slipperx

You guys should stop beating around on Yingluck and blaming her for the current flood crisis. She's just doing the best she can. You guys also don't know where the flood is going or where it will flood in 2-3 days. It's an ever-changing situation. If you guys know, then why don't you share it here? If you don't, then let her do her job.

You should blame whoever designed the drain-off systems and water canals in Bangkok and Thailand in general over the past few decades. Whoever the people are that designed those are responsible, not Yingluck who just became PM this year. Or are you suggesting she dug all the wrong-designed canals herself in the past few weeks?

Even in the times of worst crisis in Thailand, there are people that have nothing better to do than play the "blame it on the Shinawatras" game. Go out and help some people. I know I stood in knee-deep water all day helping others. It makes me sick to come home and read all this crap.

That is just crazy. To design the flood protection money is needed, maintenance is needed and organisation is needed.

Money comes from the government which sets budgets and distributes to the appropriate department to spend on infrastructure - it is never an open cheque book - fault lies there with the elected politicians over the last 30 years - all of them culpable. Maintenance is needed and again comes from the government budget allocated - fault lies with the elected politicians over the years - all of them culpable along with possibly the departments themselves who did not report adequately or mis-spent the money. Organisation is firstly the responsibility of government and the elected politicians who decide the method of organisation - how much is centrally controlled and how much devolved to local government.

To handle a disaster you need a plan - it should be in place already but if not then as soon as it becomes clear the situation is abnormal (as must have been clear a couple of months ago) then you hastily make up a plan using your best experts or preferably the best experts you can employ (in this case the best would be foreign I think it is fair to assume). This government has failed its people because it has fannied around oblivious to the pending disaster and acted (and continues to act) in the most unstructured, disorganised, ignorant fashion with information dissemination out of control, leaving the Thai people exposed to huge danger and a possible catastrophe from disease as well as the flooding itself and at huge financial and personal cost.

This is a direct result of the incompetence and ignorant arrogance of this government together with the mismanagement of the former administrations together with humongous corruption diverting the money away from the infrastructure and into the pockets of the powerful. Thai people continue to be raped of their money, their hopes & dreams, their right to a decent life by the elite here who rape and pillage the fortunes of this country to the detriment of everyone. I am a capitalist by nature but this is not capitalism it is the enslavery of the average Thai person to a life of poverty through corruption and criminality. One day people will wake up - hope it is not too long.

Yes go out and help - don't give money it will not get to where it should go. Buy food, water whatever necessities you can and search out the people who really need it - give that willingly free from the gift wrapping of some political party who have given sod all but just try to make political gain from the situation. I hear that people are being denied food until the cameras are there to film the wonderful provisions donated by the government as if they are giving it from themselves. That is what makes me sick!

The prime minister stressed that all residents should move their belongings to higher ground in preparation for a worst case scenario if flood barriers collapse.

Under such circumstances, the government will do its best to protect electricity and water distribution systems to make sure service is not disrupted.

However, if residents feel they would like to return to their home provinces or would like to leave Bangkok, the Transport and Interior ministries will facilitate flood victims who would like to relocate, either home or to provincial evacuation centers

Is this her way of saying get out before it's too late?

i think it is .....

even if there is a risk of 1.5 mtre flooding, they should evacuate now !!!! , how will they get the masses out or delever food and water to these people when the floods hit !

Boat, ship, barge, raft, fleet?

nah they sent the fleet away already - don't need them! - We are THAI - we are INVINCIBLE!

So we have the sea level rising to 2.6 metres or is that the level of the river? If it is the level of the river at the river mouth then how does that reduce the further north away from the river mouth you get? And we have the average embankment height at 2.5 metres from where to where - is it higher near the river mouth and lower inland or does it vary arbitrarily?

I cannot imagine the sea level will be 2.6 metres higher than normal - at that level practically all of Bangkok will be flooded - even the highest areas are only 2.5 to 3m or so above sea level. What does sea level mean? Average sea level? Maximum normal sea level or what? I mean does the average sea level go up and down by more than 6 metres? i.e. +2.5m to -2.5m around the average?

What effect does the wind have on the level of the sea and river? If the embankment in parts is averaging 2.5m then even if that were the level everywhere if the river rises to 2.6m then it will overflow by 100mm. Doesn't sound much but that will be just constant water overflow without abatement until the tide recedes and then replenished as the tide comes in and out.

I took a look at the river on the way through Nonthaburi two days ago - it looked to me to be about level with the embankment - well not much of an embankment there as the water is already in all the houses alongside the river and about waist high - let's call that 1 metre. So are we saying the level will rise another 1.5m?

Then in the second snippet we have the sea level going to be 2.45 metres and no problem.

I think the point is that nothing is actually clear and it is foolish to make sweeping statements that it will all be OK or that it will be a total washout. It has to depend where you are, what the real situation turns out to be and how well the flood walls stand up - the latter being the 640 million baht question because I have seen the water rushing out between the old wall and the new section that was built about 25 years ago I think. So water rushing through a concrete joint like that will seriously weaken the wall and I wonder how well the reinforcement inside the walls is standing up to corrosion since it must necessarily be exposed.

My biggest fear about this is that sections of the walls collapse under the added pressure of water - 1 metre of water is bloody heavy and exerts pressure at 1030 Kg per cubic metre at 1 metre depth - just over a tonne! That is a lot of pressure on an old leaking concrete wall extension!

Of course the other thing could be that this is all being whipped up to cause widespread panic so that the politicians can say how brilliant they have been when inner Bangkok doesn't flood and the flood of relief (excuse the pun) when that doesn't happen will pave the way for Thaksin's return amidst waves of glory for him supplying the Thai people with lots of pumps or something, paid for by him with money he has got from ....... (reader to complete) to ensure this never happens again.

Who really knows - for certain I don';t but then I trust no one except my Mum anymore!!

10 million sandbags? Don't need the US Army to help? Hmm who is going to put all these sandbags in place and where is all the sand and bags suddenly going to come from. One ten tonne lorry = about 200 sandbags and we need 10 million in two days - thats 50,000 lorry deliveries in two days - 25,000 a day - hmmm do they have that many lorries?

It's all conjecture on my part I freely admit - I don;t think I am alone in that! All I know is there is no food on the shelves, no drinking water in the shops, the tap water is already contaminated and full of chemicals to keep it potable (we hope) and this tragedy will last somewhere between a little tragedy in some areas to the whole of Bangkok for four to six weeks and we are going to open the schools in three weeks time.

Nothing adds up! Amazing Thailand - it will be a miracle if the masses don't get fooled into believing someone somewhere has graciously helped them. Jeez

I was up at Klong Prapa when it first started overflowing. The water wasn't coming over the top of the dyke, it was coming through cracks in the dyke!

It still is and they will get worse or the wall will just collapse if the water level gets higher and the weight of water will just push it over. Then no point in going to The Mall as teh supermarket is at a low level! Not that there is any stock there anyway!

Water is yellowish where I am too and has been so for the last five days. No drinking water to be found anwhere and things are going to get worse yet it seems clear. The water tastes disgusting even in Tea & coffee and smells equally disgusting. Obviously full of chemicals and my RO water filter cannot take out the smell. We are in trouble big time.

Just smell the tap water - unless you have a problem smelling I think it is pretty obvious that it is full of chemicals. I am not sure boiling it will make it smell or taste better but at least it should kill the really bad stuff so I go along with that advice

What really can Yingluck do, I really feel sorry for people in government for the first time when I read the posts of people. How can an army fix a flood?? They are not GOD. Lets face it the worst is here, the tide is going to turn soon, lets learn from what has happened. Yingluck can now focus on how to prevent the next flood. Why shoot the messenger when you should be shooting the people before her in government. I am not a particular fan of Yingluck, but i'm sure she is doing everything she can for the flood. That is all we can ask. RIP the Thai people who have died in this period, and hopefully all the people suffering will see relief soon.:jap:

It's not about the fact there is a flood - of course she cannot prevent a natural disaster but there are steps that can be taken to mitigate the damage. Her government has acted too late, too stupidly and has been totally inept in this time of disaster. There is no information and to be honest I have doubts any Thai has a clue about what to do, how bad it will be or where will be effected. This is the information the public deserve and that is the information the government should be providing as well as using the army and volunteers to sandbag where sensible. No intelligence, no direction, no bloody idea.

Can't Thailand get some people in charge who actually care about the country more than themselves and actually have the education to do something with some sort of plan? I guess the education system leaves Thailand with a set of representatives who are ill educated and naive and thus not equipped to even start running the country. I am sad for my family growing up in a country that should be great but which is crippled by the selfish, ignorant and corrupt people who unfortunately have power here.

I am dumbfounded. I never realised that the country where you choose to live makes a difference to how your pension is calculated - that is just plain wrong. Why does every country seem to have such wanke_rs as politicians. Why do we vote for these people jeez.

So I want to see the broadcast on teh web - what's the website for that? Is it going out Monday coming?

How deep is the river I wonder when it is at full flood. At best 1000 boats tied in place and turning their props will assuredly increase the flow of water where the boats actually are but how far in front and behind them will it have much affect. the energy will be dissipated pretty quickly I would imagine and in any case not affect the full depth of water. If you had boats in sets across the river turning their props spaced about 100m apart then maybe some effect would be noticed - but this river is very long and you would need 1,000 boats every mile or so to have any chance. This is just a non starter and I wonder where the 'scientific' analysis has come from the Science Minister must undoubtedly be relying on. Not sure this minister is in the right ministry!

Muslims are our friends, they are all peace loving wonderful people, it is only a couple that do all the damage.

The sad thing is that many people will not understand that this is true. They are neither friends nor nor enemies actually. Most are just ordinary folks brainwashed by the nearest religion and so ill educated to tell the difference. Then there are the truly stupid ones who are what we call extremists who want to kill and maim and destroy peoples lives and dreams because the people teaching them have no dreams except power. It is manipulation of the stupid. You cannot blame a specific religion for that - every religion has had its turn and now it is the muslims. People are people - we come into this world ignorant and learn from the people around us, for they are who make us who we are. Good and bad everywhere. A few bad Muslims who want to destroy the twin towers or bomb the buses in the UK does not mean every Muslim is bad - any more than one bad monk makes every Buddhist bad or any one crusader makes a Christian bad. Jeez it is not the religion, it is the people who want to use whatever religion to justify their cause who are bad - John Lennon had it right - I am just beginning to realise.

We are all human - all people - yet we are shepherded by governments, civil servants, religious cranks and the like - why are we so gullible to these disgusting manipulators? We are all stupid. Probably me the most!

It happens in many under-developed countries where police need to supplement their income.

Would you rather pay a 'spot fine' or go to the hassle of a trip to the police station to pay a much larger fine?

Some posters need to get off their collective high-horses. We who pay the spot-fines exacerbate the problem but the solution may be found in paying police a decent wage. I say 'may' bacause corruption is so endemic in Thai society that increased salaries may not fix the problem.

Best to always keep a few 100 baht notes in front of the car.:jap:

I am not sure anyone is saying they would rather go to court - just astounded that the police say they don't receive any. Usually things that are uncomfortable to Thais or Thailand just don't get talked about but someone is rocking the boat with a legal case in this instance.

Hi, I am always surprised by the difference in salaries in this country. I am a full time teacher at Rajabhat University, 150 km.north of Bangkok.I The job is great, the students very friendly but the salary is only 27,000 THB. How come a kindergarten teacher can make 35,000 to 40,000 THB a month?

You should know kindergarten teachers have to put a lot more effort and thought into getting the lesson topics across to young students. Do you think because your students are older, maybe near adults that you should be getting paid a higher wage?

Well he would need a 30% rise on his salary to match the lower end of the salary in the OP. Maybe teaching adults requires a higher understanding of the subject which might counter some of the benefits of teaching older children rather than younger children (although kindergarten children normally have teacher helpers to offest that)

The blind leading the blind - with conviction!!

100B is perfectly fair, too much even. 200B is just a rip-off.

Who can say this is a rip off ??? Who are you to judge that ??? If you don't like the price, you don't use tuk tuks, that s it... As well since they don't have meters, you should always agree on the price before jumping in a tuk-tuk.

I wonder how much this guy would have paid in Germany for the same trip ? 10 or 15 EUR ?? Would he dare to say he does not pay the bill in his own country ???? I don't think so.

I don't caution the behavior of the tuk tuk drivers, it is unacceptable to beat someone to death for that but I am sure those kind of incident could be avoided with a bit of diplomacy...

Yes World War 2 could have been avoided with a bit of diplomacy no doubt - funny the British tried that and just got a piece of paper - probably more than you would get here trying to be diplomatic with the crazy Tuk-Tuk mob.

Yes the German guy should have negotiated the price first, yes he shouldn't have pushed the lovely honest Tuk Tuk driver, yes he should have let his wife's brother pay the extra 100 baht. There are many things in this world that people should do but don't. All of those actions pale into insignificance to the beating of a man sufficient to send him to hospital with bleeding to the brain and needing ICU treatment. That is criminal, brutish behaviour and needs to be eradicated from society because it is bad for society and that is what the police should be working towards - upholding the laws of the country for the better protection of its citizens and Thai society. Beating up foreigners is against the law because it is bad for society.

With the regularity of these attacks it has to be clear that the Tuk Tuk drivers need policing and much better regulation and what's more the police should leave no stone unturned in bringing them to justice. That is another 'Yes' statement that won't happen because, firstly, it is not the business of the police to get involved in these sorts of things here (they can't even be bothered to enforce a court arrest warrant unless they are paid to do so) and secondly some of them are involved in the 'cartel' and the police are just a big club and look after their own - especially if the person on the take is your boss.

It will take someone with a lot more power to come in and sort this out but don't hold your breath for what is the benefit for some really powerful person to stick his neck out - no benefit = no action.

.......

People write that they have been shocked by energized appliances, in this case the reason that they have not died is that there was no "good" route to ground. When in Thailand I will never, ever touch a water heater while in the shower, or a stove, while the other hand touches a faucet. The next time I travel I'm bringing a small multimeter. Set it to voltage, touch one probe to a metal part on the stove, the other to a faucet, turn the burners on, one by one, it should read zero volts. You can do the same with the wall mounted water heaters.

Reversed polarity, and omitted grounding causes almost all the deaths in Asia. It's common to see electrical panel boxes within a foot or two of pools, so common sense just does not exist, I guess people do not understand.

I noticed that recently small appliances (blenders, etc.) have been coming through with a grounded plug, though very oddly, the third or ground blade does not come with the appliance, apparently one has to buy the blade and stick it in the plug itself. It was probably done this way because there are very few grounded electrical outlets. At least someone is thinking.

Nothing to do with reversed polarity. Most plugs here are two pin - you can put them in either way. Grounding is rarely provided in the wiring because it is cheaper that way and who gives a toss if you are not going to be the one frying, so most developers and clients don't bother to provide them. There are few if any electrical standards that are mandatory. Most appliances are not double insulated (where you can use ungrounded plugs) and those that require grounding especially water heaters in the shower are just not wired up with an earth (although most are I think double insulated). As for the guy who thinks UK plugs are over designed - well I guess everyone is entitled to an opinion but mine is that at least they don't drop out of the socket and at least everything is properly grounded as required by statute and there is a legal responsibility on building owners if they cut corners (plus the building would never pass a final test by the local authority allowing it to be occupied). Thailand needs to improve its legislation on the building codes, setting out legal responsibilities and require grounding to every new or refurbished building. In fact it could well do with creating a building code to deal with a framework on how to build a house - like the Building Regulations in the UK (although those are too strict and inflexible in my opinion). One cannot expect everything to be put right overnight but making a start would be a good step forward on the road to change.

While the corruption is so widespread here I don't hold out a lot of hope for things changing much as people seem to do whatever they want and just pay whoever might be able to stop them to allow them instead. That is no reason though not to start legislating. No journey can start without a first step.

RIP to the young guy who just came here to have fun - such a waste of life.

It's too easy - lease or no lease. Just copy the farangs passport, forge his signature on that (just copy the signature on the passport copy), forge a signature on a Power of Attorney and go cancel the lease. Simple

It happened that way to me - http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/396496-four-ways-to-lose-your-property-in-thailand/

I vote more are inconsiderate, selfish and dangerous or just plain can't drive properly more than those who are considerate and good drivers. That is true of everywhere but I think the proportions are higher in the inconsiderate category here, than many other places. Just today I had a guy on a bike turn right out of his soi into the MIDDLE lane of a three way dual carriageway going the wrong way (to avoid a metal plate in the road) at speed whilst two cars tried to squeeze past me at the same time in the right hand lane. A little further up the road a guy indicated right and just pulled right in front of me in traffic without looking (there wasn't space for him', a little further up the road parked taxis parked in the left lane at a bus stop forced the buses into the middle lane, well half way between the middle and outer land so NO-ONE can pass. Every time I signal to change lanes into an available gap the morons behind ACCELERATE to try to stop me changing lanes - this happens EVERY day. Thais are on the whole pretty poor drivers with little consideration for anyone else but that is just because on the whole they are a pretty selfish bunch. Guess they must be taught that way!

With all the fraud affecting me my kids might well be joining them soon!

Hi;

In a recent article I read, a distinction was made between the saying by a female Thai to a Male expressing the emotion of love. The two sayings are

Chan Rak Khun

Chan Rak Ter (Ther)

In the case of the article the girl was talking to a foreign male but I think it applies to both foreign and Thai males equally.

Both expressions mean I love you and I believe the first expression is the more formal expression.

I would like to know the difference between the sayings and when it would be appropriate for a Thai girl to use each. For instance is there a difference if the male is older or younger than her, if she loves him more or less will she use a different expression and so on.

I think the difference is a small one but possibly very important. For instance would you want your girlfriend to express love to you if in a committed long term relationship in a formal way - a bit like saying 'I love you Sir' in English rather than 'I love you darling' maybe

Any help appreciated

Hi

I am using this progam.

Benefits

Great Content

Great method to learn

Well set out

Superb support (I cannot vouch for Money Back Offer as I never considered wanting to send it back)

Good Value for Money

Comprehensive teaching method

Beats Rosetta Stone hands down in my opinion which is also much more expensive though Pantip would get you a rip off) - I tried it (Rosetta Stone) and really did not get on with it so well

Disbenefits

Can't get a rip off (but I believe the guy who sat down and designed this is entitled to a living for his efforts - it must have taken thousands of hours)

Interface not so slick as some other programs - makes it look less professional than the content prooves

If not computer savvy can be tricky to first get set up

Requires some effort to learn and a commitment for regular study but then that is true of any language / learning

For the price I think the product is very good value for money and if you are a person who can commit to regular diligent learning then I believe this course to be an excellent way to learn to early intermediate level. also I have always found Vincent to be courteous and very prompt in dealing with my questions.

slipperx

Walen is not affected by this or? Do those Skype students need to attend the classrooms now too?

The issue seems to be that the guy was with the guy not being able to speak Thai at a very basic level. Pla yay geen pla lek. So super easy. If you learn online you do actually attend a class, and many students do not learn online because they need visa, this is one of the way we teach. If there is a problem with this kind of visa it will be because people like this.

The moral of the story is learn some Thai, at least at a basic level. It needs to be evident that you go to school and learn. He did not ask him to translate passages from Shakespeare into Thai, did he?

Heck try translating Shakespeare into modern English is hard enough - I don't think they would get it in Thailand anyway - Thai's don't think quite the same way and would lose the intricacy.

I say Good Luck to Yingluck and hope that she can make Thailand a better and fairer country, cut back corruption and serve the country and its people well. I say good luck to Abhisit in whatever endeavour he next takes on and if he stays in politics maybe he can help persuade some of the democratic dinosaurs to retire gracefully and make way for some younger more progressive people into politics.

The democracy (using a lose definition) here is slowly growing and the same process has been seen in the Western democracies. Change happens slowly.

I hope the first thing the new prime minister does is take steps to improve the education system and introduce some new ideas into the methods of learning here. Education is a pre-requisite to a healthy democracy.

Good luck to Thailand and may it be a better educated and less corrupt place for my three sons to grow up in the foreseeable future.

'The law prohibits advertising and campaigning, as well as the attacking of rivals, from 6pm tomorrow to Sunday.'

Better get beating them up tonight and tomorrow before sundown then!!