I screwed up bad.

[KuhnPaen]

Let me start off by apologizing to Thailand and everyone who lives there or visits. Being that there are more and more stories about homeless farangs in LOS, I must have carried that info around with me and then I talked to this "homeless" guy (more of a panhandler who lives in a flophouse) outside of a 7-11 in Los Angeles. I see the guy every day, and when he asked me for money I started up this conversation and ended up suggesting that he move to Thailand. That he should take his disability checks, whatever money he could panhandle, etc, and get on a plane to LOS.

The mans name is Arthur, and he is a homeless veteran. He fought in the Vietnam war and he told me about his time in Southeast Asia. Other than the risk of dying, he said he enjoyed it a lot. Our conversation lasted about 20 minutes, and I was explaining that he could live in LOS in relative comfort on his disability checks, rather than in abject poverty in Los Angeles, which forces him to panhandle to make up the difference. Arthur isn't an addict or a drunk. Just a weary old man who seems like he has had life pounded out of him for decades.

To cut to the chase--I saw him again the other day and he showed me his plane ticket. The conversation made sense to him and he plans on moving to Chiang Mai, or somewhere in Isaan. He had gone to the public library after we talked and did research on cost of living and where the best place to live was.

His disability checks are around $900 USD/month or aprox 27,000 baht so I told him he could live on that in Thailand comfortably--as long as he didn't blow it on girls and booze.

So, part of me is cheering him on and hoping that he enjoys the end of his life with a smile on his face instead of dying in poverty in Los Angeles. The other part of me is guilty for sending a not so "high quality" farang to live in LOS....as that seems to be the issue with the tourism minister lately.

I gave Art my email and contact info in BKK. I am really interested in having him start a blog, or some kind of guide for other "homeless" people aound the world. Maybe, if Art lives there in style, other downtrodden folks from the West will follow his lead and also move to Thailand.

Keeping fingers crossed.

[cooked]

Oh boy, get ready for in coming. Immigration won't appreciate your good deed. Good luck to him anyway.

Sent from my GT-S7500 using Tapatalk 2

[Kitsune]

Nice one !

It's 27000 B in Thai economy

They should thank him

Edited February 17, 2014 by Kitsune

[Tafia]

You got him to come here now what??

How will he meet his visa obligations for a long term stay on 27,000 THB a month? or Do you intend to help?

[fatdrunkandstupid]

Why didn't you tell him to go to Cambodia. He can get an annual visa for $280 and not have to bother with 90 day reports or using scams to prove he has 800K THB in the bank. In Cambo he can live where he wants. For example in a cheap seaside village like Kep where he will become a local celebrity.

[samuibeachcomber]

Now i agree cambodia us even a better option.top marks to the OP.

Sent from my GT-S7500L using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[h90]

You got him to come here now what??

How will he meet his visa obligations for a long term stay on 27,000 THB a month? or Do you intend to help?

there are a lot people just coming on the 1 month visa and stay for years.....Illegal but they do.

[umbanda]

A Vietnam Veteran do not deserve live on the street of Los Angeles or any city in America, and will be welcome to live here around the US expat community. I am here to hep him in anyway I can....for him to feel happy, healthy and safe, like many other Americans in his situation in Thailand.

[Tafia]

You got him to come here now what??

How will he meet his visa obligations for a long term stay on 27,000 THB a month? or Do you intend to help?

there are a lot people just coming on the 1 month visa and stay for years.....Illegal but they do.

I appreciate that, so is the op encouraging him to break the law and stay where he could end up in a Thai Jail??

Doesn't sound very helpful to me!!

[Tafia]

A Vietnam Veteran do not deserve live on the street of Los Angeles or any city in America, and will be welcome to live here around the US expat community. I am here to hep him in anyway I can....for him to feel happy, healthy and safe, like many other Americans in his situation in Thailand.

I agree, a veteran of any campaign whichever country he served, But it's his Governments responsibility, not expats unless they have the means to keep him here legally.

[fatdrunkandstupid]

A Vietnam Veteran do not deserve live on the street of Los Angeles or any city in America, and will be welcome to live here around the US expat community. I am here to hep him in anyway I can....for him to feel happy, healthy and safe, like many other Americans in his situation in Thailand.

Good to hear that you are ready to pony up 800k THB in his bank account.

In the absence of such financial assistance his long term outlook here in Thailand will likely include deportation.

[NancyL]

Yes, Khun Paen, you did screw up, very badly. Let me introduce myself. I'm the co-ordinator of this organization in Chiang Mai www.LannaCareNet.org Perhaps you should have read our website and contacted us before you did what you thought was a kindness for this man.

There is a reason he's receiving SSDI income. He has a disability of some sort that prevents him from working and he probably requires on-going medical attention. Did you know that as part of SSDI he gets free medical care in the U.S? Yes, he has "early access" to Medicare, before age 65 by going on SSDI. Surely you know he won't receive free medical care in Thailand.

I just helped someone on SSDI return to the U.S. after five months in Thailand. That person needed dialysis, which she received free in the U.S. She didn't realize how much it cost in Thailand -- half her SSDI income. She tried to skimp on the number of times she had dialysis each week, ended up in hospital (more medical bills she couldn't pay) and nearly died.

Also, did you explain to this guy how to get his SSDI direct deposited to Bangkok Bank? Many SSDI recipients keep their U.S. bank accounts, access them with an ATM card and pay 150 baht and a poor exchange rate each time they get money from the machine. Poor way to manage money. A lot of people like this "homeless" guy manage to lose their ATM cards, too, and get cut off from their SSDI income. Very little (actually nothing) the U.S. consulate can do to help them get a new ATM card from their U.S. bank.

Oh and for those worried about how he'll handle his visa -- yes, it's a problem and it will limit his ability to rent a room, open a bank account, obtain medical services (even if he has money), etc if he's on overstay. Fortunately, the U.S. consulate will provide consular services to overstayers (other nationalities don't want to help lawbreakers) and unless he does something really fragrant, he won't get arrested for simple overstay, but he will be more vulnerable to be shaken down for bribes by cops every time he has an interaction with one. That's right, he could be hit by a tuk-tuk as a pedestrian and find himself having to pay a 10,000 baht "fine" to the cop he asks to help when it's discovered he's on overstay. It's happened to our clients. The cop won't arrest him because they won't want to be responsible for his medical care!

You mentioned he's a U.S. Vietnam vet. If he's over age 65, he could get a VA low income pension -- did you help him to apply for that? Also, there a VA 24 hr hotline for homeless vets. California has a system of assisted living homes for veterans -- did you investigate those for him?

Every month our organization helps about 4 - 6 men (they're almost always men) who fit the description of the man you "assisted". In many cases, these men die horrible, painful, premature deaths in filthy conditions because they lack funds for early diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions that are entirely treatable. Things like infections from abrasions received in a motorcycle accident, skin cancer that was never treated, early warning signs of a stroke that were ignored because there was no money to go to the hospital, etc.

Yes, OP you've done something very, very bad. All you can do now is to stop others like him from making the same mistake and learn more about the social services available locally to help men like him.

Edited February 17, 2014 by NancyL

[Kitsune]

- No one asks for a visa to rent anything here, banks give you account without visa, so do hospitals

- 150B charge/poor rate exchange is still way better than being in US and not being able to support oneself

- Away from the good old American diet your homeless friend might finally gets away from health problem :Michelle Obama : "Obesity, diabete, heart disease, high blood pressure are all diet-related health issues that cost this country more than 120 billions a year" And yet with all that money spend every minute a person in the US is killed by heart disease

Edited February 17, 2014 by Kitsune

[h90]

You got him to come here now what??

How will he meet his visa obligations for a long term stay on 27,000 THB a month? or Do you intend to help?

there are a lot people just coming on the 1 month visa and stay for years.....Illegal but they do.

I appreciate that, so is the op encouraging him to break the law and stay where he could end up in a Thai Jail??

Doesn't sound very helpful to me!!

Who did encourage him to break the law?

I surely didn't.

The OP told him that living on small money is easier in TH...that isn't unlawful...

[TerryLH]

"You mentioned he's a U.S. Vietnam vet. If he's over age 65, he could get a VA low income pension -- did you help him to apply for that?"

Nancy, will you help me apply?

I've never heard of a pension for someone who served a couple of years, but I'm willing to listen and learn.

Terry

[SanukDii]

Yes, Khun Paen, you did screw up, very badly. Let me introduce myself. I'm the co-ordinator of this organization in Chiang Mai www.LannaCareNet.org Perhaps you should have read our website and contacted us before you did what you thought was a kindness for this man.

There is a reason he's receiving SSDI income. He has a disability of some sort that prevents him from working and he probably requires on-going medical attention. Did you know that as part of SSDI he gets free medical care in the U.S? Yes, he has "early access" to Medicare, before age 65 by going on SSDI. Surely you know he won't receive free medical care in Thailand.

I just helped someone on SSDI return to the U.S. after five months in Thailand. That person needed dialysis, which she received free in the U.S. She didn't realize how much it cost in Thailand -- half her SSDI income. She tried to skimp on the number of times she had dialysis each week, ended up in hospital (more medical bills she couldn't pay) and nearly died.

Also, did you explain to this guy how to get his SSDI direct deposited to Bangkok Bank? Many SSDI recipients keep their U.S. bank accounts, access them with an ATM card and pay 150 baht and a poor exchange rate each time they get money from the machine. Poor way to manage money. A lot of people like this "homeless" guy manage to lose their ATM cards, too, and get cut off from their SSDI income. Very little (actually nothing) the U.S. consulate can do to help them get a new ATM card from their U.S. bank.

Oh and for those worried about how he'll handle his visa -- yes, it's a problem and it will limit his ability to rent a room, open a bank account, obtain medical services (even if he has money), etc if he's on overstay. Fortunately, the U.S. consulate will provide consular services to overstayers (other nationalities don't want to help lawbreakers) and unless he does something really fragrant, he won't get arrested for simple overstay, but he will be more vulnerable to be shaken down for bribes by cops every time he has an interaction with one. That's right, he could be hit by a tuk-tuk as a pedestrian and find himself having to pay a 10,000 baht "fine" to the cop he asks to help when it's discovered he's on overstay. It's happened to our clients. The cop won't arrest him because they won't want to be responsible for his medical care!

You mentioned he's a U.S. Vietnam vet. If he's over age 65, he could get a VA low income pension -- did you help him to apply for that? Also, there a VA 24 hr hotline for homeless vets. California has a system of assisted living homes for veterans -- did you investigate those for him?

Every month our organization helps about 4 - 6 men (they're almost always men) who fit the description of the man you "assisted". In many cases, these men die horrible, painful, premature deaths in filthy conditions because they lack funds for early diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions that are entirely treatable. Things like infections from abrasions received in a motorcycle accident, skin cancer that was never treated, early warning signs of a stroke that were ignored because there was no money to go to the hospital, etc.

Yes, OP you've done something very, very bad. All you can do now is to stop others like him from making the same mistake and learn more about the social services available locally to help men like him.

Nancy, you obviously provide a much needed service for people in need of assistance at a low point in their lives. I applaud you for it. It must be extremely frustrating to encounter and deal daily with what could be avoidable situations. Unfortunately it seems this man is likely to be a client of yours very soon.

I hope therefore that in that instance you treat him with some compassion and humanity - both of which seem to be lacking in your reply to the OP.

Yes the action of the OP was misguided and not thought through but it serves no purpose to remind him of processes of which he had no knowledge. He is guilty of trying to help a fellow human being in distress, that is all. Most people just walk past and ignore a homeless individual. So, for that at least he is to be applauded.

[leosuntime]

Nice one !

It's 27000 B in Thai economy

They should thank him

yeah think of all the products they can export from the US pfft

I wonder where that 27000b actaully came from

I wonder why people use the term economy like a big base ball bat

wait if we give chinese poor people (about 200 million of them 27k a month) and send them to thailand the 'economy' would explode, turn blue and the inch, not sideways, but kind of diagonally upward NNE

does inflation stimulate production, what trade is ACTUALLY taking place

if one person provides a product and the other is selling a debt recipt

listening to grown adult speak as if they know shit is getting a lot harder the more I read this site

[CWMcMurray]

If a veteran, another good option is the Philippines... As if he has VA medical benefits , then he could use them in Philippines, but will not be able to do so in Thailand

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[sam sen]

what's a 'panhandler'?

[SanukDii]

what's a 'panhandler'?

Someone who begs for money on the street.

[ubonjoe]

A post derogatory post about military vets removed along with a reply to it,

[BKK Blues Brother]

2 years living the high life in LOS or 5 years a healthy tramp in LA.

Well done to the OP for helping the old dude live his life with fire in his belly.

[Sayonarax]

Earth is our planet. People should be free to live where ever they want.. get over it.

[Showbags]

Panhandling hub....

[bobbin]

Interesting.

The OP has nothing to apologize for in this instance. IMHO.

He connected on a human level with a man. He did not buy the plane ticket and deliver this man to the airport.

That man has heard a message. That it is possible to live an entirely different life. The life he has now is in no way worth hanging on to. He had the initiative to research and budget his income to purchase the air ticket. He has been to SEA as a young man so it's not a complete unknown.

It may be that the Philippines, for it's ability to provide veterans benefits, or Cambodia for more relaxed visa requirements, is a better fit for him. That is for the future.

[JohnC]

Interestingly we have a US vet from the Korean War living here and when the US social found out they halved his benefit as being non resident in the States! He is 81 this month and friends are trying to arrange a free military flight home as he is in very poor health and has no money for health care!

[bobbin]

Yes, Khun Paen, you did screw up, very badly. Let me introduce myself. I'm the co-ordinator of this organization in Chiang Mai www.LannaCareNet.org Perhaps you should have read our website and contacted us before you did what you thought was a kindness for this man.

There is a reason he's receiving SSDI income. He has a disability of some sort that prevents him from working and he probably requires on-going medical attention. Did you know that as part of SSDI he gets free medical care in the U.S? Yes, he has "early access" to Medicare, before age 65 by going on SSDI. Surely you know he won't receive free medical care in Thailand.

I just helped someone on SSDI return to the U.S. after five months in Thailand. That person needed dialysis, which she received free in the U.S. She didn't realize how much it cost in Thailand -- half her SSDI income. She tried to skimp on the number of times she had dialysis each week, ended up in hospital (more medical bills she couldn't pay) and nearly died.

Also, did you explain to this guy how to get his SSDI direct deposited to Bangkok Bank? Many SSDI recipients keep their U.S. bank accounts, access them with an ATM card and pay 150 baht and a poor exchange rate each time they get money from the machine. Poor way to manage money. A lot of people like this "homeless" guy manage to lose their ATM cards, too, and get cut off from their SSDI income. Very little (actually nothing) the U.S. consulate can do to help them get a new ATM card from their U.S. bank.

Oh and for those worried about how he'll handle his visa -- yes, it's a problem and it will limit his ability to rent a room, open a bank account, obtain medical services (even if he has money), etc if he's on overstay. Fortunately, the U.S. consulate will provide consular services to overstayers (other nationalities don't want to help lawbreakers) and unless he does something really fragrant, he won't get arrested for simple overstay, but he will be more vulnerable to be shaken down for bribes by cops every time he has an interaction with one. That's right, he could be hit by a tuk-tuk as a pedestrian and find himself having to pay a 10,000 baht "fine" to the cop he asks to help when it's discovered he's on overstay. It's happened to our clients. The cop won't arrest him because they won't want to be responsible for his medical care!

You mentioned he's a U.S. Vietnam vet. If he's over age 65, he could get a VA low income pension -- did you help him to apply for that? Also, there a VA 24 hr hotline for homeless vets. California has a system of assisted living homes for veterans -- did you investigate those for him?

Every month our organization helps about 4 - 6 men (they're almost always men) who fit the description of the man you "assisted". In many cases, these men die horrible, painful, premature deaths in filthy conditions because they lack funds for early diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions that are entirely treatable. Things like infections from abrasions received in a motorcycle accident, skin cancer that was never treated, early warning signs of a stroke that were ignored because there was no money to go to the hospital, etc.

Yes, OP you've done something very, very bad. All you can do now is to stop others like him from making the same mistake and learn more about the social services available locally to help men like him.

Nancy, I'm sure your heart is in the right place, but please resist the impulse to always save us from ourselves.

People do screw-up, and organizations like yours are there to try to pick up the pieces. It's good what you are doing and you speak wisely about potential problems. This man coming here would probably benefit from speaking to you when he arrives. But think what you are sending him back to before overemphasizing the negative.

[homsiam]

If him serve four your country in the war why he most stay on the streets??And fore 27000b you think he can stay here in Thailand??No you need at last 50000b a mounth if you no hawe a home ore a wife here.But if you are putting up 800b fore him then ok fore him to stay.Why help him when him can make himself,Why him stay on the streets your newer think of that

[homsiam]

I think if him stay here four 6 m then he get looket up in imigration fore same problem.Live on the street here.You want him in your home so you can take care fore him here in Thailand?

[umbanda]

A Vietnam Veteran do not deserve live on the street of Los Angeles or any city in America, and will be welcome to live here around the US expat community. I am here to hep him in anyway I can....for him to feel happy, healthy and safe, like many other Americans in his situation in Thailand.

Good to hear that you are ready to pony up 800k THB in his bank account.

In the absence of such financial assistance his long term outlook here in Thailand will likely include deportation.

I have means to keep him here totally legally and without using any money...from him or from myself, but I will not discuss that with anybody, only with him...I hope he will contact me in person in Chiang Mai at soon he arrives to Thailand.....and before meeting immigration....