rattlesnake

My brother was here recently (not in Pattaya) after a 10-year hiatus, and one of the things that struck him was that the Thais have lost their smile.

Would you say it has changed for better or worse?

Yeah, that's basically their purpose, they raise the alarm and protect the household. Indeed, I've been chased a few times, usually on the motorbike but once when jogging and I went from 5 to 20 mph in a split second… They are part of the Thai landscape, but I would never leave a kid near them, even in a "friendly" environment.

Brilliant!

Especially these past three years, for some reason which I can't figure out.

That's what I always thought. Probably "looks cool". Which reminds me, who remembers this craze from about 10 years ago? Often sported by men in their 30s and 40s

You said that 7/11 food is not their preferred option, and I concur. This ties into my refutation of the OP, which posits that to a lot of Thais, eating 7/11 food is a desirable thing only precluded by insufficient monetary means. As I stated previously, I believe this premise to be flawed.

Thank you for confirming that they will only buy 7/11 food when they don't have access to street food. We are therefore in agreement.

It is cheap food (the average microwavable dish costs 40 baht) and the reason the 7/11 staff does not eat it is not because they can't afford it. The premise of the OP is flawed.

The quote I replied to was: Yet, I’m aware that the staff at 7-Eleven earn quite modest wages. Many of the food items I casually throw into my basket are things they’ve likely never tried themselves If you have Thai friends, ask them if they like 7/11 food. Most of them will answer "mai aroi". They don't eat that sh*t, that's why you don't see them buying it.

Thais are not "in need", in fact they are doing better than most Westerners living in Western countries.

7-11 is cheap, what is the most expensive food item there? 50 baht? The 7-11 employees spend more than that when they eat at the local moo krata. Spending more than 200 baht at 7/11 is a farang thing because to a Thai, it's just not appealing at all to actually "shop" there (farang concept), it's a convenience store where they grab one or two items, that's all.

It's 'sieg heil', if you're going to be witty, you might as well get the spelling right.

Working visas are another issue altogether. What I am 99% sure is never going to happen is that every foreigner residing here more than 180 days is going to be explicitly required to file a tax return, let alone pay a single baht. Even if the Thai authorities manage to actually implement and enforce this mammoth task, the resulting discontent and capital flight, combined with the loss of face when neighbouring countries are publicly shown as better alternatives to Thailand, will cause such exponential and inextricable problems that they will immediately drop it and sweep it under the carpet.

As expected, they don't have the remotest idea how to begin addressing this issue and it is simply never going to happen.

"Those affected": you mean the hordes of BS useless jobs? I don't recall you being this bent on social justice when tens of thousands of people lost everything because they refused an experimental injection.

Here is a demonstration of the geocentric model: Working Model - Day-Night in Geocentric Model.mp4

It has been the doxa since the 17th century.

The presented footage warrants speculation, and differs radically from the depictions we have consistently been given and have come to accept as real. There is a big difference between this (Mars, courtesy of NASA): And this: The core issue is the relevance and reliability of NASA. The below footage captures Venus with a Nikon P900. Does this look anything like the Venus you have been shown since you were a child? NASA depiction: Captured with Nikon P900: Venus.mp4

Classic! The hand gestures to enliven conversations otherwise burdened by limited vocabulary (20 English words on the Thai side, 0.5 Thai word on the farang side) are also a sight to behold.

I will take that as a compliment I am genuinely interested in reading people's takes on the different aspects of this matter. Quite a few are, in my strictly personal opinion, ignorant and arrogant. Others are pretty smart: for example, a few responses I received to my questions on flight paths are pretty astute. As you said, it is entertaining, and the fact that we are on the 20th page is an indication that things are maybe not quite as straightforward as we all thought. Once the basics are covered, I will draw a summary post with bullet points, highlighting the aspects which are still not, as far as I can see, rationally explained and/or refuted.

I am almost certain it is never going to happen. If it does, I will gladly pay the money just to see how they pull it off.

The French politician who said this is Raphaël Glucksmann, a "progressive" rabid Russia hater who is always on the wrong side of history. For example, he called those who wouldn't receive a Covid injection "abysmally stupid", and Trump's victory "a global disaster" and "a nightmare for democracy".

What's your take on the ample footage of celestial bodies which strongly suggests they are of a sonoluminescent nature, and in any case nothing like the NASA representations of them? Stars Photoluminescence 3.mp4 Stars Photoluminescence.mp4

Please define what a "real observation" is, and give an example.