Gaybutton

I like much of the Thai food, but I can't eat "phet." "Phet" means spicy. "Mai Phet" means not spicy. "Mai ow phet" is what you say to a waiter when you don't want your food spicy. I think most of us are well aware that much of the Thai food is spiced up with loads of hot peppers. I've actually seen Thai friends eating foods so spiced up that tears are rolling down their cheeks when they eat. The first time I came to Thailand I had no idea they spice up their food like that. I had a little surprise the first time I ate Thai food here. I must have drunk at least 20 gallons of water. Well, at least it gave the Thais who happened to be in the same restaurant their laugh for the day. Remember the story a couple years ago when a Thai restaurant in London was cooking hot peppers and the next thing they knew the police raided because people who caught the fumes thought they were under a terrorist attack? I just can't eat it. I've tried many times, but it only burns the hell out of my mouth, so I end up both in pain and unable to taste anything else for the rest of the meal. It ruins the meal for me. I've had people tell me to eat cucumbers or plain white rice to get rid of the effect. Maybe that works for them, but it doesn't help me one bit. For me, it doesn't work. I've had people tell me that without the hot peppers, the food is bland and boring. Ok, given the choice between bland and boring or having a burnt mouth, I'll take bland and boring. Besides, I don't find the food bland and boring anyhow. What about you? Can you handle it? Do you like your Thai food "phet" or "mai phet"?

Another dream I have, but has yet to come true, is that you'll figure out how to write a post that doesn't include those damned annoying smilies . . .

I get the impression that you are Thai, fluent in English, and a Thaksin supporter. Am I right?

I think I already saw this movie . . . Tip for long time stay - GayThailand.com Forum Try gyms and Muay Thai schools. I don't think you're going to find many massage boys that fit the bill. Put an ad on Gay Romeo and try their escorts section. In Bangkok go to Lumphini Park, where the body builders like to work out. Try a Google search for "thai bodybuilders"

That's precisely the problem. Very few people are going to want to find themselves recorded and appearing on your web site. You said it yourself. Pattaya Gay TV can be viewed by anyone in the entire world who has Internet access. Nobody wants to be involuntarily "outed" and that is why you're getting little cooperation from bar owners and the gay community in general. The bar owners have little enough business as it is. If they permit you to come in with your cameras, then they won't have any business at all. The solution to that seems simple enough to me. You want to record bar shows? Try to arrange recording their rehearsals instead of the actual show. An audience won't be present during rehearsals. You want to record go-go boys? Offer them an incentive to agree to be recorded and do the recording before the bar opens. If you want to interview venue owners, try to get them to agree to interviews privately. If you want support from the gay community, then you're going to have to come up with ways to present whatever it is you want to present without causing gay tourists to feel threatened by your presence. When you make statements such as "we have to stand together," ask yourself what people here on a holiday would have to gain by standing together with you and allowing themselves to be filmed and appear before the entire world. Why would they want to stand with you? They have plenty they could lose, but what do they have to gain? I can't see anything they have to gain that would make the risks worthwhile to them. All they would need would be wives, bosses, their children, their friends, etc. to spot them inside a gay bar. Quite frankly, the way I see it Pattaya's gay scene managed to survive quite nicely before Pattaya Gay TV ever came into existence and will still survive just as nicely if your project fails. I believe people are perceiving Pattaya Gay TV as an intrusion and a threat, not as an enhancement. You're going to need to take steps to change that perception. If you want the gay community to stand together with you, then you're going to have to come up with ways to gain support. You're not going to get support from people here on a holiday when you show up with your video cameras, causing them to be fearful that they might involuntarily be shown publicly on the Internet. I've offered a few suggestions. Maybe others also have suggestions. Aside from that, Pattaya Gay TV is your venture and your responsibility. I don't see any justification for you to be trying to volunteer the gay message boards to be a part of your project or help you earn support. I'm sure we'll all be very happy to support you provided we can support you without anyone feeling threatened. But just how you will accomplish that is your own affair.

And when I click it still takes me to the Sunee Plaza site. What it doesn't do is take me to the Show Bar site. Welcome to the latest entry on my "I Don't Get It" list.

I'm surprised, but glad to know that people seem to agree with me on this. When I go to a go-go bar, you know why I'm there? I'm there to see the go-go boys. Imagine that. I'm there to see the go-go boys. Isn't that strange of me? The last thing on earth I'm in there for is to see these horrendous lady-boy lip sync shows. As soon as those start, I'm out the door. Fortunately, Kurt, not all the bars put on these shows and most of the time you'll probably have found your man long before the shows start. If not, there are still plenty of go-go bars that don't have the shows or have them at different times. You won't have a problem finding what you're looking for.

One thing about Pattaya - I've never been anywhere in my life where there are so many wonderful restaurants at very reasonable prices in such close proximity to just about anywhere in the city. There are still some out here on "The Dark Side" I have yet to try, and plenty more in the city and in Naklua. Also, it doesn't take much to get me to go to some of the Thai seafood restaurants way down south on Jomtien Beach Road, almost near the end. There are several. Most have beachside seating available and the food is usually quite good and very reasonably priced. If you don't have a Thai friend with you, no problem. They all have picture menus. RichLB and I have discussed going up and down all the sois on Jomtien Beach Road. It seems like every one of them have restaurants to try, some excellent and some lousy, but we're going to at least have a look and see what's there and try the ones that look good to us. The problem is finding the time to do it. We've only been talking about doing that for over two months, and we have yet to actually get going on it. A lot of people enjoy the Wednesday night German buffet at Ole. One that I like even more is Anton's in Naklua. Theirs is every night. There are Thai selections too. Including water it's 260 baht. There are loads more restaurants to try in Naklua, many of which are German. The problem is, once we find restaurants we really like, that's where we tend to go rather than trying new ones all that often.

Long one of my dreams . . .

Your question was about Soi Day-Night. That is what I was addressing. None of the places you mention are on Soi Day-Night. I missed the Buffalo Bar Buckeroo2 mentioned. When I'm in the area I'll check it out. I've already posted about Chez Vickie and Le Montecristo on another thread.

I see. Then what would be a little patch just above the upper lip? A Hitler mustache?

For 4000 baht he damned well better be . . .

I never thought of that. Good point.

I agree with you.

Now the link just takes you to the Sunee Plaza site. Maybe he got the message and is re-doing his web site. I hope so.

What on earth is a lip beard? For me, that's a new term.

I haven't posted any restaurant recommendations lately, so here are a few you might want to try. In Jomtien, go to Soi 4 on Jomtien Beach Road. Up the soi,on the left, you'll spot a yellow sign with a palm tree logo. That's Canary Bay. We've become regulars there. It's open air with virtually no atmosphere, but we love the food. It's all French provincial cooking. The menu is extensive. There are actually two menus, so make sure to look at both. My friends and I have our personal favorites. Mine is their Cordon Bleu. It's the best I've had anywhere. Another is a pork in mushroom sauce dish. If you enjoy couscous, go on a Thursday. That's the day they do their couscous special and it's excellent. Fair warning, though. Don't order it unless you're very hungry. The portions are huge. The price range for most dinners is the 250-350 baht range. If you still have room for dessert, cross the soi and turn to your right. You'll find a small French bakery called Sylvain. You'll see their dessert selections in their display case. 90 baht each. We always try to have room for dessert at Sylvain when we eat at Canary Bay. Their coffee is fresh brewed too, not that instant Nescafe. They do a nice breakfast crepe there as well. Last night a friend and I were in the mood for the paella at the La Plancha restaurant. It's a good thing he called first because it turns out that the La Plancha has closed. The owner has merged with the Le Montecristo restaurant on Soi Day-Night 2. Le Montecristo is the restaurant in the old Flamingo Hotel. We went in to discover a very pleasant atmosphere and there was the owner of the closed La Plancha. They gave us a welcome drink. My friend ordered the paella, still 320 baht. It's just the same as it was at La Plancha, although the portion appeared to be a little bit smaller. I changed my mind as soon as I saw their set menu offer. I decided to give that a try instead. For 390 baht it included a very tasty voule vent starter, followed by an excellent seafood au gratin. The dessert was a delicious coconut tart. I really enjoyed it and I thought the price was quite reasonable for what you get. My only objection is they charge 50 baht for water. Considering you can buy that same bottle of water at any 7-Eleven for 10 baht, I thought that price was much too high. After dinner we went across the street to have a look at the Chez Vickie restaurant. I was hoping it was connected with one of my favorite places to eat in Bangkok, the Vickie l'amour restaurant. The Vickie l'amour is located on Soi Ngam Duplee in Bangkok, between the Pinnacle Hotel and the Malaysia Hotel, closer to the Malaysia. Yes, Chez Vickie is the same, with the same menu offerings. The menu even is marked Vickie l'amour. They have several set menu selections as well, which I never spotted on the Vickie l'amour menu in Bangkok. Try the ham and cheese pancake starter. That's my favorite. Also, they serve Aubergine Parmiggiana, which is Eggplant Parmesan. I can never find Eggplant Parmesan in Pattaya, and that's one of my favorites. Vickie l'amour makes it just the way I like it, so I'll be in Chez Vickie very soon to give it a try. Both restaurants are closed on Tuesdays. If you want a really fantastic Eggplant Parmesan, get friendly with Tperhs. He's a fabulous cook and he makes the best I've ever had. Unfortunately, now you'll have to go to Burriram to get it.

I don't know if I feel as strongly about it as you do, but it does seem to cover little else, at that. The shows themselves were all the same old drag queen and lip sync shows. Won't any of these bars ever come up with something different? When people keep asking me why I won't go to these things, there's your answer. While I realize that many, probably the majority, love those shows, I absolutely hate them. The last thing I'm going to do is spend my money to see a show that I can't stand and would probably walk out on.

I wish you all the luck in the world. I really do, but in my opinion, quite frankly, your web site sux. Why can't you use normal photos instead of that doctored-up crap you've got posted? I can't speak for others, but I find the way you did that very annoying and absolutely ridiculous. Is that supposed to attract people to your venue? From the pictures, however, I was able to see that one of your street touts looks like that same annoying character who has been around for years. His idea of how to be a street tout includes blocking people's path and physically grabbing them and trying to hustle them into the venue. I can't be positive from the way you've got those doctored-up photos, but if that is him, if I get grabbed or manhandled by him again or if he steps out in front of me and tries to prevent me from moving, you won't find me attending your show - ever, and he may get more of a reaction than my usual advice to take his damned hands off me . . . right now! Also, don't tell me about your "International, Award winning chef." Tell me who he is and just what awards he has won instead of insulting my intelligence. Others may disagree with me, but if I were you I would change your web site concept immediately. Whoever came up with it, I think it's a lousy idea and for me it just doesn't work.

I can tell you why there has been no news about Soi Day-Night. I was just there only moments ago. There's no news because there's nothing to report about. The only gay venue left on Soi Day-Night is Office Boy, home of the former Niddy's Nook. Outside of that, on Soi Day-Night there are no gay venues at all. Soi Day-Night 2 still has the gay massage places and the Number One go-go bar. Aside from some very good restaurants on Soi Day-Night 2, that's about it, although you can find some very nice boys in that area if you are cruising in the evening.

Something was said about 42 times. Somehow it would be a little difficult to believe they thought there were 42 cases of computer theft. These people are real prizes! I don't understand how they possibly could have thought invasion of privacy in people's homes, without even letting anyone know they could or would do that, is something they thought would be acceptable, especially in an affluent school district such as that. Somebody is in for major trouble and I won't be at all surprised if many more lawsuits follow. Another scary thought . . . is this the only school district in the USA, or anywhere else for that matter, doing this? If I was a parent I would either give the computer back to the school, no matter what the school district, or would instruct my kid to put electrical tape over the camera input. If I ever discovered a school where my kid goes was pulling a stunt like this, I'd sure be in my lawyer's office double quick. I'm waiting to see if there will be some sort of explanation as to just how this kind of invasion of privacy could help them track down a stolen computer or even if it could really help at all, how that is supposed to justify invasion of privacy, especially on children in their own homes without parental knowledge or consent. What's wrong with insuring their computers against theft instead of invading privacy? Also, can you imagine if a hacker got into their system somehow and started "personal observations"? This case came up because an assistant principal had a photo that she interpreted to be the kid with drugs. Even if the kid really had drugs, how does that jive with them saying the only reason they would use the web cam is to try to track down stolen computers? That's one assistant principal I think just may be working at a Burger King pretty soon, along with whoever else was responsible. That is, of course, if they don't find themselves in jail instead. Good luck getting out of this one. They'll need it.

For me, what you say makes sense out of much of what has been going on. I've learned a great deal from your post that I neither knew nor understood before and now I can appreciate the Red-Shirt position. But there are still three things I don't understand and I would like to know your opinion: 1. If the Red-Shirt movement is not looking to return Thaksin to power, then what happens if they do indeed successfully topple the government and who do they want? 2. Why would a Supreme Court ruling against Thaksin be the catalyst that spawns a major, possibly violent, response? 3. No matter what the Red-Shirt position is, do you think what Thaksin is really after, along with the money, is returning to Thailand, regaining power, and becoming a dictator? By the way, Thai people with whom I have spoken have been saying that if there is going to be a problem in Pattaya as a result of the decision, look for it on the 27th much more than on the 26th.

I can't even imagine parents who would want a school deciding to spy on their children within their own homes. I can't even imagine that parents would want schools spying on their children at all. Even if schools spy on their children within the confines of the school via web cams, then I would think parents would at least want to be informed that was going on. I'll bet any kid who is in possession of a school-issued laptop with a web cam has already figured out how to solve that little problem with a small piece of electrical tape covering the lens.

George Orwell was right, although slightly premature. Big Brother really is watching. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vza_bMuy42M Students'-eye view of Webcam spy case | For the Record Podcast - CNET News Students'-Eye View of Webcam Spy Case by Larry Magid Students at Herriton High School in Lower Merion School District near Philadelphia are given Apple MacBook laptops to use both at school and at home. Like all MacBooks, the ones issued to the students have a Webcam. And, in addition to the students' ability to use the Webcam to take pictures or video, the school district can also use it to take photographs of whomever is using the computer. In a civil complaint (PDF) filed in federal court, a student at the school, Blake Robbins, said he received a notice from an assistant principal informing him that "the school district was of the belief that minor plaintiff was engaged in improper behavior in his home, and cited as evidence a photograph from the Webcam." The district said in a statement that the "security feature was installed to help locate a laptop in the event it was reported lost, missing or stolen so that the laptop could be returned to the student." The district further explained that "upon a report of a suspected lost, stolen or missing laptop, the feature was activated by the district's security and technology departments. The tracking-security feature was limited to taking a still image of the operator and the operator's screen." The district claims it has "not used the tracking feature or Webcam for any other purpose or in any other manner whatsoever." Subsequently, district Superintendent of Schools Christopher W. McGinley sent a letter to parents saying that the security tracking feature is being disabled and that there will be "a thorough review of the existing policies for student laptop use" and a "review of security procedures to help safeguard the protection of privacy, including a review of the instances in which the security software was activated." In the mean time, the Associated Press is reporting that the FBI is investigating the district and "will explore whether Lower Merion School District officials broke any federal wiretap or computer-intrusion laws," according to an unnamed official who spoke to the AP. In an interview with CBS Evening News, plaintiff Blake Robbins said he was unaware that the camera could be activated at his house. "I thought that there was no way that they could do that at my home," Robbins said, adding that the assistant principal "thought I was selling drugs, which is completely false." On the CBS Early Show, Harriton High sophomore Savannah Williams said she keeps the laptop in her bedroom and says that its on while she is "getting changed, doing my homework, taking a shower, everything." She said she takes it into the bathroom with her to listen to music while showering. "I was shocked," she added. She said "everyone is talking about it at school...everyone was really worried about 'what are they watching me doing.'" At least one student at Harriton isn't particularly worried about the administration spying on students. In a podcast interview, 16-year-old junior Jon Brodo said "I don't think anyone knows the true story...the problem is in this case is that there are so many rumors going around." He said that he is somewhat concerned, but "I do trust that the school district knows its bounds." Brodo said that most students, however ,"it's been pretty hectic. It's the conversation of everybody. I've seen the kid (plaintiff Blake Robbins) in the hallways. The atmosphere is definitely pro the kid and antischool district." On its Web site, Lower Merion School District says that it was one of the first districts in the country to issue laptops to all high-school students. And that is an extremely laudable effort on the part of the district to bring learning into the 21st century. It's also commendable that the school put some thought into a recovery system to help locate lost and stolen laptops but it's quite unfortunate that they used a system that enables administrators to take photographs of students using the machines away from school. Of course, no judge has yet ruled on the plaintiff's claim and the school has denied that it has used the cameras for anything other than helping recover missing machines. But even if that turns to be the case, the mere fact that staff members had the ability to turn on the camera remotely is problematic. While it's fair to assume that the school could monitor what students do with district owned equipment (just as employers can with equipment used by employees even when they're away from the office), I can understand why students and their parents would be shocked to learn that officials could remotely turn on the camera. ____________________ I find this part especially interesting: "Officials of the Lower Merion School District, outside Philadelphia, acknowledged Friday that they remotely activated webcams 42 times in the past 14 months, but only to find missing laptops given to students. They insist they never did so to spy on students, as the family of 16-year-old Blake Robbins claimed in the federal lawsuit." - CBS News Did these school officials have reason to believe that this boy was in possession of a missing laptop? It seems to me that if they caught an image of the very boy to whom the computer was issued, the "trying to track down a thief" excuse isn't going to help them very much. The computer wasn't stolen and certainly the boy would have had no reason to have reported the computer stolen since he was in possession of it. Just what the USA needs . . . schools spying on the goings on in the privacy of people's homes. "Did you hear what happened in my home? In my home! In my bedroom where my wife sleeps; where my children come to play with their toys. In my home!" - Al Pacino, '"The Godfather, Part II'

I think we all caught the issue. You might as well forget it. If the guy hasn't explained it by now, and didn't even have the courtesy to write a post himself instead of getting someone else to do it for him, then you're probably never going to get an explanation. Even if he does bother posting an explanation, you won't be able to be sure you're reading the truth. Isn't the "personal reasons" excuse already enough of an insult to intelligence? I see no reason at this point to ask for more, although since the board solicited money, I can see why some might be curious as to whether any of those who contributed got any of it back. The board is gone. He didn't explain why. He probably won't explain why. And that's that.