geriatrickid

Sort of like Log Cabin republicans expressing disdain for transgenders or Mormons who deny that they masturbate. Most people under the age of 40 have either used or have friends or family who have used at some point in their life.

Type A. 1. They cannot get by elsewhere. 2. They are financially limited and prefer to be impoverished in a place where they need not have an extensive wardrobe or worry about looking like winos on the lam. 3. They are mentally ill and socially inept. Thailand affords them the opportunity to avoid others. 4. They are deadbeat parents, or criminals, or sexual deviants or so hated by their former families, associates, etc. that they have to stay in Thailand. Type B. 1. Financially secure because of wise retirement planning or gainfully employed at a job they enjoy and need not worry about financial constraints. 2. They have family here and many friends made over the years such that this has become their home. Social contacts and links are strong. 3. Too old and too set in their ways to want to move again, particularly if they are happy staying where they are despite some of the hassles. Hua Hin/Cha Am, Chiang Mai, Bangkok and wealthier enclaves of Phuket have many Type B people.

I will not be replacing my Mac book with another. I ditched my iphone and cannot be happier. No more throttling of speeds or battery hijinks. My ipod battery wore out years ago and after 2 of them, I never replaced it. I don't use most of the gimmicks on my Mac and work almost exclusively in win word and XL. I hate the windows office for Mac and prefer to use my work or mobile PCs. My Mac was intended for field work and when traveling. With the new products available from competitors, Apple technology has lost its edge. Apple was wonderful 5 years ago, but is losing market share with good reason. I have also realized that with the money I will save, I can upgrade my laptops every 3 years. I don't feel as bad when something breaks either, and boy were my apple products unreliable.

Seriously? You recommend that someone run the risk of a taxi who will refuse to use a meter, or a taxi against which there is little recourse? You recommend an unlawful act. What normal person wants to climb over a grimy barrier and run those risks all for 50 baht? When departing from the taxi lines downstairs, one is given evidence of the driver & vehicle and can easily make a complaint against a driver who can be tracked down. Very handy if one forgets a bag or loses something in the taxi or has a dispute with the driver.

Nominated by the PM of Japan, a man who continues to refuse to apologize for the atrocities against allied servicemen and women during the liberation of the Pacific, who has continued Japan's refusal to accept responsibility for the genocide against the Chinese and Koreans during the barbaric occupation of China and Korea. And the same PM who supports the expansion of Japan's slaughter of endangered whales. Had Trump been a military veteran or had a member of his family who had served on behalf of his country he would have some respect for the tens of thousands of US servicemen who volunteered for service and who were starved or tortured to death or murdered by the Japanese military. Trump has no moral compass in conniving with a man who pays homage at a shrine that holds the remains of the vile scum who slaughtered Australian and Canadian POWs who were to ill or wounded to go on a death march to the Japanese slave labour camps. The same shrine that holds the remains of the commanders of the Batan death march that decimated the .US POWS. Zero moral compass, Zero values and zero respect for WWII veterans who are still waiting for a full apology from Japan.

Aha. One of those traveler folk. LOL. The man doesn't look too classy and I do wonder as to the type of "tour" he was selling. Having been to Krabi, my experience was that the tour vendors were exclusively Thai, so I expect there is more to the story.

Why? A sane and rational person is not going to kill himself over a visa. Anyone at risk, will also be at risk for many other reasons. Thailand is chock full of mentally ill foreigners. look at the forums and you will see people listing their diagnosed illnesses like mania, alcoholism, bipolar disorder, OCD, schizophrenia, depression etc.

No. I offer that he was just another mentally ill foreigner who picked Thailand because of its easy visa requirements. If it wasn't a visa, it would have been one of the other usual reasons the news threads are full of, like his state benefits money not clearing, or his "companion" left him for another customer etc. The man is mentally ill all by himself.

Go local means to go and ask people what happened. As you seem to know the soi where this occurred, why not check with the locals and see what they have to say. What's your take on the claim that he was chasing and tormenting the dog? Why do you think the dog was cowering under a car? Do you want the address of where this occurred or are you just mouthing off because this is your way to feel important by piling on to a thread that supports a misfit who was firing off his gun in a public place without any concern to who he might have shot? Do you not understand that this idiot shot up a street? Next time someone randomly discharges a firearm, I hope it is in close proximity to your head so that you can experience the noise and enjoy the sensation of bullets. If you are nowhere near Cha Am, then I suggest you read the facebook page of the organization that complained. You can contact them and ask for their version. The organization was contacted after onlookers were upset by what they saw. It's not as if the police came and disarmed the maniac. the man's a jerk, but you and others are of the view that it is just fine to shoot up the street like its the OK Corral. The claim that the small dog was attacking people has not been substantiated. we have only the man who shot up the street who says this. Please direct me to the witnesses who corroborate the man's story. There are absolutely no published statements that support the man's version of events. I will not be surprised if the man was drunk or hung over. He had been reprimanded for being useless. He did what other idiots do around here, and had a fit of rage with displaced aggression. Residents are lucky it was not a road rage incident.

I am waiting for yoga with goats.

There is no evidence such as eyewitness reports to support that the dog was biting anyone. The man gave that reason to justify chasing down the puppy and shooting it as it lay cowering under a car. If you consider that to be very heroic and worthy of a medal, you fit in well in Thailand.

Go local and find out. He got the wrong dog. He 'allegedly" went after the harmless small one and had already been tormenting it. There is a reason why the dog was cowering under a car. That is why people reported him. Well, that and his bizarre tantrum that had him discharging a firearm in a public place. Perhaps if he had done his job instead of lazing about...... My old condo used to have a guard to watch the garage. He just slept in his booth. He lost his job after multiple complaints.

I am delighted that the locals address me in the English language as it ensures that a distance is established. I do not wish to converse with them anyway. To be blunt, they mumble, and the ambient noise in the restaurant is so loud that I can't hear them clearly anyway. And no I am not hard of hearing as I must turn down the telly when we watch. The worst part is that I often cannot read the menu. I have taken to using the light on my phone, if I cannot sit under a light.

At least you are honest. Yes, you are correct, Thailand is not a place for financially marginal foreigners, or to be blunt, poor. No more so than the USA is a welcoming place for impoverished foreigners. As a military veteran you can access the VA health system and despite all tis faults it is superior to what Thais can access. You are wise to not stay in Thailand if you cannot obtain critical health care. In respect to the Visa hassles and the very rare verification of immigration status by a physical stop and check, now you have a whiff of what legal latin American visitors and alien residents must contend with. The reality is that Thailand really isn't doing anything that the west doesn't do in respect to immigration requirements. if anything Thailand sets the bar much lower. If Thailand adjusted its financial requirements for inflation, I expect that foreigners would have to show 2 million+ baht. The changes with immigration are bad news for some foreigners, but excellent and welcome for others. It may finally clear out alot of the marginals who have run up unpaid medical bills or who run boiler shop operations or operate motorcycle gangs or recruit for pornography etc.

No one has supported his claim that the puppy had bitten anyone. This is the size of the dog he ruthlessly tormented and then shot at as it tried to hide from his savage kicks. This is basically what he killed.