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Americans coming to Thailand-you need to read this!
right now there are hundreds of thais protesting in front of the usa embassy in bangkok (see photos). they are holding signs showing the us ambassador decapitated, chanting "usa go home" and more. and we all know how thais protest-they get violent in a fast and furious way. essentially thais are angry that the usa along with the un and 40 some other countries have condemned the arrest of persons for expressing free speech. this mainly regards the thai king. you cannot so much as say you don't like his shoes or you will be arrested or worse. in the last two weeks two things have happened. they convicted an american named joe gordon of what is called lese majeste (speaking badly about the king). joe gordon is a american citizen (thai american) from colorado who posted excerpts on his website in the usa about the thai royalty. that book is banned in thailand. when he came to thailand to see his family he was arrested and detained.
a week later they sentenced a 60 year old thai man they call "uncle sms" to 20 years in prison because they said he sent negative sms's about the king to the government. too bad this old man was not allowed to even see the evidence against him and it is universally known among his family and neighbors this man can hardly see and has never even sent an sms before.
guys remember one thing-this is a 3rd world country with a semi-authoritarian government. the internet is heavily monitored, freedom of speech is suppressed and people can be jailed without even the evidence being shown to you. do not get in trouble here. that can be hard to do when you are mongering as the nature of mongering can lead to trouble. just come to thailand, have fun and leave. don't discuss or do anything else other than that (not just about the king but anything that is outside the realm of mongering). believe me you will be better off if you heed this advice.
showdown
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Just don't "dis" the king and you'll be fine
[quote=showdown;1227369](snip)guys remember one thing-this is a 3rd world country with a semi-authoritarian government. the internet is heavily monitored, freedom of speech is suppressed and people can be jailed without even the evidence being shown to you. do not get in trouble here. that can be hard to do when you are mongering as the nature of mongering can lead to trouble. just come to thailand, have fun and leave. don't discuss or do anything else other than that (not just about the king but anything that is outside the realm of mongering). believe me you will be better off if you heed this advice. showdown[/quote]scared out of your teva flip flops, are ya?
the only times i've noticed common sense in short supply sometimes is at places like walking street & bangla road.
in reality, thailand is one of the more relaxed places on the planet to travel around and hang out in. just don't get drunk while out "hobbying," and then act like the village idiot.
in regard to your story about a few "yellow shirts" whining in front of the us embassy, so what? that's their right in a democratic country, even a "thai style" one.
when push really comes to shove in thailand, though, as it did in may 2010, you are best to seek cover (and a couple of bullet proof vests). better yet, just fly home!
Air Asia computer authorization is a mess
[QUOTE=Mr Enternational;1227592]But every time I try to purchase the tickets it says my Visa credit card is declined. This is the same card I have saved in my profile on their website. I have thousands of dollars available on my card. I called the bank that issued it and they said there is not even a record of a charge attempt.[/QUOTE]I've had the same experience. I called my USA card issuer several times. The last time, I had a very helpful agent who groaned and said that there is a problem with the AirAsia computer connecting to the USA system at whatever time of day that the account back-ups (whatever) take place in the USA. Many computer systems work around this, but evidently AirAsia's computers cannot or will not do it. The helpful agent also said that all the agents who have worked for Visa for any time are aware of the problem.
I don't remember the time of day when this problem occurs, but I think it was about 04h00 Eastern time in the USA, or 16h00 in BKK. If you book in the early morning from Asia, things seem better. Also, I have my AmEx on file now, and the problems seem fewer with AmEx.
But AirAsia's customer services all suck, and I avoid flying with that carrier when I have a choice.
TTG