Bob

I am happy he won. But, very surprised and I wonder if this was too premature. He has done little so far other than speak words. I think it was a sign from the community to keep fighting the goof fight. I just really didn't think he had any deeds that deserved the award yet. I am still in shock from the announcement so perhaps more will come to light in the coming days. But, I still congratulate him.

Ditto....and I'm a big Obama fan. But maybe (hopefully) this will be one case where he earns the award after he's already gotten it.

...but every time she opened her mouth, I felt the urge to smack her across the knee with a pipe.

Lol. Same here. And I'd like to smack the other idiots on the show too.

Gotta disagree with you on the Amy Winehouse thing, though. Yes, she has turned herself into a trainwreck, there is no doubt about that. And yes, I am almost as sick of hearing about her as I am about every time Paris takes a crap or Britney walks her dog. However, Amy Winehouse, for all her other flaws, first gained attention for her talent.

Yea, guess I agree that she has some talent. But I mostly agree with the "trainwreck" comment.

P.S. Doesn't anybody remember Marky Mark, the popular (not by me) rap musician? That, folks, was Mark Wahlberg in his prior life. The underwear gig was much later.

I've used Vista since it came out and, frankly, haven't had any problems with it (other than a couple of my old programs never have worked well with Vista). And I'll probably switch over to the new operating system in a year or two (or when Microsoft quits supporting Vista).

Microsoft has quite the racket going. Issuing new and expensive operating systems that largely are patches for prior software that was terminally flawed. But, yea, I and a billion other people still use it and that helps pay for Gate's 60,000 square foot mansion in Washington state.

Continuing with the theme that there is no such thing as "bad taste" these days, there's a television program out there (a piece of crap, frankly, titled something like "World's Dumbest People) in which 5-6 so-called celebrities slam people for doing stupid things. One of the paid partipants is none other than Tonya Harding, the bitch that was involved in several incidents including the smashing of the knee of her olympic competitor, Nancy Kerrigan. And somebody pays her to appear on television? Unbelievable.

So, maybe Levi Johnston has a shot these days.

And why is my photo not there?

Your photo is there (on the forum page somewhere) but it's not your avatar (which would show up to the left of your posts).

I do not believe Levi Johnston has a snowball chance in hell to follow in the footsteps of Mark Wahlburg.

Well, I would have bet money against the proposition that Lorena Bobbit's victim would end up doing porn movies too. I'd have lost.

I'm continually amazed by who or what ends up being popular these days. Rappers with violent lyrics toward those "hos", Britney Spears, Amy Winegard, this dildo (Levi Johnston) being paid to pose in Playgirl, etc., etc.

How about permanently?

Always!

Can we have a volunteer to check this place out and report back?

How about we have a contest of some type - and whoever loses has to go?

It drives me nuts when somebody arguing a point starts out with "As a matter of fact,..."

That usually means that what follows is mostly bullshit....hehe.

Teen girls using the phrase "for sure!" is a bit daffy.....like their trying to mimic the brainless valley girls.

While I believe the Thai economy is an absolute mess and, due to the education system in Thailand, will largely stay that way compared to many countries in the region (China, Singapore, Malaysia, India, etc.); as such, I don't know how anybody can explain the baht level compared to almost any other currency.

For years, economists throughout the world have been warning us about the upcoming decline of the US dollar. The huge trade imbalances eventually will come home to roost and, of course, many countries have railed against the monetary and fiscal policy (ultimately, deficit spending) of the US for years. Now, with huge debt continuing (and lately projected at 10 trillion (yes, trillion) over the next 10 years, it seems that there is only one direction that the US dollar can go over the next decade or two - in the toilet.

Some people for years have joked about how many million Italian lira you need to buy something....and maybe the joke gets turned on the US.

The difficult question, of course, is what we US expats do to "play this trend" if we think it's going to happen (I do). I'm not sure of that although I, for one, won't be investing in Thai baht for the reasons noted above. So long as they are politically stable, China, India, Malaysia, Brazil, etc., might be a better bet. And maybe the stocks of some of the better companies in those countries might be the way to partially play the upcoming fall of the US dollar.

I think the strings are on tampons, not tambons, although you might be able to pull some strings in tambons. HUH????

Paying the right village elder, I'm sure you can.

When I moved to Thailand at the end of 2004 the exchange rate was 41 baht/$, Now it's around 33.40. That's about 8% loss for me.

Highest I ever saw it was 42.5 a couple of years before that. By the way, I think you meant 18.5% loss/drop (7.6/41 = 18.5%).

OTOP can be seen on signs throughout Thailand. It is the Thai government way of promoting local handicrafts or products. I forget what OTOP stands for but it is something like one villiage, one product. I think it is a great idea and really helps the local people.

Yep, same meaning. One Tambon One Product.

(and Tambon is a village and definitely doesn't have strings on it...)

1. The intern is buzzed to bring him a "fresh fish sandwich" for lunch.

Hehe. Okay, sounds like a good #1 to me.

Sometimes we all get a bit hung up about perceived cleanliness. I'm no slob (keep a very clean house, shower, etc.) but, having been raised with 10 other siblings, the notion of sanitizing (or thinking you are) everything in the house or everything that comes in contact with your kids is a pipe dream. I'd be willing to bet that there isn't a single thing that's within 3 feet of the floor of your house that your one-year-old hasn't slobbered all over (and that includes the toilet bowl...hehe). We're obviously born with marvelous immune systems.

My guess is you'd be aghast if somebody showed you on a microscope what's on your kitchen or bathroom counter, on any floor or in any carpet in your home, on any bed linen or pillow at this very moment. But, don't worry, no problem for anybody with a normal immune system.

I have a bridge in Brooklyn I would like to sell you.

Hey, I already own that bridge. Even have a bill of sale for it (signed by some guy named Bernie...)

I believe one of the deterrents which keeps Thailand a reasonably crime-free country compared to most Western countries, is the fear of going to prison. In most Western countries it is no deterrent at all as the prisons are more like luxury hotels. Without any experience of the Thai prison system I don't actually believe it is as bad as some say.

Some respectful disagreement on all fronts.

While I am quite fond of Thailand (i.e., the Thai people), the "reported" statistics reflect, for example, that the murder rate in Thailand is higher than the murder rate in the US (which, of course, is far higher than in the UK). I have put the word "reported" in quotes as I do trust the reported rates in the US although I don't believe the Thai statistics are accurate (i.e., I believe they are below reality). Those falang that are tourists rarely see much crime or hang in areas more prone to crime. Plus the tourist areas seem to have a substantially higher number of police around to deter some things.

I've been to the prison up by Nakhon Ratchisma and I can tell you it surely would be no picnic. Too many people crammed into one cell and a very spartan existence, damn-near unedible food, some dangerous and wacky fellow inmates, etc. I've talked to people that have been to the Bangkok Hilton and just the thought of going there gives me the willies. Based on what I've been told and read, it is as bad or worse than what you hear.

As to western prisons being like luxury hotels, that is absolutely untrue with respect to state prisons and jails. I'm from Michigan and you'd be rather unhappy with the likes of the state prisons at Jackson or Marquette (those facilities would scare the shit out of you - and you ought to be scared too). As to county jails (typically where people serve terms for less than a year), not quite as bad or dangerous there (so long as you don't mind sharing a small cell with 2-4 people with an open toilet hanging on the wall - and you don't mind drunks and wackos moaning and yelling throughout the night).

Some federal prisons - but only those for minimum security inmates - are about as good as it gets and a few can be compared to low budget hotels; yet, nobody volunteers to go there.

My bf who is from CM, but lived in Udon Thani for 10 years told me Thais there eat with fingers when they have sticky rice and sometimes even with regular steamed rice.

Whoops, I must be a slob. I and everybody I've ever seen eat sticky rice up north eats it with their fingers.

We will not allow .......any animal interaction.

Oh hell, you won't even allow a cute monkey? Guess they won't let me in.

We do several types of 'extreme' scenes, including scat, GS, heavy CP, CBT, medical, interrogation (so called consensual nonconsent), electrical, hot wax, Foley catheterization, playpiercing etc.

I was wondering where the senators were going after they closed the Denver airport bathrooms!

Could you be my second cousin, once removed?

Egads, a monkey in the woodpile. Khun chawp gluay mak mai?

I've been told that the 90-day requirement for the 800,000 baht in the account doesn't apply when getting your first long-term (some call it retirement) visa. But, like Thaimo said, you'd probably get a different answer from the same office on the next day.

And innocent men sometimes plead guilty to reduced charges if they think it will save them 50 years in prison.

I suppose that has happened on rare occasion. I've never known it to happen but maybe it has. I remember one of the quotes from a famous Denver criminal lawyer who said something to the effect: My record was as good as Perry Mason's but none of my clients were innocent.

Michael, You are probably unaware of this, but my anti-virus software found a trojan horse when I hit the above link. Be careful.

I just went there using Firefox and my up-to-date Norton program didn't have a problem. My guess it's just a software glitch and not a virus.

I am surprised that Indonesia Air Asia is on the list. Does that have anything to do with Thai Air Asia or the one headquartered in Malaysia?

I hope not (I'm flying Air Asia next week) and my guess it is not....as I know Air Asia is based in Malaysia and I've never heard it referred to as Indonesia AirAsia.

Edit: Just checked the Air Asia website and found this statement: "To date, AirAsia has flown over 55 million guests across the region and continues to spread its wings to create more extensive route network through its associate companies, Thai AirAsia and Indonesia AirAsia." So, looks like it's an affiliate of some sort as is "Thai AirAsia."