mixed

Not so much of that lately

It's a no brainer, everyone is at risk, the farang, the IOs and the wider Thai community. I've been here 25 years, expats have changed so much. There's now a lot of expats who enjoy seeing other farang suffer, with an 'I told you so, haha' attitude. It never used to be like this and is quite sad.

During the drug war in 2003 there were lots of rumors of people hearing gun shorts at night, a friend's brother being killed etc. I'm not hearing any of these rumors now. How about all the Muay Thai gyms? I'm not hearing of them being infected, only the people at the stadium itself. It is now more than two weeks since the Bangkok exodus. If it was spreading fast people in the provinces would be seeing cases. I haven't heard of any cases from the Bkk or the 'Little Ghosts' from Korea. Does anyone know of transmission occurring outside in an open environment here? I still reckon the weather is holding it back, because surely it's not the govt.

The story if from a month ago, it's now been proven wrong and I doubt the author would deny that. If there was a more recent article saying similar things you would have posted it.

All those countries hug, kiss and wave their hands a lot while talking loudly, all good ways to spread the virus. None of this happens in Asia and from what I've read Swedes have always practiced social distancing.

Yes and no, another name for covid is severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS did present a danger, just because it didn't happen doesn't mean we shouldn't have been concerned and acted. If it was a law and order issue or terrorism I don't think we'd have people saying it's an over reaction. For example the Trump ban on Muslims entering was seen by some as very important. How many people died from terrorism in the US over the past two years?

That story was written exactly a month ago. Now that Boris has it I'd be surprised if the author hasn't changed his opinion. Bird flu, Pig Flu, MERS all had potential for an epidemic. It has happened before and has been on the cards a long time. If this is an over reaction, what about 9/11 then? Only a few thousand deaths, yet look at the changes that were made. Yesterday alone 1,300 died in the US, tomorrow it'll probably be more.

"Over 60 and believe we should restore freedoms, the economy, and return to normal life" A couple of questions for this group: 1. Do you have stocks, bonds or some other funds that are being negatively affected by the lockdown? 2. How exactly would we 'return to a normal life' with so many sick and dieing, with health services stretched to breaking point? Sweden is about to change it policies, similar to Asia I believe cultural factors played a part in slow transmission.

That's an interesting point, Swedes are notorious for hating small talk and never chatting to strangers. The cultural factors are so overlooked, like Asians not even shaking hands while Italians are hugging, kissing, waving their hands and yelling. Another thing is that covid is most deadly to older males, which many in Sweden would be OK with.

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This is what I'm hearing from countries in the West, it's like they can't comprehend anything going seriously wrong. Australia is a great example, they've had 30 years of growth, no one has gone without for a long time. Young people who have grown up in safe spaces will really struggle.

As further evidence of this look at the transmission from the air con boxing stadium, with spectators jammed in and yelling. Compare this to the outside demonstrations in late Feb and mid March, everybody wore a mask and it was outside. I haven't heard of any transmission from these demos. Is anyone aware how many cases have transmitted outside in open air? Another factor is culture, Thais don't hug, kiss or even shake hands. They don't talk much on public transport and are generally reserved. The figures may not be accurate, but if it was really bad we'd be seeing evidence. For example during the drug war friends reported gun shots at night and stories of BIL etc. being shot.

I'm surprised the IOs are prepared to work under these conditions. Not long ago there was a shortage of IOs and long lines arriving at Swampy. Apparently this was due to officers not being willing to work there.