MiKT
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A cautionary tale,
I went to one stop last week to extend my work permit, but they would not accept that September the 26th was an acceptable date to prove my visa was still valid (its actually valid till Feb 2021, but of course missing the 90 day chop as I could not leave the country and come back). They insisted that I had to get an EOT stamp in my passport. One stop immigration said they could not help as I "only" have a Thai Wife O visa and they only deal with those who have a B visa (why I have not a B is another story- see below). So I went to Pattaya immigration (the worst immigration department in the whole country) and asked for a 60 day extension. They said ok, but where is your wife? She must be with you to get an extension.
Unfortunately she is in Buri Ram at the moment so I had to drive to Buri Ram. Fortunately, the Buri Ram immigration office are really nice and I know most of the staff because I was one of their first customers when they opened the new immigration office about 3 years ago; and they thought it was very funny that one stop would not accept the September the 26th Government date. So they gave me a 60 day extension, but instead of dating it from the 31st August, they dated it starting from the 26th September, making it valid for nearly 90 days. Nice people in BR.
However, all this buggering about meant that my work permit was now out of date (do not believe those who tell you that there is a 10 day grace period) so now have to apply for new work permit.
Re why I don't have a B visa.
The company I work for now took me to one stop to get a work permit last year (2019) but as the personnel people were new and had not done this before, they were missing some documents, this meant we were sitting around all day waiting for them to get the right docs. Just before one stop closed we got the work permit, but it then turned out that they did not have the right papers to get a B visa.
This did not matter, except I still have to leave every 90 days as previously, because I decline to put money in the governments pockets and it has never been a problem for me to pop into Cambodia or Lao or Malaysia and immediately come back to get the chop in my passport. However, I may change this soon as last time I went to Cambodia the colonel in charge of the Arynaprathet crossing was extraordinarily rude to me, insisting I show 20 K baht, even though my car was outside. But he was rude to everyone else as well, as they were going through one of the traditional hate all farangs contretemps. Maybe this will change after K19 has cooled down and they want people back in Thailand.
Question - probably for Jo, Thanks in advance.
Can you still get a work permit if you have a retirement visa? I always though you could not, but the immigration officer in Buri Ram seemed to think it was ok.
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Oh wow, how I hate to see all his "anti-Thai everything" <deleted>. Yes there can be (certainly are) some lousy electrical installations, but this is down to individuals mostly using their local road sweeper or their brother-in-law as a cheap alternative to getting someone at least partially qualified to do the job.
If you live in a dwelling that has not got adequate earthing, circuit breakers and RCD's then you certainly deserve to have to pull the plug on your washing machine any time you want to empty the machine, its just ridiculous. What about your fridge, or TV, or.............. but in any case, if there is a fault in the washing machine, it is unlikely to be Thailand's fault, I can't recall any local manufacturers. In fact, in common with most counties, Thailand laws insist that electrical appliances are safe when sold, as you can see by todays article on a person killed by a faulty pressure washer, imported via the internet.
It is your own responsibility to keep yourself and your family safe by having a safe electrical installation in your house; and its the same in every country. I was once blown right across the kitchen and had black and blue bruises all down my chest and arms because I leant on the washing machine and the cold water tap in a flat I had recently moved into.
Naturally I had checked that the electricity outlets were all the latest (British 3 square pin) items, but on investigating I found that the was no earth wire in the place and the fuses were only on the neutral wires.
Where was this wonderful death trap............... England of course.
If you have the slightest worry about the electrical (or plumbing come to that) installation in your housing, don't risk your families health, write (send photo's) to Crossy, he really is an expert on Thai home installations.
Thais can build railways, airports, etc. in accordance with the strictest international standards and the actual standard of Thai workmanship in properly supervised installations (with Thai supervisors before you gloat) is as good as in any country.
And...........bleating about Thai doctors and dentists, is just pathetic, I have lived and worked in 16 different countries and none of them, including UK, Germany, France (especially France) have as good hospitals and doctors as in Thailand. As for dentists, some of the best in the world work here and medical tourism was (before C19) a very flourishing business as the costs are much lower than other countries.
Bah Humbug, why do you live here if everything is so bad?
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Shimbo is in BR this week and tells me the same story about a damaged pipe and the water levels being very low in the reservoir.
Luckily we put in a deep well about 22 years ago, but this has not been possible for many years now, as the authority knows the ground water levels are very low. You need special permission for a well in BR now.
We have 4 tanks in BR, but normally only use the well water for watering the plants and the government water for home use.
Situation in Pattaya house is much worse as we frequently have no water and have to call the tank truck. The main problem is that our main tank is elevated so we use one pump to fill the tank and one fed from the tank to provide pressurised water upstairs and downstairs into the home. But with the low water levels there is insufficient water pressure to properly operate the input pump so it keeps running and overheats and I had to I put in another smaller tank at ground level last week to provide a bit of a head to feed the input pump. This also enabled me to put in a float switch to turn off the input pump when the lower tank is getting empty.
Its terrible when we have to use the tanker truck as the water is absolutory filthy and sometimes smells really awful. I think he fills it from the drains!
With all the new condos in Pattaya, somebody must be shelling out to keep their swimming pools filled up.
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On 6/21/2020 at 6:23 PM, richard_smith237 said:
My Wife also has the 10 year visit Visa. Applying for the spouse Visa is only worth while if a family are planning to live in the UK (it costs about £1500, there is also a health service Surcharge (£400 per year)
If I’m not mistaken someone on a Spouse Visa has to remain in the UK for a specific amount of time.
If I am not mistaken, it may be possible for your Wife to travel to the UK (as she is already holding a visa), entry is down to the discretion of the Immigration Officer upon arrival.
Eva Air and Qatar Airways seem to have flights.
Thanks for nice replies and (as always) useful info from Ubonjoe.
Just to clear things up, after a lot of buggering about here in Thailand, we found out that (at that time - pre 2006) you could adopt a Thai child here, but they would not be awarded UK citizenship. So in 2006, we obtained a settlement visa for my wife (+ a visa for the only one of my three Thai daughters still under the age of 18) and went to the UK to live.
My wife got all the papers for the citizenship exam and hired a tutor (what a pain in the ass that exam is, who the hell, except the obvious few, needs to know all about the Welsh parliament) and we (after a huge amount of a hard work) managed to complete all the adoption formalities. Finally, after a high court appearance (with a very nice Judge) my daughter was formally adopted and obtained a UK birth certificate - followed quickly by a UK passport.
However, after nearly 3 years in the UK with several trips home, it became apparent that my wife would never settle permanently in the UK and we came home; although my daughter remained in the UK and has lived there ever since.
So my wife gave up on obtaining UK citizenship for herself and we got her a 10 year visa with no hassles. Now she goes to the UK to stay with our daughter, or her sister, for up-to 6 months every year and is currently on her second 10 year visa, which suits us all perfectly. Of course I can stay in the UK at any time, its the on-going never ending hassle because I want to live here that is the problem.
Also, incredibly, we still have problems obtaining UK visitor visa's for her sisters. Last time we applied a couple of years ago one daughter was refused a visa because she had not visited the UK enough and by the same immigration officer on the same day, the other daughter was refused a visa because she had visited the UK too many times.
My on-going saga of trying to right this wrong and the unbelievable cock-ups by the appeal judges, which has soured my previously unshakable faith in British justice, has been aired on TV before and is too long to go into here.
Anyway
My original query was simply to find out if she was able to fly to the UK now and if she needed to carry out any special entry formalities.
Seems all is clear now and she will go in a couple of weeks.
Thanks again to all and I hope that it will be easer; and safer, for us all to travel anywhere asap.
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My wife has a 10 year UK visa. When can she fly to England to visit our daughter)?
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58 minutes ago, berybert said:
Leave the doors open, it worked before.
Good idea, you can trail your feet along the 3rd rail.
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2 hours ago, Leaver said:
Are you a moderator?
So the thread went a little of topic. Given the circumstance we all find ourselves in, I'm not surprised. What's the big deal?
No big deal, I just felt like driveling or maybe with two l' 's . Not surprising given the circumstances. More of an immoderator really.
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9 minutes ago, Leaver said:
I am sure many governments around the world have considered this crisis the perfect opportunity to ban cash, if only for a short period, to flush out tax evaders, criminals etc.
what do you need - sign language? this post is nothing to do with Pattaya. Maybe you are one of those who just the sound of its name has you on your knees quaking in the dust and then praying for forgiveness for just thinking about the evil things that could happen when somebody is on their knees in this (alleged) modern Sodom and Gomorrah and would be so ecstatic about closing walking street it would sit on your shoulders like a hair shirt on a stoic.
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52 minutes ago, Leaver said:
if it's declared worthless, after a particular date, then you have nothing to trade to goods and services.
I am not sure I will see a cashless society in my time, but it will happen.
How did this story about Pattaya get hijacked to a cashless story?
On thing is for certain, if you are cashless in Pattaya you will have no honey.
Not that there is a Cornucopia of honeys on display in Pattaya at the moment, but I imagine waving some plastic into a telephone could magic some up in short order, so it might be of use after all.
So nice driving around though, just like 25 years ago, speeding, speeding around without a care - oh the bad class of people you meet in Pattaya. Allegedly.
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35 minutes ago, Gweiloman said:
I made no mention of the sex scene in Thailand, this thread is about Pattaya.
Most people associate the sex scene in Pattaya with WS, soi 6, Beach Rd etc. And the sex scene for locals do not cater to the farang sexpats going to Pattaya. I will be very happy to see WS etc shut down.
In which side street did you purchase that crystal ball? I suggest you ask for a refund lol. And why should I leave?
Thailand, Pattaya, please work on your English comprehension - Sorry if you think the sex scene for locals does not cater for farang expats - money counts whatever your colour and origin...………..of course this is all alleged, second hand information, I know nothing of these things personally, 555 555 555
But why would you be happy to shut down Walking street? It is located right by the sea and surely does not intrude on your domain.
Do you have a problem with other people having sex?
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47 minutes ago, kingdong said:
I hope you are right, I only know what she told me. maybe it depends where you live (and your colour)?
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1 hour ago, Melbun said:
On 3/30/2020 at 1:11 PM, Boomer6969 said:
Isn't COVID a golden opportunity to rethink this place 100%? They should hire consultants from Korea or Singapore to come up with some plan plan as no-one in Thailand has the brain, nor backbone, for that sort of achievement.
WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHat ?? Go jump.
Singapore is a police state and Korea is starting to embrace feminism. Oh charming great idea Boomer 6969 to infect Thailand with that way of life.
Feminism, my god, I did not realise things had got that bad. But, look on the bright side, many more Korean tourists for Pattaya when things settle down again. …………..Mmmmm financially good, but more Koreans?????
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On 3/30/2020 at 9:11 AM, Boomer6969 said:
Isn't COVID a golden opportunity to rethink this place 100%? They should hire consultants from Korea or Singapore to come up with some plan plan as no-one in Thailand has the brain, nor backbone, for that sort of achievement.
WHAT? like living in 2Km square Singapore with is few meters of artificial - oil polluted beaches, island wide terrible air pollution, draconian laws and many hours wait to get in or out to Malaysia by road on weekends, instead of Thailand - with air pollution mostly limited to cities, good beaches and thousands of attractive holiday venues. You have to be joking. Only good thing is the Mass Transit railway and Thailand is catching up fast.
And Korea, nothing exciting about living there, couple of nice mini mountains and good train services, but terrible traffic jams to get in or out of Seoul at weekends. Traffic a daily nightmare worse than Bangkok and more aggressive driving + miles and miles of identical high rise housing. Also bloody cold and snowy in the winter, lousy, lousy beaches for the most part and very limited places to go due to the mountainous topography of the entire county. Also, also shopping in Thailand is much, much better (and cheaper) than either Singapore or Korea.
Brain or backbone ??? What could they teach Thailand, with some amazing architecture compared to Singapore or Korea? - rail services yes, but Thailand is expanding these fast. And Singapore is such a tiny blot on the ocean compared to Thailand that it can only be compared with KT not the whole of Thailand.
Sure, like everywhere in Thailand Pattaya suffers from lack of proper planning and the roads are terrible, but its more fun and has many more amenities and attractions (and at much lower prices) than anywhere in Singapore or Korea.
Plus, both of those countries rely on Thai girls for their "entertainment" and make up a good proportion of the visitors who come to Pattaya for their "fun" as its sooooooo boring staying at home.
Why is Thai knocking so prevalent, I was just talking to one of my (many)daughters (a Thai one) who lives in England and its a shambles, with masks and gel unavailable and nobody bothering to wear them anyway, but police forcing everybody to stay at home, tracking your movements by your mobile phone and fining you if you go out twice in one day. its getting to be worse than China.
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Wife stuck in Buri Ram and walking street and all "outlets" closed - just my luck.
Joke, Joke, swmbo would kill me long before C19.
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On 1/19/2020 at 1:36 PM, Yom said:
MiKT,
I'm really sorry for you. - All the best for the future.Replacing 'kite' with 'dog' I might tell you a very similar story.For some reason the former policeman wants to annoy you.Stay away from this man and from his kite.You probably can't do anything at all. I don't see a good way.So: move or try to endure it.Sometimes a short vacation might help...thanks for you comments, unfortunately its not easy to move an 11 rai resort. Still I expect things to improve (in one way) as some of the open land adjacent to ours is being sold off in building plot size lots now and eventually the open area will be reduced. So they will have to go elsewhere (plenty of options)……...eventually.
Also this winter season I have not actually been at home in Buri Ram and only my poor sisters in law are being bothered by the noise. It seems like such a silly complaint, until you have to endure the peculiar noise all day and all night. Would be good for physiological "keep awake" torture sessions.
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On 1/20/2020 at 12:18 AM, sirineou said:
As kids we flew fighting kites . there were many different types but the best ones were the triangular shape ones because they were very maneuverable/
for he tail we would take a piece of paper roll it up and cut it lengthwise to two inches from the top,it would effectively make like handlebar tassels
These tassels would be infused with double sided razor blades, and the tail consisted of these tales lied to a string every 6 or 7 inches.
Maneuver your kite in the vicinity of the other kite and keep jerking the line maling the kite flu left and right , trust me you will find his line.
Yes, I flew an ex army signalling kite used to raise radio aerials. But the locals are really big buggers and the "string" is steel cable you can't cut it with a razor blade. I don't cut their cables, but occasionally sneak out and wind one in and cut off the "wow" strip. But since the area is infested with snakes, its not always a good idea to be walking around in the dark trying to wrestle a kite down without a winder.
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On 1/8/2020 at 10:15 PM, Enki said:
Well, point is: here they make music, not just wow wow wow ...
music would be good and as I have said earlier, their is nothing cultural about torturing plastic strips.
Anyway, it is not just me, other members of my family and other nearby residents also object to the noises caused by a selfish few (read mostly one person) who puts up his noisy kites in the late evening and then goes home a long way away. He can get no pleasure from that.
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26 minutes ago, Dumbastheycome said:
As an "noise" issue do you feel it is appropriate to object to a sound that annoys you any more than the other excesses common in Thailand? Have you established a communal consensus of support in your objection to a traditional activity? Or perhaps even the distressing sound of babies incessantly crying?
Scottish bagpipe music that lasts more than 2 minutes? Kareoke singers who have no chance in hell of qualifying in any competition but insist on grinding out a sound that could break rocks or glass depending on which random pitch they accomplish at any moment?
So what is that whining sound I hear?
Well, if you had really assimilated my post, you would have noted that my resort is just across the road from the new international race track in Buri Ram, so it can be very, very noisy, even all night races and the frequent concerts at the track and football stadium, not to mention the monks next door loudspeakers and the local village news loudspeakers that open at 5AM. I have no problem with any of that, only the constant, certainly not traditional, noise of highly tensioned plastic strips being tortured all night.
NB I would have no problem with Traditional bagpipes all night, or a nice traditional "Korn" or even traditional drums, they will not be hovering over my head.
After 8 kids the sound of babies crying is "what noise"
NB (again) Thailand has a traditional cure for Kareoke singers, just check with the dentists association.
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9 hours ago, Enoon said:
Unbelievable.
Sometimes have 12 up over the village here, that's their world....it's beautiful.
You are the problem.
Not a centuries old tradition.
Glad to hear that you have complained about it and that a "Thai solution" will probably be found to fix you.
Amazing, you had it all but now you've blown it.
well, its nice to finally have a reply to a post I made 4 months ago, but hey, glad it has finally got you excited.
I am not sure if you have really read and assimilated my post, which is far from anti-kite flying, which I love, it is the louts who send up their kites in the late evening, when they can barely be seen, then jump in their pick-up and go home leaving the noisy buggers to annoy us all night that I object to. Those that fly all night, using attached lights without "wow" strips are of course very welcome.
I know there are other explanations for the "wow' word, but around here it applies to the strip that is attached to a "bow" that is under the kite and oscillates in the wind causing the "wow" noise that can be so loud and annoying.
Making " wow" kites is an old and lovely tradition using traditional bamboo and banana leaf strips. it is the modern materials that they use here that cause the problem. They use "wow" strips made from 1/2" wide packing case strapping (which is heavy duty plastic) attached to the bow via nylon line so the tension on the bow is quite a lot, Nothing traditional about that. Particularly as the steel strings allow the kites to fly in very strong winds, thus amplifying the noise.
Not quite sure what you think I have "blown", or why I am the problem. I only object to the noise all night, especially because the kite flyers are not there to "appreciate" it.
Hope you can continue to enjoy kites over your village and that they don't fly right over your place and "wow" all night for you.
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Thanks very much for your swift reply, my aging brain has just told me that for my last WP in 2016 I only went to One-Stop and they did the WP and stamped the red B visa chop (not a stick-on one) in my passport at the same time.
The Thai company I was with in 2016 had an agent (useless) who eventually got all the right paperwork from the company (who had never employed an expat before) but it took a bit of getting it right.
If I remember it correctly, I only went overseas (HK) for my first wp visa back in 1995, after that it was updated every 2 years by the (farang) company staff until I left them in 2006 and I think that after the first time, or maybe second time, I did not even need to go to the visa office (pre One-stop?) in person.
My current company have employed quite a few expats and say they have the right paperwork, so I think I will give it a go at One-Stop.
Thanks again
Yes, it is only called a "Non-Immigrant B" Visa, but for some obscure reason I always call it a "Non-Res B" must be from some other countries.
Sorry to disappoint Crossy, I can't think of anybody I want to whittle with my piercing wit today, must be cracking-up - from the foot up probably.
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would the somone be kind enough to remind this old fool if a letter from your employer is still all that is required to obtain a Non- Res B and also if Laos is still issuing Non -Res B's. Ta very
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I like that idea. but...
there are actually big kite battle festivals somewhere in Thailand (I forget where) and they use glass coated string to cut the opposing kites string. Must look it up. Unfortunately our guy uses steel wire, which adds to the noise.
To answer another post, the noise depends upon the material of the "wow" , the tension it is under and the wind velocity. Our bastard flier's kites are very noisy indeed and can be heard over the TV. When they go on all day and all night it certainly is not peaceful.
We have motorbike/car races that go on all night in the stadium, but they don't bother me the way the kite noise does.
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Not as easy as it seems.
Although we have had some land in Buri Ram for about 18 years, it is only for the last 3 years that we have been building a small resort and a house here because the new football stadium and race track were built quite near our land.
There is a very large area of open land adjacent to ours (allegedly owned by the family that also built the race track) but this is normally just used as grazing land by local cow farmers.
In the winter months this is ideal kite flying countryside and lots of locals come at different times to fly their kites. Lovely, I love kites and often flew a large army surplus arial flying kite as a child, especially at night with a light on. But the local kites are huge and have long tails and some have strips of bamboo/plastic that vibrate in the wind and make a "wowing" sound. This is why kites are called "wow's" in Thailand.
But the problem here is that one or two BR locals have a lot of kites and one in particular who is (allegedly) an ex policeman who thinks he can do whatever he likes (often driving his pick-up at speed around the local lanes) has for the last 3 years ignored my polite requests to remove the wow strip from his kites and delights in flying them as close to our land as possible all night.
Last year somebody did go out one night and haul in one kite and the wow strip disappeared, but would not want anybody to damage the expensive wire strings that they use for these kites.
Also, it is incredibly hard to actually locate the strings at night and the area is full of snakes, so its not as easy as it sounds.
I want the family to talk to the local headman, but they think this ex cop has too much influence. I went to talk to him again the other day, but before I could speak he assaulted me and I had to defend myself, then I was surrounded by some adults and kids all chanting "Thailand, Thailand" as if anybody else who lives near is not Thai and it was most unpleasant.
He does not actually live in our village, just comes in sets up his kites and goes home but some of his friends do live here and my family are very reluctant to do anything. I know some locals hate the noise, but TIT nobody will do anything and nobody will call the local cops as they think they are his friends.
Ear plugs help, but it is not a nice situation.
There has been a huge drive to attract overseas tourists and Thai visitors to Buri Ram and some have complained about the kite noise, but some locals just don't care.
We don't have a lot of money for lawyers and anyway that would only alienate more of the villagers. So any "Thai" solutions that come to mind will be gratefully examined.
Yes, extermination has been considered many a noisy night, but swmbo will not hear of it. (pun intended).
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Attack at protest in Jomtien: "Ken" charged with assault after headbutting critical Russian
in Pattaya News
Posted
it is illegal (and extremely barmy) for foreigners to get involved with Thai protests; and some of those who were identified back in 2010 were quietly advised not to come back...........or else.
Read the advise from your embassy if you want to know how to behave during protests in Thailand. ie STAY AT HOME - much the same for any country.
What makes me really sick is stupid idiots blaming Pattaya again or blaming Redshirts again. Pattaya is a place, it does not move about or stagger around drunk touching-up and abusing Thai women and wondering why they got beat-up. Its the people who come here that cause the trouble. Like the many very, very unpopular Russians who only too frequently cause problems here.
The Redshirts did not initiate the violence in 2010 but only too many were were murdered on the orders of the very same politician who later arranged for the the army (who admitted colluding with Yellow shirts) to illegibly depose the legitimate, democratically elected government. So no doubt any Thai (especially one identified as an ex Redshirt) participating in a protest in this day and age is really on a knife edge and strung out because they know that they are taking terrible risks to their life and liberty and do not need a big mouth Russian expressing his pathetic views in front of his 1/2 Thai daughter; who is clinging on because she knows that he is only an 1/4 inch (6.5 mm) from getting shot and is bravely trying to protect the stupid fool.
I don't condone the violence, but even anybody who has half a brain (even your average Pattaya Russian visitor
) could anticipate it; especially someone who apparently thinks he knows enough to express his stupid views to a Thai protestor.
This is Thailand and its no good pontificating about how people should behave in a civilized manner in the middle of a protest that is more likely to see them dragged off to jail than anything else (I suppose we could look to Russia or the US for good examples, 5,5,5).
No doubt the Russian is nursing a sore nose, but I wonder how many of the protesters are free right now, and can look forward to staying that way for long?