Gaybutton

They also always give an "amuse bouche" whether you order a dinner special or from the regular menu. As for Christmas day, my reservation is up to five people now. You're perfectly welcome to join us if you'd like. Let me know by E-mail (gaybutton@gmail.com) if you would like to be with us. I can alter the reservation to six people (or seven if you're bringing a 'guest') and would be happy to do so.

And I'm certain you will enjoy it as much as I do. Let me know when you're going. I'd like to go with you . . . and I've got the car to get you there.

The following appears in the PATTAYA CITY NEWS: _____ Couple Arrested and Accused of Under-Age Prostitution Ring This story came to us just before we recorded our program today and comes from Pattaya Police Station. Police Lieutenant Colonel Sanai armed with court papers, arrested Khun Wira aged 45 and his wife Khun Sunan aged 35 in Soi Kow Noi on Wednesday Afternoon. The court paper detailed a complaint from a 12 year old boy who claimed that the pair was operating a child prostitution ring in the Pattaya Area. He claims that they would send young boys and girls to Foreigners who would engage in sexual activities in exchange for money. The pair were interviewed by the Investigating Officer and denied all allegations as stated in the warrant. Khun Wira claimed that the complainant along with two eighteen year old women stay with the couple because they are orphaned and they offer them somewhere to stay but they denied allegations of using them for the purpose of prostitution. Further investigations are taking place and two further witnesses, the eighteen year old women are now being located who apparently support the 12 year old boy

I'm not sure what that is supposed to mean, but I believe I asked for first-hand information from someone who was actually there and witnessed it. If the person to whom you refer just returned to Thailand, then he couldn't have been there when it happened and cannot provide first-hand information.

Baht Appreciation to 35.26 to US Dollar is too Rapid, Says Central Bank BANGKOK, Dec 13 (TNA) The appreciation of the baht to 35.26 to the US dollar, the strongest in 9 years, in Monday

Many of the best restaurants in Pattaya are doing both Christmas and New Year's Eve specials. Most cost around 1200 baht, on up. You can't go wrong at the Amor, Casa Pascal, or the Symphony Brasserie. Monty's Enchanted Hut is doing a Christmas dinner for 990 baht per person. Le Caf

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ Border Clashes Draw Attention SUBIN KHEUNKAEW Chiang Rai - The Pha Muang task force in Chiang Rai is carefully monitoring the border situation for possible incursions and is preparing for a spillover following a mass mobilisation of Burmese troops to attack Shan State Army (SSA) forces. Task force commander Maj-Gen Wannatip Wongwai said Thai border forces have been put on alert for a possible clash between the two sides at the border demarcation line, just 800 metres away from Poona village in Chiang Rai's Mae Fah Luang district. There have been reports of clashes near Tachilek on the Burmese side over the past four days. Military personnel are preparing to evacuate nearby villagers to a safe area if the situation intensifies, he said. A military report said six battalions of Burmese troops were recently mobilised and had passed Burma's Ban Hong military base opposite Thailand's Chiang Dao district in Chiang Mai. On Sunday, two divisions from the United Wa State Army had arrived as reinforcements from Pang Sang in northern Burma. The SSA believes the combined forces are front-line troops which are set to invade its stronghold with backing from the Burmese junta, which provides heavy weapons to the troopers. Maj-Gen Wannatip said the conflict was Burma's internal affair and Thailand would maintain a non-partisan role.

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST: _____ German, American Face Child Sex Charges (Bangkokpost.com from Agencies) A German and an American were arrested in Pattaya for sexually abusing children, police said Tuesday. Unemployed Andreas Hubinger, from the southwestern German city of Mannheim, was arrested at a bar in Pattaya last Thursday accused of sexually abusing seven Thai boys, all under the age of 18, police said. Four Thai bar staff were detained along with 53-year-old Hubinger and have been charged with procuring children for the German. "The German man has denied the allegation, saying he just went to the bar but didn't buy sex services, but the boys have confirmed the abuse,'' said a Pattaya police officer. In a separate case 62-year-old John Langan, living in Thailand on a retirement visa, was arrested last week and has been charged with sexually abusing three Thai girls aged under 18. "If found guilty, they could face a maximum of 15 years in jail and fines of up to 20,000 baht or both,'' the police said. He said that Hubinger had entered Thailand frequently over the past five years using a tourist visa, with his latest entry on August 24. "We were asked by the German police to arrest the pedophilia suspect last month, and it took two weeks for us to find the suspect,'' said a Bangkok police officer in charge of the protection of women and children. Police hope to take both cases to Thailand's criminal court before the end of December. Hubinger also risks being tried in Germany, since local laws allow German authorities to try pedophiles for acts committed elsewhere.

The Spring Hotel has a web site at: http://www.vietnamonline.com/spring

Here are the latest exchange rates for several currencies: Wednesday, December 13 Opening Rates: US Dollar: 35.08 Euro: 46.43 British Pound: 68.975 Australian Dollar: 27.4325 Canadian Dollar: 30.2825

I have been hearing several stories lately about a series of raids taking place in Sunee Plaza, primarily directed at the bars that employ under-age boys. I have not been in Sunee Plaza lately, so I have no first-hand knowledge as to what's going on. I have not heard any stories about "farang" being arrested, but what I have heard is that several boys have been carted off, but many also get tipped off about the raids and quickly vamoose before the raids take place. If anyone has been in Sunee Plaza during these raids, please let us know what you have observed and experienced. How many of these raids have occurred?

Heyyyy, I get it. That's another good one, Smiles. I used to love to tell those kinds of jokes too . . . right up until my 9th birthday.

I just tried it again. It's opening up just fine for me. Where are you located?

Sorry about the address typo. Now that you found it, what did you think of it?

Note from GB: The baht opened against the US Dollar today at 35.06 and closed at 35.18. That was the actual exchange rate. These articles usually bring up the impact the strength of the baht has on exports from Thailand, but I never see these articles bring up an impact on tourism. Today is right in the middle of the high season. I was at the beach yesterday. There were no more people than I normally see in the middle of low season. I understand it's been like that for some time now. I have not seen any statistics that show how much of an impact the strength of the baht has on tourism, but my guess is that it is at least having some impact. Less tourists are coming and the ones that do come are spending less once they get here. The following appears in THE NATION: _____ Thai Baht Hits Nine-Year High Bangkok - The Thai baht hit a nine-year high Tuesday, peaking at 35.26 to the dollar, despite recent intervention from the Bank of Thailand (BoT) to try and slow down the soaring Thai currency. The baht moved in line with other Asian currencies except the Japanese yen against the weak US dollar, closing at 35.27-30, up against Monday's close of 35.46, traders said. BoT conceded that the baht went up "too quickly" and has continuously risen despite intervention from the central bank. "The baht has become so strong after the dollar and the yen have weakened," said the central bank's assistant governor Suchada Kirakul. "Capital inflows have continued moving into Asia, especially Thailand, on solid current account surplus," she told reporters, adding that the baht had risen 14 per cent since the beginning of this year. "We have stepped in to help manage the baht by monitoring the currency movements both in terms of trading volume and its value. Today the baht rose too quickly," she said. Exporters have asked the government to soften the baht, saying that the Thai currency's appreciation has outpaced regional rivals. But BoT played down the impact of the strong baht on exports. "The baht actually went up 9.3 per cent over the past two years which is the same levels of movement of other regional currencies," Suchada said. "Thai exports have remained competitive against shipments from our regional rivals," she said, adding that the baht is targeted to appreciate against the dollar by only 5.0 to 6.0 per cent this year as a whole. Analysts, however, expect the Thai baht to further appreciate despite the BoT intervention. "We target the baht to rise to 35.00 to the dollar pretty soon," a trader at a local bank told AFP. Agence France Presse

The site now seems to be working again.

Also not from here. However, the forum is working: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum

Then I must be very naive. All this time I thought that's what the USA is supposed to be fighting against.

I'm not worried at all. I just don't like someone pissing down my back and telling me it's raining.

I have to wonder whether you know it, or for that matter anyone else. One thing I am dead set against is baseless accusations, no matter at whom they are directed. I keep reading that the recipient of that accusation is guilty of skipping town while owing a large amount of money to the establishment where he had been living. I have also been reading about several other accusations against him involving money. What I haven't read or seen is any evidence whatsoever that any of these accusations are actually true. So far I've seen nothing but hearsay, primarily from people who only know the rumors they've heard from others. If anyone actually has evidence of the veracity of any of these accusations, I'd like to see it. I'm sorry folks, but to my mind no matter how much you may like or despise someone, making an accusation that you can't back up is highly inappropriate. In my opinion, unless you have the evidence to support your accusation and are willing to provide it in conjunction with your accusatory post, then you have no business making the accusation at all.

I hope so too. I completely agree with Pearl69er. I too am sick and tired of the assumption that if a person is gay, then he is also a pedophile. It's a totally erroneous stigma that people simply made up. It's just like the attitude that occurred when AIDS first started happening. All the Bible thumpers kept insisting it was God's punishment on the gays. They kept insisting on that, right up until heterosexuals began contracting the disease too. As far as I'm concerned, this nonsense is the same thing. Next time they question you, remind them that the vast majority of foreigners that get arrested in Thailand for engaging in under-age sex are heterosexuals who get caught with little girls.

My friends, you may notice that until now I have not participated on this thread. I really don't want to get involved in this other than to ask just one question: Whatever happened to "Don't Feed the Trolls"?

Perhaps incognito. Well, look for big limo cruising around Saranrom Park . . . .

Deface a picture of GB? Now that would be crass . . .

In the thread below, "Thai slaves in USA," (see: http://www.gaythailand.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=1034 ) the story is about 48 migrant Thai workers who were held as virtual slaves in the USA by a human trafficking ring. That story is certainly a sad one, but it does bring up a question: How did they get into the USA in the first place? It is extremely difficult, and most often impossible, for so many Thai people to get a visa to enter the USA, so how did these workers manage to get in? Unless I'm missing something, nothing is included in the article to suggest they entered the USA illegally, so each of the workers who were duped must have had a visa to enter the USA. How did they get it?