Living in Thailand vs living in America?

[allanos]

Countries morph, move on, over time. I visited the USA in the 60's - NYC and Florida.

 

The people were open, friendly, hospitable and kind. Taxi drivers were fun; cops were

approachable, easy-going and evidencing a good sense of humour.

 

Perhaps not much has changed in rural America, but the big cities, like Gotham, are

tough-going for large swathes of the population these days, and unable to be faced with

a stoic smile, unlike in the days of the Great Depression or World War II.

 

So much has changed, much of it for the worse, irreversibly so, in America and the world at large.

 

Nostalgia isn't what it used to be!

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by allanos
typo

[Luuk Chaai]

the Rathole I used to call home ....... ( USA )  should be way way down on anyone's list

 corrupt / woke / elitist / deep state / Soros backed garbage ..  with Mr. Sleepy potato head  "installed" in  office 

 

life here is so easy and good for the soul........

 

 

[billsmart]

I'm a US citizen and have lived in Thailand for over 20 years. I have no intention of ever returning to the US to live there. I think especially now, with the extreme division in the US between liberals and conservatives, especially "Trump conservatives," there will be open violence there - some after the next, upcoming elections, and certainly a lot after the next presidential elections in just over two years. ????
 

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by billsmart

[KhunLA]

23 minutes ago, Luuk Chaai said:

the Rathole I used to call home ....... ( USA )  should be way way down on anyone's list

 corrupt / woke / elitist / deep state / Soros backed garbage ..  with Mr. Sleepy potato head  "installed" in  office 

 

life here is so easy and good for the soul........

Sadly that mirrors most countries ... even TH ????

[Jingthing]

1 hour ago, swm59nj said:

It all depends where you live in America.  Different environments and different income levels.  You are watching a YouTube video based on a bad neighborhood.
Im an American and proud of it. I came to live in Bangkok because I wanted to experience living in another country .  And it was easy to get a retirement visa here.  But I will move back to America by the middle of next year.  And at least I have the income and resources to do so.  Compared to some of the miserable expats that blame America and other western countries for their misfortunes.  Which seems to be a regular occurrence on these forums. 
You don’t have enough income, health insurance,  whatever?  That’s on how you planned your life.  Not the fault of your country.  So you move to a place like Thailand looking for a free ride.  
 

 

 

 

The truth is the USA does incredibly poorly in comparison to other developed nations.

 

In:

 

Economic inequality

 

Affordable housing with adequate safety nets

 

Public transportation 

 

Gun violence 

 

Public education

 

Civilized social discourse

 

Health care access

 

Health care cost

 

Homelessness

 

Political attention to the poor.

 

Upward social mobility just OK

 

Blaming the poor for their poverty is a particularly American cultural trait.

 

https://newrepublic.com/article/145504/conservatives-blame-poverty-poor

 

Why Conservatives Blame Poverty on the Poor

A new essay by National Review's Kevin Williamson exposes the ideological blind spots of responsibility politics.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Jingthing

[Jingthing]

1 hour ago, Luuk Chaai said:

the Rathole I used to call home ....... ( USA )  should be way way down on anyone's list

 corrupt / woke / elitist / deep state / Soros backed garbage ..  with Mr. Sleepy potato head  "installed" in  office 

 

life here is so easy and good for the soul........

 

 

Soros huh?

That's a tell.

 

[Jingthing]

50 minutes ago, billsmart said:

I'm a US citizen and have lived in Thailand for over 20 years. I have no intention of ever returning to the US to live there. I think especially now, with the extreme division in the US between liberals and conservatives, especially "Trump conservatives," there will be open violence there - some after the next, upcoming elections, and certainly a lot after the next presidential elections in just over two years. ????
 

 

There will be increased political violence from the white nationalists. I understand not wanting to move back because of political division but I don't think we'll see civil.war. I think we'll see full on white nationalist minority rule fascism. Why? Scotus taken over unfairly. Voter suppression.. Big Lie Trumpists electing state leaders who will overturn any election that they don’t like the result.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Jingthing

[Gecko123]

On 8/14/2022 at 7:44 AM, KIngsofisaan said:

Out of 330,000,000 people the odds of getting killed by a gun in the USA are 9.009009009009009e-7

 

You have better odds of winning the lotto and getting struck by lightning at the same time.

 

Do the math, the chances of you getting killed by a gun in the USA is a hell of lot less than getting killed in a car accident in Thailand.

 

How is it you made it so far in life not knowing how to figure this out?

 

PS, In case no one ever told you, guns do not kill people by themselves. In the past 30+ years, my guns have never left their safe and killed anyone.

 

 

I don't think you're giving enough weight to the climate of fear and social alienation that gun violence generates. The damage goes far beyond handgun death and injury statistics.

[Lacessit]

2 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

The USA is huge and has much to offer regardless what one is looking for. A great country with many affordable cities and towns. Lots of nature, national parks, beaches and other things to do and see. Maybe visit for a month and travel around.

 

WARNING...you might find the females to be a bit different. ????

A bit? Try 40 kg extra.

[Gecko123]

Have been weighing the pros and cons of repatriation to America since before the 2016 election. Over this time, the appeal of remaining in Thailand has steadily grown while the appeal of returning to America has pretty much dropped off a cliff. I might also add that Thailand's appeal has grown when comparing it to other potential relocation destinations as well. I realized that the main appeal for me of repatriation to the US was access to Medicare, but more and more I feel like I'm willing to roll the dice and remain here. Political stability, social climate, climate change and, of course, cost of living were the other factors which went into my evaluation.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Gecko123

[KIngsofisaan]

48 minutes ago, Gecko123 said:

I don't think you're giving enough weight to the climate of fear and social alienation that gun violence generates. The damage goes far beyond handgun death and injury statistics.

Per capita, more people are killed with guns in Thailand each year than in the USA (I already posted all the statistics in another post here)

 

Due you have a climate of fear and social alienation living in Thailand because of gun violence?

 

Sorry, I have never had a fear of gun violence, ever.

 

Perhaps if you grew up hunting, military, owned guns, licensed to carry, you wouldn't have such a fear of guns

[billsmart]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

There will be increased political violence from the white nationalists. I understand not wanting to move back because of political division but I don't think we'll see civil.war. I think we'll see full on white nationalist minority rule fascism. Why? Scotus taken over unfairly. Voter suppression.. Big Lie Trumpists electing state leaders who will overturn any election that they don’t like the result.

I agree with what you've said above, and I do think it will lead to a lot of violence. Maybe not a full-blown civil war, but something close to that involving a lot of individual and small group actions. I don't think the losing side in the next presidential elections will accept the election results, no matter which side it is.

 

I'll be watching it all on CNN from my home tucked back up in the jungles in the mountains of Phetchabun. 

[KIngsofisaan]

14 minutes ago, Gecko123 said:

Have been weighing the pros and cons of repatriation to America since before the 2016 election. Over this time, the appeal of remaining in Thailand has steadily grown while the appeal of returning to America has pretty much dropped off a cliff. I might also add that Thailand's appeal has grown when comparing it to other potential relocation destinations as well. I realized that the main appeal for me of repatriation to the US was access to Medicare, but more and more I feel like I'm willing to roll the dice and remain here. Political stability, social climate, climate change and, of course, cost of living were the other factors which went into my evaluation.

Every single day now, I am wondering why I am still in Thailand?

 

Political stability? Social climate? Why are all the people constantly protesting if it is so stable? PM took over in a coup.

 

I don't have to worry about cost of living anywhere.

 

Where you get old, if your choice of locations comes down to cost, you didn't financially plan very well.

 

 

 

 

[KIngsofisaan]

23 minutes ago, Gecko123 said:

Have been weighing the pros and cons of repatriation to America since before the 2016 election. Over this time, the appeal of remaining in Thailand has steadily grown while the appeal of returning to America has pretty much dropped off a cliff. I might also add that Thailand's appeal has grown when comparing it to other potential relocation destinations as well. I realized that the main appeal for me of repatriation to the US was access to Medicare, but more and more I feel like I'm willing to roll the dice and remain here. Political stability, social climate, climate change and, of course, cost of living were the other factors which went into my evaluation.

post slow loading and auto duplicated itself

 

 

 

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by KIngsofisaan

[KIngsofisaan]

6 minutes ago, billsmart said:

I agree with what you've said above, and I do think it will lead to a lot of violence. Maybe not a full-blown civil war, but something close to that involving a lot of individual and small group actions. I don't think the losing side in the next presidential elections will accept the election results, no matter which side it is.

 

I'll be watching it all on CNN from my home tucked back up in the jungles in the mountains of Phetchabun. 

CNN is about the least reliable source you can watch

 

[KIngsofisaan]

7 minutes ago, billsmart said:

I agree with what you've said above, and I do think it will lead to a lot of violence. Maybe not a full-blown civil war, but something close to that involving a lot of individual and small group actions. I don't think the losing side in the next presidential elections will accept the election results, no matter which side it is.

 

I'll be watching it all on CNN from my home tucked back up in the jungles in the mountains of Phetchabun. 

I for one, will be going back.

 

I am getting to the point I cannot think about anything else, except getting the hell out of here

 

I will make sure to send you first hand reports Bill, so you won't have to trust CNN

 

 

[Gecko123]

deleted

Edited August 18, 2022 by Gecko123

[Inala]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:52 PM, GammaGlobulin said:

Was it the Merion Cricket Club???

 

This is the only one I can think of worth visiting.

 

Super nice, for sure....

But now...it's really No Big Deal.

It was a totally different operation in the 1960s and 1970s.

Wish I could go back, in fact.

Those days are long gone.

 

https://www.merioncricket.com/

 

I never imagined there would be a cricket club in America. Despite it being one of the world's most popular sports, I thought most Americans would have no idea of what it was..

 

[Fairynuff]

On 8/13/2022 at 10:20 PM, gargamon said:

The US is in the middle of collapse. Expect a dictator similar to Putin to be running it in 10 years.

They just got rid of one but it’ll probably be back again.

[1FinickyOne]

1 hour ago, billsmart said:

I'll be watching it all on CNN from my home tucked back up in the jungles in the mountains of Phetchabun.

while snacking on Tamarind?

[1FinickyOne]

2 hours ago, Lacessit said:

A bit? Try 40 kg extra.

getting a little nasty here...

[KIngsofisaan]

2 hours ago, Jingthing said:

There will be increased political violence from the white nationalists. I understand not wanting to move back because of political division but I don't think we'll see civil.war. I think we'll see full on white nationalist minority rule fascism. Why? Scotus taken over unfairly. Voter suppression.. Big Lie Trumpists electing state leaders who will overturn any election that they don’t like the result.

increased political violence from the white nationalists

 

What percentage of the 333,000,000 people in the US do you think this is?

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, KIngsofisaan said:

increased political violence from the white nationalists

 

What percentage of the 333,000,000 people in the US do you think this is?

The majority of Republicans, the violent ones are not so many but look at world history and know it doesn't take very many to ignite breakdowns.

 

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-christian-nationalism/

[Grecian]

1 hour ago, KIngsofisaan said:

 

 

Where you get old, if your choice of locations comes down to cost, you didn't financially plan very well.

 

 

 

 

For many older guys a young attractive partner is part of their retirement dream. Of course for 99% of men that comes down to affordability and location. 

 

[Jingthing]

2 hours ago, KIngsofisaan said:

Every single day now, I am wondering why I am still in Thailand?

 

Political stability? Social climate? Why are all the people constantly protesting if it is so stable? PM took over in a coup.

 

I don't have to worry about cost of living anywhere.

 

Where you get old, if your choice of locations comes down to cost, you didn't financially plan very well.

 

 

 

 

99 percent of humanity considers costs.

Good for you that you're so.wealthy or so you claim but it comes off as unseemly gloating.

[KIngsofisaan]

33 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

99 percent of humanity considers costs.

Good for you that you're so.wealthy or so you claim but it comes off as unseemly gloating.

I could care less how I come off to you, I don't even know you and if you want to judge people by typing text in a forum, go ahead.

 

I didn't sit around my entire life and end up broke

 

Lots of sacrifice and careful planning got me to where I am today

 

If you are jealous of that, maybe you should have spent the past 40+ years saving more

[KIngsofisaan]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

The majority of Republicans, the violent ones are not so many but look at world history and know it doesn't take very many to ignite breakdowns.

 

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-christian-nationalism/

Look as your news source?

 

Rawstory?

 

Give me a break and don't be so ridiculous 

 

PS I know you are probably bored, but don't believe everything you read on the internet from sources no one has ever heard of

 

I know you have to be smarter than that

 

 

[ericthai]

On 8/13/2022 at 8:31 PM, 2baht said:

300 plus mass killings in USA so far this year....yes, there's plenty wrong with owning a gun! Why are Americans so obsessed with killing Americans???

 

 

Well I wouldn't say that portrays the average American, most mass shootings are perpetrated by people with mental issues.

[Jingthing]

46 minutes ago, KIngsofisaan said:

I could care less how I come off to you, I don't even know you and if you want to judge people by typing text in a forum, go ahead.

 

I didn't sit around my entire life and end up broke

 

Lots of sacrifice and careful planning got me to where I am today

 

If you are jealous of that, maybe you should have spent the past 40+ years saving more

Doubling down on the presumptuous toxicity.

I think toxicity reflects the general American mood these days..

[Jingthing]

58 minutes ago, KIngsofisaan said:

Look as your news source?

 

Rawstory?

 

Give me a break and don't be so ridiculous 

 

PS I know you are probably bored, but don't believe everything you read on the internet from sources no one has ever heard of

 

I know you have to be smarter than that

 

 

Dude.

 

You don’t need  to agree with me but I could do without your personal insults.

 

Yes I am dead serious about my opinion of the Trumpist republican party.

 

White nationalist. Specifically Christian white nationalist. Pro autocracy. Moving America towards fascism.

 

Some like that.

 

I don't. 

 

I didn't move abroad for political reasons but I understand why people would avoid repatriation now for political reasons.

 

https://foreignpolicy.com/2017/03/14/the-gop-is-americas-party-of-white-nationalism/

 

The GOP Is America’s Party of White Nationalism

The Republican party's racists were once pushed to the fringes. In the Trump era, they're in charge.

By Max Boot

 

https://democracyguardian.com/republicans-the-white-nationalist-party-42cf18e612fc

 

Republicans: The White Nationalist Party

Edited August 18, 2022 by Jingthing