Gaybutton

Nothing is wrong with doing that, provided you know you do that. I'm guessing these two men, if the story is true, realized their visa had expired, had no idea what to do, didn't want to run into problems at the airport, and just went to the police. Maybe they asked at their hotel and some clueless staff member told them to go to the police. Who knows? I believe the story because quite often the more bizarre the story, the more likely it's a true story. I'm a little skeptical because you would think there would have been all kinds of publicity about something like this and I don't recall ever seeing anything at all about this. However, whether the story is true or not, the fact remains that you want to go to Immigration and get an extension before the visa expires. If you screw up and accidentally overstay your visa, you go to Immigration, not the police. While it seems absurd that the police really would have done as the story says they did, they could do that.

I doubt it too. Throughout history the possibility of consequences doesn't seem to have stopped very many of them. That's probably because they think they're going to win whatever war they're in and/or because they think they'll keep their hold on power or the rest of their lives. The really scary ones are the tyrants who actually believe they are doing the right thing.

That's quite an unfortunate incident. I'm glad you posted it. It's really strange, but if you overstay your visa and turn yourself in to the Immigration police, you pay a fine. If any police other than the Immigration police catch you having overstayed, then you get arrested. If these men voluntarily went to the police, explained their situation, and made it clear that it was an honest mistake and only one day, then the police did have the authority to arrest them, but I think that was a terrible thing to do to them. Unless the hands of the police are absolutely tied in such a circumstance, then I don't understand why the police didn't explain things to them and perhaps even offer to take them to Immigration to get it straightened out. But to have arrested them and treat them as if they were trying to be criminals is truly deplorable, especially if the police had an option to help them.

So far I've been lucky. I've never had food poisoning in my life. I've never heard of norfloxicin. Can you tell us more about it? I'm interested in what dosage to take and how often to take it if I ever do get food poisoning. Is that what they give you if you have to go to the hospital?

As of 2:00pm today, Friday, February 20, the US dollar to baht exchange rate is 35.51. If you look at the list Shebavon provided, you can see that the movement has been quite rapid over the past couple of days. I don't know enough about economics to have a clue as to why this is happening now and happening so rapidly, but I'm certainly not complaining. There has even been a rumor floating around that Thailand may devalue the baht, but nothing I've read indicates that possibility is on the table. Maybe part of the explanation lies within the following two articles: The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ Tarisa Says Weaker Baht Won't Help By: PARISTA YUTHAMANOP Published: 20/02/2009 Any move to weaken the baht to help exports would ultimately prove futile, according to Tarisa Watanagase, the governor of the Bank of Thailand. The government this week suggested current exchange rates may be hurting Thailand's export competitiveness. Exports in January recorded their biggest decline in a decade with a 26.5% year-on-year contraction to $10.49 billion. But Dr Tarisa said exchange rates had been less of a factor in export performance than the decline in demand from the United States, Japan and Europe. A central bank study found that Thai exports would fall 1.6% for a 1% decline in economic growth for key trading partners. Every 1% decline in the value of the baht would only lift exports by 0.2%. The baht has remained relatively stable in recent months, closing yesterday at 35.50 to the dollar. For the year to date, it has fallen 0.7%, and by 3% from 2008. Dr Tarisa said the baht was ''in the middle of the range comparing to regional currencies'', and added that export competitiveness should not be considered only in terms of exchange rates. The baht's competitiveness in real terms had actually improved, with the real effective exchange rate falling to 87.16 in December from 89.91 in November when indexed against 20 currencies of trade partners and competitors. Dr Tarisa, speaking at a forum held by the Sasin Graduate Institute of Business Administration, said the rapid decline in inflation in the second half of 2008 had significantly cut business costs. In any case, the impact of the global downturn was affecting the entire region. ''Many other countries have already experienced [steep] declines in exports. Now, we are recording a worse decline than others,'' she said. ''As a matter of fact, [the export declines] are a surprise for the region, as there was the thought that the rise in intra-regional trade could save exports. Now we know that this hope has dimmed. Our exports to China have dropped quickly in recent months.'' Pramon Suthiwong, the chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, warned that the government should consider the potential increase in social disruption and stress from rising unemployment. Migrant workers are another potential issue, he said, considering that there were two million legal immigrants registered in Thailand and an unknown number of illegal workers. ____________________ And this, from TNA: _____ Economy Runs Risk of Experiencing Negative Growth, Says BoT BANGKOK, Feb 20 (TNA) – Bank of Thailand (BoT) Governor Tarisa Watanagase on Thursday conceded the Thai economy this year runs a risk of experiencing negative growth due to the export slump and the persistent global economic crisis. Delivering a keynote speech on "Impacts of Global Economic Crisis on Thailand," she said a revision of the gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimate for this year would be made at a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee on February 25. Earlier, she said, the central bank projected the economy would grow 0-2 per cent this year, but since economic figures, particularly global economic growth rate, an export slump of 26.5 per cent, oil prices and inflation rates, had all rapidly changed, the BoT admitted to uncertainty as to whether Thai economic growth this year will reach 1 per cent. In the worst-case scenario, she said, the economy would experience negative growth this year. Mrs. Tarisa said the exports in January had dropped more than expected earlier. Whether exports improve or not depends on the global economy and the economies of Thailand's trading partners. Unless the economies of the Group 3 including the United States, Japan, and European Union recover, the exports would not pick up. The BoT chief said economies of Thailand's trading partners had a greater impact on exports than the movement of the baht. According to the BoT study, should economies of Thailand's trading partners decline by 1 per cent, Thai exports would drop by 1.6 per cent. But should the baht weaken by 1 per cent, it would make exports edge down slightly by 0.2 per cent. It showed that the value of the baht is not an impediment to exports. Thai exporters are not losing their competitiveness because their production costs had dropped sharply following reduced inflation. (TNA)

It's been six years. It's also been that long since I last asked. Since moving to Thailand, I have been back to the USA only once. I didn't even ask for an upgrade for that trip because I had bulkhead aisle seats both ways, so that suited me just fine. I imagine I had the cheapest possible tickets every time I asked. I always bought my tickets through Rhonda, of Norcross Travel, and her prices invariably beat any other price I was ever able to find, by hundreds of dollars.

Well, don't be so "surely." That's exactly what I did. I don't remember word-for-word what I said. What I said was to the effect of, "I'd like to ask if you can put a in request for a business class upgrade if any seats are available." That's about all I said. "Sometimes the magic works and sometimes it doesn't." - Old Lodge Skins, 'Little Big Man'

I never purchased a business class ticket in my life. I would always purchase economy class. Yet I ended up in business class more often than not. Once I purchased my ticket I would simply call the airline and request a bump-up to business class. They never did it over the telephone, but sometimes the agent would tell me she'll send my request to the gate agent. Sometimes I would be told sorry, but we can't make such a request. Then, just like Thai banks, I would call again in a day or two, get an entirely different response, and the request would be sent. Sometimes I would simply ask the gate agent if I can get a business class bump-up. I didn't get it all the time, but quite often I would find myself in business class. Once I actually ended up in first class . . . from Chicago to London and then first class again from London to Bangkok. All I did was simply ask for it. What can I say? It worked quite often for me and it would save me a pile of cash too. I guess I'm living proof that the squeaky wheel really does sometimes get the grease . . .

The Nazi elite tried the "It's not my fault. I was only obeying orders" defense in the Nuremberg trials. Worked great, didn't it? Tell that to Goering, Ribbentrop, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, et al. Of course, if you have no defense that can justify both torturing and murdering people, most of whom had done absolutely nothing wrong, then the "I had no choice" defense is the last straw to try grasping.

"Tonight's forecast . . . dark. Continued dark for several hours. Widely scattered light is expected in the early morning hours." - George Carlin

That's a much better answer than I could have provided. I didn't know what the hell it meant either . . .

I never did agree with that. I don't see anything wrong with revenge. In my opinion, all this stuff about revenge being something negative and unhealthy is only a cliché. I don't always agree with a cliché. In this case I definitely disagree. Unhealthy? Negative? Tell that to the victims. Tell that to their families. I'd love for each one of them to get just 5 minutes alone with this guy. I believe if revenge is truly unhealthy, then let it be unhealthy for him.

Black Hole of Calcutta, and step on it!

The following appears in PATTAYA ONE: _____ The Secret behind Tuesday’s Rainstorm in Pattaya On Wednesday Afternoon, Pattaya experienced some unseasonal rain. We can reveal that this rain was man-made and was the result of an artificial rain program initiated in nearby Sattahip District to assist local farmers who have seen their crops suffer over the past few months. The idea to produce Artificial Rain comes from His Majesty the King of Thailand who patented the technique back in 2002. On Monday Afternoon a plane loaded with chemicals used to induce rainfall took off and the chemicals were released around Chonburi Province. On Tuesday heavy rainfall was reported throughout the Province thought to be a result of the release of the chemicals on Monday. There are expected to be further rain storms in the next 48 hours around the Province.

I was kidding. Of course he would love to have TV. Have you ever seen "Papillon"? I think he deserves the same kind of solitary confinement. And I'm not kidding about that!

Somehow I have a feeling that a Cambodian prison isn't very much like US prisons. In a way I almost hope he gets television. If Cambodian TV is comparable to the programs I see on Thai TV, that too is worse than the death penalty . . .

Welcome to Nuremberg East. While proponents of the death penalty could justifiably say that no case could possibly cry out more for the death penalty, I'm glad that it isn't available for this guy. That's too easy for a crime of this magnitude. I would much rather see him kept for the rest of his life going stir crazy in a small, hot, cell under miserable conditions, knowing that the day he dies is his only way out. To me, that is a much more terrible punishment. He "expressed regret for his crimes"? Good! I wish him a very, very long life to continue his regret.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ 'Killing Fields' Trial Begins PHNOM PENH (AFP) -- The torturer-in-chief for Cambodia's Khmer Rouge regime finally faced trial Tuesday in the first case heard by a UN-backed genocide tribunal into the horrors of the "Killing Fields" 30 years ago. Kaing Guek Eav, better known by the alias Duch, faces charges of crimes against humanity over his iron-fisted rule at Tuol Sleng prison, where he is accused of presiding over the deaths of 15,000 men, women and children. He sat solemnly in the dock as hundreds of people turned up to watch the start of proceedings against a key figure in the ultra-communist regime, which killed around two million people in one of the 20th century's worst atrocities. "I prayed for dawn as soon as possible so that I could see this trial start," said artist Vann Nath, who became one of only a about a dozen survivors from the prison after he was put to work painting pro-regime pictures. Under Duch, a former math teacher now aged 66, Tuol Sleng was used to extract false confessions from alleged traitors that they were agents of foreign powers including the CIA. Most inmates were taken from the prison, a former high school, for execution at nearby Choeung Ek, an orchard now known as the "Killing Fields". Adults were beaten to death with hoes while children's heads were smashed against trees. On Tuesday, Duch wore a blue shirt and listened through earphones as the court opened the trial behind a huge bullet-proof screen to prevent revenge attacks by his victims. He did not speak publicly. Officials transported him to court in an armoured Land Cruiser the short distance from the nearby villa where he is being held with four top Khmer Rouge leaders, who all face trial later this year. Duch is charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture and premeditated murder and faces a life sentence. The tribunal cannot impose the death penalty. "This first hearing represents the realisation of significant efforts in establishing a fair and independent tribunal to try those in senior leadership positions," chief judge Nil Nonn said at the opening of the trial. For Cambodians the controversial tribunal, established in 2006 after nearly a decade of wrangling between Cambodia and the United Nations, is seen as the last chance to bring the Khmer Rouge's surviving leaders to book. Court spokeswoman Helen Jarvis said Tuesday's initial hearing was "very, very significant" for the conflict-scarred nation, even though it is expected to last less than three days as it involves procedural matters. With full testimony not due to start until March, defence lawyer Francois Roux complained to the court that it was "unacceptable" that Duch had been held without trial for more than nine years. The hearing adjourned after seven hours of legal arguments, mainly about the admissibility of witnesses. Like most of the Khmer Rouge's top figures, Duch lived freely for years and was only arrested in 1999 when a journalist found him working as an aid worker in the jungle. He was formally transferred to the tribunal in July 2007. He has previously expressed regret for his crimes but has said that he was acting under orders from leaders of the 1975-1979 Khmer Rouge regime. Led by "Brother Number One" Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge rose to power as a tragic spinoff from the US conflict in Vietnam, emptying Cambodia's cities to take society back to a rural "Year Zero". They wiped out nearly a quarter of the population, targeting city dwellers, intellectuals and even people who wore glasses in their bid to root out anyone who threatened the peasant revolution. The regime was ousted by Vietnamese-backed forces in January 1979. Pol Pot died in 1998. The tribunal has been delayed by legal arguments and bail hearings, and has faced controversy over allegations of political interference by the government over the prosecution of further suspects. The government of Cambodian premier Hun Sen has been accused of trying to protect former Khmer Rouge cadres from justice.

Unfortunately for some, another new regulation that apparently is being enforced is, with the exception of 90-day address reports, you have to take care of any other Immigration requirements in the office closest to your place of residence.

I take it to mean either a customer or a relationship, whether short term (as little as a few hours) or long term.

If that's the way it's displayed, then it's kind of a jumbled up mess, but it looks like they're showing a couple rounds of trading - how much they'll pay to buy dollars and how much you have to pay if you're buying dollars. "Sight" means the exchange rate you get if you walk into the bank to exchange actual cash or if you are receiving money via direct deposit into your Thai bank account. If you have a Thai bank account, then when you withdraw funds the equivalent dollar value (or whatever currency you use) is usually on par with the 'sight' value.

Not really. Whether they'll do it immediately or tell you to come back the next day normally depends on the time of day you submitted your paperwork and how big the pile happens to be of passports waiting for the permit.

Today, during the second round of trading, the exchange rate crept to just above 35 baht to the US dollar for the first time in months. Some people have been reporting that they have already been getting an exchange rate in the 35's when using foreign ATM cards. The round 2 exchange rates are as follows: US Dollar: 35.01 Euro: 44.21 British Pound: 49.61 Australian Dollar: 22.4325 Canadian Dollar: 27.9225 In the past I would usually post the opening and closing daily rates, but I've been busy lately, so this time I'll let you gents check for yourselves. Both the Bank of Ayudhya and Siam Commercial Bank update online several times during the day. Bank of Ayudhya: http://www.krungsri.com/en/foreign-exchange-rates.aspx Siam Commercial Bank: http://www.scb.co.th/exchange/bk-pvsexchange.htm

There will be no flame war. Not on this board. If someone tries it, his post will quickly be gone and maybe so will he if he persists. My experience tells me that while so many boys hate working in the bars, that has nothing to do with their willingness to go with farang. It's the bar work itself they dislike, but going with farang is the reason they put up with the bar work. The boys tell me going with farang is exactly what they want and working in the bars gives them the best opportunity to "have farang."

I hate to burst the bubble for the doom and gloomers, but I believe what the forecasters say is worthless. That isn't merely wishful thinking. I've been reading forecasts about the baht and the US dollar for two years and I have yet to see even one forecaster get it even close to right. The truth is nobody knows what will happen. It can't hurt anything to be ready in case the worst really does happen, but I'll save my worrying for when it becomes necessary.