JonnyF

Yeah, because they were all so polite, friendly and welcoming before Covid ????. A lot of them are just ripoff merchants. I remember ordering a bottle of water from them and when it came the water was luke warm and the seal on the lid had already been broken. Checked with the girlfriend who confirmed they were refilling it from the 1-2 Baht vending machines and then selling it for twice the price of a legit, unopened bottle from 711. They probably hadn't even washed the bottle since they did the same thing to the previous customer. Scammers. The OP was right to complain IMO. People who tolerate this nonsense only encourage it.

Yes it's probably best not to argue with me, since I will continue to insist that you argue against my actual position, rather than a false position that you have either imagined or deliberately created. Enjoy your holiday.

Thanks for the suggestion re. my choice of words but unfortunately if you re-read my posts you will see I used both hypocrisy and virtue signaling. IMO they are guilty of both, and much more besides. You misrepresented my position by saying "If you do not believe on religion just don't partake in discussions if you have so much hatred for that secular group." That obviously implies that I do not believe in (the word you should have used is 'in' not 'on') religion and that I have hatred for a secular group. Neither is true, hence you misrepresented my position.

Just another method of creating a conformist, subservient, acquiescant population that never questions authority and 'knows their place' in society.

That's a weak straw man. I don't know which secular group you think I hate, but I have no issue with secular or non-secular groups (although I dislike the way certain groups use such groups for their own ends), and I especially have no issue with Buddhism, quite the opposite in fact. What I DO dislike are corrupt, self righteous Army Generals or Politicians who have (in the current case) illegally stolen power from a democratically elected government preaching morality to the populace in the name of their religion of choice, when they themselves are breaking virtually every moral code known to man. Big difference. It's not the fact that they ban alcohol either. If they banned meat, cigarettes (I quit years ago), sexual activity or whatever else they thought made them look morally superior then I would hold the same viewpoint. It's none of their business whether I (or anyone else) follows their chosen religious beliefs and practices on their chosen days. By the way I'd appreciate it if you do not deliberately misrepresent my position again. It's very unbecoming.

Maybe best you cut down on the Ganja, Bro.

I understand it perfectly well thanks. Those in power are extreme hypocrites. They lecture about morality while partaking in incredible levels of corruption. They pretend to be virtuous while drinking and 'partying' in Hiso 'hostess' clubs in ThongLor. The levels of sanctimony are staggering. They want the population to believe that they have the moral high ground while acting like degenerates behind the scenes. Even if we ignore the fact that history shows us that the mixing of religion and the state rarely ends well, the act of treating citizens like children and 'banning' alcohol in the name of their preferred choice of religion while having members of government that are convicted drug dealers doesn't sit well with me. It is virtue signalling. Hypocrisy. Sanctimony. They cannot help themselves, they are supercilious in the extreme. The fact that you voice your support for it (in the name of 'respecting the culture') strongly suggests to me that you are doing the same thing, albeit from a slightly different angle.

In the office I work we get regular ATK tests as company policy. So we all go down to the car park, get the nose violated by the Hazmat guy, test negative and then immediately go back to the office and put the masks back on. We've literally tested negative minutes ago, but dirty looks all round if one of us dares to remove the mask for 5 minutes ????. The masks are staying. Burned into the Thai psyche unfortunately.

Did you consider the possibility that they are not 'flaunting' anything, but they simply find that wearing a sweaty piece of cloth across their face in 37 degree heat as they walk/jog along the promenade enjoying the sea breeze is not particularly enjoyable, hygienic, healthy or logical?

The authorities right to virtue signal and display their control over the population.

Yes, foreigners do seem to be more capable of thinking for themselves and speaking/acting out against ridiculous/illogical rules. I guess that comes with a decent education that encourages independent thought and doesn't only focus on subservience and acquiescence to some 'higher' power. Which is probably why many of our home countries are pretty much back to normal while most of Thailand is still walking around wearing face nappies in the open air while nobody is within 100 metres of them and acting as though the Black Death is upon them.

That's fine. If you want to wear one, knock yourself out. I might still wear a N95 mask on smoggy days if I take the motorbike. However, this thread is about masks being mandatory. There is a huge difference between an individual choosing to wear a mask because of pollution and being forced to wear a mask by a government looking to assert power/control over the population.

Did you really think my post was joking about terminal illnesses in elderly Thais? That's a rhetorical question by the way because of course you didn't. It was just a weak attempt at a straw man to setup some dull, predictable virtue signalling, wasn't it? Well done Sir. Well Done. ???? Shame these treatments don't help with being a sanctimonious bore, after a 30 second diagnosis you could have qualified for a couple of kilos of grade A produce.

Medical jargon for getting stoned out of your mind and getting "the munchies".

Hopefully this is made 100% clear to all potential tourists. The famous Ad campaigns from the TAT should all feature tourists fully masked as they ride elephants, walk along deserted beaches, ride in TukTuks, sit by the pool, visit temples etc. just so it is 100% clear that your holiday will be spent wearing a sweaty face nappy. There could also be a section where a tourist is arrested for Vaping, just for the sake of clarity.

What do they expect when the Thai education system teaches the young to never question authority, and blindly accept the nonsense that those in power spout, even when anyone with a modicum of intelligence knows it is false? They should be glad the population is so gullible and pliable, they would never have been in power so long otherwise.

Dog and Pony show. He'll stay as long as he wants. If the constitution doesn't allow it he will simply change the constitution - again!!

I got it 10 days ago. Never reported it to any official agency, just self isolated at my condo - thank god for Netflix, YouTube and Playstation. The number of cases is meaningless even if it was accurate (which it isn't), as long as the health service can cope (which it can) then may as well open up. It's over. But that won't stop dictatorial regimes and leftists squeezing every last drop out of it to facilitate increasing authoritarianism and regulations. My company is pushing for us to have the 4th jab now. No thanks. Maybe next year.

Yeah its everywhere. One of my team got it 2 weeks ago. I tested positive on Thursday morning along with another member of my team and just got an email this evening that a fourth member now tested positive. I also know lots of friends and friends of friends that have/had it. The numbers are a massive underestimation of the real situation. I also think the tests are rubbish. I had to change brands to eventually get a positive test after 3 negative results. I was 100% positive I had it due to the symptoms but kept getting negative results until I deliberately changed brands. For me, it's felt like a solid flu (not particularly mild) and a very sore throat and nasty cough. Not terrible, but not at all pleasant either.

Oh I see, this is awkward. You appear to be one of those people who thinks a Terrorist organization that publicly beheads innocent hostages on live TV with no trial and assists in atrocities like 911 has more of a right to a voice on a platform like Twitter than the POTUS.

Not true. The long term acceptance/denial of Anti-Semitism by some of the most hard left members of the UK Labour party is testament to that. Even The Guardian are open about it. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/sep/25/labour-must-use-this-conference-to-go-further-in-rooting-out-antisemitism The left are also incredibly Hypocritical. Yapping on, virtue signalling about "be kind" while calling political opponents Scum. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/sep/26/angela-rayner-stands-by-remarks-calling-tories-scum Finally, Twitter users will be able to speak out against such racism and hypocricy rampant in the left wing without being banned/warned with no explanation.

I'm not aware of any fact free far right echo chambers. Plenty of far left ones though. One less since Musk bought Twitter. Given that Twitter allowed The Taliban to have an account but banned the POTUS tells me the platform could not get any worse than it was under previous ownership. It would take a particularly extreme member of the liberal mob to support such a stance. Personally I am not a fan of the platform anyway (or Trump) but I detest politically biased censorship pretending to be neutral. https://www.spiked-online.com/2021/08/17/why-has-twitter-banned-trump-but-not-the-taliban/

Unless they support your views and silence/censor opposing views, of course.

Zee Russian bots? Are they the same Russian bots that lead to the Brexit vote and Trump getting elected? Every time you hardcore lefties lose a vote or lose an attempt to stifle the voice of the opposition it's alway comes back to Zee Russian Bots. Been watching too many Bond movies I think.

Good to see Musk buy Twitter. Of course the hardcore liberals/leftists will be weeping onto their Lattes/Avocado toast that now BOTH sides are allowed to voice their opinion but that's free speech for you.