ZARIS

Here's more KILLER VAGINA'S Women using poison to murder their husbands is nothing new, going as far back as Claudius' poisoning, which implicated his wife Agrippina. ''Arsenic Annie'' Nannie Doss saw off four husbands, as well as most of her family, over four decades (she confessed to the murders in 1954). And now a Brazilian woman may soon be added to this pantheon of gloom. Although this alleged attempted homicide was unsuccessful, the method will certainly go down in history. She allegedly put poison in her vagina, and invited her husband to perform oral sex on her. The man became suspicious while down south, surprised by an ''unusual smell''. He took her to hospital, where the poison was found. There is something particularly intriguing about using a method of murder that involves pleasure. It's also completely stupid, as vaginas are absorbent and the woman would have probably killed herself in the process. But no matter, a lethal love tunnel adds to the fascinating mythology of sex and death in the lady garden. Advertisement Paranoid fantasies about women's bits are nothing new. Vaginas seem dark and mysterious, and produce strange liquids. Its secretions form the basis of the belief that women are unclean, indeed ritually so. As the South Park character Mr Mackey said: ''I just don't trust anything that bleeds for five days and doesn't die.'' And yet pleasure - and most importantly life - also emanate from it. This is ''dark power''-inspired folklore. It was believed at various points in history that menstrual blood was semen ''gone bad'', that women took men's life-force through their vaginas, that the female orgasm should be prescribed for anxiety disorders, and that some vaginas came laced with teeth that could castrate a man. Indeed, the myth of the vagina dentata - meaning toothed vagina - can be found in many cultures, from Greek mythology to the Chaco and Guiana tribes of South America. Its message can be subtly different, depending on where it originated: it either says that penetrative sex is dangerous, that women are evil temptresses bent on male castration, or that men should not rape women, or suffer the consequences. This latter threat was realised with the invention of Rape-aXe, an anti-rape female condom invented in South Africa in 2005. The Rape-aXe is a latex sheath embedded with sharp, inward-facing barbs that would dig into the attacker's penis, causing excruciating pain. Of course the threat of castration, whether real or imagined, should not be the motivation for men not to rape. The mythology surrounding vaginas harm women more than help them. Many women would not actually want to put someone off oral sex with the possibility that it may be a poisoned furry chalice (women are also not more likely to be a poisoner than men: the overwhelming number of convicted poisoners are men). As long as women are made to feel powerless, those powerful myths will be embraced to protect ourselves by turning us into witches, poisoners or sirens. But these myths only perpetuate fear, distrust and disgust of female genitalia. There are other ways to bite back. Naomi McAuliffe led the Stop Violence Against Women campaign for Scotland. GUARDIAN Follow the National Times on Twitter

If you suspected it you were right apparently. There really are more dumb ass mothers fukkers than ever before. http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health-fitness/human-beings-are-getting-dumber/story-fneuz9ev-1226581222526

Its difficult to declare a "worlds best airline" as an individual when most people have only flown with a handful.Me included. However I am very please that my favourite airline- Singapore has won yet again. You ca'nt argue with 17 years in a row. I fly Singapore airlines whenever I can now,happy to pay the extra 200 or so dollars it costs above others. When youu sit in front of your PC to make the bookings its all about prices,Once your in the air its all about the experience, the importance of price seems to fade. I have also flown cathay, Air NZ, virgin america, and Thai. To be honest whilst thai is adequate I dont know how they made top 10.They are not a patch on Singapore. A notable omission is Australia's QANTAS.Once a truly great airline it is now truly woeful, doubt it makes the top 25. I wonder where air asia rates?

the price of golf generally is a lifetime filled with pain and incessant near misses coupled with absolute frustration.

thats a real pity.Last time I was in fooket I saw the harrys shop but did not for fear that unless imported frozen theres no way they could be as good as a real harrys. One of the great pleasures of being in Sydney is arriving at harrys cafe de wheels, standing in line and buying a pie with peas or mash or such,served on a square of greaseproof, piling on the HP sauce and standing there eating it with a plastic spoon.Heaven :thumbup :thumbup :thumbup

It does'nt really matter what the true story is. Ass stabbing , robbery- both unacceptable. Behaviour worldwide is de generating.The issue is countries of low moral attitudes now have citizens travelling worldwide causing all sorts of havoc. I preferred the world where the third world provided the services and attempted to simply overcharge where possible and the first world consumed those services and chose to pay the price or not. This mix of third world crooks and spivs having carte blanche access to the first world via cheap airfares and the internet is causing too many issues.

the problem is if I had a gun I would have killed at least 60 people by now. :hijack :hijack god I have come across some fuckwits! :hijack :hijack :hijack :hijack :hijack

I don't think that McDonald's really qualifies as "food" what it is exactly I'm not sure, but its not food. I have eaten it once in the last 20 years or so, at 3am at some airport because I was starving and nothing else was open.It was just dreadful. I was in the same situation a few years later but even though ravenous I did'nt buy McDonalds. KFC in Thailand is marginal at best, 2nd rate chicken and an over abundance of the crumbs that cover it.However here in OZ , I have to say KFC is bordering on delicious. Sizzler? Worse than McDonald, that salad bar they have was designed by a feminist terrorist I reckon.Its frightening. Pizzler is an absolute no no. subway- I think its ok in thailand, passable.Again here in OZ I think its actually quite good and I have it occasionally. To be honest I have lost faith in most of these big food chains, its not that cheap and the quality is rubbish.I would rather pay 2/3$ more and go to a noodle bar or cafe or suchlike. Here in OZ the quality of pretty much all processed foods is falling, as a result I find myself going for fresh food and preparing myself virtually all the time now. In fact I'm finding that foods that are say twice the price of the supposedly cheap stuff are often 3 or 4 times the quality. Thats value in my book.

sorry if you too thick to realise it but let me spell it out slowly for you. your dealing in illegal goods- acknowledged by all. You cannot expect a benefit{cheap price} by acting outside the law and then expect a benefit by using the law- the goods are as described. As idefix suggested- if your going to deal in these goods pull them out and check them, in this case get the dvd played infront of you. I dont see it as a scam or a mistake, it goes with the territory.

dont think you will get much sympathy. You sought to circumvent copyright laws and engage in technically criminal behaviour, Now your whining you got conned.Thats what happens when you deal outside the law. What do you want to do- use the same laws you flouted to get a refund? Bit rich is'nt it?

rather than play monopoly can I barfine a waitress and taken her from the bar straight away.Please confirm

this is not really the point. Its a business and should be run as one.Its not up to the customer to find the owner to set things right, no matter how good a guy the owner is. The customer is entitled to receive goods of the quality he is paying for. A shrug of the shoulders by staff in a food business is not good enough.The BM was clearly a regular so knows what the quality is generally like, He is entitled to complain. We all know that if a restaurant is flat out busy things may be forgotton, especially as the waitress flies by and you grab her for another ice tea,she forgets with a million things on her mind. However processes should be in place to deal with such things. The side order of bacon is a no-no being different from the main meal. A clear example of short cuts in the kitchen. The owner can't be on deck 27/7 - that's why they invented managers. PBG is one of my fav spots as well, lets hope the situation gets rectified.

how come no one talks about these people when they are alive.Then when they cark it theres an outpouring of grief?

for me few things are about absolute price.Of course the caveat is what one can ultimately afford at the top end. I've stayed in a 1 star rathole on highway 66 in USA to a 5 star in Las Vegas and Singapore and everything inbetween. Its all about value for money.One of my favourite hotel brands is Mecure.I stayed at the mecure in Queenstown NZ in a double room overlooking the Queenstown bay which was just fantastic $70 NZ$ a night about 56$ AUD} probably the best value I've ever experienced.A similar room on Sydney would be over $400 a night. Room rates vary so much, even on the same day in many cases, its all about catching the value.The room dontcha has presented is clearly great value. If you went to AC , where hotels are quite expensive by 3rd world standards the Pacific breeze @ $60 USD is great value compared to $40 USD for some low grade joint. Ive stayed @ 5 star joint in Vegas on a tuesday night and paid $40 and been asked if I want to continue my stay on friday and saturday night when the room I'm in will be $215 a night- same room. Chase value- not price.

I agree with the premise of the OP.There are a number of factors at play 1.The economic centre of the world is shifting away from USA and Europe to Asia.Hence those from the former have increasinly less $$$ to play with, causing a "tightness" in their attitudes. Conversely asians have MORE $$$ to spend than b4- hence their extra attention.One should not be surprised at this, if you think at the girls "distain" for thai boys in bars, they know they have little to spend. 2.Cheap airfares- ferals and lowlife who previously could not afford an overseas holiday now can due to lower and lower airfares.This is happening worldover,Check out the disgusting level of behaviour in Bali by youn aussies as an eg. 3.Overdevelopment of hotels- more and more rooms keeps prices low, feeding #2 4.Increased economic opportunity in thailand itself-more jobs for the uneducated rather than working in bars for rising pay. 5.Landlords increasing rents and costs making bars less and less economical, hence the aggressive tactics. 6.The internet- a saviour and a menace, there just all the info you would ever need at the click of a mouse.The mystery that once existed has gone for all concerned. I'm sure others can think of more.

thanks for the report.I'm go there next year.Cheers!

IMAHO in Sydney reasonable coffee STARTS @ $3.50 nd thats for a cup about half the size you get in USA. you want expensive- try living in OZ

Thanks for all the replies. I should have mentioned that the client is in Sydney, not in patts. To address the " why do it"- restaurants can provide a huge return if very successful.Thats why people keep trying I guess. A good successful place in Sydney can produce profits of 5 to 10K a week. But as pointed out by EVIL PENEVIL is the "opening a bar thread" I don't know if there are any reliable statistics about business failures in Pattaya. Studies have indicated that in North America and Europe, about 2/3s of all new small businesses fail within two years. The failure rate is much higher in some branches in some locations. For restaurants and other hospitality related small businesses, the rate tends to be between 80% and 90%.." 5 yrs ago I co worked on a restaurant in Sydney which had, 2 yrs prior been making 35k a week! Profits were now around 9k. We made numerous recommendations but unfortunately the owner was stuck in the " glory days" mentality and ignored all of them and continued as is. About 2yrs later he closed the doors after losing 30k a month for 6 months. my clent is interested in a grand opening, heavy promotion for a few months and let it ride for 12 mths. Few gimicks in portion size, mid tier pricing,Spend minimum on decor via using tablecloths, paintings/ photos for decoration.New carpet, paint. Set up cost is surprisingly small if your not spending $$ in the kitchen. I think we can make it work. Again- thanks for any contributions.

I'm semi retired but it gets boring. In my previous working life I did a lot of business development and consults.I still make myself available a few times a year on freelance gigs. I've been engaged by a client who intends to buy a poorly performing but well located restaurant, revamp it with decor and menu, keep it less than a year and either sell it or close it down.He is seeking a short lease. Sort of like the latest retail trend of "pop up shops". His menu idea revolves around dishes of small portions of different types on the one plate.sort of like maximized tasting plates. Mid tier pricing. So my question is- what makes you go into a restaurant if your a walkby? Do you seek out a certain food type? Is it price structure? Appearance? What makes you go back? Clearly if its crap you wont return, but lets say its average and your other choices are average- what would make you chose one over the other? Any other comments. Thanks in advance. Z

i use IE chrome and firefox. I would agree that chrome is currently best followed by firefox. Firefox used to be best but for some reason is not as functional as b4. IE is shit by comparison. When my current pc gives up the ghost I will but an APPLE PC. Microsoft products are just crap.

Hostility is the wrong approach. I always, early in my trip, start a conversation with one I'm not likely to see again on my trip.ie one that is off your beaten track. Say - no thanks I dont need a suit, how s your business going? How long you been doing this business., do you have a family here blah blah blah. Many times you will find a friendly decent guy behind the salesman. Crucially get his first name and the address of the shop. When back on your regular beat and asked reply " I already bought one" usually the tailor will then say " oh off who? from where? " mohammed on soi 10. ahh ok. next time you go past them if bothered again just repeat. chances are mohammed will be their cousin or they automaticaaly lose interest. Works every time

geez some of you guys have it good it seems. so many things in thailand cheaper than here in australia. here we are highly taxed, low levels of competition, many levels of govt fees and charges. We have the most expensive groceries in the world it seems. In thailand all toiletries are cheaper, many significantly- toothpaste, deod, shampoo,listerine, tootbrushes etc all cheaper. Shop bought alchohol is way cheaper, particualrly spirits. Shoes way cheaper. Many clothes cheaper even though we import from china. our petrol is about 50 bt a litre All kinds of fresh food are much cheaper, of course excepting imported foods. Many lines of confectionary cheaper by far. "mentos " is about $1.50 a roll here and from memory less than 50cents in thai. Pringles chips far less in thai. Bottled water can be bought around 10 bt or less a litre in thai, here its a minimum of 30/35 bt for equivalent quality. Soft drink much cheaper in thai but the quality is much better here for the same brands. Accomodation { hotel } much cheaper in thai.I just spent a few nights in canberra in a typical 4 star hotel room cost about 4300 bt a night

Interesting and also probably true.But its difficult to get an erection over a hotel room.Or a GFE!!! Also ALL hotel rooms are LT.

Boys, boys, boys,what gives of course vote with your feet!!!! I have zero tolerance for hotels hiking prices over whats advertised or promised. I rarely book my entire stay over the net and will NEVER pay for it in full. What if you get there and they are ripping out the rooms on the floor above you/ building next door/ put you in a room next to noisy mothefukkers? NFW. Also I find that apart from high season- which I never go anyway, all hotel rooms are negotiable in price when approached properly. You dont just waltz in and ask " how much for a room" You go in during the day and ask to see a room please because you are thinking of changing hotels- ' how long you stay sir " 3/4 days. They show you a room.You ask- do you have a better room please? They show you another. Grimace a little and say- mmm its a ok room but not really that good. " ok ok I show you best room" if that room is good then ask the price right there in the room, not back at the desk. They say 2000, you say if you can give it to me for 1600 I will stay a week, I have 2 weeks left on my holiday. They think you may stay for 2 weeks any way. Most of the time they will say ok. So you get a nicer room for a lower price. Fk taking the max price over the net. "

thanks scott66. I will drop in next time I'm in town. Would be interesting to hear if your 60 baht draft buyers lift the bottom line. Best of luck with any experiment your try.