Coss

Just finished Binge-watching the TV series Vikings. l, ll and lll. The whole thing reeks of good production - Metro Goldwyn Mayer - History Channel et al. It is apparently based on real life, in part, some of the Danish Sagas, but ameliorated with Norwegian and Swedish themes, actual historical figures feature, the story telling has been well crafted. I'm a fan. I am waiting for the 4th series to eventuate. Lots of blood, sex and mythology. If you have the opportunity, see the extended versions, some beautiful women sans kit.

And it was, the ABs started, like they played the week before, but eventually they got the engine running. Now onwards, to the world cup and those pesky Frenchmen

12 August 2015 Author: Greg Raymond, ANU In June 2015, several announcements suggested that Thailand would acquire three Chinese submarines for 36 billion baht (US$1.03billion). But by mid-July, Thai Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon stated that the proposal would be deferred and subject to further review. While some commentators were quick to surmise that US diplomatic pressure had been applied, it is equally likely that the causes were conservative military spending and a longstanding bias toward land forces. It is tempting to view a submarine purchase primarily through a geopolitical lens, given the interest in Southeast Asia’s trajectory in an era of great power rivalry. Thailand is of particular interest because of its close and longstanding cultural affiliations with China, its clear discomfort with US criticism since the 22 May 2014 coup and its absence of territorial disputes with China. But in matters of Thai defence spending and arms procurement, there are other forces — unrelated to geopolitical alignment — that also need to be considered. Many would see any submarine purchase as the military junta taking advantage of its position to increase defence spending. Historically, this is often correct. After the 2006 coup, the military’s budget jumped 47 per cent. This would suggest that the 2014 junta is the navy’s best chance to obtain the submarines it has been proposing since the 1990s. It is waging a determined campaign to get the submarine purchase over the line. In response to the cabinet decision to defer the purchase, it released a nine page document explaining the need for submarines. The document cites Thailand’s reliance on maritime trade, significant maritime resources and the possession of subs by other ASEAN nations as reasons why the submarine purchase should occur. But the Thai military can also be surprisingly tolerant of restraint in defence spending, especially during tough economic times. During the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Thailand was amongst the first to slash defence spending, which included cancelling a planned F/A-18 Hornet procurement. It was also one of the last countries to resume increasing its defence spending. One economic analysis some years later noted that Thailand’s defence budgets had fallen ‘disproportionately due to the slowdown in economic growth’. And Thailand is facing a difficult economic outlook. Its competiveness in its traditional export strengths (such as rice) has been declining for some time, and it has suffered declining exports for three successive years. Tourism revenue has slumped since the 2014 coup. The economy is unlikely to grow by more than 3 per cent in 2015. This is forcing the government to consider increasing taxes, even to the point introducing a co-payment for the immensely popular 30 Baht health care policy introduced originally by the previous Thaksin government. Unfortunately for the navy, financial conservatism will most likely affect its procurement proposals. The Thai navy occupies a subordinate position within the Thai military hierarchy, as the army has historically dominated Thailand’s military forces. The Thai army also continues to be the service that controls key political and official appointments. Many Thai prime ministers have been from the army, for example, but none from the other services. As a consequence, the Thai navy has long struggled for resources and influence. This is partly due to the strategic prioritisation of the army, but it is also due to the lasting effects of inter-service rivalry and politicisation. In 1947 the Thai navy found itself on the wrong side of a domestic political power play. Navy elements had supported Pridi Phanomyong but were defeated by the army supporting Phibun Songkram, who later became premier of Thailand. Since then the navy has experienced only brief periods of prominence, such as during the 1990s. In the wake of the 1992 Black May massacre of protestors, the Thai army lost significant standing. As a result, maritime force development, strategy and priorities received an unusual degree of attention. The navy was allowed to purchase an aircraft carrier, the Chakri Naruebet and a few fixed wing strike aircraft. Plans for submarines and a further naval base were announced. But the 1997 financial crisis largely ended this golden period of expansion. If Thailand does proceed with a Chinese submarine purchase, it would be sensible to keep in mind that Thailand has bought a considerable volume of arms from China — including frigates and patrol boats — over the years. The key factor here has been price. This underscores another longstanding characteristic of Thai defence policy: a presumption of ‘good enough’ in defence procurement. Thai defence objectives are generally to provide an armed force capable of offering a deterrent, rather than to develop a force with a significant capability edge. Chinese submarines are not necessarily a geopolitical concern. Some Thais have started to register the tensions in the South China Sea as a long-term security issue, but most do not. Thailand has no direct stake in this dispute. But the military junta’s legitimacy is already wafer thin. It may be that the regime just considers the unpopular submarine purchase to be burning precious political capital for little reason. Greg Raymond is a research associate at the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, The Australian National University. His PhD thesis on Thailand’s strategic culture is currently under examination. http://www.eastasiaf...marine-setback/

2 DAYS AGO AUGUST 12, 2015 11:16AM Thailand has a serious gun problem. Source: AFP RUNGRAT Rungsuwan was manning her small shop selling trinkets on a main tourist drag on the Thai resort island of Koh Samui when she heard a series of loud bangs. “At first I thought they were firecrackers,†she said, as tourists in thongs and singlets filed past her storefront in the island’s ‘Fisherman’s Village’. “But once people realised it was gunfire everyone panicked and started running. Some people came into my shop to hide.†It was early March and just metres away influential local businessmen Panas Khao-uthai lay dead, six bullets fired into his body at close range by two assassins who calmly unloaded their pistols in broad daylight. For the holiday-makers forced to dive for cover that evening, the murder — which police say was over a commercial dispute — was a glimpse into a reality familiar to locals: the country’s deadly enthusiasm for guns. Renowned to outsiders for its laid-back, welcoming vibe, Thailand is also a country awash with firearms where disputes are all too frequently settled with a bullet and a body. Barely a week goes by without a new headline-grabbing killing, usually stemming from a humiliation — or loss of ‘face’ — over a personal or business dispute. In one recent case, a woman was shot in the neck by an angry lover in a shopping centre, while another saw a man gunned down outside his Bangkok apartment block after arguing with a security guard. In a third, a bus driver shot a passenger in the chest because his victim had repeatedly criticised his road skills. As one western police officer stationed at an embassy in Bangkok said: “There is a real culture of guns in Thailand, it’s a military-style culture, a place of uniforms and male power.†There’s a culture of guns in Thailand. Source: Flickr Gun culture Assessing the precise fallout of the kingdom’s enthusiasm for weaponry is difficult. The Thai government does not provide a specific breakdown for annual gun murders outside of the country’s deep south, where a local Muslim insurgency has killed more than 6400 in the last decade. But the Gunpolicy.org website, an online database of global gun statistics run by the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health, believes Thailand has one of the highest gun homicide rates in Asia. Firearms everywhere. Source: AFP It estimates 3.48 murders per 100,000 people in Thailand, three times the rate of neighbouring Cambodia and on a par with the United States. What is much clearer is the sheer number of weapons in civilian hands. According to the Interior Ministry, there are 6.1 million registered firearms in Thailand, a country with 67 million people. GunPolicy.org puts the total number of firearms at closer to 10 million, once the thriving black market trade is counted. Thailand police conduct a search during a raid on a suspect's house in Uthai Thani province. Source: AFP As the US State Department’s Bureau for Diplomatic Security wrote in its safety report for overseas staff: “Thailand has a fervent gun culture on par with the United States and has become a world leader in firearms-related homicides.†But while the US has long experienced a passionate debate on gun control, Thailand largely greets the human toll of its firearms obsession with a collective shrug. ‘When you die, you die’ “No one has taken responsibility, no one has really taken up the issue,†lamented Kasit Piromya, a former foreign minister who believes tighter gun controls are needed, as well as an amnesty for illegal weapons. The lack of outrage shown over gun murders, he believes is down to the concept of a karma. “When you die, you die. It’s acceptance and resignation. We take death calmly as part of life,†said Kasit, who owns two registered pistols. Renowned to outsiders for its laid-back, welcoming vibe, Thailand has its problems. Source: AFP On paper Thailand has strict gun controls but the law is easily circumnavigated. The sheer availability of weaponry concerns Police Colonel Akaradet Pimolsri, the head of Thailand’s police commando unit, each time his officers hit the streets. “I want every gun to be registered,†Akaradet of the elite Crime Suppression Division, told AFP at the unit’s Bangkok headquarters. A key step would be for the government to set up a database containing the “ballistic fingerprints†of all over the counter weapons. In late July, AFP accompanied Akaradet and 200 of his commandos on a dawn raid in Uthai Thani, a central province renowned for its crime syndicates. Their target were two suspects in a 2011 gun murder in which a policeman was killed. His officers took no chances, arming themselves with assault rifles, shotguns and body armour. But by the time the convoy reached a series of mansions on the outskirts of town there was no sign of the main suspects — although 20 guns, ammunition and bullet proof vests were seized. The killers are still on the loose, ready to be hired once more for a hit. Back on Samui, an island where tourism is a crucial mainstay, police also responded forcefully to the killing of Panas, arresting the alleged gunmen and conducting a series of raids that netted almost 100 weapons, Akaradet said. At the streetside restaurant where the killing took place, the tables are filled once more with tourists oblivious to the violence that occurred there three months ago. Laurent Haroutinian, the French manager of the restaurant where the shooting took place, said they reopened after just two days. “It was the first time I saw anything like this,†he said. “And I hope it is the last.†http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/a-bullet-and-a-body-thailands-troubling-gun-murders/story-e6frfq80-1227480014505

FILE - In this Jan. 18, 2014 file photo, Thai anti-government protesters march on a street during a rally in Bangkok, Thailand. Thailand's military-installed prime minister defended a new law that places tight restrictions on public gatherings and warned Thursday, Aug. 13, 2015 it will be strictly enforced. Human rights groups have voiced concern about the Public Assembly Act, which took effect Thursday, and its stiff penalties. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File) BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand's military-installed prime minister defended a new law that places tight restrictions on public gatherings and warned Thursday it will be strictly enforced. Human rights groups have voiced concern about the Public Assembly Act, which took effect Thursday, and its stiff penalties. It is the latest restrictive measure to be put in place since the military ousted an elected government in a coup last year, following years of political demonstrations that led to violence and often paralyzed the country's capital. Interim Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the former army chief who organized the coup, said the law requires that protesters apply for permission from police for rallies at least 24 hours in advance. It bans all demonstrations within 150 meters (500 feet) of the prime minister's headquarters known as Government House, Parliament, royal palaces and courthouses unless a specific area has been authorized and designated by authorities. It also bars protesters from blocking entrances or creating a disturbance at government offices, airports, seaports, train and bus stations, hospitals, schools and embassies. Thailand has had waves of massive anti-government protests over the past decade that spread to key government offices, Bangkok's central business district and major airports. "This law will be strictly enforced to prevent the type of nuisance and violence that happened in the past," Prayuth told reporters. "It's not possible to have it all — happiness, equality, democracy — without giving us the tools." The law details a variety of penalties, including up to 6 months in prison and a 10,000 baht ($300) fine for protesting without police permission and up to 10 years in prison for any disruption of public service, such as public transportation, telecommunications, water and electricity supplies. Protesters who ignore police orders to leave a site could face up to a year in prison and a 20,000 baht fine, while protesters armed with guns, explosives or similar weapons could face up to 5 years in prison and a 100,000 baht fine. The bill was proposed by the police department, approved by the military-installed Cabinet and won a unanimous 182-0 vote in the military-installed National Legislative Assembly before being published last month in the Royal Gazette, which decreed the law would take effect Aug. 13. Human rights groups say the law gives broad powers to authorities to prohibit public assemblies on vague and arbitrary grounds. "This law violates the rights of the people. We want this act revoked," said Nutchapakorn Nummueng, a representative of iLaw, a legal watchdog and rights advocacy group. http://news.yahoo.co...-082320181.html

A band of vandals is taking credit for doxxingsome 1,400 American military and government personnel. Identifying themselves as the Islamic State’s “hacking division,†the group is telling its followers to “act and kill†the infidels. That threat rings somewhat hollow—because ISIS is bad at hacking. This is at least the third time this year that ISIS has claimed to have hacked into government servers and extract the personal details of United States officials. “Hack†is a misleading verb, though, because in each of those instances, the terrorists didn’t exactly compromise America’s information security fortress. Either the “hacked†information was already public, or apparently completely fabricated. It would be more appropriate to describe this type of cyber warfare by saying something like “ISIS Googled military people†or “ISIS made up fake Gmail passwords for NASA officials.†That’s likely what really happened. Ranking military officers revealed as much in their response to this latest ISIS non-hack. “This is the second or third time they’ve claimed that and the first two times I’ll tell you, whatever lists they got were not taken by any cyber attack,†General Ray Odierno, the Army’s chief of staff, said after records were made publicon Wednesday. “But I take it seriously because it’s clear what they’re trying to do ... even though I believe they have not been successful with their plan.†The other instances to which General Odierno is referring are probably the CENTCOM non-hackin January of this year and the non-doxxing of U.S. soldiers in March. In both of those non-attacks, the information that the ISIS “hacking division†exposed was already public. ISIS sympathizers have been successful in breaking into some official military social media accounts, though the level of hacking skill required to accomplish such a feat is roughly equivalent to the amount of effort it takes to solve a New York Times crossword puzzle—one from early in the week, mind you. This is not to say that ISIS isn’t a group of violent terrorists. They certainly are. It would also be disingenuous to say that we shouldn’t be worried about hackers from within its ranks, and from other terrorist groups. We should be quite worried in times like these, if only because our own government seems pretty hapless in its understanding of cybersecurity. However, this is not the time to freak out—these are self-proclaimed hackers describing themselves as bloodthirsty jihadists who have just released a bunch of public information on the public internet. This time around, the information even appears to be totally made up. “It’s pretty clear that [the data’s] been aggregated from different sources,†said security expert Troy Hunt explained in a well sourced blog post. “Even the passwords, they’re not strong enough to have come from a corporate or government. They’re not even strong enough to have come from an online service — you can’t create a Gmail account, for example, with a password of less than eight characters, and here we’re seeing some passwords of three letters.†So even if you generally assume the U.S. government isn’t great at security, you could probably bet that members of the military would need passwords longer than three characters. So then you have to assume that these self-described ISIS hackers are either bad at hacking or just bad at making shit up. Frankly, it’s probably a little bit of both. http://gizmodo.com/i...king-1723859841

He'll be famous now.

5555 very good, Saturday, say no more

You'd have to burn off your chest hair, again

Vegemite used to make alcohol in Australia's dry areas LUCY CORMACK Last updated 08:07, August 10 2015 Australia's government said it wasn't seeking to place any restrictions on Vegemite. Vegemite is reportedly being used to make homemade alcohol in dry communities across Queensland and the Northern Territory in Australia. The problem has been described as prolific in some areas in the Northern Territory, with reported instances of people buying up to 20 jars of Australia's favourite spread at a time, for the brewing of homemade alcohol. Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion said the goal was for local communities to take a greater responsibility in restricting excessive sales of high-yeast products, rather than impose a legislative ban on the food products. "The government is not seeking to place any restrictions on Vegemite or any other yeast product that may be used in home brew in remote communities," he said. "Our priority has always been to get kids to school, make communities safer and get people into jobs. Businesses in these communities also have a responsibility to report any purchase that may raise their own suspicions." There are 19 communities across Queensland where alcohol is limited or banned. In 2013 the Queensland government said it was considering removing alcohol bans in certain communities, due to a growing increase in the production of homemade alcohol. At the time there were also reports of other food and drinks, like Ribena juice, being used to produce alcohol. "They're using a whole range of products and items that can be used to essentially ferment and turn into alcohol," said Selwyn Button, from the Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council to the ABC in November 2013. "It's anything that they can get their hands on that has the ability to ferment," he said, adding that the ingredients used in homemade alcohol are heavy in sugar and carbohydrates, common risk factors for health conditions like type 2 diabetes. According to the Vegemite website, the spread was first produced in 1922 when the Fred Walker Company, which would later become Kraft Food Company, "hired a young chemist to develop a spread from one of the richest known natural sources in the Vitamin B group – brewer's yeast". Brewer's yeast is a key ingredient used in the production of beer and ale. The Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council has been contacted for comment. There must be some dullards in Australian Media, and by association, the rest of the world's Media. Making alcohol from Vegemite doesn't stack up, Vegemite is made from yeast, it is not yeast, anymore than crude oil is still trees. http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/70965484/vegemite-used-to-make-alcohol-in-australias-dry-areas

NZ's first alcohol-free bar closes its doors Auckland's night-time revellers have spoken - there's no room for a dry bar in the city. Tap Bar, the country's first alcohol-free bar, has shut its doors after only five weeks of business on Karangahape Rd. Co-owner Grady Elliott said he was applying for a liquor licence and would relaunch as a nightclub. "We gave it a shot and Auckland drinking culture just didn't tie in with the dry bar. No one showed up," he said. Tap Bar, which stands for The After Party, charged a $15 entry fee and non-alcoholic drink prices started at $5. It opened at midnight and hoped to attract customers spilling out of neighbouring nightclubs at 4am closing. Elliott said the bar had a few customers but they drank water and little money was passed over the counter. "We took it by the balls and gave it a punt. We knew it could have gone either way and we were prepared for it," he said. "The good thing is it's ready to go as a licensed nightclub." Non-alcoholic bars and clubs were emerging internationally, with establishments in London, New York and Sweden tipped as "the next big thing" by overseas media. This next, is the obligatory Nanny State comment that media like to insert into any story about alcohol in NZ. Alcohol Health Watch director Rebecca Williams was not surprised by the bar's demise. But she said it had targeted clubbers who wouldn't necessarily want to quit boozing after 4am. She added that 18-24-year-olds were usually the ones spilling out of nightclubs in the early hours of the morning. The levels of alcohol-related harm among that age group in Auckland was "significantly" higher than the national rate. So there... http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11494244

I'm with you, one of the things I like about Laos is that the country has been through suffrage, and yet the women maintain their femininity. And here in middle earth, yes the blokes are no longer deserving of the title, they are all SNAGS/MetroSexuals

Casino Royale 1967, the 007 'spoof' with Peter Sellars, David Niven, Ursula Andress, Orson Welles et al. Quite good, I enjoyed it. But in the 21st century, some of the 'see how mad cap we can be' antics stretch the enjoyment factor somewhat. i.e. a telephone box explodes from a bomb and many men in greatcoats and cheese cutter caps, pour from the opening in the wall, with baby carriages. This movie contains several instances, of the, when the director directs the extras, 'all of you enter from stage left and walk around quickly bumping into each other at random' technique of filmography. I guess the sixties and LSD were still in full swing. Still worth a watch.

Which after their wedding night, could save them a fortune, in eye widening surgery

never say die

And this is what I don't understand about cricket, if I am correct, it is entirely possible that the Poms will 'declare' at some point, allowing the Strynes to have another chance, wherein runs could be scored, then rain could stop the match before England get a second chance, allowing the Strynes to win. Unlikely, but possible?

"BTW the guys in one of my advanced speaking classes were shocked at the answer when I asked how many of the gals would like to marry a Farang. Every single one of ladies raised her hand." ​but that could just be bigger Johnsons on the Farang guys...

A Night in Old Mexico 2013 - quite good, worth a watch. Dr No 1962 - Ursula Andress in Hi Def - need I say more - well worth a watch.

I agree with you - but the story is by, for and about women, and their perceived 'man drought' and their attitudes. The situation that they find themselves in? I have no wish to change it for them. The question as to why? Well my opinion is as valid as theirs, or has suffrage gone out the window?

Common Thai knowledge is that dreaming of many fishes = a large lotto win.

The latest in my tradition, of what some consider, misogynist posts. Comments in italics are mine. Relationships & Sex A new book says single women are tackling the problem of a lack of men in different ways, with mixed results. The Herald asked (left to right) Denise Lockhart, 26, Michael Sweeney, 25, Alvin Jung, 22, Eimear O'Neil, 25 and Lorna, 26, if they thought there was a man drought. Photo / Nick Reed None of these ladies are ugly, it must be something else, like attitude. Or that the men are metro, not paleo. Single and educated Kiwi women are confronting the New Zealand "man drought" in a variety of ways - including using mobile dating apps like Tinder - with mixed results, new research has found. Author Hannah August spoke to 22 single, heterosexual women with tertiary qualifications, most of whom were in their 30s, for research for her new book No Country for Old Maids, out tomorrow. According to the 2013 Census data, there were more than 60,000 more women between the ages of 25-49 living in the country than men. A number of the women spoken to by Wellington-based Dr August told her they were unconcerned about whether they had children. Several also said they would not change the way they dressed or presented themselves to "enhance their erotic capital". Really? When asked for a response if someone told her that unless she dressed or acted in a certain way, she would remain single, one respondent replied with: "I'd tell them to f*** off." So there it is, try to be agreeable, "f*** off." Almost all the women had used one or more online dating site, and many had also used Tinder. But their description of the experience included "awkward as hell" and "embarrassed". One respondent said: "It's so trashy, I just hate it. Part of me is absolutely mortified that it has come to this, that I am having to shop for men on the internet." Although some had had affairs with married men, many were strongly dismissive of the idea. Like many interviewees, Diane, a 36-year-old Auckland property manager, said she had no need or desire for a man, and had stopped seeking one. She had a good income, owned her own home, and had a child from a previous relationship. "The book arose from a conviction that we need to hear different voices talk about the New Zealand man drought, and that those voices must belong to a range of people in the demographic supposedly most affected by it," Dr August said. "The voices ... belong to educated heterosexual women because the data implies that - in a country where educational 'assortative mating', like matching with like, still prevails - they are the group of women most likely to be affected by the man drought." Given the sex ratio imbalance, age-gap couples are increasing, with more women partnering with younger men. In 1986, the number of partnered 40- and 45-year-old men who had a female partner five years or more older was 3 per cent, but that more than doubled to 7 per cent in 2013. The book will be sold online at $14.99 as part of the BWB Texts series, which are "short books on big subjects" by New Zealand writers. "Much of the existing characterisation of the man drought overlooks the diversity of women's responses to it, and the way some of these responses challenge the cultural norms," Dr August says in her book. Dr August has a PhD from King's College London and has been a Commonwealth Scholar - awarded by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK - and a fellow of the New Zealand Federation of Graduate Women. She has written for publications such as the Times Literary Supplement and New Zealand's Metro magazine. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11492621

Quite right, I've always thought that women are deceitful. Where do you see men, stuffing socks down their trousers, using makeup to conceal the skin, girdles to pull in the stomach, and practising a sweet nature to conceal the ghoul within? Oh wait, metrosexuals...

You are correct.

Spy 2015 - Jude Law, Melissa McCarthy, Jessica Chaffin, Miranda Hart, Rose Byrne, Jason Statham. A comedic romp through the world of some slightly 'simple' spies. Made me laugh, well worth a watch.

Jurassic World 2015 - the latest in the franchise, not as bad as some of it's predecessors, worth a watch. Mad Max: Fury Road 2015 - almost plotless, but a good exciting watch with yer brain in neutral worth a watch. Cinderella 2015 - a classic tale told well, worth a watch.