spidermike007

Thailand is still reasonable. It used to be cheap. Has not been cheap for a long time. But, it is still reasonable. I know people who pay 10,000 baht a month for newer 3 bedroom houses in nice towns. In major cities in the US? $2000-3800 a month. That is 120,000 baht! 

I had my motorbike seat recently redone on my scooter. 400 baht. A friend of mine had similar work done in the US. $275. 

I recently had a guy come over and insulate my ceiling. I bought the insulation and paid him 2000 baht for labor. In the US? $800 and up.

I recently had an electrician do some work on the house. Nearly a full day of work. Paid him 1000 baht. In the US? $800 and up.

An oil change for my scooter costs me 200 baht, with Castrol oil. In the US? $75.

When I travel here I stay in nice four star hotels in Bangkok. 1800-2000 baht. In the US? $130 for a crappy hotel. $200 and up for a nice room.

I eat well here. In a smaller town you can get a three course meal for 200-250 baht. In the US? 2000 baht and up, plus tax and a nearly mandatory 15% tip.

I visit the emergency room here to visit a specialist, and with x-rays I am out the door for 2000 baht, at a private hospital. In the US? $300-2000.

Friends of mine, who are single, enjoy the company of a young, beautiful woman for a couple of hours, for 2500 baht. In the US? $800 an hour now for a beauty. 

I could go on and on, all day long. I live at a level here, that I would never be able to live at, in the US, in most of Europe, in Oz, or Canada. 

Yes, the higher baht is an annoyance. And yes things are more expensive than they used to be. But, it is very relative.

The direction of the new party would be different from Future Forward with focus more on job creation and less on conflicts with the government.

Thanathorn is a smart guy. He will start in a way that does not provoke the thin skinned, and incredibly weak army minds, and then gradually build it into a huge movement, that will hopefully generate enough support to oust the hapless and pathetic army once and for all. There is no need for them in Thai society. They serve no useful function, and have outstayed their welcome. They are despised. 

Who on earth wears and carries "millions" when traveling around? And why? A spectacular degree of insecurity? Recklessness? Ignorance? Just dumb and dumber?

1 hour ago, Nyezhov said:

Could have fooled all of us who have read your endless diatribes about the things you hate...virtually everything...especially Thailand

Read my posts again. They are nearly always complaints about the army and the incompetence of the administration. I rarely ever direct any of that toward the Thai people. And besides. Most rational people have complaints. Does that mean we do not love our lives? Get a grip, please. 

4 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

The fact that this is in front of the supreme court shows again how backward the USA is.

It's amazing that many over there think they are the leading nation in this world. What a joke!

Around #39 in science. #43 in math. In medicine perhaps #10. But the most expensive. A stunningly corrupt political and judicial system. A militarized police. A diminishing quality of life for the bottom 85%. Exploding homelessness. Number 1? In what, GDP? Armed forces expenditures? Trade and budget deficits? Nations with the least amount of government surplus? Certainly not quality of life.  It is the only the people who live in the US and travel rarely, who make this kind of inane claim. 

3 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

And in a way it is. If the stock market goes down and the economy goes down for whatever reason his chances of getting reelected go down. Even if this time he is mostly not responsible for the virus and the consequences.

Oh yes he is. He slashed the budget of the epidemiology arm of the CDC to zero. To pay for 16 Tomahawk cruise missiles we do not need. And they have ignored the request of congress for over a month, to provide emergency funding. Trump may end up with alot of deaths on his shoulders. He has and continues to behave in a very irresponsible fashion. Always putting politics above the welfare of the people. He is an abomination. 

3 hours ago, JingerBen said:

"...overstayed their welcome,"  you say.

Tell me again how many military coups there have been since 1932.

Otherwise you make some good points.

You're one of the better posters, Mike.  You are critical without being nasty and bitter about the country we choose to live in and the people we live among.

Thank you. I appreciate that. I love Thailand and it's people. They have many qualities I admire and enjoy. I know some really lovely people here. Every morning I wake up here is a good day. I have a very good life here. Many of us do. 

It is the army, the administration, and immigration that I detest. I am neutral about the cops. They are like wallpaper to me. Fortunately, I rarely ever have to deal with them. When I do, I push back as much as I can. I would never call on them for help, unless I was in a traffic accident where they were required for insurance, or a tragic outcome. 

Let us count our blessings. 

A woman should have a right to choose. At least during the first trimester. Period. That is a law that should not be changed, as it represents a huge step backwards. The very last thing this world needs is another child that is not wanted by it's parents. That is where the religious folks get it totally wrong. 

It can be referred to a dereliction of duty, and extreme incompetence. That is the very definition of the Thai army and their administration. Sometimes, it appears they cannot do anything right. The fact that they pick their ministers from the absolute bottom of the barrel, does not help. Considering how poor they perform, it is a wonder we are not seeing a major spread of Corona. Good fortune? 

2 hours ago, maprao said:

More likely to be shot here rather than the US

Absolutely untrue. In the US the police are highly militarized, and shoot to kill. They do not even attempt to wound or incapacitate. The least bit of resistance from someone, provokes an extreme response. Many of the police departments in the US, are out of control.

Here? The police here are very soft. I have had many interactions with them, and I would never be able to get away with treating them the way I do here, in the US. Not for a nanosecond. I tell them no here. I tell them I am not interested in negotiating today, and drive away. I dodge them when they try to pull me over. I treat them with utter disdain. And get away with it. I do not think a Thai could get away with any of that. They seem to have some fear of the cops. I do not have any fear of these local franchisees. 

Sometimes, we just have a short, friendly conversation, and that is it. Usually when they see the Thai motorcycle or car DL, and the helmet, they just wave me on. But, if caught speeding, etc, I give them a really hard time. And I would never agree to a random drug test, anywhere, anytime. Never. Nunca. Nada. 

I like this latest development. I was for Mike, but he messed up that debate so bad, he never had a chance. Biden is the best alternative to Trump, who has to go. I do believe Biden will beat him, possibly by 10 million votes. I think there is alot of "Trump fatigue" out there. And four more years of him would be disastrous. Possibly even dangerous. Biden is a decent guy, and even if he seems a beat too slow, he is a far better man for the job than the current occupant, who is so stunningly incompetent, he cannot even get test kits out to the hospitals. 

A picture of Thailand, and it's own sense of entitlement today at Swampy. Looks like the ghosts of racist ranting, a nasty administration and army, combined with Corona are coming back to haunt this place. 

I was in Pattaya a while back on a rented motorbike. A cop waved me over. I ignored him and he got on his bike and sped towards me, even after I cut down a little lane to elude him. When I finally stopped, he asked me why I did not stop for him. Oh, I did not see you. OK. Can I see your drivers license. I took out my Thai motorbike license, and showed it to him. He said hand it to me. I said no. Once you hand it to them, they got you. I held it where he could see it. He said, oh you have a Thai motorcycle license? In my poor Thai, I said yes, and I have lived here ten years already. Oh, you speak Thai? A little bit. Oh you good man, as he patted me on the shoulder and told me to have a nice day. 

In the US, fleeing from a policeman would get you in a world of trouble. Here? I do not think there is a law against that, or fleeing from the scene of a crime. Let em catch you. It is the same thing.

Quite the opposite has occurred. Western tourists have had enough of Thailand. Too much racism, xenophobia, dual pricing, scams, ridiculously filthy air, surly immigration, traffic congestion, and a total lack of solutions, from one of the most incompetent governments in the world.

1 minute ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Are you sure that is a good idea?

The police never visited me at home but they stopped me many times on my bike (for not riding on the left lane). Normally the conversation is very friendly and sometime we even joke with each others.

I don't say let them do anything they want. But I also don't think it is a good idea to make enemies out of them.

I usually give them a hard time. They usually let me go. They do not want to deal with people who give them a hard time. They are local franchisees, working the franchise. They are looking for easy marks. I find as foreigners, for whatever reason, they tend to give us alot of leeway. I have literally just driven away from a police stop, after trying to negotiate a reasonable fine. They stuck with 1000 baht. I just drove away. When I looked in my rearview, they were screaming at me. But, nobody followed me. And even if they had, so what? Not like the US where they would likely shoot you.