Yep I think so, either they're totally clueless about BKK policy (doubtful) or lazy + only willing to help agency cases... I should start video them next time

I didn't say anything about emails or anything just handed a beautiful color print to him and he sneared and walked away and said he wants the original idk maybe it wasn't thick enough lol

I did it they refused it, wouldn't even look at it just walked away from me

Pretty sure it's the entrenched career foreign service staff who are the lazy bastards, always been that way but slightly better lately for some reason maybe fire breathing from Trump... got my letter from BKK Embassy in 1 business day

US Embassy is getting angry...

@Steve ****

hey mate did they accept a printout/email of the embassy letter?

I would call it bootlicking and ego, not greed. The Western man who wants to prove he understands Thailand better than his peers because he overly-romanticizes their ethics and intellect and culture and thus talks down to poorer farangs and newbies to make himself feel better than them.

Yah lots of topic jumping here, anyway I think you are way too romantic and philosophical in your analysis in a country that is very materialistic and wears their heart on their shoulder. It really just boils down to hiso vs. loso, yellow vs. red, BKK et al vs others. Yes Taksin decentralized power, angering the hisos... who now have centralized it again under their own power including the Army and police (never before has it been so centralized). So they all are rich and don't care about local business upcountry... they want to retain central power and cashflow. Back to COVID and visas, it's probably why they keep making it harder to get retirement visas etc... poor farangs out, temporary rich farangs in... Westernization avoided in the process as a nice side benefit that maintains their poor-English-speaking internalized corruption-rife society.

Kool Breez I think you're right on all counts, however perhaps overestimate the determination of BKK to clean up corruption among Immigration. I think it's like China, where the only corruption being cleaned up is that which does not benefit the CCP hisos aka BKK wants to ensure they're getting their money so they crack down on select offices and agencies. The concern re: economy and wanting to kick out poor farangs is surely true, but maybe secondary... I think centralized power and cashflow is #1, also in the background COVID has made the hisos acutely aware of all the protests for democracy etc too and that of course ties into another big change that happened in the recent years we aren't allowed to mention... so reducing Westerners here is a nice side-benefit maybe.

@Bobby *******

Yup think so... farangs on $800/mo social security checks are not adding much cashflow to the economy, and are westernizing the country's psychology in their view I assume... loads of tea money (e.g. elite visa) will slow down the farangs moving here and more cash to hiso pockets, it is obvious traditional tourism/expats are no longer an economic priority anymore