Gaybutton

I just returned from several days in my boyfriend's home province. While we were there he wanted to go to the local induction center. A couple of his friends lost out on the lottery and it was induction day. It was an incredible sight. There were at least five-hundred boys there (and not one of them wearing a shirt) going through their induction. Their families and friends were there too, along with vendors selling everything you could possibly imagine. It was almost a circus atmosphere, with only the inductees looking forlorn about the whole thing. How it all works and whether it is possible to buy one's way out of it depends on which province the boy comes from and what kinds of connections he has. There is nothing standard about any of it, which makes sense to me considering the fact that buying one's way out of it is illegal. From what I understood about that particular province is that it is possible to buy one's way out, but heaven help you and your wallet if it becomes known that the money is going to come from a "farang." In that province a boy apparently can buy his way out, but it all has to be done and arranged prior to the lottery. If he loses in the lottery and nothing has been prearranged, then he can start singing "You're In The Army Now" because that's what's going to happen. Different provinces play the game in different ways. I suppose if you have a Thai boyfriend, then you have some decisions to make as well. If it is possible to buy his way out, is that what you want to do, or get involved with at all? Should he take his chances with the lottery like all the other boys? If you are going to buy his way out for him, can you be sure you are being told the truth about how much money you have to cough up? I'm not so convinced that the pay-off price is as high as some are given to believe. Most of these boys come from poor farm families and very, very few have a "farang" to pay their way out. Where are they supposed to get that kind of money? My sense of logic tells me that the price is far less, so that at least enough of them can buy their way out to make it profitable for whoever gets the pay-off money. If only one or two can buy their way out, then that's not much profit for the corrupt officials when they could get a lot more if they charge less. Then again, since my sense of logic has nothing to do with it and Thai logic is the logic used, then your guess is as good as mine.

"Anyone who hates children and animals can't be all bad." - W.C. Fields

When you are in Thailand, it won't take long to pick up on some basic Thai. You can also take lessons while in Thailand. Even if you are going to be in Thailand only on a short holiday, you might be surprised at what you can learn even if you only have time for one or two lessons. If you let us know which city in Thailand in which you will be spending most of your time, several of us can probably make some recommendations as to a good teacher. You also can probably take lessons in your home country. Many people do that. English is taught as a second language in most Thai schools, so a great many Thai people can at least handle some very basic English. The good news is that even people who come to Thailand for the first time find that communication with Thai people is almost always much less of a problem than they anticipated.

A close friend of mine has personal cards, just like business cards, with his name and phone number written on them. When he finds himself in such a circumstance, he simply hands the card to the object of his desire and hopes for a call. That avoids embarrassment to both parties if the recipient is not interested. It seems to work pretty well for him. Even a handwritten piece of paper should get the message across. Maybe a little note, preferably written in Thai, that says something like, "Please call me. I would like to invite you for a drink," or whatever message with which you feel comfortable. Personally, I would prefer the handwritten note instead of a card. It seems more personal than handing someone a card. I think handing someone a card indicates that you do this sort of thing all the time with lots of boys. I don't think that would work quite as well, although my friend seems to do just fine that way. If you can get someone to show you how to write a brief message in Thai, so much the better. Another possibility depends on whether circumstances permit trying to flirt and seeing whether he is responsive.

On the same thread, I loved the response posted by OzMan BKK, which is: "I was so concerned about this new imposition on farang that I rushed straight down to my local 7-11. I asked the young chap behind the counter if I could check out his dongle. We are meeting tonight for drinks."

I already fell for Wowpow's April Fool hoax. I don't think I'm going to fall for this one too.

Nothing to worry about there. You don't actually believe I give a damn about Earwig's rantings, do you? He claims I'm hated elsewhere. True or false, his problem is he forgot that I would first have to care what he thinks about anything at all. Thinking of any kind seems to be a real problem for him. I'm sure he's beloved on Sawatdee. He's right about one thing, though. None of his posts would see the light of day on this board at all, if it were mine. He can think what he likes abut how great he is, but there are a few differences between his posts and mine. You won't find any of my posts using terms such as "fart-stop" or "gaybottom," or "Memories Mafia." You won't find any of my posts that include drawings such as (__o__), like a ten year old kid. You won't find any of my posts that plagiarize other people's work and then try to say inclusion of a link at the bottom of all of his posts constitutes attribution. Of course, it was not a link to the actual article, but only to the web site on which the article appears, something he did not do the first time he was caught plagiarizing here. But how could he? In that one, he tried to change the wording so that it would appear his personal 'contacts' supplied the information and none of his links included a link even to the web site from which the article was obtained. Gay Grampa caught him red handed with that one. You won't find any of my posts that name drop, self-aggrandize, or try to make myself appear as someone important when I'm not. You won't find any of my posts threatening people. You may think he's funny. Ok, yes, positively a riot. A true asset to this board. Meanwhile, people keep telling me he's a worthless piece of slime.

Well, you've gotta admit . . . if you have to die, that's one hell of a way to do it. Think of the odds. In all of human history, and the billions upon billions of people who have ever lived, how many bounced from a trampoline and ended up swallowed by a hippo? Even Torquemada wouldn't have come up with a death like that. I guess there's a first time for everything. How would you like to have been the person who had to explain what happened to the poor guy's family?

That's where you and I differ. I think it is a very big deal to omit a credit, especially when the omission is designed to intentionally deceive and try to take credit for someone else's work. If you had taken the time to do research, write it up, and post it, how much would you appreciate seeing it appear on another board and seeing EarWig, or anyone else, trying to take credit for it? I also disagree with you about enlivening the board. If the board needs enlivening, do you truly believe that deliberate deception ought to be considered a means by which to do it? Personally, I'd rather see a board on which readers can depend on people trying to post reliable, accurate, useful information, obtained honestly and legitimately, with credit being given where it is due. If that makes a board less lively, then I'll take less lively. If this board is truly in need of livening up, I see no reason for any of it to come from EarWig's constant crap.

The following appears in the PATTAYA CITY NEWS: Click the link for photos: http://www.pattayacitynews.net/news_31_03_50_2.htm _____

Whoa! Hold the phone! I hope you don't think for even an instant that I am supportive of EarWig's plagiarism, or anything else about EarWig for that matter, in any way, shape, or form. I think I need to remind that I am not the owner of this board. GayThailand is the owner of this board. I'm only a moderator and GayThailand's decisions supercede mine, whether I agree with him or not. If I had my way, EarWig and all of his nonsense would have been gone from this board long ago. But it is not my board and I don't get to have my way when it comes to EarWig. As far as I'm concerned, from among every post I have ever seen from EarWig or LetMeTellU or anything else he calls himself, I've seen maybe two or three that I ever thought were worth a damn. This plagiarized post is definitely not among them. GayThailand makes the rules here, not I. He and I agree on most things, but not when it comes to EarWig. Other than that, GayThailand and I get along just fine. Earwig apparently has GayThailand's admiration. As for me, EarWig has only my contempt.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ No Takers for Tsunami Early Warning System By Achadtaya Chuenniran Phuket Not a single hotel in Phuket province has hooked up with the satellite-based signal receiving system because they do not trust its efficiency, and because of the cost - more than 400,000 baht, or about $13,000. Provincial authorities have met local hoteliers twice, urging them to install tsunami early warning system gear so they can get the early warning signal directly from the Nonthaburi-based National Disaster Warning Centre (NDWC), which relays the warning via the satellite. So far, no hotel has installed the equipment. Phuket governor Niran Kalayanamit said hotel operators are probably convinced that they can depend solely on the tsunami warning towers built by the province. "They shouldn't think installing the satellite signal receiver was unnecessary." The province has 19 tsunami early-warning towers. Arun Kerdsom, Phuket's disaster prevention and mitigation chief, said hotel operators had complained about the high cost - 400,000-500,000 baht - to install the equipment, a figure disaster officials dispute. "At first, we hoped to see at least five hotels invest in the devices under a pilot project. But that did not happen. Not a single hotel in Phuket has shown any interest in hooking up so far. "Of the hotels in six southern provinces along the Andaman coastline, only one in Phangnga province has connected to the system," said Mr Arun. The province is trying to come up with other tsunami warning methods as well. It could provide pagers to communities to receive tsunami warning signals, he said. However, Smith Dharmasarojana, chairman of the National Disaster Warning Administration Committee, said every hotel in a tsunami-prone coastal area should install the satellite signal receiver. He said the receiver would be connected to the hotel's fire alarm system, which would ring the alarm as soon as it received a warning signal. "Hotel operators should not rely solely on the tsunami warning towers because guests will not hear the warning sound if they are in their hotel rooms. If the signal is sent through the fire alarm system, everybody will hear it," said Mr Smith. He said each device costs 200,000 baht, not 400,000-500,000 baht as the hoteliers claim. Krissada Tansakul, chairman of the Patong Hotels Operators Association in Phuket, admitted that none of the hotels, some 100 of them, along the famous Patong beach, had installed the equipment because they were not confident in the NDWC's early warning system. Hoteliers were still haunted by a false alarm activated by the centre in 2005, when thousands of tourists and villagers ran for their life after hearing the tsunami siren. "We will install the device only after the state disaster warning system is fully developed," said Mr Krissada. "The equipment is costly and we want to make sure that it is worth the investment." At the moment hotel operators in Phuket are relying on a "manual warning system", he said. "Our staff will activate the in-house emergency alarm as soon as they hear the warning sirens from the tsunami warning towers. All the guests will be safe from the tsunami this way," he said.

The following appears in the PATTAYA CITY NEWS: _____ New 230 Million Baht Underground Car Park to be Constructed at South Pattaya Temple We have received details of a new underground car park which is due to be constructed underneath the recreation ground of Pattaya School Number 8 on the corner of South Pattaya Road and Pratamnuk Road. This information has come direct from Khun Niran, the Mayor of Pattaya who has already approved a budget of 230 Million Baht to construct the underground car park which will be able to accommodate over 600 cars and over 1,000 motorbikes. The construction is expected to be a three level car park and on ground level, a new sports ground will be constructed along with a school canteen and a school library. This will provide much needed car parking space for those who frequent the South Pattaya area, especially at night. Construction is due to start shortly.

Considering the fact that the very same poster has done this before on this board, and was caught, are you surprised? "You can fool all of the people some of the time and you can fool some of the people all of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time." - Abraham Lincoln

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but I don't know what point you are trying to make without providing some sort of description as to what constitutes handsome or good looking in your eyes. For example, many people like muscles and lots of definition. For others, that's precisely what they don't like. Some people say a cute face is what they look for first, but what is cute to some is ugly to others. Some people like the "rough trade" type. Others like the more feminine type. It's all a matter of individual taste, isn't it?

Maybe if they had a Thai driver's license . . . . I wonder what they would have been charged if they were katoeys from Uzbekistan.

I was in the police station on an entirely different matter about a year and a half ago when a group of about twenty lady-boys working Beach road were brought in, fined 200 baht each, and then released. They were acting as if the whole thing was nothing but a big joke and they were almost having a party in the police station. As soon as they were released, they were right back out working Beach Road again. The following appears in the PATTAYA CITY NEWS: for photos click: http://www.pattayacitynews.net/news_28_03_50_4.htm _____ Police Round up Ladyboys Working on Pattaya Beach Responding to numerous complaints from Tourists regarding transsexuals on Pattaya Beach, a group of Police and Police volunteers rounded up 19 of them in the early hours of Wednesday Morning. These ladyboys will often engage in anti-social and criminal activities on the beach such as assault and robberies. Because this group were not seen committing a crime they could only be fined 200 Baht each at Pattaya Police Station before being released. Most of them were seen reassuming their positions on the beach as they search for potential foreign customers.

That's fine and you are entitled to your opinion. However, this thread is addressing an entirely different issue, that being what gay partners may or may not be legally entitled to as a result of a marriage in locations where it is legal.

It might be true if the "farang" lives in The Netherlands or Belgium. If not, then even if they went there to be married, how would such a thing be enforced a year or so later and how would the Thai boy file papers and go through whatever the proceedings are if they're not even in either of those countries? Also, I have neither heard stories about anything like that happening nor have I heard about any "farang" being asked to go to either of those countries to be married and take up residence there. Based on that, it sounds like just a rumor to me.

Enough of this nonsense. This thread is locked.

At the moment of posting, the US dollar to baht exchange rate is 34.88. The following appear in THE NATION: _____ BoT Will Not Revert to Fixed Rate System The Bank of Thailand (BoT) on Tuesday dismissed rumours that the central bank may switch from the current managed float system to the peg, or fixed rate system as used prior to the 1997 financial crisis. Rumours of possible revert to the exchange rate peg system weakened the baht Monday, but had stabilised at Bt35.05 on Tuesday, dealers said. Both Finance Minister Chalongphob Sussasangkarn and central bank governor Tarisa Watanagase have dismissed the possibility of a peg. - The Nation __________ And this, from TNA: _____ BoT Denies it Plans to Iissue More Measures to Stem Baht Speculation BANGKOK, March 27 (TNA)

Sorry, but it doesn't work that way. I'm not here to be your personal editor. And I'll be the one who decides what I do or do not like despite your assumptions as to why I moderate the way I do. Try asking why a post was removed instead of making assumptions, but do it by PM. I've already said that we're not going to have public arguments about it. It is everyone's responsibility to read and comply with the rules. I'll try to edit out what I can when it appears to be an honest mistake, and in the above case I think it was. I don't think you intentionally set out to violate someone's privacy, but it is the responsibility of everyone who posts to read and comply with the rules. If the post appears to be malicious, no matter who posts it, it will be wiped. I'm not picking on you about that. That applies to everyone. I suggest reviewing the posting rules and proofreading posts before hitting the submit button.

There are fine antique shops and other sources of imported furniture. It doesn't necessarily have to be hotel suite style if you shop around and have the money to pay for what you want.

Baht Weakens Against US dollar in Morning Trading Session BANGKOK, March 26 (TNA) The baht has weakened further and hovered around 34.98-35 to the US dollar in Monday morning trading session in the same direction with other major world currencies but the greenback. Last week, the baht had appreciated sharply and hit a new nine-year high of 34.65 to the US dollar. A money analyst said the US dollar had appreciated against other global currencies including the baht since a figure on second-hand home sales in the United States released for February was higher than expected. At the same time, there were rumours in the local market that the Bank of Thailand planned to seek cooperation from commercial banks to oversee money trading transactions to ensure the baht is not too strong. The analyst projected the baht would not rise to hit a new high this week if it turned to strengthen again this week. (TNA)

I know that if you are moving to Thailand you are allowed to bring in belongings and the duty is waived. What I don't know is what kind of documentation is necessary, whether there is a limit to the amount you can bring, or whether there are limitations on the kinds of items that are exempt. Perhaps someone who has already done this can post about what his experience was.