connda

Typical corporation: Privatize profits, socialize losses.

These busts are probably a fraction of the total speak-easys that are open in places like Pattaya, Phuket, and BKK. It's does emphasis one thing: The Night Entertainment prohibitions are extremely unpopular. Really - we're back to the Roaring 20s in the US during prohibition. Same Same. It will never be contained. They'll just bust otherwise good citizens until they realize this ain't Saudi Arabia. Maybe Prayut plans to import that ban from his recent trip. Tea-toddling Uncle Tu.

Clams ain't bad either.

Murphy's Law says that if your computer HD blows up, there is an equally good chance that your backup HD will fail at the same time (I've had it happen). Lessons learned the hard way. Keep an external HD backup and disk images stored somewhere else. The day you think that is overkill will be the day you find out that it isn't.

Next month is time for the annual trip to Immigration for a marriage extension. Are there any changes to the list of requirements this year that I should be aware of or does this list still pretty much cover it. Marriage Extension Requirements - Ubonjoe.pdf

What civil engineer in their right mind places a cross-walk on a road with an 80 kph speed limit? That's insanity!

The Thai authorities seem more interested in "helping" the murderer. The murdered farang and the farang he tried to hack to death? Meh!

???? Hummm....exactly!

Red Bull owning you gives you wings!

This is how corruption works for the wealthy and politically connected. From the beginning the government has pursued one of two avenues. Simply attempt to clear him of all charges, or, wait for the statutes of limitations to run out. They now seem to be expressly stating that they are taking the latter path. Why not conduct a trial in-absentia? Both Taksin and Yingluck Shinawatra were tried in-absentia. The only reason that Nong Vorayuth Yoovidhya isn't tried in-absentia must be because those who control the levers of power in Thailand simply don't want to do so. He's been given an explicit "get out of jail free" card. He is overtly protected both inside and outside of Thailand. The Thai 'leaders' need a patina of plausibility when the statutes of limitations run out and Nong Vorayuth comes waltzing back to Thailand to receive a Red Carpet welcome - and I've no doubt that is exactly what will happen. The government? <shrugs> "What could we do?" We issued a Interpol Red Notice! He won't come home like a good boy to be tried." And anyone can check the Interpol Red Notice - Vorayuth Yoovidhya is not in their system the last time I checked. There are 12 hits for Thais. None of them are Nong Vorayuth. https://www.interpol.int/How-we-work/Notices/View-Red-Notices Nong Vorayuth is safeguarded from the very top down to the very bottom of officialdom. The only people to get Thrown Under The Ferrari will be a few low level functionaries tasked with obfuscating the investigations. End of story. "Thailand’s 2021 corruption standing drops six places to 110th out of 180 countries." -Transparency International Any questions?

Well, if they go under the Thai government should be responsible for covering the claims as they allowed an company with solvency problems to operate. How many more companies get to make bets and then renige on the coverage because they loss their bet. What's insurance anyway but a casino game rigged in favor of the house.

Yeah, most Thai motorcycle drivers will pull onto the road without even a glance to see if traffic is coming. I wonder how many thousands are killed that way each year?

Good. Put this issue right in front of everyone's noses so it's impossible to ignore. As long as it can be ignored, the carnage continues. If people finally get irate over the slaughter? Maybe the government does something other than blowing hot-air up everyone's buttocks.

No no no no no. The pleb in the Honda didn't get out of the Hi-So Benz driver's way. The cops will sort this out for the Benz driver for sure.

It's a Benz. All the lowlifes need to get out of the Hi-So's way. Traffic lights? They don't apply to Benz drivers.

Of course. The flu doesn't exist any longer. Hospitalization and deaths rate from Dengue and the Black Plague are now higher than flu.

In 2025 you'll still be wearing a mask and slathering alcohol gel on your hands to get in a store, and alcohol gel will be the only alcohol you're allowed to possess. What's going to change? The 'leaders' love the dictatorial emergency powers, and the pharmaceutical companies love the endless tax money flowing into their coffers to supply the government with Forever Shots for their citizens and super-duper expensive 'cures.' Maybe by 2025 you'll need a shot every 2 months to keep up with all of the viral variants for Covid and the now novel flus that will probably appear out of nowhere, but will further lock down society and destroy even more businesses. Medical dystopia baby. Give it a big hug - it's never going away. Too much money and power involved.

Which is not our fault. After 10, 15, or 20 years of marriage, they could, streamline the process as it's not like you are faking the marriage. Have we ever heard of a foreign woman having this kind of problem with their Thai husband? I never have. So it doesn't have to be this way. Anyway, it's a money thing. I'm not tying up 800K THB to make it easier for the IO. If they don't like the marriage extensions, they should lobby parliament to change the xenophobic laws. Again - if you've been married for 10, 15, 20+ years, the only reason for making the process complicated is racial hatred.

Of course not. You'll own nothing and you'll be happy. Yeah, master will let you have a vegetable garden to tend after working 16 hours a day on his Corporate Farm.

PTTEP will simply work with China in a win-win scenario. Really - I don't buy the "Humanitarian" angle cited by Chevron and Total. They're leaving for economic reasons. The interesting part will be when it becomes clear exactly what economic reasons are.

Anyone who believes that corporations have a conscience that supersedes their bottom line and shareholder dividends are kidding themselves. Now they may leave due to political, geo-political, and social instability if they perceive there is a chance that their operations will be impacted in the long-term or if they fear the government nationalizing their regional interests. But as long as the money is flowing corporations don't care who is genociding whom. But it is something to watch, say, if Western interests decide to turn Myanmar into an Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yeman, Cambodia, Laos, or Vietnam. In an of itself it not much of a resource rich country unless the deep-state types want another heroin hub now that Afghanistan is down the tubes. But it is a strategic chess piece in the terms of A2/AD (anti-access/areas-denial) in order to eye-gouge China. So from a Geo-political standpoint, perhaps France's Total is foreshadowing something that is about to come? It wouldn't be the first time the West used R2P in order to devastate a "crappy little country that the US throws up against the wall every few years to show that they still mean business" to paraphrase Michael Ledeen. This move on the part of France's Total and Chevron probably has a lot more to do with China's influence on Myanmar as well as China's pipelines and BRI trade routes though Myanmar to bypass the Straights of Malacca. Yeah, they are leaving for a reason - a conscience has nothing to do with it. Personally I wouldn't be surprised if a "Western Coalition of the Willing" doesn't bomb Myanmar back into the stone age while spewing their Responsibility To Protect doctrine and claiming that destroying the country's infrastructure is to save the Myanmar people from the terrible Myanmar dictatorial regime - even though every time the West does that they end up genociding a few hundred thousand civilians in the process. Trust me though - If Myanmar blow up one way or another? The Blow-Back will hit Thailand for sure. Which by the way make me wonder way Thailand is sucking up to Saudi Arabia? ????

I was almost hit the first week in Thailand. From that point onward when crossing I keep my eyes turned in the direction of traffic the entire trip across.

Thanks for that link. 200%

If it's not Kindle or a digital application - I've otherwise have given up on Amazon.

That's how it's done people!!! If someone get's killed in a crosswalk - REMOVE the crosswalk!!! ????????????