[Myanmar military retreat from border town following rebel attacks]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The Myanmar military, which seized power in a 2021 coup, deposing an elected civilian government

same same Thailand ? different year same shenanaigans.

 

I can see Cambodia eventually devolving into Civil War eventually.

[To die (with wealth) or not to die, that is the question.]

10 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

It's so sad to think a person can live their life without any children. 

 

Some of us don't lack the imagination you seem to lack ?  The vast majority in the developed world when educated. reasonably well off and are free to choose, have no, or maybe only a child and  thank goodness, or the 8 billion we do have would be many, many more.

[To die (with wealth) or not to die, that is the question.]

11 hours ago, sidjameson said:

I know I should drawdown. But at 56 find it difficult to start. This question will only get bigger as I age.

Interested in others experiences.

This is a thing apparently that's common after doing some reading on behavioral "science".  If you've been frugal (as in spent less then you earned)  and constrained your spending ,worked towards building up a nest egg that's taken decades, it can be quite confronting to seemingly "destroy" all that progress. I am 58 and am similar, have no kids to leave anything too (deliberate choice as a world of 8 Billion and growing surely doesn't need more) so just gifted in an a will to reputable charities. I retired at 35.  Only thing that would worry me would be having to go back to work again, so I am still "frugal" but content, just in case.

[Tragic scooter crash in Thailand leaves Queensland dad in coma]

12 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I think I remember Thailand wanted to make sure every tourist has a health insurance.

What happened to that project?

If he wasn't wearing a helmet as seemingly stated in the article (his partner was) (i.e breaking the law ) his insurance would be invalid anyway, similarly riding drunk and crashing, invalid insurance, unlicensed, invalid insirance .  More insurance wont; solve the problem.  One possible suggestion, you could set up a no fault system similar to NZ and treat people for their injuries regardless of poor decision making.

 

Commiserations to him and his family though, a terrible time ahead

[Angry Russian Tourist Forcefully Shaves Part of Pattaya Barber’s Hair]

On 2/3/2024 at 10:12 AM, spidermike007 said:

Personally, I have met very few friendly Russians.

We met some once (my parter and I) at the waterpark near Jomtien once, they spoke English well enough for us to converse, so perhaps they were wider traveled ? 

 

We stayed in Jomtein for a couple months and at the end of the hallway in VT 5 and the guy at the end was an older Russian guy (mid 40s ?)with a young kid, we used to leave the door open when it was hot and she'd come in and interact with my partner, bored for friends I assume ? Dad wandered down the first few times to shew'd her back but we assured him she was was no problems and came down a few times a week after that. He was polite and friendly.

 

a couple young Russians on their honeymoon having foot massages another time, sitting beside me. Got to chatting, in very broken English, so I shouted them their massage as a wedding present.  Wonder if he's now fighting in Ukraine <sigh>

 

I remember  a thread years ago saying its mostly the boorish Russian types that travel to Thailand from an older Russian guy, I pointed out same same with us Australian's 🙂

[Supreme Court dismisses Yingluck in abuse of power case]

On 12/26/2023 at 9:50 PM, BritManToo said:

Tell that to America!

Well, there the military didn't endorse the coup (as General Milley stated) and the military stepped back from it, which is the difference to Thailand... Same thing happened in Myanmar except the people there are pushing back.

 

Her being thrown out by a military coup should see Generals being tried for treason.

[30 Day Extensions can only be done one (1) business day prior expiry!!!]

A visa isn't entitled right, so what happens if they don't renew ? How long do you have to leave he country if you can only renew the day before ?

[Retirement Visa Medical Insurance]

On 5/20/2023 at 4:55 PM, BritTim said:

If money in the bank is not a problem, the easy solution is for your mother to enter with a tourist visa, establish a bank account in her name, deposit 800,000 baht, and get a Non O visa and subsequent extensions based on retirement.

 

 

Short of offering a bribe (ie use an agent"" to get around the rules) I have never been able to do that.  I am just not ok with offering bribes so I never pursued it.   The three trips I have been on where I tired to open an account across multiple banks in multiple locations I was always refused and was informed  I needed a Non O retirement visa BEFORE they would open an account.  How ?  I needed to get the correct Visa in my home country (Australia) then arrive and open an account.

 

perhaps things have changed ?

[Apply for non-o retirement Visa tm30 from hotel not accepted?]

8 hours ago, flexomike said:

u must have at least 15 days left on your visa exempt entry plus 800,000 baht in the bank on the day of application

Which is always  the Catch 22 for me, the banks wont open an account until I have the "Retirement VIsa", I can't get said visa because I don't have a bank account to put the Baht in... ( i tried this several times when I visited pre covid running around to banks people said would open an account with a 30 Day visa waiver who when in there would not open an account)

 

I am fine with some paperwork and back and forth but after 5 banks I gave up. Of course I can apply in my home country (Australia) and get the visa that way and arrive and open a bank account presumably...but when I get back to Aus that never seems of interest ????

[Brit in intensive care after Thailand moped crash as family can't afford to get him home]

3 hours ago, John Drake said:

As this story and so many similar ones we see constantly on AN indicate, this is overwhelmingly a problem for young tourists. But when the calls for mandatory insurance pop up, it's always for retirement visas. From all these anecdotal events, it seems to me that retirees are a lot less likely to run up and then run out on giant hospital bills in Thailand than are the unprepared young tourists. 

He had insurance they're just not paying up because he didn't wear a helmet apparently.  Insurance rarely pays when you are breaking the law eg fleeing the scene of a crime on your scooter and crash,  insurance won't be paying up. You'd have to change it to a no fault system and that would need to be funded by a tax on entry for all tourist visas or VOAs presumably, if you want that to change but even then, people taking the p!ss on overstays would likely not be covered... so...

[Will Thailand’s new residency visa achieve results?]

1 hour ago, digger70 said:

The visa fee is 10,000 Baht (or local currency equivalent if applying outside Thailand). (b) Applicants must have money deposited in Thai bank located in Thailand with the amount of not less than 1.8 million Baht and have income with the amount of not less than 1.2 million Baht per year.

 

Non – Immigrant Visa “O - X” (Long Stay 10 years)

https://consular.mfa.go.th › content › 80939-non-–-immi...

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a different visa but still, I love these visas, Must have X million deposited in a bank account in Thailand to apply. So I wonder into the bank on a Visa Free entry... , Teller: Sir you must have a retirement visa to open a bank account, ME: but I need a bank account to get a retirement visa.. blank look.. try next door at another bank, same same, give up and go to the bar.

[Will Thailand’s new residency visa achieve results?]

3 hours ago, Pib said:

 

Now if a person is apply for a LTR Pensioner visa (which is the most popular LTR visa type right now) then income requirement is at least 80K USD/year in pension/fixed income....or if having 40K-80K USD/year in pension/fixed income then a 250K USD investment in Thailand is also required.  And that 250K USD investment can be something like a condo/house that was bought years ago....does not have to be a recent buy.  But the value will be based on what the land department shows your originally paid for the residence and not its current value.  

 

The Pensioner one doesn't seem to be particularly onerous ? 80K USD p/a and > 50 yrs old ? I meet that BUT I am not officially drawing any pensions though, just don't like work and earn investment income. Am I reading it right that those are those the only two requirements ? I am very reluctant to own property in Thailand as there is no residency option so am not particularly interested in going down that path.

[Russian Tourist Physically Assaulted for Allegedly Refusing to Pay 60-Baht Bar Bill in Pattaya]

13 hours ago, Black Ops said:

the bar owner only identified as Ms. Jane

Riding a Stutz Bear Cat, Jim
ya know, those were different times
all the poets studied rules of verse
and those ladies they rolled their eyes

 

Sweet Jane

[Covid chaos descends again on Thailand’s foreign tourism sector amid cancellations and complaints]

16 hours ago, RAZZELL said:

Thai passport holders exempt ????

Bit hard to exempt citizens of the country from entry wouldn't you say ? Up to the countries who receive them when they leave Thailand  if they want proof of vaccination..  I guess they could insist Thai citizens are vaccinated before leaving  but the usual suspects in here would bang on about discrimination if it wasn't applied to foreigners I guess.  

 

As a precedent, Australia and New Zealand did ban their own citizens from arriving during the height of Covid, , with unfortunately very broad support from locals who were already home.

[Buffalo blizzard: Storm turns city into 'war zone']

7 hours ago, BritManToo said:

You're wrong, it's all been caused by global warming.

Indeed a collapsing polar vortex jet stream (as in perturbations in the linear flow) from the smaller temp differential  change due to the Arctic heating much more quickly then the tropics (aka polar amplification).  ie a wobbly jet stream (slower polar vortex) lets freezing air flow south and warm air north in other places.

 

 

[Thai Government Sets up New Department to Battle Climate Change]

12 hours ago, proton said:

You can't change the climate though

What ? of course you can change it, a century of climate science shows you humans have. The physics is not particularity controversial, whether you want to do anything is the strangely controversial part, the world has collectively decided not to do anything in regards mitigation but you will still need to adapt (sea level rise, bigger floods, longer droughts, bigger fires,  hotter weather, bigger stronger hurricanes/typhoons/cyclones etc) until it becomes beyond our ability to adapt and civilisation collapses, somewhere between 1.5 and 2 will see too many tipping points for us to stop it after that.

 

Shorter term you also need to modify how you interact with the world, for example Europe's new carbon border tax, you either lower your emission in the products you export, or pay much more tax to export to Europe, or you don't export to Europe but those are decisions that need to be made. 

 

 

[74 Year-Old British Man Arrested on Samui Island for 38 Days of Overstay]

2 hours ago, ukrules said:

I don't like the way this is proceeding.

 

What's the limit?

When will they be hanging around outside immigration offices waiting to arrest people turning up to correct accidental 1 or 2 day overstays? This might sound far fetched but I absolutely believe it will happen.

Surely the limit is easy to figure out, if you are a day over, you are an overstay ? How is this hard to figure out ? they might be agreeable to overlooking it for a day or two but that's another issue.   As to increased police and judicial zeal ? don't overstay might be one solution.  If it's all too hard (I am paperwork adverse, so its why I am not there), then go elsewhere. 

 

They don't have to stand outside, they can wait inside and get the nod from the counter staff.  The only place you have a right to be is where you have citizenship.

[Intoxicated Finnish tourist falls off motorbike and blacks out in middle of the road]

10 hours ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Theres got to be something wrong in Finland if the people need to drink so much 

A border with Russia, i'd be nervous as well.  That and looooong winters,

 

Jokes aside, they're not even in the top 20 according to this list, in fact #33

 

https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1148811/per-capita-alcohol-consumption-by-country

[Why is Thai immigration so <deleted>ty?]

14 hours ago, gejohesch said:

why should I get such a barrage at immigration?

??? odd question,  a visa isn't a guarantee of entry THAT decision is made by the immigration official upon arrival. AFAIK that's the same in every country in the world

[Phuket Officially Launches Crime-Free Initiative]

Police facing too much competition ?

[Paedophile Gary Glitter to be freed after serving half his 16-year jail sentence]

On 12/17/2022 at 10:59 PM, BusyB said:

I was always far too far into progressive rock from Zep to Purple, King Crimson etc to be anything except revolted by glam rock ????

A quick segue, I am  a huge fan of Slade, they sort of defined Glam, they transitioned into it (defined it ?) and then away.  Te likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Suzzie Quttro, Noel Gallager etc saying Noddy had the best voice in Rock 'n Roll, impacted the likes of Kiss and a bunch of others.

 

 

 

[Filthy sewage going into the sea in Jomtien - it's been happening for THREE YEARS!]

Looks like they just want to be like the UK ?

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/apr/19/sewage-island-how-britain-spews-untreated-waste-rivers-sea

[Do we all have to be activists these days or at least do we have to support those activists?]

I don't even understand the question, how do you think you got the right to vote ?

 

People who are treated badly often push back, some people support them, or at the very least their right to push back.

 

That the have to push back is something that perhaps needs more discussion on. 

[Unique opportunity 7-1-58 Land with house and fish pond]

Looks good, not being able to own it in my own name counts me out.

[Abandoned, Ailing Australian Woman Gets Help]

what the hell did I just read. Must be some back story, leg amputation from diabetes, covered in bed sores ? How dd she get to Thailand ? on one leg and then deteriorate and abandoned by her "friend" ? getting home will be... tricky ? hope she has a place back here to come to ?

 

"I think that this is general perception of all western embassies. The staff are just cocktail party people. "

 

I was told by the Australian Embassy in Camboida (via email cant get an appointment as an Aussie) they are there to facilitate trade, not to assist Australians citizens.