spidermike007

I don't debate Thailand's great progress. However, it happened prior to the recent army goon coup. The nation is recognized by the World Bank as "one of the great development success stories" in social and development indicators. Despite a per capita gross national income (GNI) of US$7,090 and ranking 66th in the Human Development Index (HDI), the percentage of people below the national poverty line decreased from 65.26 percent in 1988 to 8.61 percent in 2016, according to the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council's (NESDC) new poverty baseline. Prayuth has proven to be a highly ineffective prime minister, even setting aside the term limit controversy. Following the coup and its harsh aftermath, in which pro-democracy protests were violently repressed, he never accepted any semblance of a return to parliamentary democracy—even after his coalition won the 2019 elections. He has also maintained his authoritarian tendencies. He has personally mocked and threatened the media and civil society, and his government has charged at least 200 activists and opposition politicians with various dubious crimes, including lese majeste. https://www.cfr.org/article/prayuths-misrule-turning-thailand-powder-keg

Though I realize it is very uncommon here, not using a childs seat in a car is like playing Russian Roulette with your child's life, with 5 bullets in the chamber of a 6 shooter. A child yanks the wheel. Please. Children yank anything they get ahold of. In this situation, the child is the parent, and the parent is the child. This child owns his parents.

I have always handled the money. I just don't understand turning that task over to the woman. I see alot of men who barely have 100 baht in their pockets. Frankly, I don't find that manly, not interesting on any level.

I was recently on Bangla Road, after many years away from Phuket. I was astonished at the lack of talent. Plenty of gals. Just very few who were pretty and young. I would go so far as to say that applies to the entire island. Might have been an off week? Not impressive at all. Having said that, Phuket is still a gorgeous island and the Andaman remains an astonishing body of water!

You have got to be kidding. Which economy are you following? Do you have any idea what the REAL situation is here, for the average Thai? Do you really think the worldwide economy is in decent shape? Talk about being out of touch.

For a moment, I was thinking anyone was better than Prayuth, Anutin and Prawit. Those goons have no leadership ability. Other than some infrastructure, they did nothing for Thailand, except move it backwards. Now that Pheu Thai has cut the treasonous deal with the army, all bets are off. They completely betrayed their base of support, and the nation. The army is the last institution in the world this nation wants anything to do with. Any reputation they may have once had, has gone down the drain with those very long 9 years of ineptitude, malfeasance, corruption and theft. So, where does the nation go from here? It is likely to continue it's backwards spin. Perhaps into near oblivion and even a greater degree of irrelevance. Watch. It is likely after jumping in bed with the army, all charges will be dropped. Two or three days in a cushy jail. Did they sacrifice the long term well being of the nation to avoid his prison term?

The recession that is likely coming next year will not help. But, a lot of Thailand's current economic woes are largely self inflicted. This exceedingly reckless administration engaged in multiple, highly selective economic shutdowns, that favored their cronies, and punished the masses. They also kept the nation closed off for far too long, and decimated tourism. Then they partially re-opened, with draconian restrictions. It could take years for a recovery, that will likely never return to what it was before. So, if you want to put the blame in the place it belongs, blame Prayuth and Prawit. They are the architects of the downfall of Thailand, the increased suicides homelessness, crime, unemployment, and unhappiness of the people. And in addition to that, the very things people were coming here to enjoy, have been diminished. Less nightlife, less color (due to the pasteurization and homogenization of the place), fewer resorts and restaurants, and alot of visible decimation of the economy.

Officer Thakdanai from Sainoi Police Station should be commended. It was the right thing to do, and something that a decent person with a kind heart and good upbringing would do. Kudos to him. Taking responsibility for ones actions is a kind of glue that keeps us civilized and humane.

How does one reply to a statement like that? Did you really consider it, before posting it? A waitress, who is trying to survive on $15-20 a day is expected to tip? And a foreigner who might have an income in the hundreds of thousands of baht a month, with many millions of baht invested is not? And somehow there is some equivalence? Huh?

Absolutely. Women run this country. Men are just the puppets. Without Thai women, this nation would grind to a halt in 48 hours. Not saying the men are emasculated like in the West. But, women here have alot more control and influence than you think. And that is a good thing. They have better judgment than men!

And what about a kind hearted waitress, with a genuine smile and efficient service? Does she qualify for a 20 or 30 baht tip from you?

Good on you. Being generous keeps the heart open, has minimal effect on our own financial well being, but it sure benefits those in need.

I am ambivalent. I don't love him, nor do I dislike him. One thing is for certain. He sure beats any of the recent creep leaders. I would take him, or any of his family, over an army general. I hated Bush Jr. at the time he was president. Then came Trump. And Jr. seemed like a statesman and a patriot by comparison. I feel the same way about Thaksin. Loathed him at the time. Now, compared to Prayuth he seemed like a stable genius, a highly competent leader and a man who actually cared about the masses. Corrupt? They all are. At least he got stuff done. There is a reason why millions still love him, and only 3500 still support Prayuth.

You state this with the presumption that governments possess nobility and righteous intent. It is safe to say very few do, these days. Consumer protection seems to be lower and lower on their list of importance. It is almost as if government has either made the decision to protect corporations over consumers, or governments are simply owned and controlled by them.

I have a fun story in relation to "the industry", from one of my trips to Cuba. On the last night of my trip I finally got with this spectacular eighteen-year-old who I had been oogling the entire trip. She literally would not give me the time of day, prior to that. I was at the door talking to the guy that was running this little bar where she was hanging out. I had chatted with him a few times (as my Spanish is pretty good) and he was a cool guy. I could look in the window and see her sitting there and the guy asks me what are you looking at, and I said I have had the hots for that gal, (pointing to her) for the entire two weeks I've been here. He says oh that's Julia, she's a good friend of mine. I said wow and he said do you want to get with her? I said are you kidding me, yes I would love to, and he said let me talk to her for a minute, then comes back a few minutes later he said yes she'll get with you but she wants $60. At that time that seemed like a lot of money, as it was three times the going rate, but I felt it was worth it! I took her back to this sweet, large apartment I was renting for my two week stay, in the best section of town (Miramar), and I had the time of my life with this stunning super model type. I used to bring duffel bags full of lingerie, bras and panties, as they were nearly impossible to find there, and cost $40-100 each in Cuba. My women friends in LA, most of whom are very successful, would donate them to the cause of "helping poor Cuban women", as well as aspirin, vitamins, and other things I would bring to help out on my "charity trips". Talk about a scam. The typical salary at that time was $40 a month. She literally lost her mind, when I showed some of these gorgeous bras and panties to her, as all of them had been barely ever worn, and she proceeded to do a super erotic fashion show for me. She stayed all night and she was exquisite. She got some lingerie bonus prizes! It was maybe equivalent to six months salary for her. I was dating a gal in Los Angeles at the time and I had a date set up for her for the night after I came home. We had dinner at a nice place, it was the third date, we hadn't even kissed yet, and she was kind of hinting that she needed some money for rent. She was pretty, not gorgeous, and was in her late twenties and I was already 50-ish, so there was an age disparity which in America is a big deal. So, the expectation of some sort of sponsorship thing is common in cities like LA, if the guy is alot older, and the woman is young and fine enough. Anyway she kind of hinted at needing assistance and that I would get what I wanted if I was willing to help her out. So I kind of played along with it and at one point I said , so what is the extent of your need this month, and she said she was about $1,100 short on rent. Ha! It was near the end of the month. So I glossed over it, and deftly moved on to the next subject. For the next 15 minutes she was very anxious, she tried to steer the conversation back and finally I looked at her and I said, I'll help you out no problem. And I then I changed the conversation again. She was getting very anxious and finally she said okay, okay what about that thing we were talking about before, what can you do to help me? She could not bring herself to mention the topic of money, as that would reveal her as being a clandestine hooker. So, she had to dance in circles. I said no problem I'll give you a 60, she said what do you mean 60, 60 what? I said $60. She asked what am I supposed to do with $60. What makes you think that is an appropriate thing to offer? I said look, all I know is that last night I was in Havana, and I spent all night with a woman ten years younger than you and 30 times more beautiful, and that's what I paid. The look on her face was precious. I asked her, what on earth makes you think you're worth any more than that? The best she could do was to say that was Havana, and this is LA! I said no big deal for me. Means next to nothing to me, after being with her! Needless to say it was our last date, but that was worth it, to see the look on her face, it was priceless. And she was long overdue for someone telling her like it is! You are not a civilian. You are a hooker!

Although Prayuth appears younger one can easily tell he has a highly conventional, fossilized mind, incapable of original thought, progressive ideas, or a desire to deal with anything that does not benefit him personally.

Running into ILIHYT (I learned, or heard it on YouTube) people. Gen Z. They have become a phobia. They scare me. Society is unraveling. The disintegration of civilization, due to social media. Tiktok getting more pervasive. All kidding aside, I don't think I have any phobias.

How about 189? The age of Prayuth and Prawit combined!

That is a good point. I agree. But, I will continue to give service people a small tip at restaurants. They sure seem to be grateful for it. And it means nothing to me.

There have been alot of stories lately about Kuwaitis. Very classy and cultured bunch, it would seem.

Use your own judgment. For Panda, the drivers get 9 baht. Could you live on that? They use and maintain their own bikes. Is it fair to the drivers? Would your 20 baht tip make a difference to the driver? Would it adversely affect your life? One can always find what they think might be a valid excuse for being unkind and cheap. I can't. Same applies to restaurants. Just because the locals don't.

I liked it, the few times I visited. Don't know if I would want to live there. Anything we see or hear on social media is suspect. Anything and everything. Don't buy into what some guy is saying in his podcast. Unless you know who he is and really believe what he says.

It is likely he was locking in the final details of his lifetime deal for free 1st class flights for him, and his entire family. That is who he is. It was not about governance, nor the benefit of the nation. It was Prayuth. So, we know what for sure.

There is a whole subculture in this world, who absolutely refuse to work for a living, and instead like to prey on those who are vulnerable, naive, dumb, and easy victims. It is our responsibility to be careful, prudent, willing to do some vetting, some research, some due diligence, anytime we part with cash. Especially online. Dealing with Ebay, Lazada, Amazon is one thing. You have recourse. But, dealing with Facebook vendors, Instagram, Youtube, dating sites, or any other social media, the scammers outweigh the real deals. People get taken every day. I get junk emails offering me at least $100 million a month. These people are parasites, they barely deserve the oxygen they consume, and we must do everything in our power to deny the online worms. Especially cops and fake cops!

Survival is survival. Either you have the instinct or you don't. Aussies are not exempt. From the 1st time I got on a bike at 15, I had a sense of how dangerous it could be. Got in two minor accidents in my teens. None since. Awareness, presence of mind, and consciousness are big assets when it comes to survival.