Thai Civilised Party leader pulling out of coalition due to Prayut’s ‘intolerable’ actions
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76
Tourism Foreign Tourists in Pattaya Feel "Short-Changed" Amid Local Deals
"Some locals defend this as a matter of business freedom. One resident remarked, "It's a free country. If you don't like the price, don't buy it."" This statement really got my attention. Ripping people off is now a business freedom ?!?! Reminds me of travelling thousands of miles to Cappadocia, Turkey to go on a balloon ride. I had pre-paid 165 USD. Four hours before the ride the operator increased the price to 250 USD. Same attitude "If you don't like it, don't pay it ... no balloon ride". I chose the refund route, most would have paid the diffierence. After this episode, it really soured my view of Cappadocia I will never recommend nor ever go back there again. This arrogant attitude of "it's a matter of business freedom, it's a free country, If you don't like the price, don't buy it" is pure BS nonsense. A sure fire way of giving Pattaya a bad reputation and helping the competition. -
147
Middle East Israeli forces kill 63 Palestinians in Gaza within hours of ‘humanitarian pause’
I didn't write Israel was the only democracy in the region. I wrote "... Israel is a democracy." Whether it is the only democracy in the region depends on how you define "democracy." The Economist Democracy Index lists Israel as a "flawed democracy," the only country in the region to have that rating. I'm posting the Democracy Index chart for the Middle East and North Africa at the end of this post. I don't believe Israel practices apartheid, so that's a moot question. The Democracy Index lists Morocco and Tunisia as "hybrid regimes," the category below "flawed democracy." Lebanon is rated as an "authoritarian regime," the least democratic of the four rating categories. Neither Morocco, Tunisia nor Lebanon comes close to Israel on the Democracy Index. In 2024, Israel ranked 31st among 167 nations, while Morocco placed 91st, Tunisia placed 93rd, Lebanon was 109th and Palestine 112th. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economist_Democracy_Index#Middle_East_and_North_Africa Iraqi Kurdistan isn't an independent country, so it is hard to measure its level of democracy. No, a state can't be a democracy if it practices apartheid. But as I wrote above, I don't believe Israel practices apartheid. The Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza aren't Israeli citizens, so they don't have all the rights and privileges of an Israeli citizen. In the West Bank, some Palestinians are under the civil administration of the Palestinian Authority, others live under Israeli military occupation. Gaza is under the control of Hamas, which is at war with Israel. It's certainly a peculiar set of circumstances, but none of it points to the racial or ethnic segregation that characterizes apartheid. You acknowledged that the Arab citizens of Israel (21% of the population) have voting rights and legal protections. They can be elected to political office, including the Knesset. They can be appointed to the Supreme Court and hold other government positions. They have Israeli IDs and passports, own land and businesses, etc. That doesn't sound like apartheid to me. Here's The Economist Democracy Index for the Middle East and North Africa. -
15
Tourism Border Tensions Lead to Thai Tourism Cancellations
Again, stop spreading misinformation. "Thailand has accepted both verdicts from the ICJ regarding the temple and it's immediate surrounding area belonging to Cambodia, and are making absolutely no claims on it. The issue is that Cambodia is now claiming that a much larger area around the temple belongs to them, which is why they are yet again trying to make Thailand go to the ICJ." -
38
Stickman review of pattaya
Totally, for clueless tourists, pathetic mongers, drunks and perverts -
378
UK Mohammed Fahir Amaaz & Muhammad Amaad on Trial over Manchester Airport Clash
There is a hearing in court later today on whether he can be let out on bail. -
29
Almost nobody seems to care about what I care about: Same with you???
Unless it is fully endorsed by Fox News.....not even looking at it.
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