Here is my situation:

I will be 41 years old when I retire and I want to move to Thailand.

My Government pension will be approximately $1,300 USD per month after taxes. (going by today's exchange rate that's about 39,000 Baht.)

I am a Single male.

I will be able to save approximately $1,500 per month for the next 8 years if I stop traveling. (I have been saving 1,500 per month for the past 5 years in order to take 4 trips to Thailand per year. I usually stay for about 2 weeks (15-16 days) and spend about $1100 for airfare and about $200 total per day for lodging, food etc... in heavy tourist areas (Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket) I am addicted to Thailand (just kidding) and I have $0 in savings but if I stop traveling I can put that $1,500 into a savings account or use it for investments.

Being an English Teacher is not an option for me. I know non white people who have attempted to get jobs teaching english in Thailand and they tell me that there is a HUGE preference for white teachers and non white teachers have a great deal of difficulty finding english teaching Jobs and that they face a great deal of discrimination when it comes to getting hired and maintaining employment. I am not white.

I will probably not be able to find employment in Thailand so I will ether have to live off my retirement income or I will have to find a way to make money outside of Thailand while I am living in Thailand.

What are my options?
How much will I need to live comfortably in Thailand?
How will I be able to make enough money to support myself while living in Thailand?

I becoming a day trader an option?
What would be a good strategy to secure my life in Thailand and what steps should I be taking now to ensure a comfortable life there?
It seems like my only optoins are to save about 50,000 dollars and practice day trading/forex trading or to find a way to live off my meager 39,000 baht per month pension. If I study for the next 8-9 years i should be able to become a pretty good trader but I don't know enough about trading right now to make that assumption.

Answer
Situations change in time. No one in government has a secure job. You probably have a good chance to retire when you want.

As many others have said, remain flexible.
A retiree visa in Thailand requires you are 50+ in age and have 800,000 baht in savings or USD 27,000
http://www.thailandvisas.com/

So based on the above and your story, remain flexible. My story I started visiting Thailand in 2004 with a kamikaze 2.5 day trip. Loved the place. So I understand the desire to live in Thailand.

I understand your dilemma about what to do for additional income. I am an accountant, not something that is easily transferrable to Thailand without being able to speak Thai. haha I am also not white but, I have a different view, I happen to be Japanese. So I can easily blend into Thai landscape.

You could probably live comfortably outside Bangkok on your retirement money. Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Rayong, Chonburi.

Good strategy? I would at least take 2 vacations, why deny yourself the pleasure. If you can take your vacation time in cash, save that, if not, hmmm. Is there something you like with a passion, collecting or skill or sport. Rock climbing, collect art, collect stamps, See how this could make money, information, teaching, being a guide, or even the job you have now, can it translate to teaching in the peace corp? That way you can get paid and work in Thailand. There are a number of volunteer groups in Thailand. Helping the Karen, saving the elephant. Buying and selling real estate, that is something you can do in Thailand. if you have a Thai wife, you can lend on peoples land earn interest, if they default you will own the land. There are many things to do. The Thai do it to their own people. its nothing new.

Forex trading is inconsistent and in this market a killer. Penny stocks is one way. I work across from Cantor Fitzgerald in LA and the guys are moaning and groaning. My friends that are day traders are not bragging like they once did. many have gotten away from it. The market is controlled by the computer now, I think. The large investors have automatics to pull out, when it is falling which makes it worse than it is.

I hope you get what I have been thinking myself.