Gaybutton

I am well aware of that, but I'm talking about if soldiers refuse in massive numbers to obey. I don't know whether that has even a remote chance of happening, but if they receive orders to start shooting their own people, I can see it as a possibility. I have no idea whether there is any truth to this, but I have heard rumors that one of the reasons Abhisit has not yet actually called in the military is because he fears the possibility of something like that actually happening.

I've been around long enough to realize I'll never know how everything works . . .

I'll give him just a bit more to remind him that name calling is against posting rules here. "You bloody hypocrite." Gooooooooood. With that he gave me license to put him on moderated mode any time the whim strikes me, or strikes any other moderator for that matter. Just think, if any of us do put him on moderated mode he'll never know which one of us did it.

Yep. That's me. Absolutely right. A bloody hypocrite . . . with real blood too. How dare you write something positive about me! DanT won't like it. Come to think of it, he won't be alone in that . . .

I'm not so sure how well that would work if hundreds or even thousands of soldiers refuse to obey the orders. I don't see how the military could punish large numbers of soldiers. That would be a hell of a lot of courts martial. Still, the military obviously does something to convince soldiers to obey. I think about the past situation in Burma, when soldiers attacked their own people people who tried to rise up against the government. My thoughts were those soldiers have families too and it's hard to imagine that loyalty to a few fat-cat military leaders would supersede their feelings about the suffering of the poor, which probably includes their own families and they themselves. Maybe fear of courts martial plays a part, but I just can't imagine that in itself is the only factor that motivates them.

I think I prefer somewhere in between. I dislike bars at which you wait forever for more boys to get on the stage, but I also dislike bars at which they change positions so quickly that you really don't get enough time to give them a good looking over, make eye contact with a boy who catches your interest, and have at least a couple minutes to decide whether you want to call him over. For me, three or four minutes is just about right before the boys shift positions.

Now they're getting smart. I'll bet Happy Boys will have plenty of customers while other bars that won't budge about their policies and fees will continue crying for customers. Maybe Happy Boys won't make as much profit per individual customer, but sheer volume will most likely make up for it and then some. It will be interesting to see if other bars start offering promotions to gain customers.

I just tried it. It worked fine for me. It was probably a temporary glitch.

I hope I am speaking for all the moderators when I say your post is very much appreciated. A post like yours doesn't come very often and it makes all the crap we put up with worth it when we know at least some people appreciate what we do. I, for one, have tolerated years of complaints, put-downs, accusations, flame posts, hate posts, name calling, hate Email, hate PMs, threats, and even blackmail attempts. Meanwhile I'm still here and I don't plan on going anyplace. If some people dislike this board, my moderating style, or me personally, tough shit. Go elsewhere.

Last night I was chatting with some of the boys working in the Jomtien Complex bars. Several of them said they are working only temporarily, from between the end of the rice harvest season until the beginning of the planting season. The boys with whom I spoke said they do this every year. It's a way to make some money when there is little or nothing to do back at the rice farm during the "between" season. And "Every boy want to have farang" one said. They made it clear that their goal is to make some extra money and the lucky ones will hook up with a "good farang" during that time and possibly even hook up with someone who will take them away from the rice farm life entirely. A couple of them said that a common problem is the boys do find someone to "take care" them and that person sends money to them every month, but then it stops without warning. One boy said he really did love the farang he met, but the man stopped communicating with him seven months ago. He said he had no idea why. He said he never asked for anything more than the man said he would send each month. He said it lasted for a while, but all communication simply stopped. He said that happens to many of the boys. They were also complaining about the lack of customers. Some said they come to Pattaya and work the bars like this every year, but this year is the worst they've seen with regard to customer numbers. "Customer not come." The rainy season normally begins not long after Songkran. When I was a kid I used to love when my grade school teachers would read the same children's stories to us every year. We could count on 'Stuart Little,' 'Charlotte's Web,' and 'Mary Poppins.' Mary Poppins would tell the children she would stay until the wind changes. The boys say they will stay "until rain come." That's when many will go back to the rice farm. That's the beginning of planting season - when the rains come. ____________________ Tracking the Asian Monsoon Analysis by John D. Cox In the bestiary of powerful climate regimes -- El Ninos, La Ninas and other oscillations of one kind and another -- the Asian Monsoon is in a class by itself. Its rainfall feeds half the world's population. Its failure can bring down dynasties and, in a stroke, remove several million people from the rolls of living humanity. Beginning with the British mathematician Sir Gilbert Walker in India in the 19th century, scientists have devoted great time and energy trying to understand what makes the summer rains come and go -- or not. http://news.discovery.com/earth/tracking-the-asian-monsoon.html

For some the novelty wears off and for some it doesn't. But other considerations include medical care availability and quality, availability of the foods you like, shopping, grocery stores, transportation, cost of living, proximity to immigration offices (some people have to make long trips every 90 days just to report their address), banks and ATMs, Internet availability, activities, etc. All of those, plus more, are things to check before coming to a decision.

I agree with every word you wrote.

"Let her gush and jabber. Let her be enthused. I cannot remember When I have been more amused." - Gaston, 'Gigi', song: The Night They Invented Champagne On the list of things I give a damn about, guess where DanT's complaints are . . .

I hope I'm wrong, but that's exactly what I think they're going to do. I also think saying they're only blocking a few intersections is oversimplifying the problems resulting from this, but I hope it doesn't take a bloodbath to resolve it.

I think the same as you do. But it is interesting to see what people are saying they would do if they are ever forced to leave Thailand.

I guess I should have followed the word 'imminent' with a question mark. The news reports make it seem as if something is going to happen, and very soon. The way I see it, the Red-Shirts are not going to give in. The Abhisit government is not going to give in. Now the "No Color Shirts" are planning a mass demonstration. There seems to be no end to it and Thailand can't afford to let this just go on and on as a never-ending stand-off. To me, it all seems to be heading in just one direction - the military. Unless something changes, the only way I can visualize this coming to an end is military intervention. I hope it doesn't come to that because it would mean more injuries, more deaths, more hatred, the possibility of martial law being imposed, and an outcome satisfactory to no one. Only a short time ago I was sure nothing was going to happen at all and that I hoped I wouldn't end up having to eat my words. Unfortunately, I've had to chow down on those words. I never expected the situation to degenerate to what it has become. I really didn't. My predictions couldn't have been more wrong. I can only hope my predictions about military intervention turn out to be just as wrong.

We all have our varying opinions as to who is right, who is wrong, and whether the government should or should not try to disperse the Red-Shirts. From the latest news reports, it does seem that the military is about to do something. Just what they intend to do remains to be seen. It's a sad thing when the military has to step in and take action against its own people. My own opinion is the Red-Shirts have a right to protest, but I have a problem with their methods. A protest and even marching is one thing, but to disrupt a city and cause problems that are directly and adversely affecting the entire country in order to get what they want is not my idea of how it ought to be done. Suppose they do get what they want, dissolution of the current government and new elections. Then what? What are they going to do if the candidates they support don't win? What will the opposition do if their own candidates don't win? What will the opposition do if a Red-Shirt government prevails and then tries to bring Thaksin back in? What will the military do if that happens, especially since it was the military that ousted Thaksin in the first place? I think no matter how it all plays out, Thailand is going to suffer serious consequences for quite some time to come. And no matter which side wins, look what a new government and Prime Minister would have to deal with - a country torn apart, with its reputation for being a peaceful, safe place to visit, invest in, and reside in ruined, with the tourism industry in terrible shape, and plenty of other problems to go with it. It's not a job I would want, that's for sure. "You were both wrong! And you were both right." - Yul Brynner, 'Taras Bulba' __________ PM Rejects Softened Red-Shirt Demands Dissolution deadline 30 days, talks set to restart Published: 24/04/2010 Politics plunged back into crisis on Saturday when Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva rejected a compromise offer from the red shirts, who said they were now braced for a crackdown. Hopes for an agreement to end weeks of protests, which have been punctuated by deadly street clashes, evaporated as Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva ruled out the offer by the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) to disperse its protest if polls were called in 30 days. PM rejects softened red-shirt demands

I like Ratefun too, yes. Actually, I like them all! If I don't find the type I like on one site, I'm sure to find what I'm looking for on another. Another one I like is Gboysiam: http://www.gboysiam.com/picpost Many of the boys on Gboysiam publish their phone numbers. I never place a cold call, though. I always send a text message first. Sometimes I get a response and sometimes I don't. If they don't publish their phone number, I'll make a first contact by Email. Again, sometimes I get a response and sometimes I don't. Despite the warnings and potential problems, I have never had any kind of negative incident with any of the boys I've met via these personals sites. I've gotten to the point that I actually prefer the personals sites to the bars. None of the bullshit that goes on in the bars. No mama-sans. No drinks that I don't want in the first place. No "drink for boy." None of the game playing. No loud music volume. No police raids. No doormen screeching in my ear or trying to physically manhandle me into the bar. No off fees. No "go upstairs" fees. I realize many really enjoy the bars and also want to see what they're getting first, but for me, when I look at the pros and cons of going to the bars vs. the personals sites, the pros vastly outnumber the cons. Whenever I meet a boy from the personals sites for the first time, I always arrange to meet somewhere neutral. That gives me a chance to check his ID card, make sure his posted photos are really the same person, chat, and make sure we'll be compatible. That method has never failed me. I never have a "first timer" come directly over to my place. I doubt they could find it anyhow, but meeting first at a neutral place works best for me.

Somehow, from among all the descriptive words that can be applied to you, I would have thought "virgin" would be way down at the bottom of the list . . .

If I am forced to move away from Thailand, rather than somewhere else within Thailand, my next stop would be Phnom Penh as Plan A, Laos as Plan B.

You are much more of an optimist than I . . . Maybe we should start taking bets on how long it will take to start the repairs, to complete the repairs, and how long the repairs will last.

Why is anyone even responding to Mr. DanT? He has a grand total of 7 posts on this board and cries about how many posts I and others write. Troll with a capital T. He is at liberty, just like anyone else, to go to other boards if he doesn't like this one or who posts on it how many times. If it's my posts he specifically dislikes, is anyone out there twisting his arm to read them?

http://ww.cam4.com brings up the site. http://www.cam4.com brings up the announcement GT received I did manage to get through. HeyGay, what's so special about this site? What I saw was primarily heterosexual makes and females from all over the world. I couldn't even find anything about gays from Thailand, let alone specific areas of Thailand. If you like that site, fine with me, but I think I'll just stick with Gay Romeo and Camfrog, thank you very much.

Of course not. All this time, inconvenience, disruption of local businesses, difficulty of navigating the road, and everybody finally breathing a sigh of relief when the new road opens - plenty of lanes, a smooth ride, and everybody's happy. So what does the reality turn out to be? After waiting all this time, years, when it's all finished it turns out that was actually put in was an incompetent piece of shit that's already falling apart less than three weeks after completion. Way to go! Why am I not surprised?