blazes

Well, look at it like this: the new PM could always sack his minister of defence. Problem solved (temporarily). Except that it would be Tweedledum being replaced by Tweedledee.

When you've seen one wat, you've seen 'em all. I come for the weather and the smiles.

Not often I really DO "laugh out loud" on ASEAN....

Been using melatonin since 1998. I believe (with zero proof) that it is "good for you". Only take before bedtime, and don't exceed 5mg. Very cheap in Western countries. I take 10 mg when travelling between two very-separated time zones. Possible negative: it can induce bad dreams.

The likes of Trudeau (only 28% favourable in most polls) and Biden (approval of 38%) show how easy it is to get by in modern "democracies", even when the vast majority of the nation think you are dumb as a stick. So these Thai runners should give themselves a pat on the back for scoring so well.

Two points: the OP mentions that the Immigration Officer at the airport uttered the word "extension"....but your report does not clarify this. Was she offering you an extension there and then on the spot or was she simply making small talk? Also, someone above mentions that Eva Air's Premium Economy is well worth trying (I can confirm that opinion). However, I have discovered that their Premium Economy is only available on Boeing 777-300ER (not on Dreamliner). Thus, flying from YVR - BKK you are given the choice, only, of flying Economy $1200 plus or Business Class $5795.

Hard to see what is the point of this thread. Those of us who rent (the wise ones, incidentally!) are most likely to be renting a condo. Having found our preferred condo via a real estate agent, we then pay a one- or two-month deposit and pay our rent at the beginning of the month at the agent's office or via a bank deposit. Where's the problem here? We never need to meet the landlord, ever. And if we do in fact meet the landlord at the beginning or end of our rental period, it's just a perfectly normal polite conversation and that's it.

Anybody heard the attacker's name? I guess it wasn't Jim Smith of New Jersey?

As a retiree with no stress that I know of in my life, I suggest that this little story omits one important cause of poor sleep: old age! The main stress of old age is the aging process itself.

An Indian summer. How nice.

Solar and wind, as everyone knows, are unreliable, but, worse than that, they totally fk up the environment with their hideous ravaging of countryside and ocean. A plague on them, and bring on as much nuclear as possible asap.

Net zero by 2065? No ploblem. Nice long time in the future.

You should be careful about what you swear by in the business of "trusted" references. You seem to be totally unaware of how fallible Wiki is as a reference (other than for what are undisputed facts, like birth and death and when and what). But Wiki is littered with false opinions. Try this test sometime: if there is some subject you know a lot about, see what Wiki has to say about it when it does not involve undisputed facts. (In earlier days, I often used to caution my students about using Wiki uncritically. What you need when reading Wiki, especially when it involves controversial people or political themes, is sufficient intelligence to sort out what is bias and what is fact. And to be able to do that test satisfactorily you need to be able to thrust to one side your own biased opinion.) See how often an entry on some supposed "far right" (as opposed to "loony left") controversial freak inserts the word "false" into the entry on that person. Here's a typical fictionalized example: why doesn't Wiki say (quite simply): "Trudeau makes the assertion that climate change will bring the world to an end by 2030", rather than (as they would) "Trudeau makes the false assertion that climate change will bring the world to an end by 2030", We don't need that inclusion of "false" to know that everything emanating from that man's mouth is false beyond belief!! Apologies for being long-winded.

Such utterly bigoted drivel should not be allowed to go unchallenged. What makes you so special that you feel free to parade your racism without fear of retribution? Most Christian values, nothing to do with being White, are expressed very strongly by Black Christians, especially in Africa. (Black) African bishops cause the worldwide Anglican church a lot of trouble by their being opposed to homosexuality in general, not just in particular. How easily you resort to the playground abuse ("homophobia") when you come across someone whose opinions you disagree with. And by resorting to racism you demonstrate the weakness of whatever argument you are trying to put across. (In brief, you who talk much about citing references depend ultimately in mere assertions of what is good or bad, or, in other words, opinions - which of course you are at liberty to express till the cows come home.)

Drivel.

He could have changed his name to Mr. A. Hilter. No one would have twigged...

Your mention of "diversions" is 100% correct. Mrs Pelosi has her own reasons for creating a "diversion' of attention from her husband's dealings on the stock market, which have attracted the attention of the Wall Street gatekeepers. I hope I am 100% wrong in the implied assumption that an American politician would go so far as to abuse her position in public life in order to divert attention from investigations into her disgusting private life.

Whether you meant to or not, you have described very well what happens when a country with imperialist ambitions (like Portugal, Spain, France, Britain and finally America) begins to think it can rule the world. Your mention of Vietnam and so on should awaken everyone on this thread to what America's contribution to the horrors of imperialism has been since WW1. And now China wants to get in on the imperialist action, since for so many centuries it had to suffer the rule of various foreign commercial interlopers from Europe and especially from Japan. Mrs Pelosi? Who she?

I was just experimenting with the TG website, trying to book tickets from different locations (Seattle and LHR), and clicking on (1) Premium Economy, then (2) Business Class. In both cases, I went on with the booking, but when it came to showing me the full details of price etc, both cases showed I was in Economy. Anyone come across this idiosyncrasy? I mean, don't they want the extra money from those two classes!!

I absolutely agree that sleazebags of both parties (with all too few honorable exceptions) are interested only in lining their own nests, but other than Trump I am not aware of American politicians (surely there ARE some) who have actually done something to resist Chinese domination of Western economies.

Oh dear: bad news for Hunter and the Big Guy....

Pelosi is an ignorant buffoon, in the early stages of dementia. (Well, maybe not "early"). But compared to Congressman Jerry Nadler (aged 75, who burbled on today about how he had taken part in the impeachment of two (2!!!) Bushes [sic]), she is an Einstein of an intellectual. Her narcissism makes Trump seem like the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Anybody have problems with THAI's website and getting a price quotation from their international subsection?

There's another news item in this newsletter announcing the recommendation that Thai airlines avoid Taiwan airspace. My favourite airline for LoS (from North America) is Eva Air, but the latest buzzing around TW by the Chinese Air Force makes me hesitant (at least on this particular day) to book with them at the moment.

In my experience, you can make (much) more money by trading junior gold miners (in a safe political environment) than in buying gold bullion.