Avoiding 'iffy' expats......

[mrtoad]

BTW Nancy, your post seems to have an Anti British slant to it.

Can you blame her? I bet she's glad she wasn't born there.

I'm glad she wasn't born there to

[NoshowJones]

BTW Nancy, your post seems to have an Anti British slant to it.

I'm not the only one who noticed that, then.

So many Brit haters out there who would slag us off. But we have thick skins and realise these words really are so petty.

I do not hate the British people, but I do hate every British government there has been in my adult lifetime. None of them particularly Labour have ever done anything for the working class, but in fairness Margaret Thatcher did allow me to buy my house, which is the reason I am living here today away from that wretched country. Sorry for going a bit off topic here.

[ttthailand]

I hear these shady characters telling stories how they got over on people or some of the crazy things they did back in farang land and it makes me wonder. History repeats it self and these guy bragging about their bad deeds are sure to pull the same on everyone they meet sooner or later. Once a low life always a low life. Listen to the stories and it will tell you their true character.

[SOTIRIOS]

..............smells like .......

[AnotherOneAmerican]

Strange, am a member of the Pattaya City Expats Club, been to their Sunday morning meetings and on a couple of trips.

The people running this club are very decent people indeed and chatting to members over breakfast can't say have met anyone who you would describe as " iffy" .

Just wait until they get to know you better. They may have some very lucrative investment opportunities for you.

Not to mention a really good health insurance policy.

& they can probably help you make out your will.

Edited December 24, 2014 by AnotherOneAmerican

[JLCrab]

If I weren't me, I'd definitely avoid me. No question.

[Baerboxer]

No bashing intended here and I am a Brit, but I have to say that of all the western expats I've met over the past twenty years of being here (permanently and as a visitor) the dodgy ones have always been Brits and I'm not sure why that is. Just an observation.

Think about that carefully. How many times have you been out mixing with Russians, Americans, Australians or other nationalities?

How many networking groups do you belong to?

If you saw the "Kangaroo Bar", "Yank Vets club" or the "Queen Vic" which would you head for?

Con men and iffy types prefer marks from their home countries. Easier to strike up a conversation and build up relationship etc.

I've met 2 iffy types here in the last 23 years. One a Geordie playing the "left my wallet at the hotel with wifey routine" and an upper class wannabee who was quite sinister and thankfully I've not met sine the original meeting at an Embassy do.

Presumably you've never encountered or walked by all those nice African men taking refreshment with the charming ladies in certain parts of Sukhomvit at night. Or do you thing there not iffy?

[Baerboxer]

Not if your willing to give up your US citizenship. Some of us have dual citizenship and can do that easily others can by applying thru ancestry or becoming a citizen of another country. You would be surprised how many US expats are doing that now.

170-200 per year. Not a significant amount. Numbers and names are public. It costs around $4,000 to do so.

As of this year, renouncing US citizenship for tax reasons is the equivalent of a felony.

Renouncing citizenship is a felony??

The Land of the Free............................

[Baerboxer]

No bashing intended here and I am a Brit, but I have to say that of all the western expats I've met over the past twenty years of being here (permanently and as a visitor) the dodgy ones have always been Brits and I'm not sure why that is. Just an observation.

Yep, I'm a Brit too, and I think it's an inbreeding issue.

The Australians began as our outcasts, and I've always wondered why they now seem to be superior to us in most every way.

Most of them don't smell, either...

Have you heard the expression "inferiority complex" ?

Aussies superior? Or the expression "delusion"?

Inbreeding? Ah, your from Essex then.

[elliss]

Don't forget British Legion,

Thoroughly infiltrated by scoundrels, with a false "hail fellow well met" performance.

Shirts with collars, ties, overly firm handshakes and false bonhomie.

Many a scoundrel and chancer, lurk beneath the Uniform of respectabilty , in LOS.

Do not be impressed , deceived by a shirt and tie , empty pockets ?

[MrWorldwide]

I'd never join any club that would have someone like me as a member, but those old European guys that stake out the coffee shop at the front of Tops Market on Pattaya Klang take the cake for mine. They seem to have a dress code that would have made the writers of Seinfeld proud, not to mention the ability to make a latte last several hours in true cheap charlie style. I'm all for the eccentrics here as long as they mind their own business, but turn up at Tops with a woman and this posse of ancient pervs will swivel their heads in her direction faster than you can say 'check bin !' .....

[liddelljohn]

i have spent over 20 years here , i have seen the con men in action many are british , but i have seen germans , scandinavians , americans , Nz and Oz scammers doing the rounds ,

Russian friends tell me that in their community there are con men ,

The most famous actually are a Yank and a Dane ,

[Cypress Hill]

Perhaps ask yourself why in the back of your mind you're looking for faults in other expats as soon as you come across them, sizing them up, wondering what they're doing here, what their work is, are they 'straight arrow' etc., instead of just giving them the benefit of the doubt.

The wise man looks for faults in himself not others. If you find yourself being suspicious of others maybe it's a reflection of yourself.

I see this 'anti-expat' phenomenon a lot, essentially I think it stems from insecurity and not wanting an influx of other expats on your 'patch' making you feel less unique. So the tendency is to want to convince yourself they're below you in some way, broke, a criminal, desperado, 'iffy'.

Post of the month.

[AnotherOneAmerican]

A nice Korean lady I know was scammed by a Korean man last year.

Scammers come in all nationalities, the ones you encounter will be in the groups you frequent.

[DaffyDuck]

Timeshare sales guys - what nationality are most of them?

Boiler room profiteers - what nationality are most of them?

[mrtoad]

Timeshare sales guys - what nationality are most of them?

Boiler room profiteers - what nationality are most of them?

Actually, a wide range of nationalities

Brits, Americans, Aussies and Filipino's

The worst experiences I have had in terms of iffy expats have been a Singaporean, an American and a South African. Two were through work, and one was someone that I was asked to help. I could also throw in a Dutchman, who reneged on payments as well.

[MrWorldwide]

If I weren't me, I'd definitely avoid me. No question.

I'm confident that you'd be better company than this gentleman .....

Classy bunch those MMA fighters.

[nithisa78]

BTW Nancy, your post seems to have an Anti British slant to it.

maybe the way you process information , look for the slant there ? or lack of .... Nancy's viewpoint is cut in stone. Nothing she need think about. That would indicate change and growtrh.

[ravip]

SO???

There are real and absolute scoundrels out side of Thailand (and out of the miserable 3rd world)?

Breaking news, THIS IS?

[ravip]

#133 - The wise man looks for faults in himself not others. If you find yourself being suspicious of others maybe it's a reflection of yourself.

What would happen to the majority? the TH Bashers?

Life would be very monotonous...

Edit

#132 - i have spent over 20 years here , i have seen the con men in action many are british , but i have seen germans , scandinavians , americans , Nz and Oz scammers doing the rounds ,

They are more 'developed' I guess.

Edited December 24, 2014 by ravip

[ravip]

Don't forget British Legion,

Thoroughly infiltrated by scoundrels, with a false "hail fellow well met" performance.

Shirts with collars, ties, overly firm handshakes and false bonhomie.

Many a scoundrel and chancer, lurk beneath the Uniform of respectabilty , in LOS.

Do not be impressed , deceived by a shirt and tie , empty pockets ?

Why even mention LOS.

Their talents were acquired else where - care to mention?

Scoundrels were they, who 'colonized' nations 100's of years ago. They are professionals and well developed, as they have many years of experience.

Edited December 24, 2014 by ravip

[pieeyed]

My experiences over the years here in Thailand are. The Brits are the worst. One Brit, maybe a drinking friend, 2 Brits maybe they want to fight with you, 3 Brits for sure want to roll you.

[SunsetT]

Who the hell are any of us to judge!

.............Good and bad everywhere.

[NancyL]

No bashing intended here and I am a Brit, but I have to say that of all the western expats I've met over the past twenty years of being here (permanently and as a visitor) the dodgy ones have always been Brits and I'm not sure why that is. Just an observation.

Yeah, I'm not sure why Nancy's taking so much heat over this. Even what's legal for some British "financial professionals" to do is against the law in some other countries. "Commissions for financial "products"? C'mon! Sure there are dodgy Americans, Australians and Europeans in that trade as well but the vast majority are British and the vast majority of those they cheat are British as well. Same applies to Hong Kong and Singapore. Drummond rings them up regularly:

http://www.andrew-drummond.com/2014/11/exclusive-hsbc-now-laundering-cash-for.html

http://www.andrew-drummond.com/2014/12/the-lm-fund-ding-dong-merrily-on-high.html

Thanks for standing up for me, Lannarebirth. I have several theories about why I'm "taking the heat" here. The most obvious is that the Thai Visa Poster of the Year Contest is also in play, in case you haven't noticed. http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/785491-thaivisa-poster-of-the-year-2014-vote-now/ Jingthing put forward my name. Thank you. Something about wanting this award to go to a poster of substance this year, even though he would also be nominated. A true gentleman.

And rather than stepping down, like I suspect some people thought I would, I'm hanging around and putting up with the abuse. Trying to get into the spirit. I invest a lot of time in Thai Visa and have seen it save lives. Literally. It can be a force for good.

But, apparently my mere existence irritates some people and they latch onto every post I make, dissecting and misquoting it. Some guys just think that western women (esp. those of a certain age) shouldn't be allowed to live in Thailand.

Some of the most vocal critics are obviously Chiang Mai locals. They take potshots at what I've done in assuming leadership of the CM Expats Club, yet they refuse to step forward to contribute any effort themselves.

They search the internet for evidence of problems with Rotary, one of Hubby's activities. An organization of 1.2 million members with nearly 110 years of history is going to have had an issue or two. Oh -- that one post alleging a problem with a CM Rotary world was way-out-of-line and I hope everyone goes back and reads the response from the person who made the allegation once I challenged him to provide more details.

In short, there are people who simply can't believe that Hubby and I simply want to contribute to our community. They think we have another agenda when one doesn't exists.

Edited December 24, 2014 by NancyL

[mrtoad]

BTW Nancy, your post seems to have an Anti British slant to it.

maybe the way you process information , look for the slant there ? or lack of .... Nancy's viewpoint is cut in stone. Nothing she need think about. That would indicate change and growtrh.

Dr Will is that you?

Barstool psychology

[Kudel]

After reading some cv's posted online by certain iffy expats one has to wonder,was i just reading alice in wonderland ........

But the most credible American ever takes the cake.

Found a cure for aids,found a solution for the oil spill in the gulf of mexico,came to thailand by royal proclamation to help solve the asian financial crisis after the stock market crash ......jezus christ to open beer bars in pattaya .etc.....

[bbbbooboo]

i can never quite understand these sort of posts, It doesn't make any difference where you meet these "iffy"people or what circumstances you meet them in, you AVOID them

[mrtoad]

After reading some cv's posted online by certain iffy expats one has to wonder,was i just reading alice in wonderland ........

But the most credible American ever takes the cake.

Found a cure for aids,found a solution for the oil spill in the gulf of mexico,came to thailand by royal proclamation to help solve the asian financial crisis after the stock market crash ......jezus christ to open beer bars in pattaya .etc.....

lol aforementioned person is a classic case

[Neeranam]

Don't forget British Legion,

Thoroughly infiltrated by scoundrels, with a false "hail fellow well met" performance.

Shirts with collars, ties, overly firm handshakes and false bonhomie.

You sure know a lot about Britain for a alleged Thai American - I think you have had a previous incarnation there. Wish I could figure out who though.

[Scully]

No bashing intended here and I am a Brit, but I have to say that of all the western expats I've met over the past twenty years of being here (permanently and as a visitor) the dodgy ones have always been Brits and I'm not sure why that is. Just an observation.

Yeah, I'm not sure why Nancy's taking so much heat over this. Even what's legal for some British "financial professionals" to do is against the law in some other countries. "Commissions for financial "products"? C'mon! Sure there are dodgy Americans, Australians and Europeans in that trade as well but the vast majority are British and the vast majority of those they cheat are British as well. Same applies to Hong Kong and Singapore. Drummond rings them up regularly:

http://www.andrew-drummond.com/2014/11/exclusive-hsbc-now-laundering-cash-for.html

http://www.andrew-drummond.com/2014/12/the-lm-fund-ding-dong-merrily-on-high.html

Thanks for standing up for me, Lannarebirth. I have several theories about why I'm "taking the heat" here. The most obvious is that the Thai Visa Poster of the Year Contest is also in play, in case you haven't noticed. http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/785491-thaivisa-poster-of-the-year-2014-vote-now/ Jingthing put forward my name. Thank you. Something about wanting this award to go to a poster of substance this year, even though he would also be nominated. A true gentleman.

And rather than stepping down, like I suspect some people thought I would, I'm hanging around and putting up with the abuse. Trying to get into the spirit. I invest a lot of time in Thai Visa and have seen it save lives. Literally. It can be a force for good.

But, apparently my mere existence irritates some people and they latch onto every post I make, dissecting and misquoting it. Some guys just think that western women (esp. those of a certain age) shouldn't be allowed to live in Thailand.

Some of the most vocal critics are obviously Chiang Mai locals. They take potshots at what I've done in assuming leadership of the CM Expats Club, yet they refuse to step forward to contribute any effort themselves.

They search the internet for evidence of problems with Rotary, one of Hubby's activities. An organization of 1.2 million members with nearly 110 years of history is going to have had an issue or two. Oh -- that one post alleging a problem with a CM Rotary world was way-out-of-line and I hope everyone goes back and reads the response from the person who made the allegation once I challenged him to provide more details.

In short, there are people who simply can't believe that Hubby and I simply want to contribute to our community. They think we have another agenda when one doesn't exists.

This is the second time I have ever quoted one of your posts, the other being in this thread so no stalking from me. The problem I have is you claim one countries citizens are more prone to scam using the veil of an organisation than others. The world over there are con men, murderer's, druggies etc no country wants them or are proud of them but they exist. If I said America seems to have more pedo's in Thailand than others I would rightly be called to question because its simply not true.

Don't flatter yourself by thinking we all care what you do in your retirement.