Days in paradise

[Bill Bonner’s Diary]( Days in Paradise By Bill Bonner Tuesday, February 23, 2021 I bathe in the sun of the morning, lemon circles swim in the tea Fishing for time with a wishing line and throwing it back in the sea. And here I sit, the retired writer in the sun, The retired writer in the sun and I'm blue, The retired writer in the sun. – “Writer in the Sun,” Donovan Leitch [Bill Bonner] RANCHO SANTANA, NICARAGUA – Our days here in paradise are numbered. Tomorrow, we head out… But today, we are still on our veranda, looking out on the vast Pacific… Feeding Frenzy Yesterday morning, the pelicans were already feeding lustily. They barely took off… and then shot back, beak first, into the water… over and over… gobbling up the small fish. All day long, they kept at it... flying up… just for a moment… and then diving again. And now, in the evening, the sea spray flaunts the whole color spectrum as the last rays of sun sparkle through the cresting waves… …but the pelicans don’t stop to notice. In front of the house, where the waves shatter against the rocks, the sea seems almost jittery… and there, they’ve gone into a feeding frenzy. We grow concerned for the fish. Recommended Link [New Financial Warning [Viewer Discretion Advised]]( [image]( This video is going viral… A former NY grocery bagger – who rose to the top of Wall Street in just 3 years – blasts Congress and reveals sickening truths about America… Now, in his latest video, he shares [a bold message for all Americans…]( WARNING:What you are about to watch is controversial and may be offensive to some audiences. Viewer discretion is advised. [Show me the video now]( -- Dream Lifestyle We are getting to know some of the people on the beach… one, a Diary reader… another, an old friend (who sells real estate in the area)… and a pretty young surfer. We see them on our morning walk… we smile and wish them a “good morning,” just as we used to do in the U.S. It is a friendly place. There are no face masks. People spend most of their time outside… at the beach… on porches or verandas; there is little chance of passing the dreaded disease. Nicaragua claims only three deaths per 100,000 people (compared to 152 in the U.S.). Do you believe those numbers? We don’t either. But here, people are still enjoying a lifestyle that must seem like a dream for many Americans. [Featured: Where America Goes From Here (It’s a Nightmare)]( It’s a familiar one. We wrote about it 40 years ago when we launched our first publication – International Living. “You look out your garden window…,” it began. The idea was that a more authentic, more attractive, and more affordable life beaconed from overseas. And now, that dream is a reality for thousands of Americans. And it tempts your correspondent into a wispy nostalgia. Like a retired writer in the sun, we fish for time, reaching back… four decades… Recommended Link [Emergency Briefing: “The Great Reset”]( [image]( By May 28th, Americans could be faced with a difficult choice: Accept a “Great Reset” and risk losing the American way of life… or stand up and fight back to save what’s left of the American dream. Jeff Brown, member of a D.C.-based advocacy group, explains what every American must do before May 28th to preserve his assets and thrive. [Click here to see this emergency briefing before it’s too late]( -- Bougainvillea and Palm Trees We got underway in 1979. Deng Xiaoping had just put China back on the “capitalist road.” We had no idea that China would soon become the most dynamic commercial power in the world. Ten years later, the Soviet Union followed… disbanding itself and renouncing communism. But what the Chinese and Russians had learned at such a painful cost, Americans forgot. Their apparatchiks and nomenklatura gained more and more power… and used the fake-money system to shift the nation’s wealth in their direction. Then, in about 1999, America peaked out. [Featured: Hidden Time Bomb in Your Brokerage Account?]( The War on Terror… the Wall Street bailout… the Lockdown and the Main Street bailout – stumbling from one “mistake” to another… to $3 trillion deficits… $28 trillion in federal debt… Modern Monetary Theory (MMT)… “stimmy” checks and reparations -- careening to disaster… and gathering speed… Back in 1979, from our Baltimore office, we imagined the outside world. And it was almost all upside. Now, we have bougainvillea and swaying palms, directly in front of the veranda… but the outside world is dark and threatening. Then, we were in our early 30s, with little idea of what the world had to offer. Now… well… we know. It is magnificent and banal… everything and nothing… full of claptrap and jackassery… as well as breathtaking beauty. It is rich, and yet potentially impoverishing. Recommended Link [Before the Inauguration, Trump Secured This Walled-Off Island “Base”]( [image]( Reports state he’s bought an entrenched complex in foreign territory… But he’s not alone. Something “strange” is happening behind the scenes in America. And it threatens us all. [Click here to learn more]( -- Incredible Bargain We’ve spent much of our adult lives overseas. Still do. We gained a lot… but we missed a lot, too – marriages, divorces, births, deaths… casual “good mornings” to old friends. “I’ve lived here for many years,” explained our Dear Reader. “I love it. I’m just in front of the beach. It was one of the first buildings on the beach. You can’t do this anymore… build this close to the beach. “But it’s a great place. The beach in the morning. I take a walk and a swim. Then, I go to the golf course in the afternoon. I’ll never go back to the U.S. Too much BS.” With all the travel restrictions – not to mention a U.S. travel advisory warning that Nicaragua may be dangerous – there are few tourists. Europeans, especially, have stopped coming. But in their place, a lively community of people who live here almost all year round is growing. Young people. Old people. Retirees. “Digital nomads” who have found a home. “It’s not just the lifestyle,” explains a friend. “They do the math. It can be cheaper to live here – a lot cheaper.” He reminds us that tuition at the local school – bilingual, internet-enhanced – is only $3,000 per year. (Here, the children actually go to a school house… it’s not just via Zoom… and they go for nature walks in the forest and explore the shore, too. ) No commuting. No parking. No heating. (Some people don’t bother with air-conditioning; there are ocean breezes all year round.) There is scarcely any need to buy clothes, either; few people wear more than shorts and a t-shirt. The main expense is housing. And there… the low-down continues: “It depends on where you’re coming from,” continues the explanation. “If you’re coming from California, life here seems like an incredible bargain. A house that would cost $1 million in California is only a couple hundred thousand. “The views are better. The surf is more reliable. The water is warmer. The food is fresher. I could go on… But if you’re coming from Little Rock, well, it can be expensive.” “But is it dangerous?” Our interlocutor smiles. “Are you kidding? It’s nowhere near as dangerous as Baltimore. Here, there is practically no crime at all. Nicaragua has a tough law-and-order government, and some of the worst jails in the world. Nobody wants to go there.” Regards, [signature] Bill --------------------------------------------------------------- Like what you’re reading? Send your thoughts to [feedback@rogueeconomics.com](mailto:feedback@rogueeconomics.com?subject=Days in paradise). --------------------------------------------------------------- MAILBAG Dear Readers discuss China following Bill’s essay, “[The Big Girl Wakes Up]( Bill, I believe you are making a major mistake in your assessment of China. They are not just looking to raise the standard of living of the Chinese people. If that was all they were trying to accomplish, I would have no issue with your Diary. However, that is not their only goal. They are out to dominate the world. They do not practice free enterprise. They are practicing mercantilism. You are missing a large part of what is happening. – Tom P. Bill, so, according to you, we should welcome better and cheaper light bulbs in exchange for becoming servants to the Chinese that we made rich. Be their chauffeurs, mow their lawns, etc., and love it. Well, count me out. Sure, with your win-win formula, some industries and people will benefit. While others, most of the poor and middle class, will suffer. Unfortunately, the Biden government is greasing the slide to this scenario. – Erich K. China did not handle the virus better than us unless you feel that murdering and strong-arming your population is acceptable policy. Also, how many of the U.S. COVID-19 deaths were inflated for political and financial gain? The Chi-coms also had the advantage of knowing what they were doing to us and willfully not sharing the truth. You seem to deal mostly in facts, so please stay in your lane. – Mark H. A big part of the problem with U.S. thinking is it is based on the next quarter. Zhou Enlai was once asked what he thought of the French Revolution. He replied, “It’s too soon to tell.” The Chinese think in terms of centuries. The U.S. thinks in terms of three months. – Len L. What industries could benefit from a Chinese rise to global power? Could a Biden presidency hasten Chinese advancement? Write us at [feedback@rogueeconomics.com](mailto:feedback@rogueeconomics.com?subject=Days in paradise). IN CASE YOU MISSED IT… [“Buy This Now… It’s Already Making People Rich”]( If the image of this ticker symbol appears blurred for you… [Click here and get the ticker… no strings attached](. If you don’t, you might regret it later because, according to Forbes… When all is said and done, “a new class of millionaires may emerge.” [Click here to get the ticker (no purchase necessary).]( [image]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Get Instant Access Click to read these free reports and automatically sign up for daily research. 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