Tropicalevo

I see no joke in my statement - just concern for a magnificent beast that was being badly treated. So what's your problem?

I am a tad confused by some of the comments about Israelis. Israelis are not the problem. It is the antisemitic Muslims and their idiotic supporters that are the problem. All people, regardless of religion, race or colour, should be allowed to go about living their lives peacefully. Sadly, there are groups of haters who disagree with that concept.

Well spotted. I noticed that as well. Elephants are wild animals and should be left that way. Any human interaction has a risk. Most people these days recognise that. This elephant was being teased - possibly abused. The mahout was unable to control it. Sad for the woman but as I said earlier - I hope that the elephant is OK. It is not the elephant's fault.

Sorry. I am still not tempted.

I hope that the elephant is ok.

The government is on a different planet. Rural (poor) farmers cannot take extra holidays. Businesses are struggling and now people are going to work less or incur extra costs. Even if folk are having the extra days off, the only people that can afford to go on holidays are the upper middle class.

A lot of folk slag off Thaksin. The reasons are many. People say that he is corrupt. Every government is corrupt here in Thailand. There have been no exceptions. The major difference is that Thaksin has a proven track record for helping the poor. Buying their votes with free houses, buffaloes, new roads, improved/free medical care and so on. When he was in power, I asked Thais why they supported him. The answer was always the same. He is the first PM to do something for us. Individuals who suffered the most under his regime - the rich and the military. Now let's look at the alternative. The military have a proven track record for helping the rich and running Thailand into the ground. I cannot think of anything that they have done to help the majority of the Thai population. (The poor.) Corruption just became worse under military rule.

If Mr Fixit (Anutin) is involved, then there is a dodgy deal being done somewhere.

And you think that things progressed in the 14 years under the military??? (They had removed Thaksin - remember) Thaksin is known to improve things for the poor. It is where his vote came from. The people that suffered under him - mostly rich. (Including drug dealers.)

I always have ice in cold drinks and often drink water from unknown sources. I do this everywhere that I have travelled. The only country where it gave me a 24 hour problem - Cambodia - out in the provinces. (That is not including dodgy curries at 1 am in the morning.) Yes, if I drop food, I pick it up, wipe it down and eat it. I am convinced that many woke, ultra clean folk do not have enough good gut bacteria to handle minor issues. Anti septic wipes, washing your hands 16 times a day etc etc. Not necessarily good for everyone.

Too little, too late. Most Asian countries have little care for their native animals.

Just hyped up by the press with very very facts quoted.

It seems that whilst they are old cases, he was only sentenced in October this year He has not needed a passport for the last 14 months. (from the Scottish Sun)

I know that many folk do it, but I think that it is very dangerous to leave phones charging overnight. I put it in a par with smoking in bed. The main reason for the continual charging it is all of the 'social media' apps running in the background and draining the battery whilst they 'steal' your data.

The 35 year old was the Thai driver.

Sadly for his family, we will probably never know.

The count appears to be random. Before I went away for a few days, the count was above 2,000. (I rarely look at them.) When I returned, the count was 36. Next day it was 47. Now it is 23 Is there any logic in the count? Or maybe it is for generating lottery numbers? (My recollection of the count may not be 100% accurate, but I think that you should get the gist.)

ie over-syphoning of budgets. So innocent people die thanks to greed.

More folk other than BJ's wife have accused her of fraud.

Cannabis was not legalised in Thailand. It was decriminalised - for medicinal purposes only!

Sounds like a neat idea. Unfortunately, I do not have a car.

The Thai workers WANT to go to Israel. No one is forcing them.

Thanks for the info. When I checked the flights prior to booking, all of the Scoot flights to Singapore involved an overnight stop before flying on to Langkawi, which is why I dismissed them. Batik changed my flight times to Langkkawi and I only just made the connection in KL. They have now advised me that there are new flight times KL back to Phuket. I arrive in KL from Langkawi at 16:25 and my revised flight to Phuket leaves at 17:00. (A real 'cluster<deleted>k) It is impossible to make that flight and I have to go through immigration in KL first. I am waiting to hear back from Batik Airlines. Batik Airlines flights here were very good service but a warning to anyone thinking of using them. They change flight times - often.

I am thinking of ditching April as their service is not as good as it was. I will self insure. I am 74 next year and my premium will be 18,000 USD - inpatient only. I have only made two claims in14 years with them. Prostrate biopsy (nothing found) and a lung infection.