StrandedBusinessPerson

is this why thailand bought new rifles?

no I think they bought it because there is always a nice commission on such purchases.

And always a good market to sell the old ones! maybe Burma?

Yes, those old M16s would have been just fine for this crowd...

I am not in BKK right now, but I think it's great that they are playing the games on TV there. I'm a Bronco fan from way back, and they won the superbowl this year - on my version of Madden 10 NFL on the iPhone:) But I had to sign on T. Brady at the beginning of the season or it would have never happened. Btw, does anyone know where to get good bittorrents of NFL games on the web? I'm in Nepal, and there is no way to get the games live here...and some of the torrents I've tried this season are just pathetic (missing plays/bad quality/etc.). Thx!!!

Odd that one can find no mention of the "Society for Online News Providers" anywhere online, other than this thread.

Good one! It's probably forming now...The Bugle has a good explanation why...

http://www.bangkokbugle.com/2009/10/bangko...-copyright.html

My guess is that this is a baby step to microcharging for content.

I have an idea for a bittersweet comedy about a group of single Western women who meet while on vacation in Thailand for the first time, and look forward to some flirtations and maybe even holiday romance. They would not be considered undesirable in their own countries, where they are used to getting plenty of attention when they go out, and so they are wholly unprepared when they find themselves neglected by the vacationing Thai girl fixated males, when they get here.

As a screenwriter expat in another Asian country close by, that's not enough of an idea...and romances tend not to be about them (per se) these days. Take for example Mad Money with Diane Keaton/Queen Latifah/Ted Danson, tagline: They're having the crime of their lives... For a bittersweet comedy to succeed and for women to be portrayed decently I'd say the male script writer has to be very clever. Glenn Gers teams up with Callie Khouri (Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood & Thelma and Louis) and does a great job screenwriting. So what I suggest is to put the female leads into a uniquely and ridiculous Thai backdrop (in Mad Money, it was three female co-workers conspiring to rob the Federal Reserve) and then weave a funny and engaging story around that - one that does not overtly have anything to do with finding holiday romance. Perhaps the women in this forum could suggest exactly what that story/backdrop would be...but it has to be more then a Pattaya vacation.

FWIW those Isreali rifles are badass.

OneMan or other knowledgeable folks. This is the gun of JJ's the hotheaded Jetski rental guy in "Big Trouble in Thailand" series.

What the heck is this gun? I am going to guess a .22 LR semi. Any educated guesses?

BB gun, put out ur eye if ur not careful: http://thailandlandofsmiles.com/2009/09/12...nd-documentary/

btw, there is nothing wrong with old m16s, they still kill people wearing the wrong color shirt.

hate to butt in, but looking for iPhone map of Thailand/BKK as well. thx!

Wonder if they advertised here in this forum:)

I am an American Guy, I have lived in Thailand 5 years, Brittan 6 months, Spain a month and France a month, the British behavior while on holiday is outrageous. I fully understand the Spanish Government arresting them repeatedly, if not in bulk and deporting them, Drunk and fighting every night in the pubs, France too. There were bars in France where I couldn't get a drink until I showed my passport to prove I was not British. Thailand is a little further, we can hope only the somewhat more responsible Britts get that far from home, that they might not still be somewhat special, I have no doubt. Behave yourselves! English speakers around the world suffer the consequences of what U do on Holiday!

I agree, the typical slam against Americans is that they are loud, stupid, and wear bad tourist shirts, but that is nothing compared to a pack of skinheads at a football match, or pretending to be at a beach bar. Personally, I just don't get British behavior abroad. The headline should read: Britons Die Stupid Deaths Abroad, Mostly in Thailand.

best place to go inmo is nepal: cheap, fun, and friendly, as well as interesting people and the weather is pretty good, even now in the all rain.

Wait, a thief gets two free passes before they are fired on the third botched attempt to rip us off?!? What kinda crazy rule is that out. This is not baseball, it's crime. We always wonder why when we go to tland we always come home with more things missing then travels elsewhere, remarkably so. Now we know. Cheers.

you guys just need FEMA over there, and FEMA concentration camps like they got in the US, that will keep everyone in line for visiting US "dignitaries."

I think that pictures that tanks rolling in front of MBK driven by mobsters and closures of airports hurts Thailands image more then anything else. David's death, if anything, just improves the sex tourist trade as any bad press is just press, which is good news and keeps the word Thailand circulating in the media. Travelers however do not favor political unrest or pandemic. Not sure about now dead Germans swallowing teeth or heads in dumpsters or boats flipping over, and tsunamis are probably not very attractive, but all of the above keeps people thinking that prices may go down a bit and there is a bargain to be found. Lots of folks also look at the bht, and if it would go go back up to 60 per usd, that would also attract more folks, and even i might swing over for a shopping trip at pantip.

for what it's worth, i get these over in pantip from a dude that honors the 5 year warranty:

http://www.seagate.com/ww/v/index.jsp?vgne...000f5ee0a0aRCRD

and i think they are even made in tland. i can't remember, but the last batch was about 4000 each. any of the barracuda 7200.11 series are really great: quiet and run relatively cool. we have over a dozen or so lately and have had only one failure that was replaced without question. cheers!

This report from the Nation is just insane. Either the type of flu was edited out, or they are saying that these folks have the common flu or cold. Looks like another case of the hysterical media drones tripping up over themselves when trying to spread some more fear amongst the population, and to make a buck at the same time. I expect this bull crap to work in America, but not here...

as an expat who lives in nepal and who drives a "big" bike - a 500cc enfield -ha! it really saddened me to see those pics. i have lost many local and one or two non-native-to-asia friends here from bike accidents and it just sucks. most of the accidents here are due to road conditions and crazy transport vehicles (like 5 ton tatas with no brakes) and crazy public transport drivers who drive drunk all the time. everyone here wears a helmet however, but not that it would do any good, as they are of the cheap flimsey non-DOT variety - sold for about 400bht. well, enough said except to remark that all these deaths in tland just do not make good press for the nation. its just bad news all around...

I don't think Indians will be coming either, if my wife's travel alert is widespread. She works for a major INGO and the travel department there sent a warning to all employees worldwide about an incident where an Indian gentleman was jailed for "stealing" at a duty free shop in the BKK airport. What had happened was that the clerk stuck something extra in his bag. He either did not notice nor care, and was arrested asap. Apparently this happens a lot. Ever hear of that one!?!

i get an error when i try to open it. im on a new mac...

Hi there, Jiggy here. I am an experienced technical writer (20+ years), lecturer & facilitator, editor, filmmaker, & designer wishing to help Thai business, NGOs, Govt, etc. in anything related to audio/visual production or professional communication.

I am based in Kathmandu Nepal where I have a complete A/V Studio at my disposal, with staff (my family members), and I am also associated with a well-known UK teaching charity that has a large portfolio of trainings for development workers. I am hoping to collaborate with individuals or organizations that want the best in new media development and communication for development.

Some writing samples can be seen here (I am a web writer for CreativeCow.net, a millions+ hits per month website and 200,000+ subscriber print magazine):

• Sample Tech Writing (tutorial)
  
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• Support staff
  

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• Meetings and Consultations
  
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A full CV is available on request that outlines the work that I have done for major corporations and development organizations (IBM, Microsoft, World Bank, UN agencies, etc.)

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Jiggy Gaton

Wait, the last time I was stranded at the BKK airport there were yellow shirts and red shirts...what's a blue shirt? Nice shirts, by the way. Bought one at MBK cheap. Cheers!

This is a sad story in many respects as pointed out by so many. I just wanted to say thank u Thai air for putting me up in a 5-star recently during the yellow revolution at the airport. it was the decent and right thing to do. I cant imagine an American airline ever doing that in a similar circumstance, albeit they should be prepared for it soon. I live in Nepal and this is very bad news for us if it means a cut in service or rise in price to this airline-locked country. Our only other alternative to BKK would be RNA where the mechanics sacrifice goats to keep the planes afloat, no lie. And while the service on RNA still beats American Domestic, the only two planes they own are so old you can almost feel the breeze coming thru the walls at 30,000ft. Well, best of luck to Thai during the proceeding global meltdown...

That announcement was totally bogus, it should have read: We will pay up to bt2000 per day to a hotel of ur airline's choosing, to cover room and board but not the mini-bar, internet, or health club, plus, at some point we will only pay for breakfast and lunch and dinner will be on u. If u did not get at least that, I doubt you will get anything...but keep us posted!

SBP

Well, I am no longer a stranded business person as my flight home left Saturday, but just wanted to convey this experience: at the airport smoking area outside I struck up a conversation with a Thai local and he actually apologized for the entire country. I told him not to worry, as Nepal has recently gone through a simular democracy movement (although in Thailand it's a bit upside down) and that the tourist industry rebounded here just fine...although the PAD action effected the tourism trade in Nepal as well; tourists were unable to get to Nepal via Thai airlines as they usually do, about 8000 per month.

So while that whole mess (airport protest) is a stain on Thailand's reputation, I don't think it will suffer from it for long, as far as tourists go, they have very short memories and will contuinue to seek out the best deals and trendiest destinations. I'm sure the Thai tourism board will figure out a campaign to snooker folks into believing that Thailand is just that.

Cheers,

SBP

Glad to see an unbiased view of Thai regard to foreigners from an outside perspective , problem is , when you live constantly in any place , it is not easy to see downward trends . I have friends who have been visiting both India and Thailand for many years , they comment that as the standard of locals living have improved , so has the welcome deteriorated .

Sourse : my well travelled friends .

I think what ur friends say is valid. from experiences with working with INGOs/NGOs in developing countries for many years, one can see a biting of the hand that feeds u, once the belly is full. One thing that I like about living in Nepal, is that regardless of full bellys or not, there is amost always an offer to share some rice and have a chat, and I have only once in 10 years felt unwelcomed - during a heated debate with a hard-core moaist. But even then, the attitude was directed towards my birth country and not me. What the PAD did is inexcusable from a hospitality persective, which is just one component of human dignity. I feel sorry for Thailand.

Hi all, I am looking for dog collars for large GSDs, and all I can find are poodle collars here in BKK. I did see one in Zen, large thick leather, but it had ping bone sequins and cost a whopping 1950bht after tourist discount - wow! I think an Armani belt for my waist would be cheaper. Anyway, any help is appreciated. So far I have checked Tesco, Carre4, and Zen,,,no luck there. thx,

SBP

that's so nice all, I agree, although new here, it's the first compassionate post I have read in this forum, which seems to me to be a bed of nastiness. I am stuck here but for now someone is paying for a 5-star and 3 square meals a day, and I hear there is a rumor of compensation of 2000 bht per day, but not sure where to collect that:)

So for now I'm good, and with this deal I'd stay for months...now only if they threw in free TOT wi-fi! Cheers,

SBP