josephbloggs

From what I have read they are now heavily inspecting cars and urine testing people as standard procedure. "Malaysian police and military officers at all border checkpoints are now on their toes checking passports, carrying out urine tests and scanning travellers and their vehicles to prevent infiltration of any form of this plant into their country." (From thainewsroom.com) So seems no-one was smoking right across from the border and they need not have done anything to have aroused suspicion. You think it is Malaysia's right, and technically it is, but I consider it degrading and inhumane to urine test tourist arrivals. It's also Malaysia's right to allow men to have several wives, it is also their right to throw the main opposition leader (Anwar Ibrahim) in jail for several years on made up sodomy charges, it is their right to imprison people for up to 20 years for consensual gay sex (with capital punishment too). Oh wait, sorry, parallels and analogies aren't allowed. Oh you're stretching it again. Who was flaunting what??

It's an extremely grey area. Had they been caught carrying marijuana in to Malaysia, or smoking it in Malaysia then yes, they would have broken Malaysian law quite clearly and could have no arguments with their punishment. But they smoked in Thailand where it is legal. And who knows how long ago? It could have been 2-3 weeks ago. But urine testing arrivals in the hope of detecting residue of something that is entirely legal where that person lives but traces can stay in the body for maybe 30 days is insane and inhumane. How can you honestly say someone enjoying a spliff here then maybe going to Malaysia 2-3 weeks later was breaking Malaysian law? Search for drugs on arrival, no problem with that. I am still astounded people are so hard headed on this

Clever and knowledgeable comments? I must have missed them. All I saw were a load of predictable, racist and very boring comments about Somchais, picking their noses, break failure, som tam.......in a thread that has nothing to do with Thailand. Yeah, very clever and knowledgable.....if that's your idea of fun you live a very different life to me (I am glad to say).

Here we go. Yeah, it's all made up, she was actually born with a silver spoon in her mouth. You're such a super sleuth! What's wrong with some people?? If you bother to read the full story before making such a comment you will see she has entered and won several beauty competitions over the years so presumably there was prize money. Also, perhaps - shock horror - she worked to pay for her education!?? In the article there is also a picture of her with her grandmother who adopted her and there is clearly no wealth there, but well done you. (The same picture also has Anna at her graduation where IMO she is infinitely more beautiful pre-cosmetic surgery, but who am I to judge). Well done to her, smart lady. And shame on you for trying to dig dirt for absolutely no reason.

Your wife has no idea what she is talking about or has led an unbelievably sheltered life. Tattoos are everywhere, they are trendy. I employ several girls in my office with tattoos - they are well educated, well paid, and have never ever worked anywhere near a bar. It's actually a very insulting insinuation indeed and I would love you to come and say that to one of my staff's face.

And? They need to find out who sold it to her and punish them severely as you are not supposed to sell to under 20's. Not sure what your point is.

Ah, ok. ????

If you're implying me then you'd be wrong. I hadn't smoked for maybe 25 years but since it become legal I bought a gram (2 spliffs) just to give it a go. It was nice, very high quality, and the strain I got was nice and mild. But that's it, it was for novelty value. I have kids so I would never smoke it at home - I can take it or leave it. But I think it is generally harmless and should be legal with proper restrictions: 20 year age limit (which is already in place), I would say no online sales, and there should be some controls on advertising and also on locations of weed shops. Other than that, go for it. People like to pigeon hole: if you are in favour of legal weed you must be a stoner. If you hate Thaksin you must love Prayut (it is possible to dislike both). Pigeon holing is not good as it is easy to look silly.

10 pages in and I think we can sum up and move on: * some people like cannabis. * some people don't (mostly ones who have never tried it). * some people think it is appalling that a country can even think of urine testing tourists entering a country. * some people think this is fine and would be in favour of it in more countires. I think we all know which of the groups we fit in and what type of person fits in the other. That's it, no one is going to change. Pretty boring now.

Seriously? It's mostly a bunch of bitter old, racist guys who look down and belittle the Thais at every opportunity - they are stupid, greedy, dishonest, can't do an honest day's work, etc. And half of them don't even live in Thailand. I hope to God it isn't monitored by the government lest they think we all look at their country and their people this way. To the PM (who is no doubt reading this now): we don't.

You're hilarious. So I am only allowed to comment on things that involve expats? It's a heinous policy, I don't care who they are doing it to - why should that make a difference? I am not a racist. If unacceptable things happen to Thais I care about it. Maybe you have a different outlook and only care when expats are mistreated, not Thais. Up to you. And "keep banging on about it". Like you're not banging on about it being totally acceptable / reasonable.

Well it is a 95% Expat forum so hardly any surprise there really.

Unbelievable that we have people on this forum advocating the urine testing of tourist arrivals. And I bet you moan about Thailand making things hard for "us expats" and tourists with their "draconian immigration policies" (Yawn) Yet you'd have no problem if they decided to start urine testing. Unbelievable.

You don't think urine testing tourists at the border is outrageous? What if they started doing that here and you needed to do one each time you came in. You'd be happy about that right because laws are laws?? What about policemen stopping tourists in the street for a urine test. No doubt you were fine with that too when it used to happen?

And when Kofi Anan sent someone to investigate his horrendous human rights abuses who can forget his "The UN is not my father" response. I think it was The Times who got hold of a copy of an official document with the names of their drug suspects and the order that the only way someone could be removed from the list was "Arrest, extrajudicial killing or loss of life". An official order. No idea why some posters have any respect for the man at all. An absolutely despicable, self serving human being.

I don't think that is a fair argument. Covid has decimated the country, of course people are poorer now. If Thaksin was in charge now we'd be in the same situation, but we probably wouldn't have the same mass transit investment we are seeing, he would just be making himself richer somehow. Sorry I don't buy your logic.

I have lived here since long before Thaksin came in when it was genuinely an "anything goes" fun place (mid 90's). More fun under Thaksin?? Those are some mightily pink lenses you are wearing. Thaksin had his murderous war on drugs. Now we have legal weed which is pretty fun. Thaksin appointed Purachai - the most anti-fun person in power that we have ever had. He was a man of regular bar raids with urine tests for all patrons, he enforced early closing, he enforced the ridiculous 2pm - 5pm ban on alcohol sales. More fun under Thaksin? How could anyone say that.

OK. Course he will. Everything was perfect when he was in power, the railways were developed, Bangkok had massive infrastructure and mass transit development. Oh wait, no, neither of those things happened. We got a new airport though and he didn't make a penny from it.

"Complain With Police". The journalistic and English language standards just go from strength to strength here. Really poor, and see it in almost every "article".

Utter nonsense. "Draconian immigration law" - ten points for the ragged old TVF cliche. Thailand offers visa free entry to nationals of 64 countries. Probably 95% of them don't reciprocate.

Shhhhh, logical thought is not welcome here - it spoils the anti-Chinese racist narrative. It's the same as the people who make the ridiculous suggestion that this railway is really for a military invasion. Really? If China had any desire to invade Thailand they could do it any time they liked, by air, by land, by sea. Who invades by train? So really they are going to load their military might on to high speed trains, get off at the Thai border, unload, load everything up on to a Thai train, continue the invasion. And all anybody would have to do to foil this invasion is to destroy one section of line, or one bridge, or one tunnel.

Sells papers? The headline is "Man extradited from Thailand over murder". It is mentioned that he was a father only in the text of the article. But yeah typical sensationalism from the Katherine Times, a rural weekly paper. Adding the word "father" into the text of a non-lead story just to generated more sales!! They should be ashamed!

No, no-one has thought of that at all, only you it seems, best you get in touch with them. Sigh.

I don't think any drainage system could handle the volume of rain that fell last night. In most areas it has drained after a few hours.