thaibeachlovers

Depends how you define better off. Given I was not yet working, I had no money back then, so I was a penniless parasite living off my father. Was I happier then? I don't think so, but I didn't think about such things. Life is something that happened to me, not something I made.

LOL. Reminds me of when I was in Antarctica. The Americans were only a 1/2 hour walk away and their rubbish tip was referred to as the Kiwi PX. I never encountered such outright waste of still good stuff as when there.

In my experience, most don't think much about the greater world, unless it's causing a problem for them, so the little things become big things in their minds, ergo problems with such as accommodation or antisocial people overshadow the reasons we should be happy. I was very fortunate to be born when I was, and live in an underpopulated country where I could do any job I wanted without any qualifications needed. I know that, but it's hard to be happy for that reason when the world I live in is ( IMO ) in the end times and gone barking.

When referring to religious people as "good" it only, IMO, refers to them following the religion, not as to their character. Referring to a "bad" catholic might mean they use contraception etc, but doesn't mean they are a bad person.

Loads of reasonably priced good accommodation ( but not as cheap as C M ); cheap baht bus transport ( fixed route )- many C M red bus drivers were rip off merchants, especially from Promenada; 2 hours by bus from Bkk, trains and the airport; Jomtien beach a short ride away; more sights close than C M, and the tours are better value; R G mall. Traffic is appalling, but not worse than C M IMO.

Phangan, Gulf coast, Railay, Lanta Yai, Pattaya.

Leaving aside the bar workers, the locals I encountered in Pattaya were no more unfriendly than elsewhere I went in LOS.

Loads of furniture factories around Lamphun.

C M locals are not, IMO, any more friendly than those elsewhere in LOS.

I explored most of Thailand quite thoroughly. That I did it with a benefit of a rent a girlfriend only added to the pleasure. I have become bitter and twisted, but only after giving up the bar scene and going the respectable route of marriage and domesticity. I should have stayed single and a happy monger.

Some actual proof of those statistics is in order or you just made them up.

LOL. I never had much to do with Thai men even when affluent and enjoying everything Thailand had to offer, so where do I and others like me fit into your narrative of "guys who are bitter because the bar scene is no longer a viable or attractive lifestyle either due to age-related loss of libido or lack of interest from bar girls. Financial pressures also make maintaining this lifestyle increasingly difficult"? Never considered Thai males as "unworthy and inadequate providers". Just not interested in them as friends. "Thai male bashers also seek to rationalize and justify the monger lifestyle which they know is exploitative and soul-destroying" In your opinion. You come across as someone that doesn't know much about it to make such blanket statements. " I consider this group of people, who are sadly over-represented on this forum, to be the absolute dregs of the ex-pat community" Says much about yourself, and it's not positive. Do you even know many mongers well, or is it based on something you read somewhere?

Same food in Pattaya, or anywhere in LOS, women also every where in LOS ( more available in Pattaya ). Not having my own transport I didn't see much of the countryside.

I know enough to be happy not born poor Chinese.

Exactly. Build on flood plains and surprise, surprise, surprise get flooded house.

Drinking water is the least of our worries, at least for rich countries. Solar powered desalination plants can provide all the potable water needs. Saudis been using desalination for decades, but using oil.

Of course the world is on a path to destruction. Eventually the sun will die and all life on planet will cease. Extinction of species is inevitable, and part of the life cycle on planet Earth. Humans are certainly eliminating many species. I don't expect humans to continue till the planet dies- IMO sure to eliminate ourselves long before. I don't know if humanity will cease to exist because of climate change, but I'm pretty sure we are going to pollute ourselves to extinction if we don't start taking care of the environment. Perhaps we will just have WW3 and die of radiation- so many ways we can kill off humanity. Climate change is just one possibility.

I did more than most simply by not reproducing. No extra people to consume, use electricity, travel on roads that used oil products to make and motivate the transport, etc. Far as I'm concerned I've more than done "my bit". Only use car because no public transport where I live. Local electricity hydro generated.

LOL. I've asked similar on some climate change threads I've been on, but never had a reply. Don't hold your breath.

It's an excellent way for governments to tax us more. No wonder they keep telling us it's for our own good while living the jet set life flying overseas instead of using videoconferencing.

My point is that IMO all the "small ways" don't add up to doodoo when China, India and Brazil are polluting in massive ways. If it makes them happy to be doing something, that's fine, but IMO they shouldn't be fooling themselves that by driving an electric car they are "solving" the climate "crisis". Want to do something that really does make a difference- have less children and stop overpopulating the world.

I've occasionally observed that those with children are biggest local polluters, driving huge cars with massive engines to school so the little darlings don't have to walk or take the bus. I've occasionally observed that those who attend climate conferences like to use an extraordinary amount of jet fuel shuttling hundreds of participants to luxury resorts to emit loads of hot air. I've occasionally observed that those that like to pontificate about how the common man should cut back on their lifestyle or trade in existing cars for electric ones, are fond of living a jet setting lifestyle, including plenty of flying in private jets. I wonder how many man made climate warriors living in Thailand went there in sailing ships, and use no Thai electricity generated by fossil fuels?

I'd be a lot more convinced about it if world "leaders" did more about the continuing and increasing destruction of the Amazonian rain forest. That they are apparently doing sod all about it is in my mind evidence that it's all a big scam to increase taxes. Any attempt to stop China burning coal? Any attempt to stop India polluting? Don't think so. Is climate changing- of course. Always has, always will. Can we do anything to stop it changing- doubt it. Even if we all stopped using any fossil fuel at all, would it make any difference in the next 25 years- doubt it. Would that even be possible in the next few decades- doubt it. If humans did cause it, it took 300 years or so to do so, and does anyone think it could be changed back to 300 years ago? I've never heard anyone say what they want to happen. Do they want to keep it like "now", or 50 years ago, 100 years ago, etc? Plenty extreme weather events in all mankind's history, so knowing which idyllic time we are aiming for might be helpful.

No.

Ah, un named is it. So the absolute truth then?