Upcountry

http://www.bangkokpost.com/260907_News/26Sep2007_news10.php

Monks, mothers with babies and women wearing long skirts should avoid riding motorcycles because of the risk of injury, a medical seminar heard yesterday.

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''Even a baby's diaper can get caught in a wheel and lead to a fatal accident. Some infants have lost fingers or a leg and have to live their lives as disabled persons,'' he said.

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Concerns were raised about motorcycle accidents caused by riders' apparel after an accident in Ratchaburi last month in which a month-old baby's right leg was torn off.

The parents told police a towel wrapped around the boy had become caught in the motorcycle chain. The infant was dragged from his mother's arms and his leg was trapped and severed.

The majority of road accidents involve motorcycles, with about 10,000 deaths and 164,000 injuries reported last year.

Teenagers suffered most because many do not wear crash helmets.

Adisak Phalitphonkarnpim, head of the Child Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Centre at Mahidol University, said about 500 children, from newborns to 14 years of age, die each year in motorcycle accidents.

He recommended that each hospital display information about safety for children traveling on motorcycles.

Parents on motorbikes should ensure their children wear crash helmets and should not ride a motorcycle at all while carrying a baby.

Speeds should also be kept to under 40kph for safety purposes, he said.

Motorcycle makers should show responsibility for the safety of riders by designing accessories to ensure the safety of young passengers, Mr Adisak said.

If you sit on the back of a morocycle carrying a newborn baby and allow the driver to over take or undertake on a main road are you stupid?

No, you're Asian.

Actually, I've seen images of Indians doing the same thing. Any warm country where the motorbike is the dominant form of transportation, you'll see this kind of behavior. Some of it is economic, some of it is heat-related, some of it vanity, some of it ignorance. But it's the cultural norm.

Another factor not mentioned in this thread so far is respect for life. Mai pen rai.

Why do pickup truck drivers pass blindly on mountain curves? I saw a close call with a bus up ahead of me one time.

It's karma, not the car, man.

deejah, how long have you lived here?

I've gotten used to them. There has been a howling chorus every few late nights lately, and I just laugh. Before coming here I'd chase away yowling cats with a bottle of spray water, but now I just notice it and forget it. There are so many noises in LOS that one is as persistent and uncontrollable as the next, so there is no choice but to accept.

If there was a single yapping dog right next door that never stopped, that might be a different story though.

I also use ear plugs at night for the air con noise, and everything else, when I sleep, so that helps a lot.

UC

Yet another reason why "farang" here get a bad name. Why does Thailand seem like a place someone can "run away" to in the 21st century to escape problems and responsibilities back home?

The news tells us that the dark star of Burma cannot not hide as well as it used to thanks to modern technology. Even the regime's banning of certain people's mobile phones will not stop the increased light into that horrible place.

I've been in debt before. The only cure is to reduce expenses, increase income, leverage interest rates (consolidation, or transfer to lower rate cards/loans, etc.) and maximum payback until debt-free. Then one can work to build up credit again. There's no other way around it for the future, peace of mind, etc.

Either that or squirm away under a straw roof.

i was in macro the other day outside the acholhol laws

At my Macro, I can buy two cases of beer during the ban time (2pm to 5pm). But not at Big-C, etc.

I'm so sick of this stupid law! When I have to go to the store, and want wine, or whatever, I have to make sure I get there before 2pm! Makes me sick. Add that to the dollar/baht ration fiasco and the rise in prices, it's driving me to water!

...clocks and watches in Thai workplaces to be set 5 to 20 minutes fast. ...

Today, at 1:40 pm, I loaded my cart with the ultra-expensive lowest price wine in the Big-C. The friendly attendant there pointed to his watch. I smiled and said "chai, yi sip natee". He said something else, after that, which I didn't understand. Maybe he was trying to warn me that Big-C time was not in my time zone!

Nevertheless, I got to the cash register by 10 till, and no problem, Many a time I have arrived at the cashier with moments to spare (actually arranged to buy the liquor first before the rest of the groceries, no problem).

I walked out of a Lotus liquor store one time when the register indicated that they could not sell me anything till more than 10 minutes after 5pm though.

Sometimes I try to joke with the clerks that Taksinopolis is kicking a ball around London but this law hasn't changed yet.

And they persist in taxing wine highly but not the cheap stuff.

I've always wondered why some of the essential things didn't happen after the coup - quicker action on Talk-a-lot-sin and, more importantly, a serious push to explain to the masses (educate them if you will) what was bad about Mr. T. If I could follow Thai news and understand the screaming trucks going down the street maybe I'd feel differently, but my sense is that the coupsters didn't really try hard enough. Sure, martial law is a regular tool in their kit, but they didn't care to address the real problem behind money politics.

When the majority of the populace is uneducated and apathetic about who is in power (except when conned) what is going to change their minds?

The fact that so many folks in the North and Northeast still support Talksin is clear proof that there is another kind of elite agenda going on that does not really support true democracy.

I scanned through this thread and didn't see any mention of needing to take the anti-malaria medicine before the trip.

It's been a few years, but I remember visiting a health clinic prior to going to Africa and getting immunized. I seem to remember that malaria required a two-stage dose of pills, with at least the first stage to happen before exposure to the malaria-prone destination. Maybe I'm thinking of something else?

DragonQuest,

I finally described your complete situation to my Thai wife this evening. Despite her earlier mention that hand shaking could entrap a farang on the street, I was actually surprised when she said that the girl and her security guard boyfriend could have "planned it". Whether they are true grifters or just opportunistic scumbags they clearly saw you coming.

I doubt this information would help much now, but perhaps it is a warning to you and others how delicate our interactions with "kon Thai" can be.

Personally, if I ever found myself single here in Thailand, I'd be very cautious about meeting women. I've heard some scary stories. I knew one farang jerk who left his wife high and dry for a hair dresser. That didn't last long, and soon he was buying a pickup for some other young thing. Before he knew it, a local policeman was threatening his life for messing with his "gik", and the farang was asking his abandoned wife for help!

You really need to have your wits about you and proceed with caution when you have an interest in a Thai girl/woman, especially when she and her "family" know where you live!

I think ATM's are programmed to go out of service when they are out of money. The error message in Thai/English sounds odd to me.

I agree with britmaveric, my first reaction to the OP's description was that he had been scammed. Time to change the card/pin, maybe account (check balance ASAP!).

If he hasn't lost her by now, DragonQuest has a great girl friend. I'd say she deserves at least 20k worth of flowers, chocolates, and wotnot to make her feel appreciated!

Well, DragonQuest, to put it crudely, you pissed in your own playpen, and you stank it up.

I think it's worth noting that that is another important lesson here. The guards might be smiling, but you don't know what they are thinking, or whom is connected to whom. If you get robbed, or whatever, in the future, you might not have any allies in the building. Thais tend to band together, especially in situations like this - ganging up on someone who has caused a slight or done some damage.

Another thought I had is that the term "rape" might not be exactly applicable. She perhaps felt violated and threatened, but I doubt that the threat of physical violation would have been interpreted by the police. Basically, we might assume that she experienced some emotional trauma (or loss of face) from the incident, which provoked the demand for money in lieu or reporting. Based on the whole story, if there was a scam here, it would probably have been the boyfriend's idea, not the girl's.

There are many beautiful things about Thais and Thai culture that put Westerners to shame, but the dark side is a real grin-and-bear-it every day thing. I think one reason why Thais smile a lot is to avoid pissing the wrong person off.

Dragonquest,

Make sure you have a dependable Thai speaker with you, if not your lawyer, when you go to the police. Don't let language problems make things worse.

If I were you, I'd consider getting out of that condo building as well, since you have a bad name there now, no matter what happens.

Seems like you're learning some hard lessons about cultural differences.

Probably pissed off the wrong people. I left Thailand a week later and haven't been back to Chiang Mai. Looking back, I probably should have listened to my farang friends and not made the police pay. The lawyer wouldn't accept any compensation - I think she was scared.

siamamerican, maybe I'm being too optimistic, or naive, but I wonder what made you feel that way. General sense of unease, or did you sense something in the police chief's demeanor to scare you? Did anything suspicious happen vis-a-vis the police you encountered after you got the money?

It seemed like the chief did the honorable thing to reimburse you for a bike that was supposed be in their care.

DragonQuest,

Please give us the whole narrative, from when you first encountered this woman, how you know her, the scenario in which you ended up shaking her hand, etc.

It would help us understand better. Maybe another poster will remember a similar situation.

....in the early nineties a major department store was up in flames and firemen actually tried to negotiate on arriving at the scene ....

Reminds me of historical fire brigades in the colonial US, and other turf wars between police divisions, etc., that goes on today around the world, even in first world countries.

Got pulled over for speeding on the highway. I had been cruising in the fast lane, maybe 20k over the speed limit, almost no traffic, lights on, when I came over a hill and saw the cop waving me over at a check point. The cop spoke English and told me they had caught me on radar. After taking my license for a minute he came back and asked for 400 baht. My wife, and friend didn't want to argue with him, so I paid it. One of the most irksome things about it is that as I took out the money to give to him through the window, he suddenly waved my hand down and said hurriedly "don't show", or something like that.

Now, who's going to jump on me for bribing when it's the cop demanding the money? If I didn't care about ruining the day, I might have asked where where the radar was, how fast they thought I was going, and demanded a receipt, as some people advise. But I didn't want my companions to spend the day at a police station with me.

What would you guys do if you shake a 16 year old girls hand while working, and then she accused you of rape, but it was only a hand shake, and now she wants 5000 baht, ...

I mentioned this to my Thai wife. Her reaction was that it is a common scam in street situations. If someone took a girls hand it would be considered part of a proposition. Then, like a cop busting you, she could "claim" rape attempt and have her witness friend there to help corner the poor git.

Your mistake was to shake hands in the first place (wai instead). If she offered her hand first, and you took it, perhaps it was a scam.

But is was unclear what situation you were in other than "working". From your later post, it sounds like there were no witnesses at the time/place. It would be interesting to hear the whole story - worthy of a thread all its own.

Genuine Euro cars do hold their value well here, we paid 320k for our 10 year old BMW 325, drove it for 2 years and got 290k for it, much to my surprise

Congratulations, Crossy. I bought a '93 BMW 318i a few years ago, and put good money into it to fix up the front end, etc. The car runs great, I love it, but I fear that the new government next year is likely to resume the push for gasohol (banning 95) thanks to money politics.

When I check on the possible resale price, I get depressed. It seems that the value drops significantly each year. Here in Thailand, based on feedback I've gotten, it seems that the "blue book" price trumps condition, not much room for negotiation other than downward. I hope I'm wrong about that. Maybe the value drop is less than Japanese and other cars, but it is significant, and makes me wish I could just hang on to it for a few more years! Cheaper than selling and buying something else.

OP: Did you have the Volvo checked out carefully before you bought it? Seems like you got a lemon. Ever since Ford got its hands into the Swedish company I've always assumed (based on anecdotes) that "VOVLO" stands for Vix Or Vepair Levery 'Our" - (i.e. Fix Or Repair Daily).

Hi Sonicdragon,

You just got here a few months ago, didn't you? Definitely start with Asadang Audio Centre, to see what they say.

High-end audio shops, some of which may do repairs on some types of equipment, can be found in the Fortune Tower mall, away from the main computer area. I forgot what floor, but you'll find several small shops selling esoteric stuff, new and used. There is also a high-end oriented audio mall next to the Big-C (on the left as you face the hypermart, back away from the street) across from Central World. The shops seem to keep moving around in there, but hopefully you'll find a store that can help you with your Audiolab unit.

I'm not familiar with Audiolab, so I can't suggest a specific shop.

The UBC file in the ubcschedule.zip is screwed up this month. It only goes through the 17th, and skips a few days too.

I guess they like to hear from us!

Assuming enough farang and their spouses can agree on something, there is a way, via the new constitution, to have an influence.

Let's say that larger Thai-Farang associations enable dialog on issues that affect Thai-farang couples. If the Thai spouses submit a petition to change certain laws, it could happen.

Of course, if this petition was perceived as being fueled by farang demands then Thai nationalism would probably quash any such movement.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/040907_News/04Sep2007_news27.php

Under Article 163, at least 10,000 eligible voters can petition the National Assembly to consider drawing up a draft law on rights and freedoms, and on principles for fundamental state policies.

No less than a third of the petitioners takes part in the vetting of the draft law they propose.

I've gone from Bangkok to Korat by bus. You can take a cab from the airport to the Mor Chit bus terminal. Look for a first-class insured air-con bus. It'll be cheaper, with more departure options than the train. I suppose there is a train from BKK to Korat, but I've never taken it. Mor Chit is closer than the central train station, in any case.

It's not clear from your message how many times you have flown into the new airport. Keep in mind that finding a cab may be tricky if the touts and limos, etc., are still hogging the main exit. You may have to go down a level.

Comedy sounds like a serious business in this thread, eh?

Laugher can be serious business!

Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of Comic

by Henri Bergson

http://www.authorama.com/laughter-1.html

What firewall do you use? I'm not talking about the Windows "Firefall" thing, I'm talking about third-party software.

I use Zone Alarm.

Check 'dis out:

http://portforward.com/

Great source of info for firewall issues that pertain to P2P.

UC

Good point, Crossy, double click if Azureus or whatever app you're using is the default for that file type!

I had a private request for more info on FLAC, so here are a couple of good links about it:

Here's the best starting-place to learn about FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flac

Several apps that can use and that can convert to and from FLAC are mentioned.

Here's info about a high-end audio device that supports FLAC:

http://www.broadbandcarrier.net/helios_x5000.htm

also:

http://linuxdevices.com/articles/AT4892149397.html

I think there's another server component device, but I can't find or think of it right now.

FLAC files are bigger than MP3's, but the biggest advantage is that it is "lossless", you can play FLAC files directly, or convert them to the original uncompressed state with no loss in quality. Excellent for archiving. FLAC takes more energy to convert, so it will probably be a while before it shows up in phones and thumb drives. You can always convert FLAC to mp3, which is what I often do when needed.