spidermike007

Western tourism has been declining in Thailand for a decade. On a recent trip to Phuket it was likely 35% Russian, 20% Chinese, 20% Arab, and the balance were Malaysian and Indian. I saw very few Europeans and Americans. Those days are in the rear view, for a dozen good reasons.

Not a good idea. At home we consistently lie to our people, frankly we're not sure whether they believe it or not, but that's just the way we operate as a communist power mongering party. We expect Thailand as a beneficiary of our largess to follow our rules and comply immediately. Whatever we ask must be done, after all we are the giant in the neighborhood and we do not wear our power lightly, so do as asked or face the consequences of our ire. Xi I allow no personal freedom to my people. We harvest organs for profit and punishment. We oppress our minority populations. We barely allow any imports and make it difficult for companies to sell their products in China. We ignore territorial boundaries and claim ownership of the South China Sea. We are nearly the only nation to subscribe to a zero covid policy, even if it means putting millions out of work. I have just been appointment PM for life. Or, close to it. Impressive, huh? Want to be like us? Respect must be earned, and never freely given. Same applies to goodwill. China, do something to earn some goodwill. You want credibility on the world stage? Start behaving like a responsible nation. Stop behaving in a ridiculous manner, and like that of a bully, in the South China Sea. It has been centuries since a nation insisted it's territorial waters extended a thousand miles or more, from it's border. We would refer to that as self applied egg on the face. OK?

I recently visited Phuket after many years. The hotel I stayed in had about 70% Russians. They were so dour, so lifeless, so dull and as usual, they took themselves overly seriously. I have friends who know younger Russians. And they say they are kind, friendly and progressive. I have no idea what percentage of the population these younger people represent, nor how representative they are of the Russian population. Personally, I have met very few friendly Russians. Anywhere in the world. The vast majority of Russians I have met, seem to have very, very few redeeming qualities. It is no wonder. I can only speak from my experience. Have run into alot of Russians both in the US, and on Phuket and Samui, 98% of them seem to be grumpy, unfriendly and gruff. Some of them are downright hostile. Likely a reflection of a very, very rough culture and environment. So, perhaps it is not a coincidence that the world is not standing up to support them and show them kindness? Just an observation. I think it is a reflection of the culture. A once rich culture was destroyed over a century of callous and murderous leadership. Stalin, Lenin, Khruschev, now Putin. They have become somewhat savage and crude. No grace, no finesse, no courtesy. Rather uncivilized. My family was from Russia a few generations back. I used to ask my great-grandmother when she was still around, why they didn't teach us anything about the old country. She would give me this look, and tell me "the reason we never teach you about the place we came from, is because the place we came from was the most horrific country on earth, it was the most destitute, horrible, oppressive place and we were thrilled to finally get out of there and leave it behind. That's why we don't teach you about the old country, the old country doesn't exist for us. As far as Phuket goes, no thanks. I never need to return to a place full of Russians.

Next thing you know they'll be shipping misbehaving people off to China to harvest their organs. Is that really what Thailand wants? What makes them think the commie cops can be trusted?

I got one booster shot perhaps two years ago I haven't gotten one since. I will never get another one, my body's immune system is good enough for me.

Is it just me or does it seem like nearly everything that's Sretta has done so far, and proposed so far seems fairly incoherent, disjointed, not particularly intelligent, lacking vision, and certainly lacking a sense of leadership? He seems woefully unprepared for the job.

A history book might help you a bit, the Koumintang broke off from Mao's communist party after they conquered Japan together. They did not like anything they stood for, or had to say, they realized Mao was a desperado dictator, which of course he was, and they fled to Taiwan which was then Formosa, after the Japanese were beaten down and destroyed, finally. They made it their home and it's been their home ever since, so they share very little in common with the commies. China does not deserve Taiwan, hopefully China will not never get Taiwan, and China's claims to Taiwan are completely bogus. As are the South China Sea claims. A bogus power grab, by a nation that is not wearing its power lightly. Be afraid of China. Be very afraid.

That is one of my greatest fears. That the US influence will continue to wane, and China will pick up the ball. They are not, nor will they ever be responsible guardians of the "public trust", as long as the CCP is in control. Not that America was always that. But, the CCP has nothing but evil intentions, in my opinion. World domination. And not what I would call "an overlord that wears their power lightly". So if you were given a choice for a world leader, would you choose China over the US? Would you take that chance? Would you be willing to subject yourself to random organ harvesting, if the CCP did not like your posts on Asean Now? Or labor camps if you criticized their methods? Or other atrocities being committed by the CCP? Or do you think that the US is more evil and more over reaching than that?

In the world of political studies it is known as blowback, and the blowback from this one is going to last decades.

The CCP deserves as much criticism as possible. The Chinese government has imprisoned more than one million people since 2017 and subjected those not detained to intense surveillance, religious restrictions, forced labor, and forced sterilizations. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/china-xinjiang-uyghurs-muslims-repression-genocide-human-rights

When faced with an astonishing degree of ignorance, hubris, and overreach just say NO! Just say no to the CHINESE, make it a MANTRA, make it a LIFESTYLE. Always say no to the CCP and dictator Xi.

God forbid the people be allowed to protest extremist and genocidal Israeli policy. That's not to say that I sympathize with Hamas, I don't on any level, but the constant slaughter of women and children is not accomplishing anything but the generation of additional hatred, animosity, and the delaying of anything resembling a solution.

That would only happen in a meritocracy where people are rewarded for their experience and studies, rather than for their connections and followers. Thailand is the polar opposite of a meritocracy and men like Anutin are the polar opposite of good leaders.

And I have a few friends that I would describe as quite wealthy and they are very cool about their money. They tend to be generous when it comes to meals and fine wine. And they are are pretty humble about their wealth. I wouldn't have it any other way, the people that I know that are the opposite are not people that I want to spend any time with, they're obnoxious. As far as knowing wealthy Thais I don't have friendships with any of them, they are some of the most obnoxious people on the planet, some of the most arrogant and self entitled people, and they buy into a silly class system. Plus, they have virtually no interest in having a friendship with the foreigner, much less a foreigner who's not wealthy. And it means nothing to me.

The older we get, the more difficult it is to recover from an accident. Getting run down by a bike is rough. Hope he heals quickly. Don't wish this on anyone.

For those of us that have been driving for many years we are aware of that you always try to avoid telephone poles and trees, they just don't like to yield at all. Typically, when someone is paying attention and watching the road they tend to avoid telephone poles and trees.

At home we consistently lie to our people, frankly we're not sure whether they believe it or not, but that's just the way we operate as a communist power mongering party. We expect Thailand as a beneficiary of our largess to follow our rules and comply immediately. Whatever we ask must be done, after all we are the giant in the neighborhood and we do not wear our power lightly, so do as asked or face the consequences of our ire. In reality Taiwan is a great country, that has accomplished great things, they broke away from China for a very good reasons like common sense and reason, and they are a free and independent nation. China simply wants to flex their muscles and begin their expansionist policies throughout the Pacific region. Taiwan is likely a good place to start as is the entire China Sea. Both claims are entirely bogus and Xi has to be treated as the dictator despot he truly is.

You are misbehaving, we are going to extradite you to China, and harvest your organs. Hey you stepped over the line, and Thailand invited us Chinese cops into the country, so we have to do what we have to do. This is the way we do it back home, so get used to it.

After a truly epic failure with the vaccine roll out during covid, the choice to buy the lowest efficacy vaccine available on the planet, draconian shutdowns of small businesses which caused countless tens of thousands of people to lose their livelihood, while the big biz stayed open, and a consistent demonstration that he was completely out of his depth as health minister, he now gets an honorary degree. What does this say about this institution and what does this say about Thailand?

Your mama is so fat when she walks into Taco Bell they put her in handcuffs before she can order.

I just got back from the US and the inflation there is insane. I would guess real inflation is somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 to 25% annually right now. Every time I go in the supermarket my favorite products are 10 to 20% higher.

Pattaya is quite a large city and offers a variety of attractions and things to do, the entertainment zones along the beach and on Walking Street constitute a very small portion of the city. So I think a family could have a pretty good time, as long as they avoid those zones. And it seems a lot of the crime in Pattaya, is perpetrated in the Beach Road and Walking Street areas, and it would appear by the recent news that a good portion of that crime is perpetrated by the ladyboy community. So for most families it's probably a good idea to stay from Walking Street.

Cheap quality is everywhere, this world is chock-full of cheap quality, everywhere you look you will find the low end suitcases and backpacks. Just bear in mind they're only going to last a few months, maybe one or two trips and then they will be tossed into the bin. You pay for good quality and you completely forget about what you paid, and use it for years, you pay for poor quality and it's almost always accompanied by regrets.

For some reason you seem to be getting bogged down in the tiniest little details of life. Those kinds of things just don't mean anything, just let them go and get on with your life. And besides it makes for an extremely uninteresting post.

There are a few members on this forum that can't seem to get enough of themselves, and have been posting voraciously as of late. Typically their posts do not have much in the way of content or meaning. You know who I am referring to.