spidermike007

The incident puts a spotlight on possible police corruption in Lamphun. Ha. This one is funny. I love how they always try to make it appear as if the RTP is clean and free of corruption. The big surprise is not when they find signs of corruption. The big surprise is when they find signs of good police work, without corruption. The RTP at it's inception seems to have been created with a status quo from the government. We will NOT pay you a living wage, but you have a franchise, and the limit of your income is based solely on your own creativity and initiative, and you will always be protected. Is that not the case?

I think it's fairly easy for a man to say that, but when the shoe is on the other foot I think it's an entirely different thing. I think often times women in this situation feel quite helpless, especially if it's a guy that's considered me larger than her. There's never any excuse for this kind of behavior. If you want to grope a woman it's fairly easy to do that here, you just have to pay for it, and then it's consensual. No free gropes! Especially when they are uninvited. A very sharp pencil to his genitals would have been quite effective.

So many people that are in Trump's orbit right now, or in his administration including his vice president, formerly despised the man and spoke openly about what a low quality human being he was, how he possessed no morals, no ethics and how he was a nasty piece of work and a danger to democracy. However power seems to have a very seductive quality and as is stated here many are willing to sell their soul for a little taste of it, at least until they get thrown under the bus.

There's a fairly simple moral to this story, don't order cocktails when in Laos! Drink beer only from a bottle that you can open yourself or that you can watch a bartender opening, or drink wine that you have purchased on your own. Avoid cocktails like they contain the bubonic plague. Unless you mixed them yourself from a sealed bottle.

I'm quite fond of the Burmese people during my trips to Burma I found them to be quite lovely and what they're having to do indoor at this point in time is horrific. When the Burmese army says they are uninterested in politics, that is total BS. They are power hungry thugs. Utter pigs and despots. The nasty billionaire generals are thieves, robbing the people of their gems, their timber, their minerals and selling heroin for the sake of amassing wealth. And supported by extremist Buddhist monks against the minorities. Broken men. With their recent overthrow, they have self revoked the right to consume oxygen. May the #myanmaryouth prevail! May the dinosaurs be pushed out. They are a terrorist army. Hooray to the Burmese people, may they bring utter misery to the junta, and the thieves that are controlling Burma, stealing their treasure, and inflicting misery on their people. These corrupt, thieving, Burmese Army generals, are mafia goons who are finally getting what they deserve. They are terrorists, slaughtering their own people.

Thankfully, Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration. Though Trump prefers low end, low quality, bottom of the barrel type candidates, he set the bar even lower this time. Gaetz was beyond unqualified. Two years practicing low end law. Yikes. See ya, Matt. You won't be missed.

I think that calling it a plan is a bit of a stretch. I would say it was an effective campaign slogan and it's actually a good concept, but it's incredibly complicated, and he's trying to pretend as if it is very simple, which is very typical of his somewhat simple-minded thought process. For big companies changing manufacturing locations requires years, and is not something that can be done overnight without becoming a huge tax hike (tariffs) on the American population.

Thank you. A well thought out post, and a voice of reason in the wilderness of Marxist style Trump propaganda. Selling yourself as a candidate by using slogans and platitudes does not change economic realities.

No. Absolutely not.

Thankfully, Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration. Though Trump prefers low end, low quality, bottom of the barrel type candidates, he set the bar even lower this time. Gaetz was beyond unqualified. See ya, Matt. You won't be missed.

So far based on the picks for his administration I don't see many signs of intelligence. I do see significant signs of moral bankruptcy though. I know his supporters are really excited about the victory and really gung-ho at this point in time. I suspect some of that enthusiasm will be diminished over the next couple of years for a multiplicity of reasons. Trump sure talks a good talk, and he ran a smart campaign, but following through on his promises, and improving the quality of life for Americans is going to be a lot harder than he thinks it will be. Especially with his bottom of the barrel cabinet picks.

This is an entirely subjective topic, of course. But some of us live very good lives here. Some of us have been fortunate enough to find an outstanding woman, who is delightful to be around, on a daily basis, always has our back, and is fun, smart, and lovely. For me, that likelihood of finding that back in the US, would be very low. So, that is a big factor for me. The second factor is just the quality of life. Sure, I miss alot of the culture back home. The theatre, independent film (which I can download here with no issues at all, and a super fast 1 gbps fiber optic connection, at under 700 baht per month!), stand up comedy, live jazz, etc. But I have a lovely home that I rent, for about 10% of what I would pay in California, I live very well on an income which is not huge, have access to great health care, at a tiny fraction of what it costs in the US, and do not have to put up with alot of the aggravation that I had to when I lived back there. I also like the fact that law enforcement stays out of my face here, and the Nanny state is not constantly telling me how to live, how to behave, what to say, and what not to say. It is a very personal choice. I have friends who seem to be dropping like flies. I could be dead next year. You just don't know. I am not extravagant, but I live very, very well. A nice house, a new car every few years, new motorbikes for my gal and I every few years, a great art collection, plenty of good wine in the wine cooler, a new 77" OLED TV, a world class home theatre, plenty of international travel, etc. For me, it is a great lifestyle, that I could only dream of in the US. Well worth the expense and very easy to justify. Life is way too short. I have never been a person of extreme thrift. To each his own. I used to have more issues than I do now. I worked on my attitude, which was getting in the way of appreciating Thailand for what it is, and was clouding my experience here. Used to stress over stupid stuff, as you can see from some of my past posts. Used to allow the politics to make me angry. Now it is not something I take seriously, just something I comment on, without anger or an emotional investment. Now, I just tend to laugh it off. Spent some real time back in the US recently, and it allowed some clarity and perspective, that I am very grateful for. Now, I just chuckle at most of the nonsense. Water off a duck's back, so to speak.

What an absolutely pathetic reply. You won the award for lamest reply on the thread.

While the post may not be as coherent as it could have been, it is an interesting point and it's an important topic. I think in general a lot of people have lost the art of parenting. When we grew up many of us got a lot more support from our parents than kids do these days. Of course the other difference is we played outdoors, we played sports, we engaged in all kinds of activities other than spending all day on Tik tok and Instagram, which is probably the least productive activity any human being can engage in. There's no doubt that screens and social media are dumbing down the population and there's no doubt that gen Z and those younger than gen Z are some of the scariest people, and perhaps some of the weakest people to have ever walked the face of the earth. There are exceptions of course, the cream is always going to rise at the top, and the top several percent of the population within those groups are going to find a way to rise above the negative influences affecting them. When people think of civilisation, they typically think of increasing technological sophistication. That has always been a part of what anthropologists examine when they write about different civilisations. But they’ve always gone much beyond that to look at other attributes of society, most notably temperance and disposition to co-existence. One does not have to be an anthropologist or sociologist to notice that both are generally static or in decline worldwide. Today the echo-chamber is largely housed in social media, where groups reinforce each other’s grievances without rebuttal or critique. It has the effect of compromising rationality, even of otherwise rational people. In general this would not be a time that I would want to bring a child into this world.

Japan's population is projected to fall from a peak of 128 million in 2017 to less than 53 million by the end of the century. If you look at the curves birth rates are falling all over the world, except in Africa, the forlorn continent. Falling in China, Thailand, Japan, etc. Some are predicting China's population to fall to 650 million within 50 years, the crisis is that bad. I don't call it a crisis. I think it's a huge blessing. Italy is expected to see an equally dramatic population crash from 61 million to 28 million over the same timeframe. They are two of 23 countries - which also include Spain, Portugal, Thailand and South Korea - expected to see their population more than halve. Hooray!!! https://www.bbc.com/news/health-53409521

The declining birth rates are simply symptomatic of intelligent people looking at life in this day and age, looking at their financial situation, looking at the lack of state support, and just simply deciding that having children it's just not some place they need to go. If they're going to have children, many are limiting it to one child. There is nothing that could possibly be more positive for the future of Thailand, and the world, than a seriously declining birth rate. It's something that we need drastically. The last thing in the world this planet needs right now is an expanding population. Of course there will be challenges that will accompany a declining population, and those that support an ever expanding GDP will argue that a declining population is not sustainable. I would argue the exact opposite.

It does not matter where this man is from, it does not matter if there are cultural differences, what matters is that there is never an excuse for physical sexual assault or non consensual groping. I suggest five years in a Thai prison where his fellow inmates will befriend him, and teach him how offensive uninvited groping truly is.

Something as simple as a sharp pencil can be very effective in these kinds of situations. It can be inserted into a wide range of bodily areas and can lead to massive reform of an errant, ignorant, abusive man who does not know how egregious his crime really is. It can change his life.

Finally I agree with something that a republican lawmaker is doing, hooray I should declare this a holiday. I have no issue with trans people but they should be limited to using the men's room, as well as men's locker rooms and men's sports teams. At a given point in time we have to say hey so what if you identify as being a woman, it just doesn't mean much to us, and we're certainly not going to turn our world upside down for you. And just for the record I say this is a Centrist Democrat.

Trump can easily relate to someone who "loves them young", as he was captured on video saying, while chatting with his buddy Epstein.

Using bond parlance, while his pick for defense is about a C rating, his pick for AG would be a D rating. A real junk bond level selection. True bottom of the barrel, as expected from Trump, as it is never about quality, intelligence, or capability. It is always about fealty.

Yes. Maga hats will go up in price. So will the bibles! Society will be torn asunder.

WALLACE: "But this brings up the point, the conservative American Enterprise Institute says, look, Donald Trump, he owns a dozen hotels, properties, all over the world. Your Trump Collection clothing line, some of it is made in Mexico…" TRUMP: "It's true." WALLACE: "…and China." TRUMP: "That's true. I want it to be made here." (Fox's "Fox News Sunday," 10/18/15) "[The Trump Store was] selling $80 Trump-branded cotton sweaters and $70 Trump-branded warm-up tops, all made in China. Also available with the made in China tag: golf hats stamped with the Trump crest and stuffed animals. Visitors also could buy leather made-in-China belts priced at $45 that are advertised as 'So soft, it feels like a million bucks.' And in the display case were neat stacks of colorful Trump-branded polo shirts that would be perfect wear for one of Trump's golf courses. The shirts, which sell for $70, were not made in China, but nearby, in Korea and Thailand. … All the Trump tie pins ($22) and tie clips ($28) are labeled as 'Made in China,' as are the cufflinks ($35 to $45 a pair) and even the boxes containing them." (ABC News, 4/28/11) The list goes on and on, make America great again baseball caps are made in China, his Bibles are made in China, his watches likely Switzerland, the list just goes on and on and on. The question is, does Donald Trump make anything in America? I doubt it. Hypocrisy of the highest order. https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/rubio-campaign-press-release-donald-trump-proudly-outsources-jobs-china-mexico-other

I am Adichat. I know I look like a full grown man, but I'm actually 13 when it comes to emotional development. I look like a man, and I smell like a man, but I'm not a man. I never bothered to allow myself to develop into a man so I'm very sensitive. I have incredibly thin skin I have absolutely no self-esteem or self love, and every time somebody says something that I perceive to be an insult or I perceive to be offensive I have to lash out either verbally or physically. I just cannot handle it. So as you can see this lack of development makes me a menace to the entire planet, and I am a very, very sorry human being.

One may ask why has Putin chosen this moment to make his move on Ukraine? As many have pointed out, Russia is an objectively weak state — “Upper Volta with nuclear weapons,” as someone once quipped — with a nominal G.D.P. smaller than that of South Korea. Outside of energy, minerals and second-rate military equipment, it produces almost nothing that outsiders want: no Russian iPhone, Lexus or “Fauda.” If it were not for the minerals, oil and natural gas, I believe Russia would be a highly irrelevant state. Sure, it had alot of culture. Had. What have it's contributions been since the middle of the 20th century? Putin’s problem with Ukraine, starting with the Maidan uprising of 2014, is that Ukrainians want nothing to do with him. He is despised. And for good reason. If he were a Disney character, he’d be Rapunzel’s mother. But, he is not a Disney character, which makes him a pathetic, aggressive, serial killing despot dictator, who appears to be targeting women and children in his latest escapade, and further walk into the world of darkness.