thaibeachlovers

In NZ it was different. There the saying was Q How do you know if a plane has arrived from Pommyland? A it keeps whining when the engines stop.

Actually it's brilliant at providing societal support. The NHS, tax free threshold for income, free transport in London over 60, free prescriptions over 60, flats for the poor. I had it sweet once I turned 60, though I never understood why the largess started at 60 and not the retiring age. If I had liked living in the UK I'd be there now, but they have a pension linked to payments ( I only had 10 years contribution ), while NZ gives the full amount even if never worked a day in the life. Try living in NZ on a pension- tax from dollar 1, pay full price for GP visits and prescriptions, hugely expensive dentists, and social housing is a very bad joke, even if can get anything at all. Old people do have a card that gives us free travel on buses between 9 am and 3 pm ( at least that is what it was last time I went on a bus ), but the bus service ain't that great so a car is pretty essential, with all the expense of that. If people in the UK woke up they might realise that they ain't as badly off as they might be.

I might agree with that as long as you included "or Biden" at the end of your sentence.

I do like your posts. It's good to read a poster with common sense, something apparently lacking in city councils and governments of western countries. I have to pay taxes, but it irks me that our taxes are wasted on social idiocy and policies that do nothing for society in general, but get the woke vote.

I'm puzzled about the "rights" that refers to. If a gender has "rights" what "rights" do I as a male person have that are different from the "rights" of a female person? Are not the "rights" of humans applicable to both genders? Strange then that I lived so many years and never realised I had any "rights" at all, other than the "right" to pay taxes and be discriminated against in a divorce.

IMO there is nothing to consider. If a person is born with male chromosomes they are of the male gender, and visa versa. The question of whether they can live like the opposite gender is a different matter and so far that is accepted by most, in western countries. I doubt they'd try it in Afghanistan though.

In what alternate universe would it be appropriate for an obviously biased judge to be part of that debate?

Excellent move. Kids that age should be out playing, not hiding in their bedrooms talking to fake friends on line.

Hmmmmmm. Does that mean that Biden will be buying the next door coastline property in Hawaii to live in? To show his support for climate change theory?

A/ the Dems must be terrified that Trump has a real possibility of winning to be wheeling out Obama and Clinton ( I wonder if she will be there- I'd love to see that pants suit again ). B/ Biden's performance during his SOTU speech was, IMO, as "confrontational" as a very small damp poodle yapping at someone's heels. He looked like a man that had been coached to look like he was confrontational, IMO.

You mentioned Bernie. They did him twice, and now they are doing it to Kennedy. Seems they never learn from their mistakes.

As I recall, Biden, or his team had to withdraw his claim to have seen photographs of it.

Seems the israeli apologists are becoming desperate in their attempts to cover for israeli crimes. It doesn't take a math genius to work out that if 500 trucks used to arrive in Gaza every day before October 7 and that is reduced to a few, then it's not going to take long for people to starve.

Seems the poster you quoted thinks 26 tons is more than a drop in the bucket among 2 million people. Perhaps he thinks the Christ is going to reincarnate and repeat the miracle of the loaves and the fishes. It's a bit sad when some are so desperate to excuse israeli crimes that they start claiming silly things on here. Did he explain why it was even necessary for Spain to drop anything, when there are hundreds of trucks waiting outside Gaza loaded with hundreds of tons of food?

It's taken 6 months of slaughter to finally get to a point where it's no longer possible for Biden, Sunak and Co to hide behind the "israel has the right to defend itself" charade. Will israel abide by the decision? I hope so, but I fear not. IMO this is the critical moment in the conflict a/ netanyahu backs down and conforms to the court's order, in which case he has a HUGE problem with his hard core anti Palestinian cabinet members. b/ he doesn't and has a HUGE problem with most of the countries on the planet. While they probably didn't want to go against the US, there is now, IMO, nothing for Biden to hide behind anymore, so they may feel emboldened to start discussing sanctions on israel and arrest warrants for individuals. IMO this is the moment that Hamas has been waiting for, when the top court on the planet orders israel to stop starving Gazans to death, which if israel complies is probably the beginning of the end of the conflict, and a political win for Hamas. However, it gets REALLY interesting, if israel refuses to comply. Will Egypt open the gates if israel does not, which brings in a whole new dimension to the situation. Sisi can't be happy complying with israel to starve the Gazans as it makes him look bad too, and there is always the threat that starving Gazans may try and break into Egypt in desperation. Disregarding any of the above, looks like the options for netanyahu and the colluder in chief, Biden, are reducing. Netanyahu IMO must be relying on the conflict to keep him out of court, and Biden may suffer if he continues to be Canute in the November election, so IMO those two are the individuals most likely to be affected by the court's ruling. Of course, nothing is settled, and the future is still likely to be "interesting".

Expressways and highrises reminds me of an incident some time in the 90s. I was in a taxi from the airport, having newly arrived and we passed one high rise beside the expressway on which was an enormous poster of a spectacularly beautiful girl advertising something. The intention was to get the attention of passing motorists, which it did, but not in the intended way. Turned out so many drivers were so beguiled by the beauty of her, that they were causing accidents, and she had to go, so next time I passed by she was, sadly, no longer there. Just one of the interesting things that happens in LOS that likely would not happen elsewhere.

I don't know how many, but some up in the north by Hezbollah rockets. Apparently they had to evacuate all the occupants and they are living in hotels further south at great expense to the israeli government.

Good for her. Seems Biden is in for a whole lot of pain if more of his staff leave for the same reason.

Isn't that whataboutery?

I was working in Saudi at the time and was rolling in cash, so that wasn't it. It was because the hangers on kept trying to rush me and I didn't like it. When they tried to rush me choosing a "feeder" that was the last straw. I didn't have to pay anymore but that was possibly because I didn't ask for "full service". Is there anyone out there that manged to work it out?

Would that have been mainly for businesses? If I remember correctly in London internet cafes didn't really get started till 1998. I used to go to a big new one near Trafalgar Square that had free internet after midnight till morning as an introductory offer. I had to get someone to turn it on as I had not a clue. I don't remember what I did on it though. Quite common by about 2002 I think. I went to one near where I lived, but it had to close as the owner let too many friends use it for free and it went broke. Only way I could save anything was on a disc. By then I had a desk top and an internet connection of my own from British Telecom, I saved everything to an external hard drive as big as a large book. It had less capacity than a flash drive the size of my little finger nail now.

That was probably a brick? My cousin had one and it was quite large. I don't remember the first time I saw a cell phone in Bkk, but it was in the back pocket of a gogo dancer. They were probably the only non rich Thais that could afford one, and would have used it for getting customers outside the bar. That has to be near or after the turn of the century.

I was left feeling ripped off, so unless you spoke perfect Thai then I don't think you missed anything. First time left me puzzled, and on the second visit they managed to make me really angry before I even started the meal, which didn't make for a nice time. That one did speak a bit of English so I was able to explain why I was so angry. Nice girl, bad experience. I don't remember, but I probably gave her a tip for putting up with an angry farang and being nice.

I could not have said better myself.

The common theme in all western nations discontent is the housing crisis, which IMO is down in it's entirety to governments allowing too many people in when there are just not enough houses for everyone. IMO an entirely government created crisis. It wouldn't have even been necessary if they educated people properly, and made lazy youths get off their fat backsides and get a job.