4 ms·

Unfortunately for all of us, it turns out that cyberpunk dystopias are a lot more fun to read about than to live in.

rtkwe 1y ago
All the corporate take over and impunity, none of the advanced cybernetics.
shortrounddev2 1y ago
* Dense, walkable cities * No red tape stopping people from opening small businesses * Cheap medical procedures available on demand * Lax immigration rules allowing the free flow of the labor market Idk just sounds like Bangkok to me
- throwawayoldie 1y ago
  ...note to self, move to Bangkok.
  - ljf 1y ago
    A friend of mine works in Bangkok pretty regularly, so it ended up cheaper to rent an apartment than get hotels (plus he can leave clothes etc behind.) A nicely sizes 2 double bed apt is £450 a month all in including utilities - plus a pool and huge roof terrace shared with the other people there - looks great. If you can get a visa to work there, and have the cash, you can have an amazing life out there for sure.
    - lordhumphrey 1y ago
      I was curious so had a quick look at the average monthly salary in Thailand, which apparently comes to ~350 GBP. Your friend's rental price is humongous. Thai HN users - what do you all think of this behaviour? What's the price of a nice apartment which doesn't have a pool and huge roof terrace, I wonder?
      - ljf 1y ago
        Oh yes, this is on the luxury side - but it is a great serviced apartment, on par with a hotel experience. You can definitely get far far cheaper accommodation in Bangkok and throughout Thailand, but if you are bringing a western wage or savings you can live an amazing lifestyle.
      - throwawayoldie 1y ago
        Given that Bangkok is the biggest city in the country, I'd expect costs and wages to both be higher than the national average--though probably, to be fair, not _this_ much higher.
      - Tallain 1y ago
        You can find a condo cheaper and also much more expensive. There's also often a hidden "farang tax" where you will be charged more simply because they know you can pay more, regardless of the quality of the place. This is where the variance comes in. It happens with certain services, especially things like taxis (but not Grab or Line Man). But yes, Bangkok / Thailand in general has huge wealth disparity. There are a lot of people living on very little money, and some people grossly rich.
  - dc396 1y ago
    Just don't say bad things about the king...
- Apocryphon 1y ago
  As cool as that would be, most cyberpunk settings don't include a military government ruling the cities.
cyberpunk 1y ago
I really should rename my wifi network to something other than dystopia….
raffael_de 1y ago
Isn't that true for just about any movie, book or genre?
- throwawayoldie 1y ago
  An interesting point, I'll see if I can think up any counterexamples.

All the corporate take over and impunity, none of the advanced cybernetics.

* Dense, walkable cities * No red tape stopping people from opening small businesses * Cheap medical procedures available on demand * Lax immigration rules allowing the free flow of the labor market Idk just sounds like Bangkok to me

throwawayoldie 1y ago
...note to self, move to Bangkok.
- ljf 1y ago
  A friend of mine works in Bangkok pretty regularly, so it ended up cheaper to rent an apartment than get hotels (plus he can leave clothes etc behind.) A nicely sizes 2 double bed apt is £450 a month all in including utilities - plus a pool and huge roof terrace shared with the other people there - looks great. If you can get a visa to work there, and have the cash, you can have an amazing life out there for sure.
  - lordhumphrey 1y ago
    I was curious so had a quick look at the average monthly salary in Thailand, which apparently comes to ~350 GBP. Your friend's rental price is humongous. Thai HN users - what do you all think of this behaviour? What's the price of a nice apartment which doesn't have a pool and huge roof terrace, I wonder?
    - ljf 1y ago
      Oh yes, this is on the luxury side - but it is a great serviced apartment, on par with a hotel experience. You can definitely get far far cheaper accommodation in Bangkok and throughout Thailand, but if you are bringing a western wage or savings you can live an amazing lifestyle.
    - throwawayoldie 1y ago
      Given that Bangkok is the biggest city in the country, I'd expect costs and wages to both be higher than the national average--though probably, to be fair, not _this_ much higher.
    - Tallain 1y ago
      You can find a condo cheaper and also much more expensive. There's also often a hidden "farang tax" where you will be charged more simply because they know you can pay more, regardless of the quality of the place. This is where the variance comes in. It happens with certain services, especially things like taxis (but not Grab or Line Man). But yes, Bangkok / Thailand in general has huge wealth disparity. There are a lot of people living on very little money, and some people grossly rich.
- dc396 1y ago
  Just don't say bad things about the king...
Apocryphon 1y ago
As cool as that would be, most cyberpunk settings don't include a military government ruling the cities.

cyberpunk 1y ago

I really should rename my wifi network to something other than dystopia….

raffael_de 1y ago

Isn't that true for just about any movie, book or genre?

throwawayoldie 1y ago
An interesting point, I'll see if I can think up any counterexamples.