Thai junta unveils a 5-year economic plan - if they last that long
Another Tuesday, fellow inmates, so up-and-at-'em, okay?
It is a mere 24 degrees with a bit of a breeze after the overnight lightning-and-rain storm in East Nong Ban Bangkok - or as they say in Canada "Wind chill 21, eh?"
In case you were wondering, the official Thailand edict of a health emergency and ban on foreign air flights and a lockdown was
921 Days Ago -
2 Years, 6 Months and a Week
30 Months and one Week
Sick baht, healthy tourism
Once again, the new narrative on Thailand's slow recovery of tourism:
It is a Good Thing to have a weak baht
currently 37.65 per U.S. dollar
because potential tourists love a sick baht where they get more baht when they exchange foreign currency.
The Plan of the Junta: By October, Thailand will be the transportation hub of ASEAN. Maybe all of East Asia.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2400263/
And speaking of the slowly sagging baht and tourists
Thailand's ruling junta has just announced it will 'expedite' its planned expansions of Thai airports.
Because foreign and local flyers are running into longer lines and waits - and they're pissed
https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2400168/
and tbh, there is no activity that offers more corruption on a greater scale than airport construction.
First up for quick expansion: Suvarnabhumi [third runway this year; expansion of the eastern passenger terminal; 120 million arrivals] and Don Muerang [Terminal Number 3] in Bangkok and U-tapao on the eastern seaboard.
THAILAND ECONOMY TOURISM
As the baht currency hit 37.5 per U.S. dollar on Monday...
the president of the  Thai Travel Agents Association invented a new reason for the low number of outbound tourists from Thailand: the weak baht.
The state of the currency has pushed airline prices up by 30... no 50 percent, and that keeps would-be tourists at home.
DRUGS NARCOTICS DEATH
Opioid addicts call this drug 'Tranq'.
Real name: Xylazine. It is a flesh-eating animal tranquilizer, and you can buy it here in Thailand, as well as in Kentucky.
Read on:
 The drug prolongs the highs felt from heroin, but results in users passing out for hours at a time.
 Injection points ulcerate and lead to grisly wounds that spread across the body.
 Some users report severe sores erupting across their body where they never injected the drug, and
 many are left disfigured as fingers, arms, feet, legs and toes must be amputated.
 In Philadelphia - ground zero for the Xylazine crisis - about one-third of all fatal opioid overdoses in 2019 were related to Tranq.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11247971/Flesh-eating-Tranq-dope-Xylazine-accounts-opioid-deaths-Philadelphia.html
THAILAND ECONOMY
Thailand's China-controlled online shopping giant Shopee fined another 300 Thai employees on Monday.
A press release said Shopee - the closest thing Thailand has to Amazon - " is undergoing a major restructuring across the region" and needs to operate more efficiently.
The Thai arm of the vendor had about 1,000 employees before Monday's cutback.
Shopee is part of the Alibaba business empire of billionaire Jack Ma - who hasn't been seen in Thailand since the outbreak of the Wuhan virus.
https://bit.ly/3rsvMsR
THAILAND ECONOMY INTEREST RATES
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of Thailand will meet tomorrow, behind closed doors.
The alleged so-called self-styled "experts" are predicting another hike of 0.25% in the basic interest rate.
Three of these expert economists expect a rate increase of 50 basic points.
But 22 out of 25 of them expect a rise to one (1) percent to fight inflation.
THAILAND WEATHER
Coming on Thursday
Tropical storm Noru will hit the Northeast.
It's not a typhoon, it just feels like one. It's going to dump a lot of water.
Noru, the first tropical storm to hit Thailand this year, packing winds speed of up to 140kph at its centre, is moving westward at a speed of 25kph and is anticipated to make landfall in central Vietnam this Wednesday, according to the Thai Meteorological Department.
https://tinyurl.com/43fe6pp3
Those residing in low-lying  areas  should  watch out for flash flooding and run-off from higher ground.
Local agencies have been ordered to mobilise  their resources to ensure they can provide timely assistance to those affected.
Anucha Burapachaisri, top No.1 spokesperson for the Thai junta
Noru killed five first-responders attempting to aid victims and survivors of the typhoon.
https://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/international/2022/09/26/powerful-typhoon-leaves-5-rescuers-dead-in-north-philippines/
The junta on Monday established a War Room to monitor the storm and then to assess the damage and impact.
The chief No.1 spokespersonman Anucha Burapachaisri said that the war room supervisor is
Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, token 'minister' of Digital Economy and Society.
His duty: Gather information about the storm, assess its severity and take actions to mitigate its impact.
For those in Thailand who need help, there's a 24-hour 'Noru Hotline" to get help: 1784.
RIP QUEEN OF ACTION
Thailand's 'Queen of Action' (movies) Mom Luang Sureewan Suriya, best known as Pum, died on Sunday of ovarian cancer, at the age of 59.
Pum was a hugely popular star of 40 movies, mostly in the 1980s and '90s - like The Black Warrior, Fighting the Ghosts, Can't Escape, etc.
Much info at: thaimovie.org
Also: https://newsbeezer.com/thailandeng/end-of-mls-sureewan-suriya-the-queen-of-action-films-at-the-age-of-59/
Prayut Chan-ocha delenda est
THAILAND ECONOMY TOURISM
As the baht currency hit 37.5 per U.S. dollar on Monday...
The president of the  Thai Travel Agents Association invented a new reason for the low number of outbound tourists from Thailand: the weak baht.
The state of the currency has pushed airline prices up by 30... no 50 percent, and that keeps would-be tourists at home.
THAILAND ECONOMY
Thailand's China-controlled online shopping giant Shopee fined another 300 Thai employees on Monday.
A press release said Shopee - the closest thing Thailand has to Amazon - " is undergoing a major restructuring across the region" and needs to operate more efficiently.
The Thai arm of the vendor had about 1,000 employees before Monday's cutback.
Shopee is part of the Alibaba business empire of billionaire Jack Ma - who hasn't been seen in Thailand since the outbreak of the Wuhan virus.
https://bit.ly/3rsvMsR
THAILAND ECONOMY 5-YEAR PLAN
Thailand's ruling junta has revealed yet another of its plans to serve the country:
 By 2027, Thais will earn an average of US$10,000 per year - 378,000 baht in real money.
Southeast Asia's second-largest economy wants to lift per capita income to $9,300 in the fiscal year starting October 1, 2026, from $7,097 in 2021, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council.
PHOTO: Workers attend to spinning machines at a wool manufacturing facility in Lop Buri, northwest of Bangkok.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-23/thailand-to-boost-per-capita-income-near-10-000-in-five-years?leadSource=uverify%20wall
CORONAVIRUS THAILAND
The "health regulators" who failed us worse than a military government are holding farewell parties for their death on Friday.
Meanwhile, on Monday, Rona
• infected and put yet another 319 people in hospital
• directly caused the deaths of 8 more people.
On the sunny side, it's the first time in 100 days that the SARS Cov-2 virus has killed feweer than 10 victims. So there is that.
Coming on Saturday
It's now official. Thailand's junta will downgrade the SARS Cov-2 novel coronavirus to
 'Communicable disease under surveillance'
Notice of the change has been printed in the Royal Gazette, so it is official unchangeable.
What it means for citizens and residents is totally unclear.
But REMINDER
You do NOT need a vaxxport or a printed test result to enter Thailand.
https://tinyurl.com/yrrmvknc
Belaying the scammers
For the past six months, Thailand's military regime has been battling an incessant 'invasion of the scammers' that is recruiting young Thai adults.
Most of the 'chief' criminals are small gangs, financed by Taiwanese and, especially, Chinese gangs and triads.
Almost all, but not all of the con-men activities operate from Cambodia. The scammers are recruited via the internet, especially social media, and especially the Line texting software.
It's somewhat similar to the old 'War on Drugs', where the chiefs of the scamming operations are one step ahead of the police and regulators trying to control, and then wipe them out.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2400343/
EXCELLENT: Elon Musk Says He's Activating Starlink in Iran After U.S. Eases Restrictions on Tech Companies [Gizmodo]
The transceiver dishes will have to be smuggled in, but that's probably not a huge obstacle.
https://gizmodo.com/elon-musk-activating-starlink-iran-us-eases-sanctions-1849578241
IRAN CRACKDOWN PROTESTS
Joe Biden considers that Iran is his "negotiating partner". This is how Iran negotiates.
Iran vows to crush women-led protests with 'no leniency' as unrest enters 10th day.
 The number of dead during clashes between protesters and security forces increased to 41 people, including some members of the security forces, according to state TV. However, the real figure is believed to be much higher.
https://news.yahoo.com/iran-vows-crush-women-led-110253604.html
TSMC Engineer Berates Girlfriend After Landing Job At Company [Wccftech]
Now, he regularly criticizes her for having a less important job that is not as professional as his role at TSMC.
Gosh, if only there was something she could do about that.
https://wccftech.com/tsmc-engineer-berates-girlfriend-after-landing-job-at-company/
SPORTS RASSLIN' HANDICAPPED CHILDREN GOOD DEEDS CENA
The publishers of The Guinness Book of World Records have confirmed that
Pro wrestler John Cena has conducted and concluded more Make-A-Wish fantasies for ill and disabled children than anyone on Earth.
Cena has helped 500 [FIVE HUNDRED] children between 2 and 18 realise their greatest wish. A few other kind people have helped up to 200 kids get their wishes. Which is why Cena is the celebrity most requested by the affected children. Cena says...
 If you ever need me for this ever, I don't care what I'm doing, I will drop what I'm doing and be involved because I think that's the coolest thing.
We also think so, Mr. Cena.
https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2022/9/john-cena-breaks-make-a-wish-record-after-granting-hundreds-of-wishes-716899
VIDEO here:
MASSACRE SHOOTING RUSSIA
A gunman, former pupil, broke into a school in Izhevsk city of central Russia, and killed the school guard and 13 students. Another 24 youngsters were wounded.
Since this did not happen in America, the story will be memory-holed quite rapidly.
The killer was wearing a swastika T-shirt.
PHOTO: When seconds count, Russian police are only minutes away.
https://tinyurl.com/2p9djhnf
