doodle

2 hours ago, Lupatria said:

I maybe wrong but at 0:52 to me it looks like a part or the whole rear rotor fell off.

I think that you are absolutely right. A component of some sort can be clearly seen flying off from the tail, near the rear rotor assembly. I saw this before I even read this comment. RIP to all involved.

1 hour ago, scorecard said:

Driver and car owner both fined 5,000Baht and drivers license cancelled for 1 year.

Blimey, proper punishment for once! More of this please!

Yes, it does work. I have a Kasikorn savings account and set up internet banking years ago. I don't ever remember setting anything special up for the SMS. It is done over WiFi as I have mobile data switched off for my DTAC SIM. I think it costs 12 baht for the SMS each time.

6 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Google Earth is full of aircraft caught in flight... or maybe not.

 

Now you see it.

 

Now you don't...

Pretty rare too. It's a Lancaster bomber and there are only two airworthy examples left.

6 hours ago, cyberfarang said:

The car appears to be a Ford Escort MK1 from 1973.

 

Doubt the guy was a regular tourist. Whatever, so what`s it to be, suicide of heart attack. Case closed.

It's even rarer than that. The decal is for a Mexico. It also has flared arches. If it is a genuine Mexico it's worth a lot of money back in the UK. Currently go for around £30,000 - £40,000 for a good one. What the hell is one of those doing out there?

I would imagine the Phuket boat incident would not have made much difference to UK travellers because it hardly made the news here. The media were much more interested in the Cave story. I would not expect the marvellous weather here to make much difference either, as I would ask how many people book an air ticket the same month that they fly? Not many, I suspect. 

My guess is that money is getting tighter for most Europeans and Thailand is getting more expensive. A staycation or a short hop nearby is a much cheaper option.

13 hours ago, chrisinth said:

Nowhere in the attached article can I see where it says that the boys were 'heavily sedated'. 

 

The quote that I do see is:

"They did have some sedation to keep them calm, because the worst thing that could happen would be one of the guys panicking."

 

IMO, some sedation and heavily sedated are two completely different things. Still, regardless, it was a life saving operation, if it was necessary, then it was necessary. Thankfully all completed successfully.

 

Perhaps more unsettling was that these comments came from an ex-vet......................

The little bit of video I've seen showed them completely out of it. I agree with other posters that it was the most sensible thing to do. Any panic would have been fatal.

Agree also that Prayut would have preferred a 'heroic' spin with the boys assisting in their own rescue.

As regards one of the rescuers being a vet, if I had been trapped down there I wouldn't have cared less about that just as long he got me out. In the circumstances, I would suggest a vet, who would be pretty skilled in first aid, regardless of the species, would be more useful than, say, a politician.......

A lot of good points made in this post. It's true that the health and safety culture has become rampant in Western society. 'Nanny State' springs to mind in regard to the UK's approach to it. Not wishing to start a Brexit debate here, much of this has sprung from the EU's love of rules and regulations. Mind you, the Grenfell Tower disaster shows that we still don't always get it right.

Asian, and particularly Thai, culture seems to suggest that people rather than the State are responsible for their own health and safety. This is most noticeable on the roads, another favourite TV topic. I should imagine any Thai drivers visiting almost any Western city experience some sort of culture shock. Of course, the same can be said for us visiting Bangkok but for different reasons.

We must not forget that one of the reasons we all love to live or visit here is the different culture compared to the West. Too much 'improvement' will take that away forever. We can only hope for some sort of compromise when the Thais do finally get round to doing something about their health and safety issues.

Watching coverage on the BBC here in the UK.

One of their correspondents seemed to infer that maybe the Thai authorities are holding off reunions with parents so they can have a stage managed big press conference/reunion with all the boys present.

I have no idea if that is true but I wouldn't put it past them.

1 minute ago, Quack said:

Actually I don't think it was the luck of the draw. The Brit divers were brought in to blaze the trail as the other divers weren't experienced or skilled enough to be able to find their way through the network of caves without any visibility, maps or lines... The Brit guys were the ones who did the hard work exploring and forging ahead and laid out the lines so other less experienced divers could follow them through. It's extremely difficult and takes a great deal of bravery to go into a cave blind, squeezing through tight gaps when there's no guarantee you'll even be able to turn around in the space you get into, no visibility at all. There's probably only a handful of people in the world who can do this safely, which is why the Brits were brought in.

That's right. The French specifically asked for them in 2010 to help recover the body of a diver. They also helped in a successful rescue of 13 divers in Mexico in 2004.

Well, there is a similarity here in the world of guitars. What could be more American than a Fender guitar? Most guitarists are aware that some Fender guitars are made abroad, particularly in Mexico and in many other countries such as Japan.

The manufacturer makes this perfectly clear and everyone knows that, for example, a budget Stratocaster is made in Mexico. In fact, Japanese Strats are quite sought after as they have their own unique tone and are very well manufactured. 

So, Harley could adopt a similar strategy - budget Thai built or home grown excellence. The customer can decide. Everybody happy, except maybe, the die hard purists.....  

I would be quite sure, in the UK, that tax would also be due on renting a property for a short or long let as it would be considered a business. You may get away with it if you are living at the premises, under the 'rent a room' scheme and share facilities but how many people would do that.

I should imagine all sorts of other rules apply as, effectively, you would be running a hotel. I suspect, also, that there would be property insurance issues. I would hazard a guess that it's the same in many other countries.

13 hours ago, rooster59 said:

But he added that Thais thankfully have a natural resistance to the bacteria. 

Total BS.

This, somewhat technical article (most has gone over my head but the salient points are clear), explains:

https://legionnaires.ecdc.europa.eu/?pid=108

Although he probably would have got a bigger fine in any other country, it's debatable whether he would have got any jail time. In the UK, for example, he would certainly have  got a hefty fine and maybe a suspended jail sentence, worse case 2 years jail time, but they would have only thrown the book at him if someone had been killed. He could be sentenced to life imprisonment in the UK for death by dangerous driving under the influence of drink or drugs. Until recently it was a maximum sentence of 14 years.

4 hours ago, colinneil said:

Truck driver telling porkies, no motorbike cut in front, he was taking the corner too fast.

Also some bad reporting here, truck was carrying 46 tonnes !!!! Impossible.

Truck was maybe carrying 26 tonnes max.

Don't be so sure about that. This is Thailand, after all!?

16 hours ago, Norbert Halfwit said:

I live on a soi just off Pattaya Klang and our garbage collection went from daily to every other day to every third day to whenever.

The residents are complaining

The rats are not.

I live in the UK and garbage collection in my town is now only done fortnightly alternating with recycled items. However, piles of garbage are uncommon because everybody has a bin. Maybe Pattaya city hall need to do something similar. Of course they won't because it would cost money.

I have an old DTAC package: Simple2baht/Min according to the DTAC app. It's a little more expensive than some of their other packages but every time I reload it's valid for 365 days. Had it for some years now. All the add on packages work with it.

100 baht + is very fair. Don't forget these drivers are only getting a small proportion of the fare. Mr T is getting the lion's share. One of the best taxi services out of Pattaya. Always there waiting for me at Suvarnabhumi and the return. Most of Mr T's drivers are pretty good although all a bit too fond of their mobile phones.

Unfortunately, they didn't save her leg, according to this article in Phuket News: 

https://www.thephuketnews.com/woman-loses-leg-in-phuket-road-accident-66897.php#g0J5vtJb15rJygyO.97

Also the Farang expat driver is to be charged with reckless driving causing serious injury.

16 hours ago, nausea said:

Many Thais come to Pattaya for a weekend break. It's just basically what Brighton is to London. It might be a little naughty, but so what.

I'd say more like Southend. Maybe Hua Hin is like Brighton, although I don't know if it has the Pink Baht.?