nisakiman

Thanks for that link maimeeporn. Fascinating stuff, and written in a way that shows that Rumbold was an intelligent, aware and articulate man.

I've not yet read all of it, but have saved the PDF for further perusal.

That the current incumbent has issued an apology speaks volumes about the way that the British nation has buckled under the politically correct tenets of the liberati. It's no wonder that GB is now an also-ran. Thank God I'm out of it. I used to be proud of my national inheritance, but alas, no more.

It's unfortunate, but typical, that the media have taken out of context a couple of lines of a thoughtful, and largely accurate critique of Thailand and Thai society. But I'm not really surprised. To hel_l with the reality, just as long as it sells newspapers.

I despair...

i am surprised that the thaivisa armchair detectives didn't came up with their usual main suspect yet: the wife.

Hi Rumfoord, that was the first thing I thought of!

She's aware the hubby is dipping his pen in someone elses ink pot, so she devises an elaborate plan to do away with him. The perfect solution. A third world country (yes it is true) with corruptible police, more shady characters than you could poke a stick at, him with generous life insurance, her as the beneficiary. She's as guilty as hel_l.....lets hang the bitch!

Despite the "what a way to go" factor, the circumstances do seem to make death from natural causes seem a little unconvincing. I guess those of us from the western world are accustomed to there being a fairly exhaustive inquiry by the police when someone dies in a questionable way.

I've had no problems that I can remember. Taxis usually turn on the meter, tuk tuk drivers usually try to negotiate an outrageous fare, mototaxis usually scare the shit out of me. But always friendly.

The cab driver in the video was quite a linguist, wasn't he? Greek, Polish, Italian....Ok, only hello etc, but an impressive array of languages, nonetheless!

I'm starting to look forward to these RogerSterling1 threads - they bring a bit of levity to the forum!

Particularly when the more anally retentive posters here miss the trajectory and start to primp and pose!

I've always preferred Siam to Thailand. As others have said, it has a more exotic ring to it. Also, when I was a youngster in UK, (50s) it was still commonly referred to as Siam. I like Ayutthaya too, as suggested. My (Thai) wife prefers Siam also. She feels that the name Thailand was sort of imposed on the unwilling Thais! Don't know if the Thai people in general feel the same way. Probably just my wife - she reads a lot of Thai history!

I'm an ex-IRS agent, not an expert. Therefore my 'constructive' advice was to point out the danger in taking advice from folks who don't know. But for example, I've had numerous bank accounts here and never had a work permit.

Surely you are not suggesting that you need a work permit to open a bank account. That's pure myth.

It is plain to see that peaceblondie is reaffirming that you do not need a work permit.

All you need is a valid visa.

Maybe you are right, but the rely wasn't that plain to me.

There is a lot of confusion about this. I applied to several banks in BKK a couple of years ago, and they all told me "no can do without a work permit".

Then I went to Hua Hin, and went to the Bangkok Bank with my wife (as she banks with them), and was told the same story when I asked about opening an account. But then the woman started chatting with the wife, found out she is an accountant, talked shop a bit with her and then produced the forms and opened an account for me. So I dunno.

As for the OP, I thought I'd got on to that thread about "best stories heard in a bar" by mistake...

Yes, I'd say Bangkok is one of the great cities in the world. It appeals to me, anyway. And I think they got a lot of things right with the listing.

HA! I remember the first time I got the "shoulder massage at the urinal" treatment! Thought I'd maybe wandered into the katoey's loo by mistake!

Only in Thailand....

I can't stand these low energy fluorescents. The light they give off is awful, they don't come on immediately, they're bulky and ugly, they're expensive, and if I want to save energy (nothing to do with global warming/climate change/CO2 footprints/impending mini ice age or whatever drivel they're calling it now, but to save on the electric bill) I turn the light out when I leave the room. It's quite easy, really...

Give me a nice crisp, clean, instant incandescant bulb any day.

If they were to build a dedicated rail link between the two airports (which shouldn't be so difficult - it's not as if it has to go through the centre of the city), then the two could be realistically be used in tandem.

And I agree with the other posters that preferred DM. It was a little tired, but a bit like an old jacket - familiar and comfortable. Certainly more comfortable than the steel and glass edifice we have to use now.

And to think I used to complain about how far it was to the gates at DM! It can be a 20 minute walk to the departure gate now! And that's at a brisk walk, not an amble!

Well at least DM had that bar where they brewed German style beer!

An interesting report from the Asia Foundation at http://asiafoundation.org/resources/pdfs/T...portenglish.pdf

Thanks for that link Xangsamhua, it looks very interesting. I've bookmarked it for later perusal.

Not that I wish to start the age old income debate again, but the OP states he wants to mix with similar social class to him. He does not state what he considers his social class to be. But he does mention being lazy and university educated. In my experience, lazy and university educated means in the top half not the bottom half- lower classes who go to university tend not to be lazy, quite the opposite. The lazy ones are from well to do families who have a cushioned upbringing and take most things for granted (I know, because I was one). Given this, I do not think he will want to eat the majority of his meals at thai prices, firstly because the idea of eating from the gutter or a down trodden restaurant will not impress him and secondly he states he wishes to meet new friends from his social class- and such people are less likely to be frequenting such establishments.

Perhaps the op will point out his social class so we can better assist him, and also provide telltale hints and tips so that he may avoid the riff raff of the working class while sojourning in the dark lands for queen and country.

Yes, a valid point!

I think that Abhisit is a personable, intelligent and able politician, and as such would carry a good deal of weight on the world stage but for the fact that he is only in the position of PM as a result of highly questionable actions by PAD, the very obviously biased judiciary and lots of wheeling and dealing behind closed doors by the unelected elite. He has no democratic mandate, and the world knows it. His international stature is therefore diminished considerably. If he were to go to the people and win an election, he would be taken seriously, but as things stand, he is probably seen as a stop-gap figure, and thus not representative of the future direction of Thailand.

Just because some of you can't handle eating Thai food and have to pay your girlfriends salaries doesn't mean everyone lives like you... in fact, I don't even think the OP even asked for anyone's opinion of his income... to me it sounded like he said that's what he DECIDED to spend a month...

To the OP, I know many people 25-40ish who live this way in BKK, and we manage to have our share of fun. Most of us don't need to buy our company (unless someone wants to be guaranteed a no-strings.. never mind.. haha), we enjoy sitting at holes in the wall drinking 100 baht a pitcher Thai beer, and love Thai food. I refuse to pay 30,000 baht per month on a room when I'm perfectly happy paying 6,000, and I'm a 10 minute walk to where I spend most of my time or to the BTS and MRT. I think you will find people "like you" anywhere you decide to live - Phuket, Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Ayyuthaya, anywhere.

Yes, it all depends what kind of lifestyle you expect to live in LOS. My wife and I were living in Ari, 6000 rent for a nice place, 10 baht taxibike to Ari BTS, lots of great eateries around there (I love Thai food), good meal with a couple of beers for me and a coke for the wife would be 100 - 120. I think our budget worked out at about 35000, and I wasn't trying to economise - I had much more than that to spend if I wanted to. If you live in Bangkok, you don't need a car (in fact it's a liability), if you're in the sticks, prices are lower generally which compensates for the cost of running a car. Yes, 40,000 should give a single guy a very comfortable lifestyle if he doesn't have expensive tastes.

That's really not much money to live on but I guess it could be done.

Not much money to live on? 40k? In Thailand? Have you any idea how much salary the average office worker in Bangkok earns? Christ almighty, what planet do you come from? Not everyone expects to live in a luxury condo and buy a new car every two years, you know...

Looks like Thailandis on course to being the hub of hemp production...

Why is wine that expensive in Thailand, is it a combination of import taxes and demand ? At home (not in France), supermarkets offer a huge selection of perfect drinkable wines in the 300 Baht range.

And seems to have become much more expensive recently as well. You used to be able to get some fairly decent offers in Villa and the like (buy one, get one, buy two get one) which meant the price per bottle was reasonable. My last trip there did not see even one offer, and individual bottles mostly up above 500 baht per. Even the local Lotus has little below 450 per bottle.

And Thai "wine" -not the fruit stuff, just the stuff they sell as "wine" - undrinkable.

i just had a glass of wine with the head of the largest wine importer in thailand, he told me the import duty for wines was 430%

i'll stick to chang.

430%??? You sure that's right? Foodland sell bottles of Jacobs Creek in the 800-1000 baht range....so they are less than 250 baht before they get here? That can't be right surely.....

Yes, right on both counts. A couple of years ago, I looked into the viability of shipping wine in bulk from Europe to Thailand, and the combination of import duties, local taxes, VAT etc ran to over 400%.

And Jacobs Creek, although a very drinkable wine, is produced in massive, industrial quantities, and would come in at well below 250 baht per bottle at point of production.

As a wine drinker, it's the thing that most upsets me about Thailand, the price of a drinkable wine. I like a cold beer, but don't like more than one, really - bloats me out, but I can drink red wine all evening - in fact, I normally do.

As a general rule I do read the OP. Then Plus, I rely on you to explain it to me.

Everyone has the potential to understand news articles and restrain himself from immediately posting anti-PAD rants. You just have to put a little extra effort.

And it's not only your problem, so don't despair.

I would hardly equate Nation articles to news articles, they are opinion pieces with an agenda. And looking at their balance sheet it would seem most are not impressed with their biased slant and are no longer buying.

Cambodia hassles Thais at border following a PAD thug attack at border. Yeah, can't see any connection there, why would anyone even mention it and upset your sensibilities?

Are you trying to set yourself up as the thought police? Sounds like the Ministry of Truth. Is this a discussion forum or not?

Yes, Plus does sound like a man with a drawer full of yellow T-shirts!

I agree with Chunkton that it seems more likely a retaliation (albeit rather petty) for the recent PAD incursions. I doubt even the Khmer border (minor) officials would have the authority to action a tightening up of the rules. It's much more feasible that the orders came from the powers that be in PP.

The only surprising thing about this story is that the BIB got busted at all. Probably because, as already suggested, they didn't include their superiors in the cut...

Mind you, the Thai police are not alone in indulging in a bit of skulduggery. I remember in my younger days in London, when everyone (it seemed) was smoking dope, dealers would get busted with, for instance, a kilo of hash, and when the charges were read out in court, it had mysteriously shrunk to 200 grams. Well, the accused were hardly going to complain to the judge that it was a kilo they'd had confiscated, were they?!?

I agree with the poster who used words to the effect that 'you wouldn't give the time of day to those who made up most of the expat contingent here if you met them in your home country'.

Same as that. I'm a serial expat, currently living in Greece, and I avoid the "Brit bars" like the plague. I didn't come to live here to be with a load of confused losers. That said, there are always people around who actually have a brain and know how to use it, and I have made some good (expat) friends in the 6 or 7 years I've been here. It goes without saying that I also have a lot of Greek friends.

In a couple of years I will be moving to Thailand, and I anticipate the same situation will apply.

Unbelievable..what some people will resort to.

A stupid and desperate act.(quite pathetic and sad actually)

Whats wrong with returning to work in the home country to boost funds?

You're having a laugh even considering somebody could find any kind of reasonable employment at that age? Having said that, at 60 I believe he would have been eligible for pension credits? Admittedly not as much as the OAP, and to continue qualifying only allowed out of the UK for limited periods, but would have saved him having to resort to such drastic measures.

Yes, poor bugger was not being very bright about it. As you say, he could have scammed pension credit - 130 quid a week isn't much, but you can live ok on that much in Thailand. A low risk, low profit enterprise would have been preferable to robbing a bank... What a mess for all concerned.

Thaksin has been trying to overthrow Thai state during all this time, and now he asks why there's not much progress - he's the main reason why.

It is all about money and controlling the Thailand Wealth and power. And Thaksin probably knows he has lost them and just too stupid to accept it

No, not stupid, the man is sick he is suffering from a "narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)" the good news is it can be treated, but for that he must accept the fact first.

I copied this before, excuses if you think I am boring.

Megalomania is an unrealistic belief in one's superiority, grandiose abilities, and even omnipotence. It is characterized by a need for total power and control over others, and is marked by a lack of empathy for anything that is perceived as not feeding the self. Although megalomania is a term often ascribed to anyone who is power-hungry, the clinical definition is that of a mental illness associated with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).

Narcissism is most simply defined as self-love. Though it is considered healthy to care about your own well-being and have a healthy self-esteem, when someone loves himself to the exclusion of all else and others become objectified to be used only to serve the self, this is no longer considered healthy or normal.

There are different psychological theories about how and why NPD develops, most of which relate to the integration of different aspects of ego and self as a child, and the nature of the parental roles in that process. Regardless of theory, NPD is characterized by extremely low self-esteem, which is compensated for by delusions of grandeur and megalomania, a narcissistic neuroses. With the propensity to act only on behalf of one's self, the unbridled need to feed one's ego, and the objectification of others to serve the power-hungry needs of megalomania, it is easy to see how this can be a recipe for disaster, especially when wrapped in a charismatic personality.

Among dictators, fundamentalists, and politicians we find those who view themselves as morally superior with the willingness to sacrifice, kill, or risk the safety of others considered inferior in order to assert their own agendas. Though there are legitimate circumstances in which leaders must exercise civil or military force, or religious zealots can profess solemn beliefs, the line between religiosity and fanaticism, between duty and megalomania, can be a gray one. This is how the term has become part of our culture's vernacular.

Megalomania is also sometimes associated with bipolar disorder; a depressive illness that is characterized by mood swings from extreme lows to extreme highs. During the latter cycle, people often suffer delusions of grandeur and feelings of infinite capability. They talk about unrealistic plans and goals as if these plans and goals are within their grasp.

NPD, megalomania, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia can all be treated with medications. If you or someone you know is experiencing manic moods, unrealistic delusions or antisocial behavior, professional treatment is necessary. Unlike a virus or cold, these disorders will not improve without treatment.

Maybe all we have to do is advise him to seek medical help?

Winston Churchill was somewhat megalomanic. It contributed to his strength of leadership. Good job you weren't around then to give your sage advice on his fitness to lead the country, otherwise Europe might well have ended up with a very different political landscape.

Whatever your thoughts on how good / bad / corrupt / beneficial etc Thaksin was or was not, the fact remains that in the eyes of the world press, and by extension in the eyes of the non-Thai peoples of the world, Thaksin was the popularly elected leader of Thailand. He was illegally ousted by military coup and exiled. His proxy party then won the next democratic election. That party was (again) ousted illegally by a mob aided and abetted by powerful movers and shakers in the elite (we shall mention no names...), and a totally unelected government shoe-horned into power.

Is it any wonder that Thailand is now regarded in the wider world as something of a cowboy state?

As has been mentioned, in the not too distant future, there are going to be some sea-changes in Thailand. When the power of the Bangkok elite is diminished, as it will be in not too many years (no-one lives forever), I wouldn't be surprised to see Thaksin take centre stage in Thailand again. He is still hugely popular in rural Thailand (you know - those country folk who shouldn't be given a vote because they're too stupid to know how to use it), and if he were able to return and contest the leadership would probably win by a landslide again.

Quite frankly, anyone choosing where to retire based on a magazine article deserves all they get when they find their peaceful haven is actually a crime ridden hellhole, or a sterile, boring, charmless slide into mindless oblivion. I personally couldn't give a dam_n if Thailand rates somewhere lower than a small crab infested rock in the middle of the ocean, with a climate index poorer than a fumerole, and a crime rating worse than a Somalian suburb. Because I know it's not true, and certainly isn't made so just by being written down somewhere. The beligerance exhibited in some of the "oh yes it is..." "oh no it isn't..." posts discussing the relative safety / climate / cost of living of places in Central America, North and South Africa, Europe and Asia is quite amusing. Who cares? I live in Thailand because I enjoy doing so. I don't care if someone says I'm 0.5% more likely to get robbed than if I lived in Egypt, or 0.37% more likely to pay more for a cup of coffee than if I lived in Nicaragua, or 6% less likely to get shat on by a bird than if I lived on Baffin Island. I'm not interested in living in Egypt, Nicaragua or Baffin Island, I'm happy here in Thailand. In my opinion, anywhere else is second best, and to me, that's the only opinion that matters.

Yes, well said!

I paid 100,000 baht, but it was only so that it was seen to be paid. A couple of days after the ceremony, my wife's mother quietly gave the money back to her. As I understand it, that is a fairly normal scenario.

$15,000 seems extortionate.

So are you "all that" too?

I have read here bunches of …

OH my thai gf/wife is… a good cook, BEAUTIFUL, YOUNG, SEXY, and she's taking care of me good….bla bla bla

Howcome I seldom come across the words…..smart, funny, she's my best friend…etcs?

So just some questions…

what do you think the gf/or wife says about you to her friends?

What did you bring into the marriage, beside money mostly?…Because it seems you think you're "a prize catch" and "all that"!

And from my general impression here on TV - both directly and indirectly, that "most" of you just want… a bedmate, a maid, or a butler….and nothing else?

Is that why you like "thai" women, because they are good at "servicing"?…don't care much for a brain or good communicating ability or sharing the same values & belief or outlooks in life?

This is the conclusion I get from reading thaivisa, esp in the "General Forum", that most of you seem to have "many problems" dealing with your partner outside the bedroom and at many times…to the point of frustration.

This is not meant to be a funny or sarcastic question, but a genuine enquire wants to know type of…..

How do you define the word "marriage" and your view of the life partner?…and why with the thai woman, in particular? Even though some of you don't seem to like Thailand much.

Well, my wife is smart, funny (very - she has a great sense of humour), and is my best friend. She is also beautiful, young, sexy, and takes care of me good.(sic)

And I didn't bring any money into the marriage - my divorce took care of any money I had. My wife gave up a high paying professional job in Bangkok to be with me.

And we don't seem to have any problems, either inside or outside the bedroom.

And I love Thailand, and will retire there in a few years.

So I guess I'm not the average TV poster...........