spidermike007

I admire actors, athletes, musicians and others who use their fame to speak out about important issues. If they do not stand up for the people, who will? Certainly not this administration. Certainly not a completely tone deaf president, who has shown a great preference for anything white, and is lacking a nanogram of moral or ethical fiber, or empathy, in his entire being. Clooney is just stating a fact that we all know. And the problem is racial, systemic, cultural and more. This stuff needs to be addressed, and the police departments in the US are in drastic need of reform. The militarization of the police was not a good thing for American society. If anything, it has made things worse. Racism is NOT getting better in the US. Like most things American, it is going in the opposite direction it needs to be going. 

Having said all of that, Clooney really, really needs to lose that beard!

3 minutes ago, rabas said:

The percentage of police killed by black people is also much higher. But, I would never use that fact to spread racist hatred. Both the number of blacks killed by law enforcement and the number of police killed by blacks only reflects the impoverished nature of many black communities and the failure of Democrat governments running these cities to address the problems.

 

Why must you see everything through raciest eyes?

 

I would not limit the failure to democratic governments. Republican governments are equally bankrupt, in terms of competence, ethics and morality. It is more about a totally broken nation. 

Twitter should be praised for finally taking a stand and labeling absolute fiction as such. Facebook should do the same. Considering the great degree of misuse the platform has been subjected to, it needs to be policed and it needs to be censored for fake news, scams and sheer fiction by malicious players. Yet, Zuckerberg is showing himself to either be a major coward, morally and ethically bankrupt, totally indifferent or unwilling to give up some profits. One thing is for sure. His motives are not based on altruism. 

1 hour ago, lannarebirth said:

 

OMG! Don't you get it? Theres just as many or more White, Asian and Hispanic Americans suffering from the same economic inequality.

There are alot of disenfranchised Americans. No doubt about that. But the black folks have it the worst. There is still rampant racism in the US and it is nowhere near a level playing field. 

What is the most glaring in all this is that massive amounts of white people showed up and demonstrated recently over the shutdown. No problem. They were welcomed by the cops. But, when people of color demonstrate they are all labeled rioters and terrorists. Granted there was some rioting. But most were peaceful, at least until the cops started bashing them and gassing them. Based on his recent language, how can we fairly describe the leader of the "free world"? Vicious dogs. The best armed military is coming after you! 

One other element of the reset, on the other side of the Zombie apocalypse is that people will be going out of their way to avoid crowds for a long time to come. Crowded airports and planes, crowded cities, malls, cinemas, resorts and beaches. Just another factor that cannot be accounted for, with the inane and ridiculously inaccurate projections. The economy cannot be predicted, and the last thing in the world they will be able to predict accurately will be international tourist arrivals. 

There is only one thing that is for certain. Tourism will be way down. For a long time to come. And as a result, millions of jobs will be lost. 

So, with all that uncertainty, why is the Thai baht not dropping?

Tourism was already in a state of decline. Then they deliberately shut down their economy, for the first time in recorded history. Two million tourists were here in December, another two million in January. Probably two million more until mid to late February when they shut it all down. Likely many were infected since 40% were from China and many from Europe. Yet, they ended up with 60 deaths. Break that one down. 

And now, millions of jobs have been lost and nobody knows when international tourism will return and what the restrictions will be. 

I have a friend who imported his BMW motorcycle into Thailand. Either an ex-pat is entitled to bring over one motor vehicle free of duty, or it has something to do with the Amity treaty, which relates only to Americans. He also have permanent residency here, which he was able to get due to his aeronautical expertise. It took him 27 months, about 30 visits to the land transport office, customs and other government agencies. They jacked him around to an unbelievable degree. Everyone wanted a handout, to get things done. He refused. In the end he got his bike. But, it was an incredible ordeal for him. 

What is the possibility that elements of the right wing, basically hijacked the protests, and turned them violent, which then encouraged the rampant looting and rioting. It would not take much with the powder keg environment, the anger towards law enforcement that already existed throughout the US, and the graphic Floyd murder caught on video. The more I consider the possibility, the more it makes sense. It feeds right into trumps agenda. Distract from a massive Covid failure, and a stagnant, do nothing presidency at this point, and make himself look strong and decisive. Could have been sponsored by elements from within the administration, to any of the national security agencies, even the CIA or NSA. Who knows? The protests sure started out peaceful, and quickly degenerated.

Makes one wonder. These days in America, I believe anything like this kind of thing is possible. It is then so easy to blame the black man, the people of color, the poor and the others. By casting blame, they do not attempt to fix anything, address the inherent issues, discuss the inherent issues, or make lives better. 

Is there anything more cynical, than Trump using force to disperse protestors in front of the White House, to walk across the street to a church, and hold up a bible? As if he was a man of God? Wonders never cease. 

3 minutes ago, DaLa said:

I may have missed something , but why can't they have joint ownership?

 

https://www.samuiforsale.com/knowledge/practical-legal-for-condos.html

That is a reasonable question. Condo law allows foreigners to hold title to the unit. Obviously she is signing for the loan, so she is likely to be on the title. The bank may insist on that. Also, some banks tend to cower away from loans, if they know foreigner is involved, for some reason. So. joint title might be tricky, in regard to the bank and the mortgage. For a cash deal, no issues. 

I could consult a good foreign property lawyer working here. Not a local. It will be expensive, but worth it. 

5 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

 

I am from Minneapolis and have family there 187 businesses were burnt. It started at Lake and Cedar and went up to 1st Ave, If you aren't from there don't pretend to know anything about it. 

I am aware of the devastation. And I do not approve of it, on any level. I am not condoning it. I feel for you. Quite a terrible thing to see your city burned down. You and I are quite far apart on our positions on many issues. But, I like your posts. Many are thoughtful and articulate, and I appreciate opposing points of view. How boring a world this would be, if we all felt the same way, about everything. Mayhem is not a good thing. I am simply pointing out the fact that there are reasons why people reacted with such strong actions.

Many do not want to examine that, discuss it, or introspect over it. Many seem to be ready to simply demonize all protestors. Most protestors had nothing to do with the rioting. Many on the ground are speaking out about this fact, that the media seems to be ignoring in their insatiable quest for sensationalism. 

Total BS. No science whatsoever. Second hand air? Total nonsense. The unfounded hysteria continues, from an administration so devoid of talent, it boggles the mind. I am not fond of tobacco. Personally, it has taken out countless people that I loved, and really miss. And I find the smell of smoke to be foul.

But, at the same time, I am not fond of big brother, and over reaching laws. If a person cannot smoke outside, where can they smoke? Is it reasonable to tell someone they can only smoke in their homes? 

Everyone, and especially the media, seems to be dwelling on the riots. Many people on the ground have stated that the vast majority of the protests, have been peaceful, but the media cannot resist the blood and gore, and the burning buildings. 

The real questions are not being asked. That anger comes from somewhere. Few are discussing the underlying issues. You take a marginalized group of people, who are barely surviving. High unemployment rates due to their skin color. Decades of bad behavior by rotten cops, who are overly entitled, and feel they are above the law they are employed to protect. Then you force them into lock down, and deprive them of work and income. Then three months later something like this happens, and everyone is so surprised.

The real questions are: 

Why are the people so incredibly angry with the police, and law enforcement in general?

Why are so many black men getting murdered by the police? 

Why would so many protests erupt spontaneously like this?

Where does that disapproval of law enforcement come from? 

Why is there so much socioeconomic disparity in the US?

Why is the unemployment rate for men of color so high in the US? 

Is anything being done to address any of this? Will anything be done? One thing that I do know, is that these incidents did not happen in a vacuum. Derek Chauvin had 17 complaints on his record, and several killings. He appears to have been a homicidal maniac, and an extremely violent man. Police are sworn to a higher standard. If they are supposed to serve and protect, what kind of reaction can be expected from an oppressed public when they instead commit murder and mayhem, and intentionally assault their own citizens? 

I think it is important, to remain consistently aware of the fact that the number one priority of this administration is to protect everyone in the army, and the administration, as well as all high ranking police, immigration and customs officers, the super wealthy, those that are well connected, and those who are very influential. So, this outcome was never in doubt. Ever. Not for one nanosecond.

Righteousness, although the army loves to preach it, talk about it, and push the concept on the people, is something they rarely ever practice. 

Social distancing and the inane wearing of cloth masks, are absolute nonsense, when there are no new infections in the nation, the others that were previously infected, have passed the incubation period, and anyone coming into the country is being quarantined. No restrictions need to continue on any activity. End the hysteria now. The Zombie Apocalypse never happened. 

The very untalented leader continues to divide and offend. That is who he is, and that is what he does. No matter. Just seven months to go, before he is unceremoniously ushered out of the very white house, into a life of obscurity, humiliation, shunning by investors, and declining fortunes. He will NOT be signing any book deals. And the NRA may be the only organization willing to pay him for a speaking engagement, which he might need. 

Nice. Conceptually, it is a good idea. And only $17,000 for a 14 day stay, I would estimate. Sweet deal, if you have huge money. The reality is, that Thailand attracts very few of these really big fish these days. Well before Covid, their numbers were fast declining, for a dozen good reasons. And who is going to willingly subject themselves to a 14 day prison sentence, no matter how comfortable? My guess is that most people in that position financially, will just wait this thing out elsewhere. 

We are not allowed to comment on four of those principals. Let us just say that things are evolving and changing.

The exact target market for Thailand, is the group of people the hardest hit by the economic shutdown, and Covid. It will take a long time before they are in a position to take vacations. The vast majority of that market are scraping by, making up for lost work, trying to pay household expenses, rent, mortgages, car payments, etc. Thailand is in a dream state, expecting them to fill the gap. And that group rarely spends anything approaching 50,000 baht here. Not gonna happen this year. Maybe next. Just write off 2020. Maybe a million of so arrivals, balance of the year. Period. Very few if any Western tourists will come, with the heavy restrictions in place. I understand the restrictions. Thailand does not need, nor can they afford another shutdown.