than half my posts have been in this forum as well.

Beardog and a couple of other posters slate us (the vast majority) for coming down too hard on poor Yankee.... Do you want to compare saddle-time? I've been riding motorcycles for 37 years....

OP made a mistake in judgement regarding time and place. Relevant to this thread, he made another one in posting here and inviting comment.

He ain't been back once he saw the way the wind is blowin......

Well Yankee, it looks like you've been "peer reviewed" and the bad news is....you failed.

Two brain farts. Both in public. The road "incident" and then posting here and attempting to deflect the inevitable criticism.

Are you any different than the Somchais in their pickups going 50kph+ faster than the other traffic as they weave thru the lanes? No, you are not.

Watching the Keith Code video multiple times does not make you SuperGT, and most everybody else on the road would like to make it home.

The bicycle suggestion is the one you should take to heart.

I was a teenager when those bikes were new....

Jeez, they're aging way better than me!

I really don't like to see women fighting physically. I know they are capable of it, but it goes against the grain.

I'm a big fan of MMA and watch most of the UFC events. Last one I watched had a match with women fighting each other. I promptly hit fast-forward.

To save their lives or honour it's ok, but for profit....no way.

Lesbian porn.... I'm all for it.

Actually, it's the hang em high guys that are hallucinating!

It's Thailand fer chrissake...

He'll be on his way before the "HeH" brigade make their next beer-run...

As usual, a large number of respondents have misread the news article.

She paid the 2 million Baht because the scammers threatened her with charges of money laundering. The 48K was for customs duty on her "gifts".

I just went through the same scam happening to a lady-friend of mine.

He contacted her through Facebook and started chatting her up over the course of a week or so. (Note the lady in the news spent a couple of months chatting to her "friend"). Very chatty and soon professing true love. These scammers use the pics of successful white males as their own. It"s all on the net.

Fortunately, this lady did not understand all the English he was using as he promised to send all the "gifts" and come soon to see her, so she showed me the messages. The parcel was to arrive in 2 days and he provided a tracking website.

I told her the she would receive a call in the next day or so requesting money to pay customs duties, fees or the like. She was initially reluctant to let go of the dream, though she still hoped I was wrong.

The "money requesting text" arrived 5 minutes after I finished telling her this!

She replied that if he would wire her the money to pay the fees she would "accept the parcel"

postural hypertension.