reader

From Bangkok Post Tourism minister backs reopening The tourism minister has defended the country's reopening plan as promised by the prime minister, stating that five more provinces including Bangkok should be ready for visitors from October, followed by another 21 provinces nationwide. During the no-confidence debate on Wednesday, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, the tourism and sports minister, said after Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha vowed to reopen the country by mid-October, the ministry and the Tourism Authority of Thailand were assigned to work closely with provincial governors and local communicable disease committees. However, he said only some provinces or districts are possible to reopen this year under a three-step plan. The first step started with three projects in four provinces: the Phuket Sandbox and Samui Plus schemes on July 1 and July 15, respectively, followed by two provinces, Phangnga and Krabi, under the 7+7 extension plan in mid-August. The second step slated for Oct 1 consists of Bangkok, Chon Buri (Pattaya), Phetchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan (Hua Hin) and Chiang Mai, while the third step set for Oct 15 comprises 21 provinces across the country. In the North, six provinces have been selected: Mae Hong Son, Lamphun, Phrae, Nan, Chiang Rai and Sukhothai. Four were chosen in the Northeast: Udon Thani, Nong Khai, Bueng Kan and Ubon Ratchathani. The South had five provinces selected -- Ranong, Trang, Satun, Songkhla and Narathiwat -- while the eastern region chose Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat. Ayutthaya is planned for the central region, while Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi are priorities in the western region. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2174927/phiphat-backs-reopening-with-a-caveat ====================================== Curfew may be lifted soon, Prayut says The night curfew in dark-red zones may be shortened or lifted, depending on the Covid-19 situation, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Wednesday. He said the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) had eased some disease controls, effective from Wednesday, and he hoped everyone would strictly comply with them. The restrictions could be further relaxed if the situation improved, he said. As for the 9pm-4am curfew, which remained unchanged, Gen Prayut said it could be shortened or lifted entirely -- depending on the number of infections, fatalities and other indications of the seriousness of the situation. The prime minister said he knew the curfew had affected entertainment places. His advice was for associations of owners of pubs, bars and other night spots to discuss the matter with the CCSA, and make suggestions for consideration. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2174875/curfew-may-be-lifted-soon-prayut-says

From Pattaya Mail Koh Larn reopens again Wednesday but will not require visitors to be vaccinated or tested for Covid-19. The island closed for the third time since the start of the pandemic on Aug. 9. The Sept. 1 reopening will see both Thais and foreigners required to show identification and go through the usual gauntlet of social distancing measures, but do not have to show proof of any Covid-19 vaccination or negative coronavirus test results. Ferry service to and from Bali Hai Pier and Koh Larn’s main pier will run at 7 a.m., noon and 5:30 p.m. Additional times may be added depending on demand. Speedboats also can provide service at higher rates while supply boats will run as usual. Koh Larn’s Restaurants will also open until 8 p.m. with 75 percent capacity for outdoor/non-air-conditioned seating and 50 percent for indoor and air-conditioned. No alcohol sales are allowed. Businesses, including convenience stores, can operate from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. Hotels can open normally but cannot open swimming pools, meeting rooms or offer party services. Beaches are open for relaxing, but no group activities. Gatherings are limited to five people, and the nighttime curfew remains in place from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. https://www.pattayamail.com/latestnews/news/koh-larn-tropical-island-opens-wednesday-with-no-vaccine-testing-requirement-369918 =================================== From Kohlarn.com Koh Larn will be reopening Sept. 1, 2021. This is a limited opening, the beaches will be more than likely closed temporarily. The ferry schedule will be limited to 3 times a day and will run 0700 , 1200, 1730. Passports for foreigners or Thai ID for Thai nationals will be required. A 9:00pm to 4:00am curfew will be in effect.

From Coconuts Bangkok A 2019 file photo of Rongros, a riverside restaurant in Bangkok’s Phra Nakhon district. Photo: Coconuts Bangkok In the latest display of competent policy-crafting, the actual regulations enacted last night contradicted last week’s announcement that vaccinations would be required to eat at restaurants in the 29 hardest-hit provinces, including Bangkok. According to what was made formal last night, those eateries need only cap capacity at 75% or 50% for indoor, air-conditioned venues. What was published in the Royal Gazette made no mention of a vaccination requirement. Responding to the confusion, Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoenchai, director of the Disease Control Department, said that the public should stick with the Royal Gazette’s version for now. Only a small portion of the population is fully vaccinated, and it was never clear Bangkok’s tens of thousands of eateries, large and small, were supposed to police health documents. https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/surprise-restaurant-vaccination-requirement-dropped-for-now/

From Zee News Protesters threaten nationwide march while opposition grills PM over COVID-19 crisis The political opposition accuses the former army chief and five of his cabinet ministers, including deputy prime minister and health minister Anutin Charnvirakul, of corruption, economic mismanagement and of bungling the coronavirus response. Thai lawmakers began a censure debate against Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha on Tuesday (August 31), as opponents threatened to intensify street protests fueled by frustration at his government`s handling of a COVID-19 crisis. The political opposition accuses the former army chief and five of his cabinet ministers, including deputy prime minister and health minister Anutin Charnvirakul, of corruption, economic mismanagement and of bungling the coronavirus response. Prayuth has weathered two previous censure motions and is expected to survive a no-confidence vote scheduled for Saturday, owing to his coalition`s clear parliamentary majority. But the motion is unlikely to appease the youth-led anti-government groups that sought Prayuth`s removal last year and have returned with renewed support from Thais angered by lockdowns, record COVID-19 deaths and a haphazard vaccine rollout. Demonstrators have threatened nationwide protests while the opposition grills Prayuth in parliament. "Every seven minutes a Thai person died because of the blundered management of the COVID-19 situation," opposition leader Sompong Amornwiwat of the Pheu Thai Party said in opening the debate. "There are economic losses of 8 billion baht ($247.60 million) per day from a lack of management and lockdown measures that have failed." Prayuth told parliament the government was always working for public interest. The protests against him, which are outlawed under coronavirus restrictions, have gathered steam in recent weeks, despite frequent, at times violent clashes with police who have responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon. https://zeenews.india.com/world/protesters-threaten-nationwide-march-while-opposition-grills-thailand-pm-over-covid-19-crisis-2390087.html

From AFP / Channel News Asia Circumcision is rarely questioned in the Philippines and boys face tremendous pressure to undergo the procedure. (Photo: AFP) SILANG: For more than a year, Caspien Gruta has been teased because his circumcision - a rite of passage for boys in the Philippines - was delayed, first by a volcanic eruption and then the coronavirus pandemic. "I worry if I don't get circumcised now, I will be shamed," said Gruta, 12. The Philippines has one of the highest rates of circumcision in the world, with many seeing the centuries-old practice as key for boys to enter manhood. Even as circumcision comes under increasing scrutiny elsewhere, with some critics branding it "child abuse", it is rarely questioned in the Philippines and boys face tremendous pressure to undergo the procedure. Every year, thousands of pre-teens have the operation for free at government or community-sponsored clinics. But last year, the "circumcision season" was cancelled for the first time in living memory due to the virus outbreak, delaying the milestone for many boys like Gruta. Left in limbo - and with their foreskin intact - the boys have been ridiculed by their male relatives and friends. Gruta was one of the oldest boys to line up at a covered basketball court turned make-shift clinic in Silang, Cavite south of Manila, one of the few provinces that have slowly resumed the free service since May. "I feel like I'm a genuine Filipino now because getting circumcised is part of being a Filipino," Gruta said after the 20-minute procedure. Wearing masks and face shields, the boys sat on plastic chairs near a row of wooden tables surrounded by a red curtain. Some looked excited or did their best to appear nonchalant. Others fidgeted as they waited. After removing their shorts, the youngsters lay down on a table with their legs hanging over the edge and their groin covered by an operating sheet. Some bit into a facecloth or covered their eyes as they were given a local anaesthetic. The surgeon then went to work. "I got circumcised because they said I will grow taller and I will get better in sports," said 12-year-old Almer Alciro, who went to another outdoor clinic for his delayed procedure. His family could not afford a private hospital where the operation costs as much as 12,000 pesos (US$240) - more than what many workers earn in a month. While he waited for the free service to resume, Alciro's friends mocked him as "uncircumcised" - an insult similar to coward in a country where the procedure is a badge of masculinity. "I'm happy that I'm finally circumcised," Alciro said. Circumcision has been practised in the Philippines for centuries, enduring wars and colonisations by Spain and the United States. Male circumcision tends to be more common in nations with significant Muslim or Jewish populations, and less so in Catholic-majority places. Yet around 90 per cent of males are circumcised for non-religious reasons in the Philippines, according to World Health Organization data. Boys as young as eight face social pressure to go under the knife. Even hospital advertisements urge boys to "Be Man Enough". Mass circumcisions are common during the hottest months from April to June when school children are on a long break. Normally hundreds of boys undergo outdoor surgery on a single day, but COVID-19 rules have drastically reduced group sizes. Many areas have yet to restart the free service as they battle COVID-19. The delays have knock-on effects. Circumcision is an important "demarcating line" between boys and men, when the youngsters take on more responsibility in the family and learn about sex, said Nestor Castro, a professor of anthropology at the University of the Philippines. "Once a boy gets circumcised, he already leaves the position of being a child and he is now considered ... as an adult," Castro said. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/philippines-circumcision-covid-19-delayed-boys-2144111

From Coconuts Bangkok Autopsy confirms tortured suspect died of suffocation, not overdose The same hospital that initially backed up the police’s version of events about the death of a suspect in their custody reversed its conclusion today, saying he had indeed died of suffocation at the hands of the officers torturing him. Sawanpracharak Hospital in Nakhon Sawan province today released a new autopsy report pinning the death of 24-year-old Jirapong Thanapat on suffocation by plastic bag – as seen in leaked stationhouse security footage. Deputy chief of the Crime Suppression Division, Col. Anek Taosuphap, said he had read the report and would further investigate the case. Earlier on Aug. 7, one day after Jirapong’s death, the hospital had said he likely died due to high levels of amphetamines found in his urine, a version of events promoted by station chief Col. Thitisan “Chief Joe” Utthanaphol, who now stands accused of torturing him to death. After the footage leaked last week showed that Thitisan and his deputies suffocating Jirapong, Sawanpracharak Hospital came under scrutiny for falsifying its report to help the police officers get away with killing Jirapong. The hospital defended itself last week by saying the autopsy report was only an “initial finding” and not official. It said that Jirapong’s body was brought there Aug. 6 by the police, who said he had collapsed and died trying to escape custody. Although Thitisan, aka “Joe Ferrari” for his collection of ultra-expensive luxury cars, and all the officers involved have been arrested and charged with torturing Jirapong to death, there is wide skepticism that the suspiciously wealthy and well-connected former police chief will face justice. At a bizarre police news conference last week, he admitted to the crime but said he killed him to “protect” Thais from drugs. https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/autopsy-confirms-tortured-suspect-died-of-suffocation-not-overdose/

Although I applaud any legitimate means of reducing the spread of the virus, I have to wonder if most conventional mouthwashes don't also have a similar effect. From The Nation Mahidol University’s Faculty of Dentistry has patented a new mouthwash that reduces the spread of new coronavirus via patient’s saliva The new mouthwash was developed in research with Mahidol University’s Faculty of Tropical Medicine to find a formula that help reduces the spreading of Covid-19. “We use a safe amount of hydrogen peroxide as an anti-viral agent plus other ingredients that will not irritate the oral cavity,” said Dr Surakit Wisutthiwatthanakorn, director of Mahidol University’s Dentistry Hospital. Surakit added that the trial phase among patients at the Dentistry Hospital revealed that the mouthwash is capable of killing more than 99.9 per cent of new coronavirus in patients’ saliva. “For example, if a patient has 100,000 units of Covid-19 virus in their saliva, after using this mouthwash for one minute, only 41 units will still be alive,” he said. “Furthermore, the mouthwash is able to tackle mutated variants of the virus, as it eliminates the fat layer protecting the virus, rendering it incapable of multiplying.” https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40005468

From The Star PHNOM PENH, Aug 29 (Bernama): Cambodia has allowed its citizens to get a third Covid-19 booster shot to build "real herd immunity,” Anadolu Agency quoted the state-run news agency Agence Kampuchea Press. In a statement released by the government this week, Prime Minister Hun Sen said a third dose of vaccines will be offered to people aged 12 and above. "In order to rapidly build a ‘real herd immunity’ which is a key foundation to protect the people’s lives from Covid-19, particularly the Delta variant or other variants, as well as to get prepared for the plan to reopen all sectors and to live with Covid-19 in a new normal norm, the Royal Government decides to launch the Covid-19 booster shot policy to the general public aged 12 years old and above,” the statement said. The campaign will run until mid-2022, and is conducted on a voluntary and free-of-charge basis, it added. Nearly 8 million people out of the 10 million eligible have been fully vaccinated with the UK-produced Oxford-AstraZeneca, the US-donated Johnson & Johnson, or the Chinese-made Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines. The Southeast Asian country has a population of 16 million. The kingdom has also began vaccinating children between the ages of 12 and 17 earlier this month, and up to 2 million are expected to be inoculated by early November. https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2021/08/29/cambodia-now-allowing-citizens-to-get-covid-19-booster-shots

From Anthem Press A Longitudinal Study of Young, Rural, Same-Sex-Attracted Men Coming of Age By Jan W. de Lind van Wijngaarden Anthem Studies in Sexuality, Gender and Culture This book presents the very first analysis of male homosexuality in modern rural Thailand that is based on sociological/anthropological research directly with 25 young same-sex attracted men. It explores changes in the way men view and describe their sexuality over time by interviewing them three times over a period of around 18 months. The men are followed during an important transition in their lives: the end of their high school years and the end (in most cases) of their life as a child with parents or extended family at a rural home. Nearly all decided to move to a city to continue their education or to find work. Some also had stints with sex work in one of Thailand’s well-known centers for prostitution. For nearly all men, this transition brought them into contact with new ideas about gender and sexuality, and many experienced an abrupt increase in their opportunities to have sex, leading to a readjustment of their moral universes. The young men in the study were still in the process of figuring out who they were/wanted to be, and many contradictions emerged in their narratives over the period of data collection. These contradictions, and the way they were resolved, presented an opportunity to critically explore the way the social structures in which these young men operate influence the way they think and explain their own sexual/gendered selves, and how changes in these social structures affect their sense of self. A number of explanatory ‘lenses’ are used in the different book chapters that zoom in on different structuring/explanatory frameworks for making sense of gender and sexuality in Thai cultural contexts, as used and applied by the study participants. The first is Buddhism. Buddhist beliefs and traditional ideas about karma, fate, hierarchy, family, masculinity and femininity played important roles in the young men’s childhood understandings about homosexuality and same-sex relations– especially in terms of their cause and morality. The second lens for understanding male homosexuality in Thailand is gender, where men are divided into feminine-oriented bottoms and masculine-oriented tops. A third lens is modernity/the desire to develop and grow, closely linked to Thailand’s globalizing economy and the increasing role of the Internet and social media. The Internet functioned as an important ‘playground’, a platform for trying-out different presentations of the self via Facebook and chat applications – and in many men this resulted in a rejection of their previous self-presentation as effeminate, which they gradually started to associate with being backwards, rural and ‘traditional’. The fourth lens is related to economy. Many of the young men in the study searched for romantic relationships based on complementarity and were looking for boyfriends who had something they did not have—money, a better position in society, or ‘wisdom’/the ability to guide. Most of the more effeminate men saw their sexuality as valuable, and several of the study participants described in this book – especially those coming from poor families – engaged in sex work and used their youth and beauty to find a wealthy long-term partner, in the hope of lifting their families out of poverty, towards a more prosperous future. The fifth lens is nationalism, or more specifically the concept of ‘being a good Thai’; gradually the young men learned that the Thai sense of self and the importance of performing one’s role as a ‘good’ son in public can be used as a strategy to cover-up private behaviors and desires. The sixth and final lens is family. Being ‘good’, respecting elders and elder siblings, financially supporting (grand-)parents, having good manners, meaning ‘acting appropriately in time and space’, gave the young men a way to retain the respect and support of elders and seniors, and determined how they dealt with (non-)disclosure of their sexuality to their families and others and explained their ability and desire to remain part of the mainstream of society. In the final chapter, a discussion about three critical concerns pertaining the health and wellbeing of same-sex attracted Thai men are discussed in the light of this proposed model: the ongoing HIV epidemic, mental health and LGBTI rights. Overall, this book presents significant new insights about the Thai sex/gender system, particularly on how it is affected by processes of globalization and the ascent of the Internet and mobile phones as tools for dating and romance. https://anthempress.com/sociology/books/male-homosexuality-in-21st-century-thailand-pdf

I thought we'd put to bed the notion that otherwise straight men aren't interested in sex with gay men. There are many guys on the board who have a preference for straights--regardless of their nationality. Most of the guys who work the bars and massage shops in Bangkok are straight. That they can service both men and women adds to their utility and--for many admirers--their attractiveness.

From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese nationals and foreigners can now register online for COVID-19 vaccines, according to Nguyễn Trường Nam, Deputy Head of the Information Technology Department of the Ministry of Health. The ministry has confirmed that anyone over the age 18 can choose one of two ways to register for their vaccination online. “The entire process, from registering for online vaccination to looking up vaccination history and results, can be done on the E-health app. The healthcare sector can monitor quantities of people who registered for vaccination, have received vaccine shots or remain unvaccinated, and the number of vaccines delivered to the venues,” Nam said. He said with the online system, people do not have to visit vaccination venues to register. Information is sent to authorities quickly and they can avoid lost or duplicate information. People must provide information on which priority groups they are in. Based on that information, authorities will arrange vaccination schedules for each group, Nam told Vietnam News Agency. Option One: Directly via the COVID-19 vaccination portal: https://tiemchungcovid19.gov.vn/portal/register-person Option Two: Via the E-health app for phones using Android and iOS that can be downloaded here: https://hssk.kcb.vn/#/sskdt. The website and the E-health app are expected to be updated with an English version in the next few weeks. Foreigners will be able to access these systems to make registration once the English version is completed. https://vietnamnews.vn/society/992011/how-to-register-for-your-covid-19-vaccine-for-vietnamese-and-foreigners.html

Sure it wasn't that the Vietnamese guys wouldn't take you as a client again and tossed you out?

From Bangkok Post Support for mid-Oct launch grows with fall in infections, jabs boost When Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced on June 16 that the country was gearing up for reopening in 120 days, many wondered if he had set himself an unattainable goal. The country was languishing in the throes of the Covid-19 crisis and prognoses about the pandemic were not encouraging. The daily caseload was spiking at a time when the government had fumbled over vaccine procurement as it tried to figure out when the next batch of vaccines would come from. It is now half-way through the 120-day deadline that falls in mid-October. Daily infections which peaked at more than 23,000 have retreated to around 18,000 in recent days. More vaccines have arrived with more than 120 million doses promised by the government by the end of the year. The government is pinning its hopes on the success of the tourism sandbox programme underway in Phuket and Samui to lure back overseas visitors. At the half-way mark to the government's mid-October reopening promise, politicians and stakeholders interviewed by the Bangkok Post cautiously agreed the deadline must be honoured as the economy cannot stay shut any longer. The economy has been in free-fall for long enough as a result of intermittent lockdowns and public health restrictions. It must be allowed room to breathe come the middle of October, said Kla Party secretary-general Atavit Suwannapakdee. He predicted the pandemic will still be lingering in October although reopening the country should be the rule, not an exception. "We've reached a point where we can't keep shutting our door. We must also face the fact the government's centralised approach to handling the pandemic is out of place," he said. "The reopening plan must go ahead. If we delay it, what the country has planned will be ruined and the country as a whole will lose its credibility," Mr Atavit added. The government's fight against the pandemic has been less than successful with the latest lockdown and restrictions proving an exercise in futility to contain the virus. "Many won't die from the disease but from being unable to make a living," he said. The chance of the country getting back to business in October depends on its "saviour", the vaccine. Continues at https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/special-reports/2172887/ready-to-reopen-safely

From AFP / Bangkok Post A woman buys drinking yoghurt from a vendor at Hua Lamphong station. (AFP Photo) An uncertain fate awaits the vendors, drivers and rough sleepers who have made a second home under the ornate arched ceiling of the century-old Hua Lamphong railway station in Bangkok. The elegant Italianate columns and stained glass windows of the station will soon echo no more to the constant rattle of trains arriving and departing. The vast majority of services will move in November to the new Bang Sue Grand Station, a modern hub that eventually will be part of a network of high-speed rail services including a line to China via Laos. The coronavirus pandemic has already bought a year’s reprieve for the current station — Bang Sue is almost finished but is currently being used as a vaccination centre. But movement restrictions and a lack of foreign visitors have crippled the kingdom’s tourism-dependent economy and the dozens of people eking out a living at Hua Lamphong are already feeling the pinch. “We have to be very frugal — I’m using my savings to cover living expenses,” said Boonkerd Khampakdi, who has sold food to hungry travellers at the station for the past 20 years. The 51-year-old told AFP she now makes only 1,000 baht per day, a tenth of what she made before the pandemic and barely enough to cover monthly rent for her stall. Nearby, tuk-tuk driver Wutthisak Inthawat waits patiently for what few potential fares pass through the station’s entrance. He said it had been increasingly difficult to cover the hire fees for his vehicle, pay rent and feed his family. “I have two young daughters — three and nine years old,” said Wutthisak, 34. “If I can’t manage to pay off my debts I will have to return to my home province.” The long platforms and languid atmosphere of the Hua Lamphong station have long imbued an element of romance to rail travel in Thailand. It was a crowning achievement for the Italian architect Mario Tamagno, who worked extensively in Thailand at the turn of the century and whose blueprints drew inspiration from the Frankfurt central station in Germany, built near the end of the 19th century. Continues at https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2172663/end-of-the-line-looms-for-hua-lamphong-regulars

From Channel News Asia Commentary: Why is former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra still so popular on social media? SINGAPORE: On Aug 8, former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra reached out to the Thai people on social media, saying that “pi (brother) Tony” is “ready to talk to young people”. The message, which was conveyed via his son and daughters, signals Thaksin’s return to Thai politics. The politician, who has been in self-imposed exile since 2007, looks certain to play a role in the country’s next elections. Years after his departure from the political stage, Thaksin still holds some cachet in Thailand. Thaksin is a founder of the Thai Rak Thai Party (TRT) and the head of the first elected civilian administration to complete a four-year term in 2001-2005. The TRT was enormously popular, especially among the rural poor. He was ousted from power by a bloodless military coup in 2006 and accused of corruption and abuse of power. Although Thaksin has been away from Thailand for more than a decade, he continues to play a major role in Thai politics. He established the People’s Power and Phuea Thai Parties to replace his TRT party, which was dissolved by court order. In a bid to influence elections at the local and national and local levels, he nominated relatives to serve as prime minister: Somchai Wongsawat, his brother-in-law and Yingluck Shinawatra, his sister. Parties affiliated with Thaksin have shown consistent electoral victories, as evident in the performances of the People’s Power Party in 2007 and the Phuea Thai Party in 2011 and 2019. Continues at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/commentary/thaksin-thai-political-comeback-youth-support-2139476

Separate zones for men and women? Hmm... From Thai PBS World Field hospital gender separated after alleged sex scandal involving patients Provincial health officials in Thailand’s Samut Prakan province have decided to separate a field hospital for COVID-19 patients, in Banag Pla sub-district of Bang Phli district, into male and female zones, after it was discovered that some patients were being accused of engaging in sexual activity and drug abuse. Police and local administration officials went to the field hospital yesterday to investigate, after officials filed a complaint alleging improper conduct by some of patients. The authorities checked CCTV footage and conducted a search of an area, where the men and women were seen gathering together, and found 23 packs of cigarettes and some electronic cigarettes, but no illicit drugs were found. All the men and women, suspected of having been engaged in improper activities have, however, been sternly warned that they will be transferred elsewhere if they indulge in similar activities again. To prevent a recurrence, a small detachment of police, military personnel and local administration officials has been deployed to the field hospital to assist the medics. https://www.thaipbsworld.com/field-hospital-gender-separated-after-alleged-sex-scandal-involving-patients/

Over the continuum of recorded history, no one has profited by betting against the proliferation of commercial sex.

I keep telling the dead horse I'm doing this for my personal edification and not to take it personally. But he just lies there and takes it like a man. OMG, it's a sensual experience I can't get enough of.

I don't think that Moses will mind if I reference a thread from Sawatdee Network where one of my favorite Pattaya posters hangs out. Dodger has written well over many years in his tenure as both a tourist and now an expat. There's something authentic about his earthy style of describing his travels and relationships that sets him apart. In a recent post (Pattaya Update: From the Trenches) he talks again about riding his motorbike around Pattaya and reporting on what and who he sees, and how the boys still in town are getting by--some with no place to sleep but the street. One of the homeless guys he's followed in his weekly forays he locates near Dong Tan Beach, asleep in a makeshift hammock suspended between two trees. The young man awakes with a smile. Dodger banters for a while, gives him some money for food and wishes him well. What stayed with me about the brief encounter is the both the resiliency of the boy in dire circumstances and Dodger's easy way of offering hope and comfort. Dodger is very lucky. He finds himself in a position to bring a little light into the lives of the guys that posters on all the forums comment on from time to time--most of them good times. He doesn't seclude himself in the grip of the pandemic but searches out the down and out. And it's his banter as much as his baht that gives them some respite. That there's at least one foreigner who remembers who you are can makes a big difference when you live hand to mouth. Most of us, of course, can't be there to imitate his way of caring. But perhaps all of us know at least one boy in not dissimilar circumstances. These are among the choices we face in this time of covid.

From VN Express Vietnam Airlines is planning to operate regular flights between Vietnam and the U.S. starting October, seeking to fulfill a dream of nearly two decades. The state-owned carrier will use either Boeing 787 or Airbus SE A350 aircraft for its inaugural U.S. route from Ho Chi Minh City to San Francisco with one refueling stop, CEO Le Hong Ha told Bloomberg. Since last year, the airline has been operating irregular charter flights to repatriate Vietnamese from the U.S. during the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline will rely on transporting cargo to offset initial low passenger demand, Ha said. https://e.vnexpress.net/news/business/companies/vietnam-airlines-aims-to-start-first-us-route-in-october-4347333.html

From The Nation Police raided a field hospital in Bang Phli district of Samut Prakan province after learning that some patients had engaged in group sex and smuggled in illegal cigarettes. he raid happened on Thursday afternoon after a tip-off by staff at the fifth field hospital in the province. In addition to police, officials of the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc) joined the operation to maintain peace after reports of brawls. Isoc officials told the press that they found 23 cartons of cigarettes and electronic cigarettes, which the patients had brought in illegally. They were later confiscated by the hospital. Continues with photos https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40005355

I'm encouraged by the number of bkk residents who received their first vaccine dose (reported today to be 6,717,824). The number of new infections appears to have stabilized across the country the past 10 days. This leads me to believe Thailand may be approaching the tipping point. And if these trends hold up we could see a return to some degree of normalcy in time for high season. Westerners make up a good representation of foreigners attracted to the Phuket opening and I suspect they'll also be near the front of the pack when Bangkok opens directly again. And the first to take the plunge will be those tourists who've supported the Thai economy repeatedly and loyally in the past--like the members of this forum. I look forward to walking down Patpong 2 and Silom again before Christmas with some semblance of the sights and sounds that I recall from 2019. I don't expect all of the old venues to be up and running but Thais are among the world's most resourceful and resilient souls. If anyone can mount a recovery, you'll find them first in Bangkok.

I know the horse is dead but I feel so macho when I keep beating it.

From Reuters / MSN Thailand develops robotic system to squeeze out more vaccine doses Reuters/JUARAWEE KITTISILPA A vaccine extraction machine called AutoVacc, designed by the Chulalongkorn University's Biomedical Engineering Research Center to extract extra doses out of AstraZeneca vaccine vials, is seen in Bangkok BANGKOK (Reuters) - As Thailand struggles with its worst coronavirus outbreak yet, researchers in the country have developed a machine to draw out COVID-19 vaccine doses more efficiently and optimise lower-than-expected supplies. Using a robotic arm, the "AutoVacc" system can draw 12 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine in four minutes from a vial, according to researchers at Chulalongkorn University, who made the machine that has been used at the university's vaccination centre since Monday. That is up 20% from the standard 10 doses drawn manually, they said. The machine only works on AstraZeneca multi-dose vials currently and labels show each vial can provide 10 to 11 doses. "The machine guarantees with accuracy that we can gain an extra 20% from each vaccine vial - from 10 to 12 doses," said Juthamas Ratanavaraporn, the lead researcher of the team at the university's Biomedical Engineering Research Center. "The extra 20% that we get means that if we have AstraZeneca for 1 million people, this machine can increase the number of doses to 1.2 million people," said Juthamas. Continues with photos https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/thailand-develops-robotic-system-to-squeeze-out-more-vaccine-doses/ar-AANICqt

Moved to Expats are included in vaccination plan