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HANOI, April 11 (Reuters) - A court in Vietnam handed the death sentence on Thursday to real estate tycoon Truong My Lan for her role in a 304-trillion-dong ($12.5-billion) financial fraud, the country's biggest on record, state media said. Her trial, begun on March 5 and ending earlier than planned, was one dramatic result of a campaign against corruption that the leader of the ruling Communist Party, Nguyen Phu Trong, has pledged for years to stamp out. He awaits the arrival of Rom! Probably not a good idea to dress up your sissies in military garb.

BANGKOK – Videos and photos of a farang defecating in public on a busy Bangkok street and then bathing in a Buddhist shrine has gone viral, sparking disgust and anger among local residents and online viewers. The incident, filmed on Thursday in the infamous Soi Nana (Sukhumvit Soi 4) district, shows the man casually squatting on the sidewalk before proceeding to wash himself in a nearby shrine. 3b8be566-ee8d-4dca-a6ab-1e9fefc2a29f.mp4.743cd0c77904188a38a686a859b7db84.mp4

Anyone here into choking? The Troubling Trend in Teenage Sex Debby Herbenick is one of the foremost researchers on American sexual behavior. The director of the Center for Sexual Health Promotion at Indiana University and the author of the pointedly titled book “Yes, Your Kid,” she usually shares her data, no matter how explicit, without judgment. So I was surprised by how concerned she seemed when we checked in on Zoom recently: “I haven’t often felt so strongly about getting research out there,” she told me. “But this is lifesaving.” For the past four years, Dr. Herbenick has been tracking the rapid rise of “rough sex” among college students, particularly sexual strangulation, or what is colloquially referred to as “choking.” Nearly two-thirds of women in her most recent campus-representative survey of 5,000 students at an anonymized “major Midwestern university” said a partner had choked them during sex (one-third in their most recent encounter). The rate of those women who said they were between the ages 12 and 17 the first time that happened had shot up to 40 percent from one in four. As someone whose been writing for well over a decade about young people’s attitudes and early experience with sex in all its forms, I’d also begun clocking this phenomenon. I was initially startled in early 2020 when, during a post-talk Q. and A. at an independent high school, a 16-year-old girl asked, “How come boys all want to choke you?” In a different class, a 15-year-old boy wanted to know, “Why do girls all want to be choked?” They do? Not long after, a college sophomore (and longtime interview subject) contacted me after her roommate came home in tears because a hookup partner, without warning, had put both hands on her throat and squeezed. I started to ask more and the stories piled up. Another sophomore confided that she enjoyed being choked by her boyfriend, though it was important for a partner to be “properly educated” — pressing on the sides of the neck, for example, rather than the trachea. (Note: There is no safe way to strangle someone.) A male freshman said “girls expected” to be choked and, even though he didn’t want to do it, refusing would make him seem like a “simp.” And a senior in high school was angry that her friends called her “vanilla” when she complained that her boyfriend had choked her. Sexual strangulation, nearly always of women in heterosexual pornography, has long been a staple on free sites, those default sources of sex ed for teens. As with anything else, repeat exposure can render the once appalling appealing. It’s not uncommon for behaviors to be normalized in porn, move within a few years to mainstream media, then, in what may become a feedback loop, be adopted in the bedroom or the dorm room. Choking, Dr. Herbenick said, seems to have made that first leap in a 2008 episode of HBO’s “Californication,” where it was still depicted as outré, then accelerated after the success of “Fifty Shades of Gray.” By 2019, when a high school girl was choked in the pilot of HBO’s “Euphoria,” it was standard fare. A young woman was choked in the opener of “The Idol” (again on HBO and also, like “Euphoria,” created by Sam Levinson; what’s with him?). Ali Wong plays the proclivity for laughs in a Netflix special, and it’s a punchline in Tina Fey’s new “Mean Girls.” The chorus of Jack Harlow’s “Lovin On Me,” which topped Billboard’s Hot 100 chart for six nonconsecutive weeks this winter and has been viewed over 99 million times on YouTube, starts with, “I’m vanilla baby, I’ll choke you, but I ain’t no killer, baby.” How-to articles abound on the internet, and social media algorithms feed young people (but typically not their unsuspecting parents) hundreds of #chokemedaddy memes along with memes that mock — even celebrate — the potential for hurting or killing female partners. I’m not here to kink-shame (or anything-shame). And, anyway, many experienced BDSM practitioners discourage choking, believing it to be too dangerous. There are still relatively few studies on the subject and most have been done by Dr. Herbenick and her colleagues. Reports among adolescents are now trickling out from the United Kingdom, Australia, Iceland, New Zealand and Italy. Twenty years ago sexual asphyxiation appears to have been unusual among any demographic, let alone young people who were new to sex and iffy at communication. That’s changed radically in a short time, with health consequences that parents, educators, medical professionals, sexual consent advocates and teens themselves urgently need to understand. Sexual trends can spread quickly on campus and, to an extent, in every direction. But, at least among straight kids, I’ve sometimes noticed a pattern: Those that involve basic physical gratification — like receiving oral sex in hookups — tend to favor men. Those that might entail pain or submission, like choking, are generally more for women. So, while undergrads of all genders and sexualities in Dr. Herbenick’s surveys report both choking and being choked, straight and bisexual young women are far more likely to have been the subjects of the behavior; the gap widens with greater occurrences. (In a separate study, Dr. Herbenick and her colleagues found the behavior repeated across the United States, particularly for adults under 40, and not just among college students.) Alcohol may well be involved, and while the act is often engaged in with a steady partner, a quarter of young women said partners they’d had sex with on the day they’d met also choked them. Either way, most say that their partners never or only sometimes asked before grabbing their necks. For many, there had been moments when they couldn’t breathe or speak, compromising the ability to withdraw consent, if they’d given it. No wonder that, in a separate study by Dr. Herbenick, choking was among the most frequently listed sex acts young women said had scared them, saying it sometimes made them worry whether they’d survive. Among girls and women I’ve spoken with, many did not want or like to be sexually strangled, though in an otherwise desired encounter they didn’t name it as assault. Still, a sizable number were enthusiastic; they requested it. It is exciting to feel so vulnerable, a college junior explained. The power dynamic turns her on; oxygen deprivation to the brain can trigger euphoria. That same young woman, incidentally, had never climaxed with a partner: While the prevalence of choking has skyrocketed, rates of orgasm among young women have not increased, nor has the “orgasm gap” disappeared among heterosexual couples. “It indicates they’re not doing other things to enhance female arousal or pleasure,” Dr. Herbenick said. When, for instance, she asked one male student who said he choked his partner whether he’d ever tried using a vibrator instead, he recoiled. “Why would I do that?” he asked. Perhaps, she responded, because it would be more likely to produce orgasm without risking, you know, death. In my interviews, college students have seen male orgasm as a given; women’s is nice if it happens, but certainly not expected or necessarily prioritized (by either partner). It makes sense, then, that fulfillment would be less the motivator for choking than appearing adventurous or kinky. Such performances don’t always feel good. “Personally, my hypothesis is that this is one of the reasons young people are delaying or having less sex,” Dr. Herbenick said. “Because it’s uncomfortable and weird and scary. At times some of them literally think someone is assaulting them but they don’t know. Those are the only sexual experiences for some people. And it’s not just once they’ve gotten naked. They’ll say things like, ‘I’ve only tried to make out with someone once because he started choking and hitting me.’” Keisuke Kawata, a neuroscientist at Indiana University’s School of Public Health, was one of the first researchers to sound the alarm on how the cumulative, seemingly inconsequential, sub-concussive hits football players sustain (as opposed to the occasional hard blow) were key to triggering C.T.E., the degenerative brain disease. He’s a good judge of serious threats to the brain. In response to Dr. Herbenick’s work, he’s turning his attention to sexual strangulation. “I see a similarity” to C.T.E., he told me, “though the mechanism of injury is very different.” In this case, it is oxygen-blocking pressure to the throat, frequently in light, repeated bursts of a few seconds each. Strangulation — sexual or otherwise — often leaves few visible marks and can be easily overlooked as a cause of death. Those whose experiences are nonlethal rarely seek medical attention, because any injuries seem minor: Young women Dr. Herbenick studied mostly reported lightheadedness, headaches, neck pain, temporary loss of coordination and ear ringing. The symptoms resolve, and all seems well. But, as with those N.F.L. players, the true effects are silent, potentially not showing up for days, weeks, even years. According to the American Academy of Neurology, restricting blood flow to the brain, even briefly, can cause permanent injury, including stroke and cognitive impairment. In M.R.I.s conducted by Dr. Kawata and his colleagues (including Dr. Herbenick, who is a co-author of his papers on strangulation), undergraduate women who have been repeatedly choked show a reduction in cortical folding in the brain compared with a never-choked control group. They also showed widespread cortical thickening, an inflammation response that is associated with elevated risk of later-onset mental illness. In completing simple memory tasks, their brains had to work far harder than the control group, recruiting from more regions to achieve the same level of accuracy. The hemispheres in the choked group’s brains, too, were badly skewed, with the right side hyperactive and the left underperforming. A similar imbalance is associated with mood disorders — and indeed in Dr. Herbenick’s surveys girls and women who had been choked were more likely than others (or choked men) to have experienced overwhelming anxiety, as well as sadness and loneliness, with the effect more pronounced as the incidence rose: Women who had experienced more than five instances of choking were two and a half times more likely than those who had never been choked to say they had been so depressed within the previous 30 days they couldn’t function. Whether girls and women with mental health challenges are more likely to seek out (or be subjected to) choking, choking causes mood disorders, or some combination of the two is still unclear, but hypoxia — judging by what research has shown about other types of traumatic brain injury — could be a contributing factor. Given the soaring rates of depression and anxiety among young women, that warrants concern. Now consider that every year Dr. Herbenick has done her survey, the number of females reporting extreme effects from strangulation (neck swelling, loss of consciousness, losing control of urinary function) has crept up. The rate among those who’ve been choked of becoming what students call “cloudy” — close to passing out, but not crossing the line — is now one in five, a huge proportion. All of this indicates partners are pressing on necks longer and harder. The physical, cognitive and psychological impacts of sexual choking are disturbing. So is the idea that at a time when women’s social, economic, educational and political power are in ascent (even if some of those rights may be in jeopardy), when #MeToo has made progress against harassment and assault, there has been the popularization of a sex act that can damage our brains, impair intellectual functioning, undermine mental health, even kill us. Nonfatal strangulation, one of the most significant indicators that a man will murder his female partner (strangulation is also one of the most common methods used for doing so), has somehow been eroticized and made consensual, at least consensual enough. Yet, the outcomes are largely the same: Women’s brains and bodies don’t distinguish whether they are being harmed out of hate or out of love. By now I’m guessing that parents are curled under their chairs in a fetal position. Or perhaps thinking, “No, not my kid!” (see: title of Dr. Herbenick’s book above, which, by the way, contains an entire chapter on how to talk to your teen about “rough sex”). I get it. It’s scary stuff. Dr. Herbenick is worried; I am, too. And we are hardly some anti-sex, wait-til-marriage crusaders. But I don’t think our only option is to wring our hands over what young people are doing. Parents should take a beat and consider how they might give their children relevant information in a way that they can hear it. Maybe reiterate that they want them to have a pleasurable sex life — you have already said that, right? — and also want them to be safe. Tell them that misinformation about certain practices, including choking, is rampant, that in reality it has grave health consequences. Plus, whether or not a partner initially requested it, if things go wrong, you’re generally criminally on the hook. Dr. Herbenick suggests reminding them that there are other, lower risk ways to be exploratory or adventurous if that is what they are after, but it would be wisest to delay any “rough sex” until they are older and more skilled at communicating. She offers language when negotiating with a new partner, such as, “By the way, I’m not comfortable with” — choking, or other escalating behaviors such as name-calling, spitting and genital slapping — “so please don’t do it/don’t ask me to do it to you.” They could also add what they are into and want to do together. I’d like to point high school health teachers to evidence-based porn literacy curricula, but I realize that incorporating such lessons into their classrooms could cost them their jobs. Shafia Zaloom, a lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, recommends, if that’s the case, grounding discussions in mainstream and social media. There are plenty of opportunities. “You can use it to deconstruct gender norms, power dynamics in relationships, ‘performative’ trends that don’t represent most people’s healthy behaviors,” she said, “especially depictions of people putting pressure on someone’s neck or chest.” I also know that pediatricians, like other adults, struggle when talking to adolescents about sex (the typical conversation, if it happens, lasts 40 seconds). Then again, they already caution younger children to use a helmet when they ride a bike (because heads and necks are delicate!); they can mention that teens might hear about things people do in sexual situations, including choking, then explain the impact on brain health and why such behavior is best avoided. They should emphasize that if, for any reason — a fall, a sports mishap or anything else — a young person develops symptoms of head trauma, they should come in immediately, no judgment, for help in healing. The role and responsibility of the entertainment industry is a tangled knot: Media reflects behavior but also drives it, either expanding possibilities or increasing risks. There is precedent for accountability. The European Union now requires age verification on the world’s largest porn sites (in ways that preserve user privacy, whatever that means on the internet); that discussion, unsurprisingly, had been politicized here. Social media platforms have already been pushed to ban content promoting eating disorders, self-harm and suicide — they should likewise be pressured to ban content promoting choking. Traditional formats can stop glamorizing strangulation, making light of it, spreading false information, using it to signal female characters’ complexity or sexual awakening. Young people’s sexual scripts are shaped by what they watch, scroll by and listen to — unprecedentedly so. They deserve, and desperately need, models of interactions that are respectful, communicative, mutual and, at the very least, safe. Peggy Orenstein is the author of “Boys & Sex: Young Men on Hookups, Love, Porn, Consent and Navigating the New Masculinity” and “Girls & Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape.” https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/12/opinion/choking-teen-sex-brain-damage.html

Today, the 12th, in my neighborhood, I saw just one lady with a water gun when riding my motorbike around 9 PM. I have routes planned out where it is unlikely there will be much water play. I went into Pattaya today to buy coffee and there was some water play in the afternoon with the late afternoon being more active. I was able to use back sois to stay dry. But it's only the 12th ans it's all supposed to begin on the 13th. In Pattaya, it gets wetter every day with the big day being the 19th so it's more than a week here. Many expats escape to the islands where it;s a more playful scene or travel overseas. Happy Songkran!

OJ Simpson, superstar running back passed away today. Below is the New York Times article from October 4th, 1995: NOT GUILTY: THE OVERVIEW;Jury Clears Simpson in Double Murder; Spellbound Nation Divides on Verdict Orenthal James Simpson, a man who overcame the spindly legs left by a childhood case of rickets to run to fame and fortune, surmounted a very different sort of obstacle today, when a jury of 10 women and 2 men cleared him of charges that he murdered his former wife and one of her friends. The verdict, coming 16 months after Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald L. Goldman were slashed to death in the front yard of Mrs. Simpson's condominium and after 9 months of what often seemed like interminable testimony, sidebars and high-priced legal bickering, was reached in the end with breathtaking speed. When it was read, much of the nation, President Clinton included, stopped work to listen to it. And with the Simpson verdict, as with the Simpson case, the nation once more divided -- largely along racial lines. So, too, did defense lawyers, with the onetime chief of Mr. Simpson's legal team, Robert L. Shapiro, criticizing his successor. "Not only did we play the race card, we dealt it from the bottom of the deck," Mr. Shapiro told Barbara Walters tonight in an interview on an ABC News special. In a scene that lent a certain symmetry to the entire Simpson saga, Mr. Simpson immediately returned to the freeways of Los Angeles in a white van, and as fans waved from the streets he headed back to his home at 360 North Rockingham Avenue. While a dozen helicopters flew overhead, and fans festooned the fence with roses and balloons, he was met by A. C. Cowlings, who had been in the driver's seat of the white Ford Bronco on June 17, 1994, five days after the killings. Mr. Simpson pursed his lips, gulped a few times and wore a forced, pained grin as Deirdre Robertson, the law clerk to Judge Lance A. Ito, read the verdict. Mrs. Robertson tripped over "Orenthal," but not over what came next: "not guilty." When she uttered those words, Mr. Simpson's body instantly uncoiled. He then breathed a sigh of relief, and a faint smile appeared. As Mrs. Robertson's recitation continued -- ". . . in violation of Penal Code Section 187A, a felony, upon Nicole Brown Simpson, a human being," Mr. Simpson waved at the panelists and mouthed the words "Thank you." The reading then unfolded again, with the name "Ronald L. Goldman" substituted for Mrs. Simpson. Mr. Simpson embraced his chief lawyer, Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., and silently thanked and rethanked the jury again. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, is this your verdict, so say you one, so say you all?" Mrs. Robertson then asked. "Yes," the panel members -- nine black, two whites and a Hispanic man -- replied matter-of-factly. Critics of what the jurors did today maintained that they had been manipulated by a cynical defense team that talked more about the racism of the Los Angeles police than about the guilt or innocence of their client. Mr. Simpson's lawyers countered that prosecutors simply had not proven their case. As he left court, one juror, a former Black Panther whom prosecutors had inexplicably left on the panel, gave Mr. Simpson a clenched fist salute with his left arm. Before the verdict was read, the same juror, Lionel Cryer, a 44-year-old black man, had smiled and winked at him. At that point, one defense lawyer, Carl Douglas, whispered to his client, "We won; we won," though Mr. Douglas later said it was because the juror thought most hostile to the defense -- Anise Ascherbach, a 60-year-old white woman -- had also smiled in their direction. After the jurors were individually polled, and the victims' families fled, Judge Ito discharged his last duty in the case. "The defendant, having been acquitted of both charges, he is ordered transported to an appropriate sheriff's facility and released forthwith," the judge said. Within an hour or so, Mr. Simpson, who faced life in prison for the double killings, traded his blue jailhouse jumpsuit and his courtroom woolens for blue jeans, checked out of the cell where he has lived for the last 474 days and began what promises to be a well-remunerated but awkward new life -- a life of glamour and golf games and highly compensated interviews, but a life, too, of bodyguards and ostracism by those passionately convinced of his guilt. With Judge Ito telling jurors to "expect the worst" from swarms of reporters seeking their stories, almost all of them disappeared, saying little of substance. "I think we did the right thing -- in fact, I know we did," was all that one panelist, Brenda Moran, 44, a black computer technician, said. As to how jurors could render judgment so quickly, she added simply: "We were there for nine months. We didn't need another nine months to decide." The victims' families quickly went into seclusion, though Fred Goldman, the father of one of those who died, called the outcome his second biggest nightmare, exceeded only by the murder of his only son. Mr. Simpson said nothing to reporters. But in a statement read by his elder son, Jason, he expressed relief that an "incredible nightmare" was over. He said his first obligation was to his two youngest children, "who will be raised the way that Nicole and I had always planned." Those children are now in the custody of two people who are convinced that he murdered their daughter. Another task, Mr. Simpson said, was to bring to justice whoever killed their mother and Mr. Goldman. "They are out there somewhere," he stated. "Whatever it takes to identify them and bring them in I'll provide somehow. I can only hope that some day, despite every prejudicial thing that has been said about me, people will understand and believe that I would not, could not and did not kill anyone." When the verdict was announced, a strange mix of gasps and sobs arose from the gallery. "Oh, my God!" Mr. Simpson's eldest daughter, Arnelle, exclaimed. Jason Simpson placed his head in his hands and began to weep. Mr. Simpson's elderly mother, Eunice, smiled gently in her wheelchair. At a news conference afterward, she explained her apparent serenity. "I knew that my son was innocent," she said. "The prayer of the righteous prevaileth much." Her daughter, Shirley Baker, was more demonstrative. "I just feel like standing on top of this table and dancing a jig," she said. Across the aisle, Nicole Brown Simpson's parents, Louis and Juditha Brown received the verdict stoically, though two of her sisters began crying outside court. But the family of Ron Goldman broke out into paroxysms of grief and anger. His sister, Kimberly, looked down to the floor and sobbed convulsively, despite the caresses of her father. Under their breaths, the Goldmans uttered obscenities at Mr. Simpson. The jury's decision, made after only three hours of deliberations, was one "rush to judgment" to which Mr. Cochran did not object. Defense lawyers attributed their victory not to racial considerations but to their ability to destroy the chronology of the prosecution's case. No reasonable person, Mr. Cochran said, could possibly have believed that Mr. Simpson killed two people, returned home, changed clothes, cleaned up and hid his weapon in the time that prosecutors had allotted. "We said that if we could shatter the prosecution's timeline so that O. J. Simpson couldn't have committed this crime, that there would be a reasonable doubt," Mr. Cochran said at a news conference in Judge Ito's courtroom. "That's even before we ever got to the socks, the glove and Fuhrman or anything." By building much of its case around Mr. Mark Fuhrman, he added, it was the prosecution, not the defense, that had injected race into the case. Mr. Cochran began at that news conference much as he closed his closing statement: on a religious note. "I want to thank God," he said, as a chorus of "Yeah!" arose from the Simpson family's side of the table. "He always directs our paths and He's worthy to be praised. We think this verdict bespeaks justice." At another news conference, District Attorney Gil Garcetti, stunned by a humiliating repudiation of a case based on what he often called a "mountain of evidence," said he was "profoundly disappointed" and angry. "This was not, in our opinion, a close case," said Mr. Garcetti, whose political future has clearly been clouded by today's verdict. "Apparently their decision was based on emotion that overcame the reason." At the same wake-like news conference, a somber and subdued Deputy District Attorney Marcia Clark saluted colleagues for striving to make sure "that the lives of Ron and Nicole were not thrown away." Ms. Clark also importuned law students working in her office not to lose faith in the system, based on what they had seen here. Her fellow prosecutor, Christopher A. Darden, who as a high school football player had aspired to wear Mr. Simpson's number, then said that he never anticipated having to tell the Goldmans that "he" had been acquitted. "We came here in search of justice," Mr. Darden said. "You have to be the judges, I expect, as to whether or not any of us found it today. But I'm not bitter and I'm not angry." He then began to thank his colleagues. But as he did so, he broke down. The words abruptly stopped and all he could do was shake his head, nod his head and briefly wave his hand as if to say, "No more." He then left the lectern and doubled over, with Mr. Goldman's stepmother and some lawyers offering solace. For all of the prosecutors, a whole new ordeal is about to begin: an orgy of post-mortems and second-guessing. Commentators and political opponents now will debate just what it was that turned the tide: the decision to try the case in downtown Los Angeles, where juries are more predominantly black; relying so heavily on a police officer whom they knew to be a racist; asking Mr. Simpson to put on the murderer's gloves, or the overwhelming popularity and wealth of the defendant. "What this verdict tells you is how fame and money can buy the best defense, can take a case of overwhelming incriminating physical evidence and transform it into a case riddled with reasonable doubt," said Peter Arenella, a law professor at the University of California at Los Angeles. Mr. Arenella acknowledged that prosecutors had suffered a number of self-inflicted wounds. But even had they tried a perfect case, he said, they might not have prevailed given the haste with which, prosecutors argued, Mr. Simpson committed his foul deeds and the longstanding antagonism of many blacks, including presumably some jurors, toward the police. "A predominantly African-American jury was more susceptible to claims of police incompetence and corruption and more willing to impose a higher burden of proof than normally required for proof beyond a reasonable doubt," he said. "This was not a good day for the American criminal justice system unless one believes that the L.A.P.D. were not only incompetent but criminal in their investigation of this case." Mrs. Simpson, 35, had spent virtually her entire adult life dating, living with, being married to, trying to reconcile with or escape from Mr. Simpson. Prosecutors charged that Mr. Simpson killed her in a jealous rage, and killed Mr. Goldman when he happened upon the scene. Supporting their scenario was a history of domestic violence that had left Mrs. Simpson black, blue and fearful for her life, and a raft of blood, hair and fiber tests linking Mr. Simpson to the crime. Mr. Simpson's response from the start -- indeed, just after low-speed Bronco chase -- was that he was "absolutely 100 percent not guilty." Many blacks reacted jubilantly today to the exoneration of someone whose heroic status seemed enhanced by what they saw as the bigotry of the police and prosecutors. Many whites, by contrast, were aghast. "Nicole was right," said Faye Resnick, one of Mrs. Simpson's friends who wrote a book about their relationship. "She said he was going to kill her and get away with it." In Washington, President Clinton left the Oval Office and walked to his secretary's television to watch the verdict. Later, he scribbled a statement urging respect for the decision and offering "our thoughts and prayers" for the victims' families. The verdict will surely have repercussions for the legal system as well, though what those will be is not yet clear. Because a verdict was reached, what Judge Ito referred to as "the Simpson matter" may not spur on the call for nonunanimous verdicts in criminal cases. But never again, it seems likely, will a jury be sequestered for so long, a gilded incarceration that many people think shortened the deliberations. When Mr. Goldman's father spoketoday, his former indignation had clearly yielded to resignation. "Last June 13, 1994, was the worst nightmare of my life," he began, heaving deeply and searching for his voice and breath. "This is the second."

Miss Monique will perform at Coachella 2024 along with Mau P, No Doubt, and Doja Cat.

NewJeans, one of the biggest K-pop acts, has asked a federal court in California to order Google to release the identity of the person behind a YouTube account that the members say is spreading defamatory statements about them. The group said that a YouTube user with the handle @Middle7 made the statements in dozens of videos that were viewed more than 13 million times, according to the court filing. The group’s lawyer, Eugene Kim, wrote that the account had also engaged in “name-calling or other mocking behavior” targeting NewJeans. The videos “continue to inflict significant reputational damage,” according to the filing. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/10/arts/music/newjeans-kpop-youtube-defamation-lawsuit.html

Bangkok, Thailand CNN On the surface, Thailand’s annual Songkran festival appears to be just one great big water fight. Every April, people young and old take to the streets all over the country, armed with plastic guns and water buckets, and engage in hours-long battles from morning till dusk. And while that’s certainly the most famous aspect of the celebrations, Songkran is filled with unique cultural traditions, making it an excellent time for travelers to visit. What exactly is Songkran? Songkran marks the start of the traditional Thai New Year and is usually celebrated from April 13-15, though some cities stretch out the fun a few extra days. Taking place at the height of the Thai summer, it’s a time to take a break from work and hit the road, with many people journeying hundreds of kilometers to their hometowns to reconnect with family and friends. The word “Songkran” is said to have derived from ancient Sanskrit, used to describe the monthly movement within the zodiac. In 2023, UNESCO added Songkran to its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list, noting that it refers to the sun’s annual passing into the Aries constellation, the first sign of the Zodiac, which marks the traditional start of the traditional Thai New Year festival. “Pouring water is a significant act during Songkran, symbolizing cleansing, reverence and good fortune,” says the UNESCO inscription. “Other activities include bathing important Buddha images, splashing water on family and friends, folk plays, games, music and feasting.” It’s the splashing that has turned Songkran into a global sensation in recent decades, with massive water fights held on closed city streets everywhere from Khao San Road and Silom Road in Bangkok to Chiang Mai’s historic Old City. Pipad Krajaejun, a history lecturer at Bangkok’s Thammasat University, says it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when the water fights became such a key part of the festival. “However, old photos shot by Boonserm Satraphai of Chiang Mai in 1964 show that numerous people engaged in water battles in the Ping River,” he tells CNN Travel. “According to many elderly people, water fights have been taking place in various places in Thailand for 60-70 years.” In those days, Pipad says, “everyone played with water in the village, everyone knew each other, and there was kinship,” unlike today’s battles, which can involve thousands of revelers and high-powered water guns. Bangkok event to highlight Songkran’s cultural side Today, Songkran celebrations take place all over the country in pretty much every city, town and village. (We’ll share more on the water fights below.) Some events are organized by local government bodies, while many hospitality businesses including theme parks, hotels, restaurants and bars host their own Songkran-themed parties. Some towns limit the water fights to one day, so be sure to check ahead if you’re planning to join the battles. Thailand’s Tourism Authority has put together a list of celebrations taking place all over the country, but for those who would like to engage in the cultural side, Bangkok is shaping out to be a top destination for Songkran travelers this year. The inaugural Maha Songkran World Water Festival 2024 will take place from April 11-15 in the city’s historic old center, around Ratchadamnoen Klang Avenue and Sanam Luang, near popular sites such as the Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Among the highlights of the festival is the Maha Songkran Parade, which will happen on April 11. Starting from the Phan Fa Lilat Bridge and concluding at Sanam Luang, it will include 20 grand processions and more than 1,000 performers. At Sanam Luang – a massive open field in front of the Grand Palace – cultural and musical performances will take place throughout the festival, including the famed Khon masked drama, while a dedicated zone will highlight traditions and festivities unique to the northern, northeastern, eastern, central and southern regions of Thailand. Splashing will happen in a dedicated water zone with a musical dancing fountain, water tunnel, gigantic wading pool and water station. Tradition with a touch of modernity Though Songkran traditions vary all over the country, Thammasat University’s Pipad says two main rituals are still widely carried out today. On the first day of the new year, on April 13, “people, particularly the elderly, visit temples to sprinkle water on Buddha images” – a ritual that’s known as Song Nam Phra. “However, each region of Thailand has a slightly different practice; for example, in northern Thailand – or Lanna – people utilize a naga waterspout to pour water on a Buddha image rather than directly,” he says. “The second tradition (called Rot Nam Dam Hua) is to pour water with perfume and flowers on the hands of the family’s older members, then the elderly will bless their lineage.” This traditionally happens on April 14. Nowadays, visitors will see Buddha statues placed in businesses too, even in places like shopping malls, accompanied by small silver-hued cups floating in pools of scented water. Pipad says the act of carrying out Song Nam Phra in shopping malls likely took root in the 1970s or 1980s when retail giants like Central Department Store and MBK started to build large retail centers. “Song Nam Phra could have worked as a leisure activity because the mall was primarily a destination for urban residents and their families,” he says. “In addition, malls provided air conditioning, which could convince people to come inside rather than visiting temples.” Safely enjoying the water fights As water fights take place on streets and in outdoor spaces all over the country, visitors won’t have any issues joining in. Water guns are available for sale everywhere during Songkran, with street vendors often setting up near popular water fight areas. But there are some important things to consider before heading out. In terms of safety issues, the number of fatal road accidents is notoriously high during the holiday period, with drunk driving a key factor, while complaints of sexual harassment have been reported as well. Thai officials advise visitors in need of emergency assistance to call their tourist hotline at 1155. Those heading out should put their valuables in a waterproof pouch – even waterproof phones. Getting wet, white powder smeared on your face is often part of the experience and can result in a gooey mess. To avoid eye irritation – water cleanliness can be questionable – consider wearing goggles or large, transparent glasses. The usual common sense applies when out in the heat. Stay hydrated, wear a hat and put on sunscreen. It’s summer in Thailand, with temperatures creeping up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees F) and beyond this time of year. On the flip side, heading into an air-conditioned vehicle or building while dripping wet can be a real shock to the senses. A towel and a change of clothes in a dry bag come in handy when the splashing is over. With Songkran such an important family holiday, food is a huge part of the equation. This is a diverse country filled with many regional cuisines, meaning every province will have its own culinary traditions. But there are a few dishes that are particularly special in the summer months. Among these is a delicacy called “khao chae,” which translates to “rice soaked in water.” A refreshing meal served during the summer months, usually from late March to May, it appears on many seasonal menus, with high-end hotels often serving their own rendition of the classic. For instance, the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok’s classic khao chae set includes jasmine-infused water with ice and an assortment of side dishes, such as kapi balls, deep-fried shallots and fish, stuffed peppers, shredded pork and fresh vegetables. And of course we can’t forget the ubiquitous mango sticky rice, a tourist favorite found everywhere from the streets to high-end Thai restaurants. In this special dish, eaten as a snack or dessert, sweet sticky rice is drizzled in a coconut cream sauce and served with ripe mango. Though available all year, it’s particularly popular in the summer months when mangoes are in season. If you don’t mind battling the crowds, K. Panich is a Bangkok institution that has been serving up mango sticky rice for close to 100 years. https://edition.cnn.com/travel/songkran-thailand-new-year-festival-2024-intl-hnk/index.html

It's the calm before the storm. Lots of Songkran shirts but no one is throwing water yet. Not sure what my neighborhood will be like as last year at this I was in the Philippines and in 2022 there were still Covid restrictions. I don't really mind getting wet but don't want an unexpected bucket of water in my face when I'm riding my motorbike.

Is this the same Pepsi who worked at Delirious? Tough for me to tell as I've always seen her with sunglasses and more clothes so her face and body were someone hidden. Whether same same or different Bikini Pepsi is a beauty.

Absofuckinglutely!

Don't know but can't figure out what's good about the 3000 baht promotion. Perhaps better than ping pong balls though. Perhaps it appeals to Asian customers?

I know there are some Cowpokes on the forum who will enjoy the new Cowboy Carter album. Ya Ya samples both Nancy Sinatra and the Beach Boys.

Beyonce does a nice cover of the Beatle's Blackbird. I like it better than the original.

So get her now guys!

I see Cafe Pitini's breakfast comes with a large sausage. Is the sausage attached to Jessie?

Miss Monique at Guincho, Portugal. Nice scenery too!

I asked a Dutch friend the other day and he said Maastricht was the southernmost big city but his guess is Vaals.

That correct. Lima is the capital city closest to the antipode of Bangkok.

Maybe, not sure. It's my better half's day off and she is not thrilled with crowds so not sure. The area will be uncomfortably packed.

The Pattaya Music Festival moves to Jomtien this weekend. Thai rapper Youngohm takes the stage at 22:45. Reckon BBG will be there decked out in bling with his posse of hoes and bitches!

We have a winner!

Good guess, but unfortunately not correct. It needs to be closer to the Equator and the longitude is also off.