ricklee

Are we in the edge of a kind of civil war between yellow and red ? Situation is really strange ... A call for election would be the best solution ,let the people decide. Its scary actually .

It would be if an election could decide this issue. Sadly, neither side has shown much predilection to see constitutionally seated governments as legitimate. Until they're prepared to do so, an election won't solve much if anything.

The traditional source of legitimacy is waning. The question is what will replace it.

Excellent point. How much longer can this country afford to be governed by mob rule?

Thanks for the tip. Yeah, I tried to walk to Panthip a few times but lost interest before I got there. I'll give your IT Mall a shot.

Can anyone recommend a good English-speaking computer shop in Bangkok? Preferably something convenient to the Sukhumvit area and where I won't get my head shot off Thanks!

If worse comes to worst you may be able to have a satellite dish installed in your yard. I got one from TOT when I lived in my wife's village outside of Renu Nakhon. It was reliable but slow and cost the princely sum of 2800B per month. Now in That Phanom I'm on a land line and am paying 800B for what was promised as 4mbps but has never even hit half that and is often slower than 1mbps. Unreliable as well so I keep a 1-2-call aircard on hand just in case. I don't bother to complain. So.....good luck!!!

I still fail to understand why following a sensible line of questioning when you misunderstand something is being derided and used to suggest relational and sexual inadequacy, yet someone genuinely asking about the existence of swarms of nocturnal bees in a conversation with his wife about how nice Phuket and Phi Phi is embraced as your king and as your god? If the poster had just asked her to say it in thai the whole thing would have been solved. If he'd just asked her to spell it, it would have been solved.

Yet somehow I'm the one who has failed at life.

Recipes for success indeed, a toast to the Thai Visa elite.

Geeesh!! LIGHTEN UP, DUDE!! You'll bust an artery or something.

The Renu Nakhon VIP bus from Mo Chit also stops in That Phanom. I'm not sure about frequency as I always take the 7:30 pm, arrives in TP 5:30 - 6:30 am. I recommend buying your ticket in advance as the bus is usually full. The last time I took it I bought my ticket 4 days in advance and got the last seat but it was a holiday - it's usually not that bad. Very comfortable ride.

So obviously I know Thai Visa isn't the best place for economic advice, but it looks like i've sold my business, so have around 25m baht to invest somehow.

Being relatively young, 32, i'd rather have modest income and a higher capitol growth. I wish to stay in Thailand and already have several of my own ideas, but in these tricky economic times was just wondering what other members would do to achieve the goals i'm after with such a sum.

I do not wish to work, just invest it somehow that will bring in enough each month to live, maybe 100k or so, i'm mainly concerned with longterm growth of the original investment.

Take it to Vietnam and invest there. Better opportunity for the long hall and easier to do business

Good growth in Vietnam but it's a dicey country. If anyone's cooking the books you can be sure they are. I have a Vietnam ETF but I didn't bet the farm on it. I used to live there. I've seen how they run things. Still, it's worth a play.

I was at the court room today in Korat and the saga continues.

What I can only described as haggling over the price of a life took place and all settled on 700,000 baht. Neither party happy.

But its not over yet, as the people to pay say they dont have the money, so, it goes to the higher court in about 4 months.

This is the big new building behind the Government offices, across the moat, in Korat.

They will have the means to confiscate land , etc....but I guess thats another story.

I find it extremely odd that murder can be so easily transformed into a business negotiation here. Hardly seems like justice. And it does nothing to get these criminals safely off the street where they can do no more harm. My condolences to your family and all the best of luck.

One other thing. The thread title is "Investors". I don't consider IB an investment brokerage as much as a traders brokerage. The platform is not that easy to use for a novice and their charting sucks. There is no "hand holding" and there is no market research or insight to be gained there. Still, I think it's quite good for trading. I do not trade forex except occasionally in the futures market, so I have no idea how good they are for that. Options, futures shares trading excellent IMO.

How badly does the charting suck? They must have charts; exactly what is it that you don't like about them? Just how little market research is there? I'm assuming they have balance sheets and things like that, P/E, P/B ratios and such. Another question: have any of you switched brokerages online? Maybe I'm a Luddite, but I'm a bit skittish about transfering large amounts of money from one company to another in cyberspace. Like maybe they don't call it space for nothing. Also I'm considering keeping my E*Trade account and opening an IB account for foreign trading, splitting the money between the two. Later, if I love IB, I might go with them exclusively. Any thoughts on that? Thanks.

Thanks, Lannarebirth. Just what I was hoping to hear. And I seriously doubt that their customer service is as bad as E*Trade's. I did finally manage to hook up with a good guy there who's been taking good care of me but it took a long time and a few "situations" before I did.

What sort of Broker do you talk about Stocks? Forex? Futures? If the broker restricts you shop around there are lots of Brokers. Do they need to Know you live in Thailand?

Stock broker. E*Trade, my current brokerage, already knows I live in Thailand. They have something on their website that blocks the global trading application from here. Twice I've changed my address back to my old one in San Francisco so I could buy mutual funds that are only available in the US but I've changed it right back as soon as I was done. It's not something I want to do permanently. What I want to do now is buy equities on foreign exchanges with the local currencies (the dollar is going nowhere but down, I'm afraid, and I want to minimize my exposure to it) and E*Trade won't let me do it from here. I've checked with some other online brokers before about opening an account of any kind and they wouldn't even let me do that from here. Interactive Brokers will open an account for me and let me trade globally. Lower commissions than E*Trade too. I'm just wondering if anyone has had any good or bad experiences with them. I've had some problems with E*Trade - specifically in having money wired over here - so I'm doing a bit of research before making the move. These guys can really make one's life miserable sometimes.

Do any of you TV folks have a brokerage account with Interactive Brokers? I'm thinking of opening one and would appreciate any feedback. I presently have a E*TRADE account but there are some things that they won't let me do because I live in Thailand and not the US. Interactive Brokers doesn't have the same restrictions so I want to check them out. Thanks in advance!

Today the wife's sister said to her.." you two should stay in Canada, so many problem here in Phuket..yellow, red, many murders.. etc.." Personally I don't care, and would go back tomorrow, but have to wait a while. Sure enough, checking Thai visa, there sure are a lot of murders going on in Phuket these days..tourists on Bangla Road, a landlord kills 2 tenants and wounds one in Chalong area..etc.. Personally I like going to Bangla road, but keep the visits down to ONCE each 2 or 3 month trip, and I go with a buddy who works in the Thai immigration police.Question..Is it getting worse for murders generally in LOS and specifically Phuket, or is this just a blip???

Thats Phuket for you .... wild wild West - overpopulated, poor planning and regulation, corrupt officials, dirty, noisy, expensive (by Thai standards) ... I don't think theres much going for it in the long run - it's becoming just another densely populated urbanised area with all the problems that such areas have anywhere in the world (plus a whole lot more) - oh, nearly forgot - traffic just gets worse and worse each year.

Mind you, the way Asia's population is growing, it won't be long before many other parts of Thailand (and elsewhere in Asia) have to deal with the same problems that Phuket has had to learn to live with.

Okay to go to if you want to let your hair down for a week or so, but God only knows why anyone would want to choose to live there!

What is a place in Thailand that you think is not like Phuket ? I have never been to Phuket yet but I have a feeling that it is a really nice place and you are just slamming it for some reason.

Can't argue with anything Maizefarmer says. I did live there - for 6 months and left a year ago. I found it too crowded, too corporate, the traffic is horrible and it's looking more and more like a strip mall every day - just basically not what I was looking for. To each his own. I didn't personally experience any crime but heard of several motorbike muggings (mostly Rawai) and a few shootings. The crime goes up when tourism goes down and money gets tight. Right now tourism is way down so I'm not surprised if crime is worse than when I left. I met some great people there and the beaches - when not asses to elbows with tourists - are wonderful. I don't miss it.

My wife did immediately, would be strange if the mother had a different surname than our children. She practised it weeks before we married and discussed what the best way would be to write my name in thai-scripts.

Mine hasn't - we've been married for a year and the subject never really came up. This is interesting though as we are going to have a baby, like, yesterday. (He's late, but being half Thai and half Irish it shouldn't come as a surprise ) I just asked her and she said she wants to change her name now.

hurry and do if before he is born - unless you like extra paperwork and loss of time. Good luck with the lil one!

My wife's mother told her that if she changes her name she gives up her right to free health care and some other things. I'm not sure about this as my mother-in-law doesn't know her arse from a tree most of the time. Any of you guys know anything about this?

BTW,

If you are Man Poo fan then sorry but i cannot contribute to your burning when you get shot.

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is "Man Poo?" I know what it sounds like, but....

It's another word for 'Champions'.

Oh....I think I get it now....it's a football - oh, I mean SOCCER - thing. Silly me.

eep. It almost sounds like 'luck of the draw'. I care too much about me gear to want to risk that.

And, as to 'why not buy in Thailand', well, the price is cheaper else where. But more importantly, my gear, the guitars and amps I like, I am particular about. Even in the states where there is orders of magnitude more available instrument, it takes me a long time to find a guitar that I really enjoy. Yes, I can go to BKK and buy some cheap samick or even a genuine US fender strat. But, the vibe, color, feel means all the world to me, so it is hard for me to find the right equipment to have.

and yes, I am keeping this thread alive.

Okay, I'll help you keep this post alive! I think it all depends on what gear you have, how attached you are to it, and whether or not it can be replaced here and, if it can, at what cost. Sometimes it's worth it to pay the duty, sometimes not. In my case there wasn't any but I can't say for sure that there wouldn't be the next time. I only have the experience of my one shipment so I don't know how consistant they are. The one question the inspector did ask me was, "For personal use?" When I said yes to that and he saw that the stuff was obviously used and packed with my carpet and kitchen supplies there was no problem.

Can anyone recommend a reliable Luthier in Bangkok ?

Yes, but I can't remember the name of the shop. It's in the Siam Discovery Center, 3rd floor. I can tell you how to get there if you're not familiar with the place - it's a little tricky- but I don't remember the name. I have a Gibson J185EC that had a serious neck problem (pulling away from the body) and the pick-up had died also. Their tech did a WONDERFUL job on the neck and fixed the electronics too, for 3000 baht. I couldn't be more pleased. It's better than when I bought it. It takes awhile - five weeks and that was a bit of a rush job at the end, as I was in Bangkok for a week and wouldn't be back for a few months. Anyway, highly recommended. If you're interested PM me and I can give you walking instructions, if necessary. It took me awhile to find the place.

BTW,

If you are Man Poo fan then sorry but i cannot contribute to your burning when you get shot.

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is "Man Poo?" I know what it sounds like, but....

My wife did immediately, would be strange if the mother had a different surname than our children. She practised it weeks before we married and discussed what the best way would be to write my name in thai-scripts.

Mine hasn't - we've been married for a year and the subject never really came up. This is interesting though as we are going to have a baby, like, yesterday. (He's late, but being half Thai and half Irish it shouldn't come as a surprise ) I just asked her and she said she wants to change her name now.

hurry and do if before he is born - unless you like extra paperwork and loss of time. Good luck with the lil one!

Thanks for the tip and your good wishes. We'll get her name changed tomorrow. Unless the baby interrupts us, of course.

My wife did immediately, would be strange if the mother had a different surname than our children. She practised it weeks before we married and discussed what the best way would be to write my name in thai-scripts.

Mine hasn't - we've been married for a year and the subject never really came up. This is interesting though as we are going to have a baby, like, yesterday. (He's late, but being half Thai and half Irish it shouldn't come as a surprise ) I just asked her and she said she wants to change her name now.

When someone says hello to me I smile and say hello back. "Hello! Sawadee kap!" Works every time. Simple. But I am in rural Isaan and I know they're just trying to say hello. No one's trying to sell me anything out here so I don't have to wonder what their motivation is. What cracks me up is when they start talking to me in Phu Thai, I say (in Thai) "sorry, I don't speak Thai" and they keep on talking. I say (in Thai) "I don't understand, I don't speak Thai" and they keep on talking. So I just smile and converse with them in English, with neither of us having a clue what we're talking about. But it's friendly and fun. And can go on for quite awhile sometimes.

I didn't read the whole thread (in a hurry) so sorry if I repeat anything anyone else said. I shipped a whole recording studio into Thailand and paid nothing in the way of tax or duty. It was all used gear. Tipped the inspector 1000B AFTER he signed me off. Keep in mind, since you're from the States (as am I), that the voltage is different here and if you're not in the city the power can be inconsistant. My Furman power conditioner that converts the voltage and protects my equipment against power surges and outages is the most expensive piece of equipment I have.

Thanks for the post. Interesting information since I am considering doing the same thing. Shipping (and / or carrying) recording equipment and guitars. Do you mind going in more details about your experience? Total value of goods, declared values, shipping method etc. Not sure I understand about "tipping the inspector after he signed you off"... Were you at the customs office to receive your shipment? Thanks for your input!

Sure. I shipped it from Vietnam on a ship, in two large crates. Recording gear, a Yamaha keyboard and a few guitars, as well as some other personal items. Everything was listed by the shipper with vastly deflated values attatched to each item. The declared value turned out to be something like $1800. Actual value of everything was more like $15,000. (Whether or not that made any difference I don't know. The inspector must have known the declared value was BS but didn't seem to care.) Before that I had carried some of the smaller, expensive things (mics, some tube compressors and preamps) through the "nothing to declare" line at the Bangkok airport, figuring I'd have a better chance of sneaking it through that way. It turned out to be unnecessary as I wound up paying nothing for the shipment. My wife and I went to customs to receive the shipment and I let her handle the whole thing. It was her idea to slip the guy 1000 baht, I guess as "tea money," but before she could do that he signed off on it anyway. She went ahead and gave him the money as a gratuity, or whatever you want to call it. I suppose it was more of a show of appreciation than anything else. It wasn't necessary.

I originally shipped the stuff from San Francisco to Saigon and had a totally different experience there. They took my things hostage and I had to pony up $5000 to get them back. Much better here.

I didn't read the whole thread (in a hurry) so sorry if I repeat anything anyone else said. I shipped a whole recording studio into Thailand and paid nothing in the way of tax or duty. It was all used gear. Tipped the inspector 1000B AFTER he signed me off. Keep in mind, since you're from the States (as am I), that the voltage is different here and if you're not in the city the power can be inconsistant. My Furman power conditioner that converts the voltage and protects my equipment against power surges and outages is the most expensive piece of equipment I have.

Can anyone recommend a good attorney in BKK for setting me up with a new will that will negate the one I currently have in the States? Someone who speaks good English, has some knowledge of American law and won't cost me an arm and a leg. Thanks!

Hey Roy- just a few things. Do you plan to work here? If not, make sure you are ready to retire at such a young age. 50 is pretty young to put yourself out to pasture unless you're a lazy sod at heart. I'm about the same age as you (52) and sometimes think I should have waited a few more years before coming over, to work, accumulate some more money, etc. If you are retiring get yourself a hobby, quick! Also, a mistake for me was shipping too much of my stuff over here. Travel light if you can. It simplifies things and saves on moving expenses. Where will you be living? We might be neighbors.

- Rick