Good destinations in event of global economic depression?

[Wotname]

Nicely put, Blonde.

[mudnut]

Here I was thinking,dosen't happen a lot!!,If the US $ takes a dive,"Dosen't that mean it's gonna be worth sh#T no matter where ya go??"The last place ya would want to go is where the cost of local produce is high.eg..New zealand.Sorry to the Kiwi's but I spent 3 weeks there at Xmas,not cheap.Unless ya like Aussie VB,cheaper than at home,go figure.

I think just traveling around and living on the hook might surpass for awhile,but sooner or latter ya gonna have to touch ground.So it would be smart to go to a place (like someone else pointed out)where money has no real meaning.Face it,if your $ takes a big dive,it wont be the best time to spend it neadlessly.Mudnut.

[waterworldly]

South America is still a bargain, and quite stable. Travel there often and often peruse the real estate ads etc. Know lots of locals so I KNOW the living expenses are minimal compared to the U.S. (I know about Chavez etc., so don't even go there. I'm talking about OTHER places, like Chile, Argentina, Peru). There is no need to move your money, just yourself.

[stoupidmonkey]

Well, if it comes to an economic collapse, which I think is incredably unlikely, I want all my guns on board. Hungry people tend to not abide by their typical morality. If farmers cant afford their gas, they cant grow food. Not enough food = starvation and resulting population correction. I will be going to the Amazon. Tons of food for the picking, fishing and hunting. Screw a dollar. Its just paper anyways. Ever seen the pictures of post WWI Germany? Women taking wagon loads of currency to pay for just a loaf of bread. The economy is not in significant trouble, but I still have my boat and guns, just in case.

[David M]

It makes me wonder that if we really did have a world economic collapse, that all those people who are already in ideal places will be standing on the beach yelling at the refuges in sailboats to not even think about coming ashore. I would not blame them for wanting to keep things how they are...nice and quiet and not crowded.

[Lancerbye]

Just covert all your wealth into gold and use it instead of lead as ballast. The only problem with that is that my boat would likely turtle.

[Southern Star]

Waterworldly, I agree with you about South America and would actually include Venezuela. Although I am not going to get into a political debate here, suffice it to say that when Chavez lost the referendum for constitutional reform in December, this became his last term in office. Regardless, even Chavez has consistently said that he will not nationalize anything but monopolies or property that has gone unused for a significant period (and even then, the courts must rule on the expropriation). He has also made numerous speeches confirming that the private sector is, even in his opinion, still critical to the future development of the country. And no matter what one thinks of Chavez, to this point there have been huge improvements in health care, education and infrastructure that seem certain to continue regardless of the leadership.

It is important to note that, while Chavez was re-elected a year ago by a substantial majority (in an election monitored and approved by the UN and by Jimmy Carter's organization for democracy), the voters nevertheless turned down his referendum on constitutional change and showed that they are still a nation of laws.

Brad

[Lancerbye]

By the way I get paid in Canadian dollars and presently live in a country that has their currency peg to the U.S. dollar. The fuel is about one quarter of the price in Canada. Groceries are cheap. So for now it's ok.

[TexSail]

Originally Posted by David_Old_Jersey

A couple of things to remember about decamping to the 3rd world is that.........they also have inflation and their currencies can also appreciate.

Amen. The US dollar has suffered from inflation for sure. Meanwhile, the Jamaican dollar started out in 1962 at $1.40 US and now a US dollar buys about 70 Jamaican dollars. The Jamaican dollar is fairly typical of third world currencies. Even it looks very stable compared to the Mexican peso. Be careful where you jump.

[Southern Star]

I wasn't suggesting converting all your USD (or other assets) into foreign currency, especially ones from the third world. Its just that you will get much more bang for the buck on what you do make liquid.

Brad

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Southern Star

I wasn't suggesting converting all your USD (or other assets) into foreign currency, especially ones from the third world. Its just that you will get much more bang for the buck on what you do make liquid.

Brad

I didn't read it as that - the thing to remember is that even if you do not convert all your assets into foreign money (and of course most would need a bl##dy good reason to do that!), you are still at risk of your spending power declining from simply being based in a 3rd world country for a long time and having your assets in USD (GBP/EUR) - as you are spending in local money......of course no easy options and I am not saying "don't do it" (to anybody /anything)......but I originally made the point because folk can just assume that a Major currency remains at a certain (and high!) level against all 3rd world currencies, when this is not always the case........

Of course, if I knew exactly what I was doing when it comes to currencies I would be typing this from my Megayacht moored in Monaco. and I am not (honest )

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Southern Star

I wasn't suggesting converting all your USD (or other assets) into foreign currency, especially ones from the third world. Its just that you will get much more bang for the buck on what you do make liquid.
Brad

Several Canadian fortunes* were founded on “liquid” assets, during the US Prohibition (Volstead Act 1920-33).

* ie: Distillers such as Sam and Harry Bronfman (Seagrams), Hiram Walker (Hiram Walker and Sons Distillery - “Canadian Club”), not to mention the outright Gangsters like Al Capone et al.

[imagine2frolic]

Economy good, or bad I am headed to the Philippines just as soon as I can.......LOLOL

[Southern Star]

Good line Gord - and you are absolutely correct. Mind you some American fortunes (eg. Joseph Kennedy) were also purportedly based upon 'liquid' assets during the time of prohibition.

Seriously, though, if the US dollar continues to weaken, then its buying power will be reduced all over the planet. I took the idea of this post as being places to go where you can still get some (relative) bang for the buck, rather than places in which to invest.

Brad

[Jackstee]

Well, sold the house last Friday,invested a little in a mini refit,in May we go to buy a small house in Turkey, near the water and then in September, a six week cruise to move the boat from Majorca down to where the house is in Turkey.Then back to work.

Not big bucks but heading in the right direction.

Steve