bobright

reliabilty of the ucla posting falls suspect but credit must be given for it for rumouring about a possible coup.... the rumour seems very thai... is someone at the institute a pro-thaksin thai garnering for support ?......... it's so boring these days....let the party begin ....close the airport again......quickly smash the windows at the millenium hilton in bangkok...............and scare off all the crony asean ministers et.al..... action, action, action...let's live again! bring in the army, the air force, the the navy , ......throw some grenades....the media, oh yes, don't forget to call in the paparazzis, cnn, fox news, bbc, le matin, , blah,blah, blah. vive la' d' coup dan d'dramatique la'thailande!

seriously, how could they achieve anything, given all the fiefdoms as mentioned by brahmsbureger. and with mssrs. clinton, i.e. the u.s.a. - as mentioned here also - not around, hey might as well continue clucking away like a chicken without its head.

if anything at all,notice the meeting is held just in time for the great big sales at big c, robinson or maboonkron for the asean ministers wives and children for sure. free flights, free hotels, free almost everything too all at the expense of the poor of the asean countries.

its like saying when cronies meet, there is no cronyism to discuss about.

so, the agenda might as well be where is the best restaurant to dine and wine, where can best durian be found, which is the best thai delicacy in season, where is the best thai silk store, and where are the freebies of thailand, where can the ministers wives get the best thai massages compliment of their thai hosts.

need we build the lists further?

welcome to thailand, anyway. please shop till you drop....... but please don't drop dead while shopping, the poor of asean need your patronages.

That some people say it is chicken feed, then I don't believe them. Why ? because to get to a position where Bt1m is an inconsequential amount of money means you did not spend your previous time throwing away $30,000 here and there.

Spot on

...ohhhh....! if baht1 million can buy an elite status in thailand, how much is thailand???????? when does the grand sale begin>>>>>anyone??????????

N.B.: R.S.V.P. (PLEASE TREAT THIS MESSAGE WITH GREATEST URGENTCY)

Bt1m is chicken feed for many people on this planet, believe it or not. You most probably never met any, but be sure that those people do not torture themselves with calculations like yours.

Or simply are fatalist enough to consider that, what has been spent, has been spent (it doesn't mean that one does not care about it)

.....elitism for sale at baht 1million only????? can we buy a dozen of those????? is it still on sale???????? where???????? where?????? where??? when???? when??????? when??????? pray tell........

Live and Learn

I wish to share my experience to warn others.

I was interested in a condo in the development in Pattay Dye (South Road) called "Pattaya City Resort", now I am not. The condos are not finished yet but if you are interested in one (or any other condo) please read the following...

You will be asked for a deposit after being shown the show home. you will not be told or given the following:

• No paperwork will be handed to you before you pay the deposit, just a receipt for your money when you have paid. Note: this is meaningless as you can give anyone money.
  
• You will be shown a very vague contract that will not be correct and need ammendments.
  
• You will be promised the contract when you pay the next big installment (when 20% paid)
  
• You will see the show home, but you will be told you will get similar. When you start specifying in writing what you get you will find out that it less than you are expecting and you will have to change the standard contract.
  
• There will be no final date writen down when the development is expected to be complete, they will only talk about it.
  
• Everything that is spoken about is not worth anything as what is said is changed without care.
  
• If you contest anything the response will be that either you are trouble and are not like the other customers, or that this is Thailand and you want too much.
  
• You will not get your money back, no matter how much mis-information is given to you before you pay.
  
• You will not get the sort of help you require, and telling them you are new to buying in Thailand will only make them hide what you should do, but they will be quick to instruct you on how much and when you should pay.
  
• Be aware that you will not be told about all the intended building. Another 9 blocks, plus another condo block and a medical centre is planned. You have to ask and ask again.
  
• The German salesman will use his luck of speaking English as a misunderstanding rather than say I told you wrong.
  
• You will see that if you get a lawyer, he / she will not be happy with the paperwork or the set-up
  
• You will get the wrong financial advice, if you get any at all.
  

Please note: In my opinion the German Salesman is friendly but lucks the knowledge to do the job well. Better to deal with a Thai sales person who has been trained in what to say (this alone shows how bad the current situation is!!)

So if you go in there because the condos' look nice from outside, be very careful.

Good Luck

pattaya resort on south pattaya is a no no project no matter who you deal with -thai or farang. a farang friend on holiday in pattaya was shown a unit and was freaked out by the lack of any proper documentaion or confirmation for the project's confirmation of completion after he was asked to make all kinds of down payments - an experience quite similar to the related one here. just beware who you deal with in pattaya, that's all.

In Australia, this "TIGER" mob is a very bad bet.

I'm very surprised they have some form of connection to Singapore Airlines.

Complaints left, right and centre about all aspects of the airline.

I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole!

You want cheap flights and rooms?Expect cheap service,you get what you pay for.

....claiming to be always right is to claim to be always right in the wrong way,,,,,,,think about it...it's an attitude problem which unless resolved immediately will turn into a pathological problem take note like it has mentioned here by someone else that this is forum on travel issues. as far as tiger airways association with singapore airlines is concerned take note the latter airlines' many airplanes are all sitting her changi's air[ort tarmacs. the same will soon be with tiger airways whose on-board service is pathetic no matter how hard they try to provide them.......

Some years ago my best pal and I were discussing this same topic, but approached it from a different angle. In an effort to find the "perfect" country in which to live, we each made a list of aspects we favoured and a list of intolerable faults for each country. Then, by a process of elimination, we discovered there was only ONE country that fulfilled our aspirations.

Not England, not Thailand, not Finland, not even New Zealand…..it's known as

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Cloud Cuckoo Land

yooooou mean ......mae hong son land, surely......and aka land of sugar n american pies, english buttercakes, dutch parmesan cheeses, napoli pizzas, et. al., at much much lower prices

Can only speak for myself but if you mean 'bad' meaning 'cool,' then yes.

if bad equals cool , hear hear! this is sick!

Theres still many of us living here, even though a few have decided to go home. Why do you want to come here ? No BS, were not here to judge !

Because i have to leave England for at least 9 months of the year for the next 5 years so i dont have to pay income tax, due to the fact i dont wish to pay 1 penny in tax to the LabCon government who steal it or fritter it away.

I could go to America but theyll want me to share my money and its as much a big brother society with no genuine freedom from government.

The rest of Europe is full of socialist governments and they tax you to the hilt, and theyve never appealed to me. ie the Mainland Spain, Ibiza, Majorca, Med lifestyle bit.

Australia is nice but too far from the rest of the civilised world and its full of Aussies, and many are non too bright.

Cambodia is too far out and not yet civilised enough and it doesnt have enough of my western luxuries, the people are nice and fairly genuine but i dont find the women attractive.

So i will be living in LOS shortly on my time off probably about 6-8 months of the year ..... why because i wont pay tax, its fun so long as you dont take it all too seriously, there are lots of fit women in BKK that are available as im still just about young enough to pull them but im not too fussed on having one for a GF, i am wealthier out there and can get taxis and eat out every night and will have a good standard of living .... and BKK is pretty much a westernised city where i dont fear violence to the level i do elsewhere. Plus it has an international airport on my doorstep which will enable me to get to work without having to make stopovers.

...let these be the reasons n nothing else ...don't see how one can improve on the above reasons any further....... just include pattaya n phuket in the picture, that's all..............

I need stevia for my morning coffee does anyone know where I can buy it. does anyone know where I might be able to buy maltitol. It seems maltitol would be helpful and might taste better in coffee.

I have to say that I really have messed up my treatment but still have my feet.

For years I tried to treat myself but now go to the local hospital diabetic clinic and find the staff very helpful and very importantly have reduced my monthly bill for medication. 2 months now cost me between 5 and 6 hundred baht. On my pension thats very helpful.

Regards Joe

which local hospital diabetic clinic will that be? i have seen ne other versions of stevia and maltitol but just can't recall name now. it is available in pattaya the last time i checked. will check n post it here later. i only remember it is in a yellow satchet form like "equal" in blue. it bears a picture of a corn n is clearly marked "for diabetic" and am sure it is not made in thailand as there are no thai markings on it.

Have just installed i.e 8,alot of my history (when you click view history by site ) has gone.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

PST.

have exactly same problem with hotmail "lost" along the installation process of ie8 on my w.vista. any other simpler way out besides those suggested here like restoration to old system -as i am not it-savvy? how u do restoration backwards then, if no other simpler way? o yes, thanking u in advance....

Thailand, the hub of incompetence?

nawwww...the hub of incompetence for a reason or two......suspiciously of the corrupted kind of alibabas and his 40 thieves kind at large

The battery required is not expensive, but the mission to replace it would require a budget of at least 10 million baht, he said.

Hopefully another confusion of meaun, saen and lahn baht. I know it is complicated, I do it all the time.

of course it will cost over 10 million bahts....the contents inside are missing ...... it's only the shell of the warning system that remains - check out for the rest of the parts in some engines or at chatuchak.........any more donations, suckers?

Far too often reporters get their facts so twisted we do wonder where they got the information from in the first place, or what drugs they are taking whilst writing the articles.

could be the ottawa-by-day and hull-by-night runs between which the report was filed in.....after several "trips", of course, you know what i mean by the latter, of course....

Maybe I have just been too lucky over the years. I have never had a piece of luggage abused, tampered with, or lost... until today!

My short flight from KUL-BKK arrived only a bit late, thanks Air Asia... And I arrived back here but my luggage sure did NOT!

The ground crew of the airport were helpful, but things went sharply downhill as soon as my carrier, AIR ASIA, got involved. Sure they filled out lots of forms. Then they told me they did not know where my luggage is, but they will get it to me. I did get a phone call. Hours ago. My luggage? No sign of it.

When I complained to the local branch manager at the airport he looked at me eye-to-eye, laughed and told me to file a complaint on their web site. When I told him he was being silly, he advised me that he simply told me what he is trained to tell irate customer. (Guess I am not the first!)

I flew AIR ASIA six times this summer.... and planned an additional four flights before returning to the USA. Looks like those plans need some revision. As my grandfather once said: "Cheap thing, no good!"

....AND MY MAMA TOLD ME TOO. "GOOD THINGS, NO CHEAP". VERDICT? NEVER NEVER FLY AIR ASIA - EVEN IF IT FLIES TO THE U.S. FOR A DIME ! (P.s. READ all about it right here....in this forum and others.)

Every time I've flow Air Asia recently, takeoff has been on time, to the minute.

honestly, you're not air asia's pr or marketing manager??????pray tell. the datsun crappy car joke is a bit off , isn't it? i drive a datsun too and am not a datsun die-hard or it's sales manager. like your icon , though. no hard feelings, yeah. oh yes, about AIR asia.....GOOD GRIEF!

I arrive from UK at about 03:00 hrs and fly out for Saigon on AIR ASIA at 07:00 hrs. If I stay in the transit area will I be able to book in for the AIR ASIA flight from there or will I have to go through immigration?

I will only have hand luggage, no checked baggage.

Thanks

whatever immigration you need to clear, clear them...keep your hopes high though...that you have a connecting flight to catch. Air Asia passengers need lots of luck to fly with Air Asia. too bad, but true . read all about air asia cancelled , delayed, no-show flights throughout all newspapers in thailand and south east asia and australia , this forum included.

I agree, two flights last week, both 2 hours late.

Not really worth the savings when you have to sit in the airport all that time.

ON another occasion I was a bit late for boarding by no more than ten minutes because of security check INSIDE airport... worst still was denied boarding and just sat in airport to watch the airasia plane still sitting in front of me even though the plane did not take off for more than one half hour. NOT WORTH IT - AIR ASIA - WILL NEVER BE WORTH IT. ( NO apoplogies, no COMPENSATION OR REFUND OF ANY KIND WAS OFFERED ). DISGUSTING!

I suspect this is yet another sign of hard times amongst the working poor here in Thailand - I posted a similar experience here in Jungceylon in Phuket recently. Buyer beware!

middle age ,meg, you said? it's probably a mistake. live and let live. happens around the world during hard times like these. forgive and forget, even if it is true. think of it as "tamboon", dear.....

"The karaoke thing is a huge double standard, why crack down on that and turn a blind eye to massage parlours and go go bars?"

I believe it is only a matter of time.

Without saying whether I agree with it or not, I do not expect to see the sex scene as-we-know-it today to look anything like this in Thailand in five years from now. There is a groundswell of resentment to it among common Thai people, especially women, and a growing movement among the elite towards cleaning up Thailand's image. Like it or not, cracking down on perceived and actual immorality (certainly in public) is a vote winner.

I wholeheartedly agree with this assessment. I think the Thai populous in general is quite weary of their country's reputation as the world's whorehouse. The middle class is growing and has more opportunity for foreign travel and more access to international news and opinion. Ask most middle class Thais and I venture that you will find the vast majority are completely in favor of any measures that will reduce "visible" prostitution and the perception of immorality.

For those who think "TIT" and it will never happen here, well, just look at other Asian cities. Thirty years ago, Taipei, Hong Kong, Seoul, & Singapore all had a flourishing, "open" sex trade. As the general population in these places became more affluent and more aware of global consensus, the cheaper, visible sex-for-hire establishments (catering to both locals and foreigners) all disappeared. Of course, prostitution still exists and, in some cases, thrives in these cities, but not in the highly accessible, open, and inexpensive manner it previously had.

And, whether you realize it or not, the same thing is already happening in Thailand. Less than ten years ago most Thai cities (Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Udon, Ubon, P'loke, etc., etc.) all had large, well-known cheap brothel districts. These areas have all been closed down or have been drastically reduced in size and forced to go "underground". Again, it doesn't mean that sex for sale has been eliminated, just that it's not as open and visible as it was in the past.

Like it or not, this trend will continue and will extend to foreign-patronized go-gos and massage parlors. If you think it won't happen becasue of the loss of revenue, then you've underestimated the cleverness and ingenuity of the Thais. They'll continue to make money off horny foreigners via escort services, rip-off "coyote" bars, and all the other schemes used to separate sex-starved old men from their money in other countries. And prostitution will always be available to those willing to pay a high enough price or who know where to look. But the days of user-friendly, out in the open, inexpensive sex establishments in Thailand are numbered.

I'm not saying this because I think it's right or wrong. Personally, I'm kind of ambivilent. I'd like to live in a moral society but would also like to have an endless supply of nubile sex partners available for nominal fee. It's just the way things go...

go to wanchai or mongkok in hongkong. go to khaosiong on the other side of taipei or downtown . go to downtown seoul on the slaezy side. go to downtown tokyo around ginza,shinjuku, etc.etc. tell me no cheap imported sex slaves can be found. even in clean and green singapore, geylang, joo chiat and ang teng and neighborhood residence areas are teeming with prostitutes if not sex slaves of all nationalities - be it chinese, indian, nepalese, indonesians, thais,vietnamese, russians, some europeans, blah, blah, blah, blah. please, please , please, ambivalent or not, your search for that endless supply of nubile sex partners for nominal fees need not stop in thailand and your days are not numbered as far this search of yours is concerned...so long as you are prepared to travel further and research more thoroughly. check the BANGKOK POST a couple of months ago when one reporter was in singapore covering a sexual slavery scandal and the cheap "imports" and locales where this cheap sex exist - before you put thailand at the bottom of your totem pole of cheap sex.

At least we do sth. Those who are not happy, just go back to your homes. Simple!

ok. love. tom will go back to nonthamburi. jerry will go back to chiangmai. mike will go back to isaan. and, i will go back to au udom and my girlfriend will back to ubon . her parents? they will go back to on-nut and their dog will go back to yala. it is quite simple, really. everyone will be out of work and have nothing to do. everything will become peaceful, quiet, serene, and not many farangs who call thailand "home" will need a maid, a gardener, a tailor, a chaffeur, a "dek-serve" , a bartender..........how about you, love?

Please be fair about this, there's karaoke in Japanese Clubs,

but there's a world of difference between a Japanese Club

and a Thai Karaoke Bar?.

sure, sure, lots of differences........

yet, yet, lots of similarities................like prostitution galores, blah,blah,blah.

Laying down the law

BANGKOK: -- The Cabinet has approved new regulations that prohibit karaoke parlours from providing drinking or singing partners to customers, with their business licences being revoked if they do.

-- The Nation 2009 07 29

BOOOOOOOoooooooooWAAAAAhhhhhhhhha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha- ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha- ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha- ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha- -ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

tears, aching sides ... ...ha - ha - ha -

BOOOOOOOoooooooooWAAAAAhhhhhhhhha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-

ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha- ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha- ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha,

ohhhh, stoppit, yer killin' me...

ha-ha-ha...uhhh, uh-ha - uh-ha - uh-ha - what's the point again?

*KEEP DOING THIS AND YOU MAY BE CENSORED TOO, YES? no? YES,no? YES,no? YES? no? OH NO! WE WILL BOTH BE OUTLAWS UNDER A NEW LAW SOON................................

Laying down the law

New regulations on karaoke, Internet gaming, film ratings set to take effect

BANGKOK: -- .....

The new rules, which also cover Internet cafes, allow children to play computer games for more than three hours and up to six hours a day, says Culture Minister Teera Salakpetch.

Those under 15 will be allowed to use the service from 2pm to 8pm from Monday to Friday and from 10am to 8pm during holidays and school breaks, while those aged 15 to 18 can play games until 10pm, Teera says.

The Cabinet also agreed that an IT system to keep kids under 18 from playing computer games for more than three hours a day should be ready before a ministerial regulation amendment is proposed later, he added.

.....

-- The Nation 2009 07 29

Might work if kids must have a picture bearing smart card

and it fits in a card reader on EVERY internet cafe computer,

or at least on a master computer for a network this MIGHT be controlled.

But it is gonna be quite pricey, need a windows compatible software, in Thai of course,

the SAME version on every Icafe computer in the nation,

and need an absolute nation wide implementation students and cafes,

and all sorts of issues beyond that.

The HOURS stated are ridiculously too much. 6 hours of gaming a day is OK... what ARE they thinking!

2 hours a day of non educational and that's it.

Basically kids, you have between 4-6 pm then go home for dinner.

There is little likelihood of an 'IT system' being able to regulate this.

These guys just don't UNDERSTAND the technology at all.

I'd like to add something... can't they make Thailands cra_p Internet (so called Thai ADSL) to run properly as first goal and then as a second step think of such 'regulation'?

IDEA STRONGLY SUPPORTED HERE MANY TIMES OVER....

Oh dear.

Really?

How sad!

Never mind.

How?

When?

Where?

Who?

Another lot of families without a breadwinner, or in this case, riceearner?

Never mind!

sentiments aside, yes, just answer all the attached questions here, for the love of all things thai and thailand.