spidermike007

Stallone has always had something. I addition to writing a brilliant screenplay for Rocky, he has something as an actor. Something people can relate to. He seems down to earth, and comes off as quite charming. I have always enjoyed watching him, with the major exception of the awful Dredd films. He also wrote all of the Rocky films, and the Rambo films, in addition to quite a few other films. Also, he directed the last four Rocky films. He was nominated for an oscar for both Rocky and Creed, and won the Golden Globe for Creed. Whether you like him or not, there is no doubt the man is very talented and smart.  

When I was only in my current relationship for a year or so, I had dinner with a very sharp American friend. I asked him about that. He laughed. He said, when you feel the need for intellectual stimulation, call me. We can hook up for the meal, and break down the origins of the cosmos. Do not fret. That same brain that gives you that stimulation, also tends to give you so much grief, it is not worth it, on any level. Get over it. Enjoy all of the other qualities, that make your day so delightful and fulfilling. Great advice, that I have followed to this day. 

Funny reply. I could say alot of things about it, but I will say it is a fairly typical view of a western man, who has suffered a lifetime of indoctrination. No, it is not about cooking and cleaning. We have a very good maid. So my wife does not have to clean much. We have no children, and we are very fortunate in that regard, so no child rearing required. She is a gourmet cook, so whenever I want, she is thrilled to whip up an incredible meal. But, mostly it is about outstanding companionship, being with a kind, loving woman who always has my back, as I always have hers. It is the most satisfying relationship I have ever been in. We have fun, we talk, but we don't try to break down the origins of the universe, and the conversations are lovely, but not particularly deep. She speaks very good english, but is not fluent, so that is one aspect of it. But, the primary aspect is just a lack of interest on her part, in the deeper subjects, (such as astronomy, physics, science, botany, theatre, independent film, etc.), which I find to be the case with alot of Thai women, and I am fine with that. 

Granted, even though she is very smart, I do not get much intellectual stimulation from the relationship. But, I get so much else. And in all of the relationships I was ever in with really smart women, who I got intellectual stimulation from, there was also so much grief to contend with. Such combative women. So much competition. Yikes. Thrilled to death to have left all of that behind. My wife is joyful, light hearted, playful, funny, and a joy to be around. She has a smile on her face when she wakes up in the morning! I cannot get enough of her spirit, and feel so blessed to be around that, and to have found such a delightful and well adjusted woman. 

I have met very few Thai women that I would describe as philosophical, or intellectual. Most Thais simply do not have inquiring minds. Most are not taught to be curious souls, as youngsters. This does not mean they are not smart. But, most of the intellectual kind of stuff I like to discuss with my friends, my wife considers bizarre, and uninteresting. And that is not even one iota of an issue for us. I learned long ago that an intellectual woman, who can match me intellectually, also tends to be a combative woman, and the chance of harmony is low. I for one, love a harmonious house, where my woman is joyful and light hearted, with a great sense of humor, and an amazing attitude toward life, and us. Just my point of view. Whatever works for you, stick with it.

In terms of the states, nearly everyone I know in the states tells me that their wives do not try as hard, once they are married. That the motivation to be all they can be just sort of disappears. I can see if for myself. They often do not seem the same as they were before. And this especially applies once the kids were born, though that might happen here, to some extent too. Fortunately, I do not know about that part of the equation. Here, I do not see that happening. For some reason, the cultural differences allow the women here to be a greater version of themselves. Does that make sense? I realize if you are a Western woman, it is not easy reading this stuff. And certainly this does not apply to everyone, either here or there. Some in the west are just exceptional, and capable to rising against the tide. But, it does apply to most, from my point of view.

Also, one trick we discovered early on, was to have a very independent relationship. I weaned her of that Thai quality of dependency and possessiveness. She spends most of the day with her girlfriends. I do some work at home, and then hang out with some friends too. And we take independent trips apart. She goes off with her friends for two to four days at a time, and also heads up to the village for a week at a time. I head off with friends, and take trips frequently. Sometimes to BKK, or CM, sometimes overseas. She has taken a few trips to China, and Korea with her sister. I take trips back to the US, sometimes with her, sometimes on my own. It is a very healthy lifestyle, and really benefits the relationship. I could not handle a long term relationship with a clingy, or possessive, or jealous woman. Life is too short. 

1 minute ago, Sticky Wicket said:

Apparently there were a lot of stone faced MPs when this happened

What happened was an abomination, and a boil on the face of Thailand. Shame on the people for allowing this charade to be perpetrated by the hapless army. 

The biggest part of the problem here, is the extreme emasculation that is taking place in the West. Most men, in the US, Europe, and Oz, are no longer real men, when it comes to dealing with their women. Their women have made their lives so difficult, and alot of women have gotten so far away from their innate femininity, and have become dominant, and super controlling, and men just go along with it. Most men have become so hungry for love, or emotionally desperate for some kindness, and TLC. And most are so desirous of being around a real woman, who knows how to act like a woman, and manifest the dignity, within femininity. So, it is easy for the con artists, like this worm  Jariyaporn, to take advantage of emotionally wounded men, who seem to be willing to do anything to regain a semblance of normality in their lives, with a decent woman. 

 Always remember, if it is good, it is only going to get better. If there are problems, or The bottom line is this. Take your time getting to know a woman here, or anywhere. Time is your ally. It is rarely their ally. They are usually trying to step up the timetable. We need to push back. We need to assert control. An environment like this allows us to do so. Take advantage of that. Be a man. Step up. Pay tribute to the gender. Refuse to lay down anymore. Refuse to be a doormat. Refuse to check your cajones at the door. Start making the decisions, and stop saying "What will make you happy?" I have so many friends, who come here, and from the very start, make the same mistakes they made back in the West. Except here, they do not need to make those mistakes. The environment does not dictate that they behave like lambs. Many do not know, or realize that, or they succumb to "force of habit". Every ship needs a captain. If the man is not willing to be the captain of the ship, the woman will take over, here in Thailand. Most women here seem to want a strong man. But, if they end up with a wimp, they will take if she is a big baby, who only looks like a real woman, but in reality is a 13 year old, or if she is a con artist, if she is only in it for the money, those realizations will manifest themselves over time. Time allows clarity. Never, ever move too quickly. That is the undoing of most of these guys. Be like Bond. be a real man. Man up. Do yourself proud. 

Lastly, before doing anything drastic like having a child with this woman, hire a private detective, to look into her background. If she has been working girl for more than a year, forget about it. She would be wounded emotionally, and more than likely bitter toward men. You are tying yourself to her for life, by having a child with her. And she already knows you have real money. Sorry, but the ATM stunt was a huge mistake. Allowing her to see your balance was a big no no. You need to exercise some care. No need to be such an open book. 

Complain to Prayuth, and the TAT. It was their idea to become totally dependent on India and China, for tourism. It was a disastrous move, an inane idea, and has decimated the tourism industry, cost hundreds of thousands of people their jobs, if not millions, and reduced the earnings of those that remain in the industry drastically. In the long run, discouraging Western tourism, and not paying any regard, or showing any respect toward the ex-pat community, will go down in history as one of the greatest mistakes of this generation of incompetent fools and nitwits. 

31 minutes ago, Puchaiyank said:

 Healthcare in west is far superior in most cases...

 

After that, you have a tale of two cultures...one vibrant, exciting, variety, food, shopping, entertainment second to none...money goes farther...inexpensive housing and transportation...easy to immerse one's self in new experiences.

 

The other stoic institutions, crumbling and decaying infrastructure, processed foods abound, shopping mall closures and expensive housing and transportation...people form into cliques according to religion and often color...

 

So there you have it...the choice is yours...where do you feel most comfortable?

Valid points. I found life in the US to be stifling, predictable, joyless, and found that dealing with most of the locals was a bit like relating to cold fish. Especially the women. Unless you are young, and are a Brad Pitt type, you are more invisible than Casper. Not to mention the horribly lifeless malls, the horrific pop culture, the ridiculous expense of nearly everything, especially labor, where the average mechanic, plumber, or journeyman considers himself to deserve the earnings of a psychiatrist. Plus, the proliferation of dreadfully bad reality TV, and the hapless, thin skinned, incompetent president. 

I am thankful daily to be over here. 

16 hours ago, PattayaDavid said:

I'm beginning to have second thoughts about replacing my tires.  Looking at them, they look almost new; the main reason I'm considering replacing them is due to their age, manufactured 2113, May 2013, six years ago.  Take a look at the pictures and tell me what you think:

 

 

Those tires are in great condition. Use them, and enjoy them.

I love his defiance. This is exactly what the hapless army needs. Pushback from the people. The majority disapprove of them, and most of the youth despises them. I do too. Show your disapproval. Let us not support illegitimacy. 

53 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Interesting that you bring Nixon and Reagan into it. At least Trump has not been carrying out illegal bombing campaigns killing thousands of innocents like Nixon, or conniving to do nefarious things like Reagan in the Contra thing. 

Neither of them went to jail ( as they should have ), so what chance do you give of Trump being convicted of anything?

Quite a high chance, once he loses the next election. Or even once he finally leaves office, if he manages to win the next election, which I doubt he will. The SDNY has been after him for 30 years. Now, they appear to have some evidence of fraud with Deutsche Bank, and who knows what else. The felonies this man has committed would boggle the mind. 

Great news. In the land of obscurity, finally some clarity on this important point. Maybe without the Biggest Joke, the nation can return to a less hostile place for ex-pats. Maybe. Unfortunately, the army is still in place. 

This is a good outcome. The burden of proof seems to be entirely on men, at this stage. All a woman has to do is make a claim of indecent behavior, and someone in the public eye can be sullied, and their hard earned good reputations can be ruined. There must be a burden of proof on the accuser. Hearsay cannot be accepted. Show us, do not tell us. Who was a witness? Was a police report filed? Is there any videotape, or any audio recordings? Any photos? Any emails? Text messages? Me too has been beneficial to weed out vermin like Weinstein.

But it has gone too far, and there needs to be a balance. Men are not the enemy. The whole idea of toxic masculinity stinks. Masculinity is a good thing. Femininity is a good thing too. As a woman, are you capable of manifesting any of the grace, elegance, beauty and dignity within femininity? Many in the West cannot, and do not. 

3 hours ago, scorecard said:

Agree. Given the dirty tricks at play right now, seems to me it's likely to fall back to Khun Thanatorns' team to be a serious focused and demanding opposition. And what they say in parliament can't be used to sue them, so they have, it seems, an open book to strongly challenge and to strongly put forward new ideas / changes to laws etc.

 

Sure the PMs coalition have the upper hand in numbers but the FF and coalition could make life very difficult for them and continuously alert the public to different ways to think / analyze / to structure better ways forward.

 

I hope the FF coalition even if need be without Khun Thanathorn for a while, raise hell. 

 

A side comment to this, the FF is in a coalition with PT (and more), seems to me that the FF folks are the only group (within the coalition) who have the more worldly knowledge and understanding of what real honest good governance should look like and therefore they will need to lead, I say again, I hope they raise hell, every day. 

 

 

Well stated. I hope they raise hell too. Prayuth and the army need to be challenged daily. They have gone virtually unchecked for five years now, and look at the outcome. It has been a disaster. He is a disaster. The army is a disaster for this nation. Let us hope some change and progress is possible. 

His defiance is good for the nation. Someone has to stand up to the corrupt imbeciles, who are desperately trying to cling to power. He is what is needed at this time. Fresh energy, youth, and business experience. He would have been the best choice for PM, hands down. Not the incompetent that this nation has already suffered under for the past five years. Prayuth is the last man in the world who should be leading this nation. 

Future Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit was suspended. Had nothing to do with the law. It was all about keeping the young, and popular candidates at bay, and consolidating power. The army is desperate to maintain leadership, and they do not want to walk away from the power and money. This does not bode well for the nation, which desperately needs new blood, younger leadership, progressive ideas, real policy and most of all, competence and intelligence. The army has led the nation backwards for the past five years, and another five years under Prayuth will be disastrous for the nation, and especially for the average Thai. They may be good at bossing around their underlings, but they know nothing about running the country, the economy, and most of all, dealing with immigration issues, in a reasonable manner. The past five years was testament to that. 

I just do not buy these numbers. An increase of 11% in salary? Who is seeing those kinds of increases? Certainly not with American companies where the increases are closer to 2-3% annually. In the US wages have barely kept up with inflation.