TallGuyJohninBKK

Several people here keep saying the Thailand COVID numbers are dropping... How can you, or anyone, realistically know that at this point. The government's officially reported numbers are worthless. They've scaled back testing, plan to cease reporting ATK positives, and the whole shift to unreported self/home testing has eroded any credibility the official numbers ever had. Have you noticed that the government hasn't revoked their work-from-home policy advisory for private companies? My wife's private company in BKK, a large one, still has all their office staff working from home with rare exceptions, as has been the case for many months now. She had to go into the office for a special meeting last week. No one gets into their office building without first doing an ATK test outside and then waiting and showing the guard the result before they're allowed in. Each and every day anyone has to go into the office. Does that sound like COVID is done in Thailand? As someone who's over 60 and thus in a risk group, my mask is staying on when in close contact with others, until I see some real credible proof that COVID is no longer circulating in society here.

First lesson of finding a GF in Thailand.... NEVER pick one who lacks housekeeping skills! ????

Try again: "Presenter Olga Skabeeva, host of the "60 Minutes" talk show and one of Russia's most prominent state propagandists..."

Maybe you missed this one out of Russia lately: Russian TV Says Poland Next Target for Invasion NATO member Poland could be the next target of a Russian invasion as the war in Ukraine drags on, according to pro-Kremlin Russian TV channel Russia-1. Presenter Olga Skabeeva, host of the "60 Minutes" talk show and one of Russia's most prominent state propagandists, was quoted by Daily Beast journalist Julia Davis as saying that Russia should smash Western countries after Ukraine, starting with its neighbor Poland. ... "Perhaps it's time to acknowledge that maybe Russia's special operation in Ukraine has come to an end, in a sense that a real war had started: World War III. We're forced to conduct the demilitarization not only of Ukraine, but of the entire NATO alliance." https://www.newsweek.com/russian-tv-says-poland-next-target-invasion-1711967

I think his analogy was -- best to have stopped Hitler / stop Putin BEFORE they have taken over a good portion of Europe...

I suspect you're being sarcastic in your post here and a similar one you did just prior... Sorry to burst your bubble, but no, Biden fortunately for all of us, has taken a restrained but purposeful approach to combating Russian aggression in Eastern Europe. He's not standing idly by and letting them walk in unchallenged like others before have done or would have done. But neither is he taking overly provocative actions that would expand the current conflict beyond Ukraine or result in the use of nuclear weapons. That's what a thoughtful, world-aware president would do.... too much for the isolationists....and not enough for those looking to start World War III... I'm OK with his thus far middle-ground approach.

Washing your hands with an alcohol hand gel is VERY effective... at killing misc. germs that the person may have on their hands. That's a different issue from the issue of one's risk of contracting COVID via hand exposure, which science agrees is pretty rare, though not impossible. But as someone said above, if COVID has encouraged Thai people and even us non-Thais to a general level of better hand hygiene, that's not a bad thing by any means.

Funny how history seems to repeat itself... The same people complaining now about Biden's support and military aid for Ukraine are probably of the same mentality as those who didn't want FDR to confront Hitler and didn't want the U.S. to to provide military support for the Allies prior to WWII... Hitler could negotiated with, after all... And we know how that turned out. Russia, under Putin, is an expansionist dictatorship that's oppressing its own people and looking to enlarge its hegemony over surrounding countries, either directly or indirectly. In this case, Russia invaded a sovereign nation and budding democracy without any legitimate justification, as part of an effort to begin to reassemble the former Soviet Union countries under Russian control. Unlike his predecessor, at least Biden is confronting Russia over its expansionist efforts. Putin got away with the same approach with his invasion and takeover of Crimea before -- which Trump in retrospect spoke approvingly of -- so why not repeat the same playbook again. "Over dinner at the recent Group of Seven summit, according to BuzzFeed, he [Trump] told other summit participants that Crimea is Russian because the population of the peninsula speaks Russian. ... This isn’t the first time that Trump has repeated Russian arguments for the annexation. During his presidential campaign in the summer of 2016, he told an interviewer that “the people of Crimea, from what I’ve heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/democracy-post/wp/2018/07/03/donald-trumps-talking-points-on-crimea-are-the-same-as-vladimir-putins/ Yes, the U.S. economy might be better and oil prices might be lower were it not for the Ukraine war. But are those reasons that would justify the U.S. instead having taken a Trumpian approach to Ukraine and just sit on the sidelines (and who knows... maybe applaud?). I'd say NO... And why? The answer is already is the news now: Russian TV Says Poland Next Target for Invasion June 1, 2022 "NATO member Poland could be the next target of a Russian invasion as the war in Ukraine drags on, according to pro-Kremlin Russian TV channel Russia-1. Presenter Olga Skabeeva, host of the "60 Minutes" talk show and one of Russia's most prominent state propagandists, was quoted by Daily Beast journalist Julia Davis as saying that Russia should smash Western countries after Ukraine, starting with its neighbor Poland. ... Perhaps it's time to acknowledge that maybe Russia's special operation in Ukraine has come to an end, in a sense that a real war had started: World War III. We're forced to conduct the demilitarization not only of Ukraine, but of the entire NATO alliance." https://www.newsweek.com/russian-tv-says-poland-next-target-invasion-1711967 Putin is essentially telling the world, I'm gonna invade and take over whatever countries and terrain I want. And if you try to stop me, then I'm going to wage war against you as well... That's a repeat of Hitler's WWII playbook. The U.S. didn't stand for it then, and shouldn't stand for it now.

As opposed to your guy? A closer examination of the fantastical numbers in Bjorn Lomborg’s new book "Bjorn Lomborg’s new book False Alarm: How Climate Change Panic Costs Us Trillions Hurts the Poor, and Fails to Fix the Planet attempts to convince readers that the impacts of climate change have been exaggerated, particularly by the media, and that much of the current effort to tackle rising greenhouse gas emissions represents an over-reaction. He has been characteristically energetic in persuading right-wing newspapers, particularly those owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, such as The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post and The Australian, to advertise his book for free in their opinion columns. But, like his previous contributions to this issue, Dr Lomborg’s arguments are based on fantastical numbers that have little or no credibility. Overall, the numbers presented by Dr Lomborg, who has a PhD in political science, understate the potential economic impacts of climate change and exaggerate the costs of cutting greenhouse gases. (more) Author Bob Ward, Policy and Communications Director, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment London School of Economics and Political Science https://www.lse.ac.uk/granthaminstitute/news/a-closer-examination-of-the-fantastical-numbers-in-bjorn-lomborgs-new-book/

Heat trapped by greenhouse gases reached highest level yet in 2021, scientists say May 25, 2022 Greenhouse gases emitted by human activities trapped much more heat in 2021 than they did three decades ago, according to scientists. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released an update to its Annual Greenhouse Gas Index on Monday. The index is used to provide a measurement of the amount of heating greenhouse gases are causing. In 2021, the index reached a value of 1.49, which is 49% more than 1 value that is assigned to 1990 – the year of the Kyoto Protocol, one of the earliest binding climate change agreements signed by 192 countries. The value of 0 is assigned to the beginning of the industrial revolution in 1750. (more) https://nypost.com/2022/05/25/heat-trapped-by-greenhouse-gases-reached-highest-level-yet-in-2021-scientists-say/

Fact check: Is global warming merely a natural cycle? ... "A more recent study conducted by a group of international authors confirmed that over 90% of climate scientists share the consensus that climate change is human-caused. And a 2019 analysis of 11,602 peer-reviewed articles on climate change published in the first seven months of 2019 found scientists have reached 100% agreement on anthropogenic global warming. That research was carried out by a James Lawrence Powell, an American geologist and author of 11 books on climate change and Earth science. "If an alternative theory of what is driving climate change rather than greenhouse gases would be supported by research and evidence, such work would be groundbreaking," said Benjamin Cook. "It would be Nobel Prize-level study. But we do not see this research." https://www.dw.com/en/fact-check-is-global-warming-merely-a-natural-cycle/a-57831350

China also engages in all kinds of, let's be modest to say, unsavory conduct in a variety of fields... Not sure you really want to be using them as your yardstick.

This is an opinion piece by a political scientist climate change denier, hardly an expert in the field, who doesn't have a very good record of presenting accurate info in his columns, as noted by PolitiFact in reviewing another of his columns during the same period: https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/sep/09/bjorn-lomborg/hurricanes-and-climate-change-getting-real-numbers/ "Lomborg is a Danish political scientist and president of Copenhagen Consensus Center, a Danish think tank. He has long questioned conventional wisdom on climate change." ... "Lomborg focused on a limited number of hurricanes and pushed the data beyond what the research supports. We rate this claim Half True."

October 2019 Report: Flooded Future: Global vulnerability to sea level rise worse than previously understood EXECUTIVE SUMMARY As a result of heat-trapping pollution from human activities, rising sea levels could within three decades push chronic floods higher than land currently home to 300 million people By 2100, areas now home to 200 million people could fall permanently below the high tide line ... The threat is concentrated in coastal Asia and could have profound economic and political consequences within the lifetimes of people alive today Findings are documented in a new peer-reviewed paper in the journal Nature Communications https://www.climatecentral.org/news/report-flooded-future-global-vulnerability-to-sea-level-rise-worse-than-previously-understood "Overall, we rate Climate Central Left-Center Biased and pro-science based on adherence to the consensus of science with climate change. We also rate them High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a clean fact check record." https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/climate-central/

That's a good citation, Jing... Many of the mask opponents here -- who are arguing against everything that public health and science has shown regarding mask wear -- would do well to pay attention. Wearing a quality face mask when you're in an area where COVID is spreading is NOTHING about fear or submission or government control. It's about protecting your own health, and the health of those around you, period! From your cited source above: "If you are vaccinated, boosted, and wearing a well-fitted N95 or similar indoors, “your risk is extremely low,” says Joseph Allen, a COVID and ventilation expert at Harvard. An N95 mask filters about 95 percent of airborne particles. But two surgical masks—one on me, one on you—filter only about 91 percent, Allen wrote recently for The Washington Post. Because most people’s masks aren’t perfectly sealed onto their faces, studies show that N95s reduce the wearer’s uptake of coronavirus particles by 57 to 86 percent." And then of course, there's the science that the U.S. CDC brings to bear on the subject that shows even lesser quality masks help some... Basically, ANY mask that fits snugly against your face is going to be better than wearing nothing when it comes to COVID... https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm?s_cid=mm7106e1_w "Consistent use of a face mask or respirator in indoor public settings was associated with lower odds of a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result (adjusted odds ratio = 0.44). Use of respirators with higher filtration capacity was associated with the most protection, compared with no mask use." What are the implications for public health practice? In addition to being up to date with recommended COVID-19 vaccinations, consistently wearing a comfortable, well-fitting face mask or respirator in indoor public settings protects against acquisition of SARS-CoV-2 infection; a respirator offers the best protection."

I think you know full well that the heavy arms cover is standard procedure when a U.S. president, ANY president, goes out in public. Think they learned their lesson when JFK was assassinated, Ronald Reagan was shot, and the same was tried against Gerald Ford. Also, I think it's pretty safe to assume that the armed Secret Service detail and local police who participate in protecting the president are not armed lunatics who are mentally disturbed or seeking to violently overthrow the U.S. government. The Secret Service and police have a darned good reason to be armed in that kind of situation. The lunatics and insurrectionists, not so much.

I think, for some reason, ThaiPBS has pulled out and used an old file photo of this guy.... In all their briefings for a long time now, they've all been wearing face masks... This is a clip from one of their latest briefings on May 26: https://fb.watch/dkaFLcQHQA/ And here's Taweesin from one of his most recent public, televised briefings on May 20. https://fb.watch/dkaSIMuLAW/ One other tell is...it looks like he's got a lot more gray hair in the current photo I posted above vs the ThaiPBS version. Best to not jump to unfounded conclusions...

Apparently, some people DO require having a policeman standing over them in order to get them to do the right thing... But, it really shouldn't be that hard. Protect yourself, and protect the people around you when indoors in public places or in other close-contact situations. Common courtesy. Easy peasy...

How about making the law against drunk driving optional? Then everyone has the right to choose whether they want to go out sloshed and end up killing someone?

"there should be nothing to fear" No, that's not correct.. The vaccines, especially if you've been boosted, do a pretty good job at reducing your likelihood of serious illness and death from COVID, but they're not 100%... And their protections do tend to wane after 4-5 months post vaccination. So yes, definitely get vaccinated and boosted in accord with the public health guidelines. But even for those who have already been vaccinated and boosted, wearing a quality face mask when around others in public places not only helps protect you but also protects those around you should you come down with the virus.

As I said elsewhere, what public health measures Thailand should take, needs to take, should be based on the COVID situation occurring HERE, and it's pretty much irrelevant what's occurring in other countries thousands of miles away, where things may be better or worse. But just as one example, the COVID situation got better earlier this year in the U.S., and many jurisdictions then dropped their face mask requirements. And now guess what's happening -- cases and hospitalizations are rising again. From the May 26 COVID update from Johns Hopkins: "The US recently began averaging more than 100,000 new daily COVID-19 cases for the first time since February." "New COVID-19 hospital admissions continue to trend upwards, with an increase of 14% over the past week." And from their May 24 update: "the [CDC] agency’s data on community transmission shows more than 75% of the country is experiencing high or substantial numbers of new cases, suggesting much of the nation should be wearing masks in indoor public spaces and prompting some experts to recommend localities, businesses, and other entities reinstate mask mandates." https://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/resources/COVID-19/COVID-19-SituationReports.html The policy choices that governments make regarding COVID, and the individual choices we make as citizens, end up having real-world impacts on society at large and on our own individual health prospects.

1. It's irrelevant to judge what measures Thailand should follow based on what kind of protective measures are being used in other countries. The protective measures here need to be based on the local COVID outbreak situation here, not what's occurring thousands of miles away. 2. Regarding Thai TV broadcasters and their on-camera face mask wear, I would imagine at least part of the reason for that is trying to set a good example for the general public, showing them that face mask wear is a prudent public health measure when you're going to be in close indoor contact with others. 3. While they don't protect against COVID 100%, properly fit and worn face masks definitely have been shown to reduce the spread of COVID. The better the mask, the better the protection, with N95 type respirator masks being the best available to the general public. But even lesser masks help to varying extents, as shown below: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm?s_cid=mm7106e1_w

Re various comments above. 1. A good quality, properly fit and worn mask, especially the N95 variety, WILL help prevent / lessen the chances of you contracting COVID. And it also will lessen the likelihood of you spreading the virus to others around you, should you become infected. Good masks serve both purposes. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7106e1.htm?s_cid=mm7106e1_w and 2. Being fully vaccinated and boosted also DOES lessen the likelihood that you will have any symptomatic infection from the Omicron virus. It doesn't prevent it 100%, and I've seen varying estimates of extent of reducing the likelihood of infection. That protection against infection starts out pretty strong a couple weeks after vaccination, and then gradually declines over time out to the 4-5 month point past your most recent shot. From the latest weekly report by the UK Health Security Agency on vaccine effectiveness: Vaccine effectiveness "Several studies of vaccine effectiveness (VE) have been conducted in the UK against different COVID-19 variants. Vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease with the Omicron variant is substantially lower than against the Delta variant, with rapid waning. However, protection against hospitalisation remains high, particularly after 3 doses." ... "Two to 4 weeks after a booster dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine following an AstraZeneca or Pfizer primary course, effectiveness [against symptomatic infection] ranges from around 60 to 75%, dropping to almost no effect from 20+ weeks after the booster." The above numbers relate to protection against symptomatic infection. They also have a different chart that gives "consensus" estimates -- not just UK data as above but an amalgam of world data -- of protection against all infection in the 0 to 3 months post boosted vaccination period, with an average of 45% and a range of 35 to 55%. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1075115/COVID-19_vaccine_surveillance_report_12_May_2022_week_19.pdf

Courtesy of the NY Times: "The vast majority of Republicans have opposed gun safety legislation for years, banding together to block its consideration or refusing to bring it up. Any deal in the 50-50 Senate would need the support of at least 10 Republicans, joining every Democrat, to produce the 60 votes necessary to break a filibuster. Most Republicans who have responded to The Times so far have either declined to take a position or signaled they would oppose the measures, citing concerns about infringing on the rights of gun owners." All four below are A or A+ rated by the NRA... Congratulations..... Texas' 2 Republican U.S. Senators: And now Tennessee's 2 Republican U.S. Senators: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/05/25/us/gun-control-republican-senators.html

What about if the same bank were to send you an SMS code to your PayGo SIM instead of making an actual voice call?