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22 Tips For Retiring Well And Happy In Thailand

 

CHIANG RAI – Thailand is one of the most affordable and interesting places in the world to think about retiring. One challenge, though, for the foreign retiree, can be culture shock. No question, Thailand is an exotic option. Thais take for granted behaviors that would take you and me by surprise… and Thais say and do things that you and I would never say and do.

It’s much easier to navigate all this if you’re prepared for what to expect.

Here, therefore, are 22 do’s and don’ts to help the retiree and expat make friends and avoid faux-pas in this part of the world.

#1: Never live alone.

Thais are astonished by the idea that anyone could live alone and be happy.

#2: Get rid of ghosts.

Thais take ghosts seriously. For Thais, ghosts are real, and they’re present. Thais hold special ceremonies after the death of a loved one, as no one wants ghosts to remain at home. I’ve known Thais who have moved house after sensing ghosts in a rental home.

#3: Make merit.

Thais believe that giving a donation to a Buddhist temple, and then receiving a blessing from a monk, makes a positive difference and spells good luck. Even if a monk blesses a car, and that car promptly gets smashed by a cement truck, Thais stick to their views.

#4: Yield to the better car.

In the Western world, when two cars arrive at an intersection at the same time, we yield to the car on the right. In Thailand, when two cars arrive at an intersection at the same time, Thais yield to the better car. In the Western world, if we buy a new car we may feel superior. That new-car smell makes us feel over the top. But when Thais buy a car they actually become superior.

#5: Forget about he and she.

Thais who speak English often use “he” when talking about a woman and “she” when talking about a man. Thai language fails to make the distinction, so they figure they can safely ignore the distinction in English, too.

#6: Categorize by age, not gender.

If someone asks about our siblings, we’re likely to say, “I have three brothers and a sister.” A Thai would say, “I have two older ones and two younger ones.”

#7: Forget singular versus plural.

Thai language lacks the facility of changing singular to plural with a simple “s.” When giving instruction, a Thai might, for example, point up and say “upstair.”

#8: Eat when you’re hungry.

Thais have little notion of three meals a day at fairly fixed times. They eat when they’re hungry. A child telling her mother, “I’m hungry” at 10 a.m. would be given something to eat…not chastised for “skipping breakfast.”

#9: Drop off final consonants.

With Thais who speak weak English, “rice” becomes “ri,” “motorcycle” becomes “motocy,” and “guest house” becomes “gue hou.”

#10: Put food in plastic.

When ordering takeout food in Thai, instead of saying “takeout” or “put in a bag,” you say “put in plastic.” Similarly, a grocery store clerk will ask if you want a “plastic” instead of a “bag” for your groceries.

#11: Don’t sweat.

A friend who lived in Thailand and who liked to play tennis once explained that, when he’d play with a group of Thai men and women, and the object seemed to be to play as hard as possible without breaking a sweat. If racing for a ball meant breaking a sweat, Thai players would let the ball go. Similarly, if Thais unload a truck, better to unload in three hours without breaking a sweat than in two hours while sweating. In general, Thais prefer to work longer rather than harder.

#12: Pay more at night.

Street food prices are higher at night than at similar food vendors during the day.

#13: Serve Thais first.

If I walk up to a currymonger ahead of a Thai, I’ll get served first. If the Thai arrives first, she’ll be served first. But if we both arrive at the same time, and the currymonger has no idea who arrived first, she’ll serve the Thai first, every time. I particularly like this rule, as I think it shows a minor pride in being Thai.

#14: Stick to the group.

Thais prefer doing things in groups rather than individually, whether taking a vacation, having a coffee, or living (as above).

#15: Take care of parents and siblings.

Thais tend to do whatever it takes to provide for family. If necessary, Thai women will raise children for brothers and sisters, sons and daughters. Hill tribe girls will even turn to the lucrative sex trade to provide for their parents.

#16: Enjoy.

Thais use the world sanuk, for joy, fun, pleasure. Thais try to lead a life full of sanuk. Foreign corporate bosses often have a tough time adapting to the Thai need of sanuk at work.

#17: Forget schedules and plans.

We Americans with more rigid schedules — like our three meals a day — must look foolish in this regard.

#18: Never expect the return of a security deposit.

A friend asserts that “as of this writing, there have been no known reports of a security deposit being returned” by a Thai landlord. If you intend to rent in this country, this is a simple reality to adjust to. Amortize the amount of the security deposit when figuring your monthly rent and deciding whether to do a deal.

#19: Find out if he/she’s married.

Thais ask first off if you’re married, to avoid insulting you. I figure pretty much the opposite is true in the United States.

#20: Take your shoes off before entering a home.

Always.

#21: Smile.

The French neighbor were furious and offended when McDonald’s began requiring workers in that country to smile at each customer. What an outrage, the French seemed to think, to smile when you don’t feel like it. Thais have a different attitude. They smile at everyone, regardless.

#22: Use motorbikes creatively.

Think Dad, Mom, a 6-year-old, and baby on a motorbike. Dad talks on the hand phone and smokes a cigarette. Mom holds the umbrella with one hand, sustains the baby with the other. The young boy carries the family dog in his arms. All wave when the neighbors pass on a motorbike going the other way. – Kathleen Peddicord

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding, But Still Accounting 48% Search Revenue

Google

Google is so closely associated with its key product that its name is a verb that signifies “search.” However, Google’s dominance in that sector is dwindling.

According to eMarketer, Google will lose control of the US search industry for the first time in decades next year.

Google will remain the dominant search player, accounting for 48% of American search advertising revenue. And, remarkably, Google is still increasing its sales in the field, despite being the dominating player in search since the early days of the George W. Bush administration. However, Amazon is growing at a quicker rate.

google

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

Amazon will hold over a quarter of US search ad dollars next year, rising to 27% by 2026, while Google will fall even more, according to eMarketer.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the forecast.

Lest you think you’ll have to switch to Bing or Yahoo, this isn’t the end of Google or anything really near.

Google is the fourth-most valued public firm in the world. Its market worth is $2.1 trillion, trailing just Apple, Microsoft, and the AI chip darling Nvidia. It also maintains its dominance in other industries, such as display advertisements, where it dominates alongside Facebook’s parent firm Meta, and video ads on YouTube.

To put those “other” firms in context, each is worth more than Delta Air Lines’ total market value. So, yeah, Google is not going anywhere.

Nonetheless, Google faces numerous dangers to its operations, particularly from antitrust regulators.

On Monday, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that Google must open up its Google Play Store to competitors, dealing a significant blow to the firm in its long-running battle with Fortnite creator Epic Games. Google announced that it would appeal the verdict.

In August, a federal judge ruled that Google has an illegal monopoly on search. That verdict could lead to the dissolution of the company’s search operation. Another antitrust lawsuit filed last month accuses Google of abusing its dominance in the online advertising business.

Meanwhile, European regulators have compelled Google to follow tough new standards, which have resulted in multiple $1 billion-plus fines.

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Pixa Bay

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

On top of that, the marketplace is becoming more difficult on its own.

TikTok, the fastest-growing social network, is expanding into the search market. And Amazon has accomplished something few other digital titans have done to date: it has established a habit.

When you want to buy anything, you usually go to Amazon, not Google. Amazon then buys adverts to push companies’ products to the top of your search results, increasing sales and earning Amazon a greater portion of the revenue. According to eMarketer, it is expected to generate $27.8 billion in search revenue in the United States next year, trailing only Google’s $62.9 billion total.

And then there’s AI, the technology that (supposedly) will change everything.

Why search in stilted language for “kendall jenner why bad bunny breakup” or “police moving violation driver rights no stop sign” when you can just ask OpenAI’s ChatGPT, “What’s going on with Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny?” in “I need help fighting a moving violation involving a stop sign that wasn’t visible.” Google is working on exactly this technology with its Gemini product, but its success is far from guaranteed, especially with Apple collaborating with OpenAI and other businesses rapidly joining the market.

A Google spokeswoman referred to a blog post from last week in which the company unveiled ads in its AI overviews (the AI-generated text that appears at the top of search results). It’s Google’s way of expressing its ability to profit on a changing marketplace while retaining its business, even as its consumers steadily transition to ask-and-answer AI and away from search.

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Google has long used a single catchphrase to defend itself against opponents who claim it is a monopoly abusing its power: competition is only a click away. Until recently, that seemed comically obtuse. Really? We are going to switch to Bing? Or Duck Duck Go? Give me a break.

But today, it feels more like reality.

Google is in no danger of disappearing. However, every highly dominating company faces some type of reckoning over time. GE, a Dow mainstay for more than a century, was broken up last year and is now a shell of its previous dominance. Sears declared bankruptcy in 2022 and is virtually out of business. US Steel, long the foundation of American manufacturing, is attempting to sell itself to a Japanese corporation.

Could we remember Google in the same way that we remember Yahoo or Ask Jeeves in decades? These next few years could be significant.

SOURCE | CNN

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2024 | Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

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Washington — Trump Media,  The Supreme Court announced Monday that it will not hear an appeal from social media platform X about a search warrant acquired by prosecutors in the election meddling case against former President Donald Trump.

The justices did not explain their rationale, and there were no recorded dissents.

The firm, which was known as Twitter before being purchased by billionaire Elon Musk, claims a nondisclosure order that prevented it from informing Trump about the warrant obtained by special counsel Jack Smith’s team violated its First Amendment rights.

The business also claims Trump should have had an opportunity to exercise executive privilege. If not reined in, the government may employ similar tactics to intercept additional privileged communications, their lawyers contended.

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Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

Two neutral electronic privacy groups also joined in, urging the high court to hear the case on First Amendment grounds.

Prosecutors, however, claim that the corporation never shown that Trump utilized the account for official purposes, therefore executive privilege is not a problem. A lower court also determined that informing Trump could have compromised the current probe.

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Trump utilized his Twitter account in the weeks preceding up to his supporters’ attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to spread false assertions about the election, which prosecutors claim were intended to create doubt in the democratic process.

The indictment describes how Trump used his Twitter account to encourage his followers to travel to Washington on Jan. 6, pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to reject the certification, and falsely claiming that the Capitol crowd, which battered police officers and destroyed glass, was peaceful.

musk trump

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

That case is now moving forward following the Supreme Court’s verdict in July, which granted Trump full immunity from criminal prosecution as a former president.

The warrant arrived at Twitter amid quick changes implemented by Musk, who bought the company in 2022 and has since cut off most of its workforce, including those dedicated to combating disinformation and hate speech.

He also welcomed back a vast list of previously banned users, including Trump, and endorsed him for the 2024 presidential election.

SOURCE | AP

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The Supreme Court Turns Down Biden’s Government Appeal in a Texas Emergency Abortion Matter.

Supreme Court

(VOR News) – A ruling that prohibits emergency abortions that contravene the Supreme Court law in the state of Texas, which has one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the country, has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Supreme Court upheld this decision.

The justices did not provide any specifics regarding the underlying reasons for their decision to uphold an order from a lower court that declared hospitals cannot be legally obligated to administer abortions if doing so would violate the law in the state of Texas.

Institutions are not required to perform abortions, as stipulated in the decree. The common populace did not investigate any opposing viewpoints. The decision was made just weeks before a presidential election that brought abortion to the forefront of the political agenda.

This decision follows the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that ended abortion nationwide.

In response to a request from the administration of Vice President Joe Biden to overturn the lower court’s decision, the justices expressed their disapproval.

The government contends that hospitals are obligated to perform abortions in compliance with federal legislation when the health or life of an expectant patient is in an exceedingly precarious condition.

This is the case in regions where the procedure is prohibited. The difficulty hospitals in Texas and other states are experiencing in determining whether or not routine care could be in violation of stringent state laws that prohibit abortion has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints concerning pregnant women who are experiencing medical distress being turned away from emergency rooms.

The administration cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was presented to it in Idaho at the beginning of the year. The justices took a limited decision in that case to allow the continuation of emergency abortions without interruption while a lawsuit was still being heard.

In contrast, Texas has been a vocal proponent of the injunction’s continued enforcement. Texas has argued that its circumstances are distinct from those of Idaho, as the state does have an exemption for situations that pose a significant hazard to the health of an expectant patient.

According to the state, the discrepancy is the result of this exemption. The state of Idaho had a provision that safeguarded a woman’s life when the issue was first broached; however, it did not include protection for her health.

Certified medical practitioners are not obligated to wait until a woman’s life is in imminent peril before they are legally permitted to perform an abortion, as determined by the state supreme court.

The state of Texas highlighted this to the Supreme Court.

Nevertheless, medical professionals have criticized the Texas statute as being perilously ambiguous, and a medical board has declined to provide a list of all the disorders that are eligible for an exception. Furthermore, the statute has been criticized for its hazardous ambiguity.

For an extended period, termination of pregnancies has been a standard procedure in medical treatment for individuals who have been experiencing significant issues. It is implemented in this manner to prevent catastrophic outcomes, such as sepsis, organ failure, and other severe scenarios.

Nevertheless, medical professionals and hospitals in Texas and other states with strict abortion laws have noted that it is uncertain whether or not these terminations could be in violation of abortion prohibitions that include the possibility of a prison sentence. This is the case in regions where abortion prohibitions are exceedingly restrictive.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which resulted in restrictions on the rights of women to have abortions in several Republican-ruled states, the Texas case was revisited in 2022.

As per the orders that were disclosed by the administration of Vice President Joe Biden, hospitals are still required to provide abortions in cases that are classified as dire emergency.

As stipulated in a piece of health care legislation, the majority of hospitals are obligated to provide medical assistance to patients who are experiencing medical distress. This is in accordance with the law.

The state of Texas maintained that hospitals should not be obligated to provide abortions throughout the litigation, as doing so would violate the state’s constitutional prohibition on abortions. In its January judgment, the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals concurred with the state and acknowledged that the administration had exceeded its authority.

SOURCE: AP

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Could Last-Minute Surprises Derail Kamala Harris’ Campaign? “Nostradamus” Explains the US Poll.

Scientists Awarded MicroRNA The Nobel Prize in Medicine.

US Inflation will Comfort a Fed Focused on Labor Markets.

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