#1053 – The Expat Files: Privacy, Guns, Vaccines, and Life in Latin America

Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.

[00:00] South of the border down Mexico way That's where I fell in love when the stars above came up to play and now as I wonder Hello there all you ex-pat wannabes. I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files living in Latin America The show that tells you just what it's like to live work play and or retire down here in Latin America It's a mix of the good the bad the ugly and the great and it's all right here. So let's get started All right. We'll start with a little clarification here. You remember in the last show. I mentioned that in Mexico Legislation is now in place so that if you buy a new cell phone, the government has access to all your data, which is reason 2476 why I never want to have my plan be in Mexico

[00:47] Oh and by the way for all you people out there and this is mostly baby boomers I'll tell you well, you know, I'm a law-abiding citizen I've got nothing to hide only criminals are worried about the government having your data You know when people say that including my 90 year old mother. I always Paraphrase Edward Snowden who's one of my heroes He says when you find out that government is spying on you and collecting all your data and your response is like my mother's That's okay. I've got nothing to hide they can have my data if it's in the interest of national security, etc Hmm and man, I can't tell you how many times I've heard that before and usually from older baby boomers Who somehow through thick and thin actually still trust the government and as for my mother who's got a wall full of advanced diplomas How could you be so diluted? She still thinks of the Democratic Party as the party of John F Kennedy

[01:35] And when you sit her down and try to show her and tell her just how terribly corrupt the system has become her eyes glaze over She doesn't want to hear about it. But back to Snowden Well Snowden says this if that's your attitude and you've got nothing to hide Why don't you just change all your passwords to something really easy like 1 2 3 4? Then if someone happens to get into one of your accounts and starts reading all your emails and correspondence, that's okay You've got nothing to hide, right? Hmm. Anyway regarding that story about Mexico now advising everyone that their phone data will be available to the government I mentioned in last week's show amongst other things that would cause big problems with two-factor identification In fact, I got a couple of emails on that like this one from Chris. He says hey, Johnny I didn't quite understand that Mexico connection and the two-factor identification problem

[02:24] Now other people were a little confused and wondering why that would be a problem too Well, here's the thing, you know, for example, if you go into your online bank account and you transfer money around whatever You can do it Alright, but most banks won't go through with the operation until they send you a code on your phone a text message That's the second part of the two-factor identification or a two-factor authorization The first part of course is just getting into your account in the first place and putting in your own password So then if the Mexican government has access to all your phone data All those lazy ass corrupt government slugs in the tech department will have access to those codes too And hackers will have a field day with that because they love to hack government sites and look up in the states the White House The FBI and the NSA have been hacked multiple times Now just imagine what Mexican government website security is like

[03:13] Anyway, suffice it to say letting the Mexican government or any government have access to your phone data is a very bad idea Speaking of trying to maintain your privacy and trying to keep your data and info out of the hands of dickheads and government and anyone else Comes this email from one of the many daves that listen to the show. He says good evening, John I can't help but be astonished at the depth and breadth of your knowledge I find myself anxiously awaiting each and every Friday and Sunday to download your podcast, which I listen to numerous times through the week All right, Dave just a second here, you know, you get what you pay for right? Besides that even the Greek philosophers of 2,000 plus years ago often said there's nothing new under the Sun So I can't take any credit for new thoughts and ideas Anything I say has been said before by people a lot smarter than me. By the way, it's a good thing

[04:02] I don't depend on sponsors to keep this show rolling or I'd have been canceled a long time ago It's nice that I don't have to censor or modify anything I say on this show But I do find I have to be diplomatic and censor myself on the outside when I run into gringos and expats who've taken That stupid covid it vaccine You're probably experiencing the same thing with your friends and relatives who are taking the vaccine and bragging about it In fact just yesterday when I was walking to one of my favorite little cafes I ran into one of the usual gringo suspects retired corrupt Boston cop Bob. Hey a while back That's exactly how he introduced himself to me. By the way, he's a thoroughly nice guy except for the fact that he's corrupt He told me he was gone for a couple of days He flew to Miami just to get the Pfizer vaccine and now he's back here in Latin America

[04:50] So why did he go through all that because he didn't want to get vaxxed in Latin America where they've got a lot of those Russian and Chinese vaccines. Yep He flew to Miami just so he could get vaxxed with a product that wasn't Chinese or Russian in origin He said he just didn't trust those guys. Yeah, right talk about ironies, huh? And he's right about one thing here in Latin America They are starting to do a lot of vaxxing and it's almost all the Chinese and Russian varieties So retired corrupt cop Bob was beaming. In fact, he whipped out his wallet and produces CDC sanctioned Laminated vaccine passport card. He seemed so proud of himself. He said Russian and Chinese vaccine No way you can't trust those guys Look at all the bad crap that comes out of China dangerous products contaminated pet food and the Russians he said man

[05:37] They're not good at anything except maybe space stations Missiles and AK-47s and as for AK-47s, you know what the 47 means, right? That was when mr Kalishnikov invented the thing in 1947 thus AK automatic Kalishnikov 47 1947 and Bob being a retired corrupt ex Boston cop would know that he's a gun guy Most all cops are I am too by the way But not in excess and what I mean by that is I think an average guy or a family needs three guns a 12 gauge pump Shotgun like a Mossberg there about 300 bucks And I absolutely prefer a pump shotgun to a semi-auto like a Remington Semi-auto meaning it loads the next shell by itself without pumping it when you pull the trigger the gas from the explosion and the recoil

[06:22] Activates the mechanism to eject the used shell and load the next one now if you buy a good semi-automatic shotgun like a Remington They're expensive and nice, but they have more parts and things to go wrong So there's a bigger possibility of a jam then with a simple less expensive pump action pump shotgun It's almost never jam as long as like any gun you keep it clean second kind of gun I think everyone should have is a decent caliber handgun 9mm or better and if you want a handgun that will never jam get a revolver of course it'll only hold five or six shots That's why those semi-automatics are what most people have because they hold in the case for example of a Glock 15 to 17 rounds But you see those semi-automatics for the clip are the ones that have the most accidents because sometimes People leave a round in the chamber and if a kid finds it and plays with it

[07:10] It's much more likely to go off than a revolver with a revolver It takes a lot more force to pull a trigger It's tougher for a little kid to do that because when you pull the trigger on a revolver at the same time It's got to rotate the heavy cylinder as well as cock and bring down the hammer and as for the third gun I recommend when people say what would I prefer as for me? I take a rifle that shoots 22 long rounds a rifle like that's great if you live out in the boonies for picking off varmints and such and just playing Around I'd get a scope with it too now if you live in the city You won't need a rifle just a shotgun and a pistol not just for living in Latin America either You should have a couple of guns for self protection no matter where you live number one choice If you can only have one a shotgun, which is recent number three thousand four hundred and twenty six Well, I'd never want to have my plan be in Mexico because you just cannot get a gun not legally anyway

[07:59] You know, they've only got one gun store in the whole country and it's in Mexico City The crazy thing is though, there are millions of guns in Mexico almost all of them unregistered thus illegal And you know, I've been to Mexico many many times and I've never met an ex-batter gringo who had a gun He just couldn't get one whereas in the rest of most of Latin America almost every gringo who's got his residency Has a gun or two because in most other Latin countries guns are legal and fairly easy to get oh And it's a good idea to take your lawyer along with you to the gun store. That'll speed things up immensely Though guns are much more expensive in Latin America They can be twice which should pay for the same one up in the states and it's due to gluttonous government taxation But at least you can get them legally Except in Cuba Mexico and Venezuela that says a lot

[08:48] Oh and funny thing you could peacefully elect a communist or socialist government, but to remove them It takes force or a revolution in that funny, you know, I've been down here in Latin America a long time So I've got a lot of crazy gun stories to for example a while back I was going out with a Latina whose dad was a cop in an elite Sort of SWAT team task force and I was sitting next to him at a party at quinceaños party One of his other daughters was 15 years old and it was a huge celebration I asked him if he could give me a good deal on a gun figuring he could get a discount at a gun store Being a cop and he said get this do you want one registered or unregistered? In other words, do you want a gun the legal way or the illegal way and he's a cop an elite cop too on a SWAT team Task force it was then that I found out when cops capture criminals and they find guns on them

[09:36] They don't turn every single one of them in I know it sounds terrible But those guns get resold to people like me or occasionally offered to people like me and for the record I've owned lots of guns here in Latin America and they've all been bought legally and registered because man That's one thing you don't want to do get caught with a gun. That's not registered They will take you and throw you in jail though that gun might just vaporize and disappear forever So if you do end up in court, there'll be no evidence Even so you better have a lawyer that will answer the phone and that should be the very first thing you do before the cops Decide to take your phone away The reality is if you're a gringo or expat he will be able to get you out of it But it's gonna cost you a ton of dough. There'll be a whole lot of bribing going on but I digress man Did I digress? Where were we? Oh, yeah

[10:22] We were talking about retired corrupt Boston cop Bob who flew specifically to my Jimmy to get the Pfizer vaccine And remember I started off this little rant by saying that although I almost always say what's on my mind There are times when I have to mute myself, especially in the age of covid it's case in point corrupt cop Bob Who in most ways is on the same page as we are. He absolutely can't stomach what America's turned into That's why he's living in Latin America. By the way, he's been an expat gringo for about five years now Anyway, when he proudly showed me his Pfizer Vax card Well at that point I could have done a lot of things I known the guy for a while So I could have spoke my piece I could have sat down for an hour or so and told him what an idiot He was I could have gone through the business of how Bill Gates Big Pharma and Dr

[11:08] Falsy are in complete control of the narrative how we're the lab rats It's all about the control power and money, but I didn't want to go into it You know how that goes people believe what they want to believe. I knew it would be a futile discussion I did roll my eyes though, and I said mark my words time will tell that it won't end Well, then he shrugged his shoulders and said yeah But I traveled back and forth to the states a lot and I'll bet you a hundred bucks By the first of next year they won't let you fly unless you've been vexed Then he said and I sure as hell wasn't gonna take the Chinese or Russian vaccine and I said yeah That's the dilemma So there you have it guys like retired corrupt cop Bob who are pretty enlightened and mostly on the same page as we are I just resigned to the fact that they're gonna have to get vexed and they do it

[11:54] So what's the gringo to do? I say if you hang on and become one of the last holdouts many hacks will be forthcoming Why because of capitalism there'll be money in it I mean look you see what's happening in some cities up in the states a lot of people a good percentage of them Refuse to get the vaccine So then what are they gonna do and that's where Adam Smith's invisible hand of the market kicks in So just hang in there and keep the faith there will be hacks you can count on it Oh, and by the way, I noticed on Bob's Vax card with a column on the right side where the heading says Healthcare professional or clinic site that's filled in when you get the shot He's had no signature name or specific location. It just said get this Walmart hmm, and you doubt there'll be hacks

[12:40] But back to Dave's email Dave says after decades of physically abusing my body not to mention high school football knee injuries and such I find myself needing knee replacements two of them to be precise though If there's some kind of alternative sign me up now, Johnny recently on April 23rd 2021 You went into an in-depth explanation of Messinclement stem cell treatments available in Panama, Colombia, Mexico, etc You mentioned the names of the clinics and docs that run those places with the exception of Mexico I went on duck duck go calm. I never google he says neither do I Dave I use start page calm But duck duck go just as good He says he did a search for clinics in Puerto Vallarta and came up with several of them

[13:25] Which one do you recommend Johnny? Well Dave, I'll send you my breakdown and the ones I recommend Okay and if anyone else wants that info send me an email the expat files at gmail.com and Then Dave says on the topic of anonymity and privacy concerning laptops and smartphones Johnny I have effectively used two navigation software apps that have worked very well for me here Dave's talking about those apps like Google Maps and ways that help you find certain locations And you definitely need something like that here in Latin America We've discussed that before and anyone who comes down here knows that's absolutely necessary because things here in Latin America are not Laid out in a grid and many streets and avenues have the weirdest most confounding names, too And Latin American cities all of them are notoriously lacking in signage street signs

[14:12] In fact, it's not uncommon to cross three or four intersections Does not see a single street sign and before those location apps came into being some five years ago So there was as usual a couple of years lag time There is no telling how many hours the average person wasted every month every year Just going in circles chasing your tail and fighting the traffic The other problem is there are so many one-way streets It's as if every Latin American president's drunken brother who has given the task of designing the roadways Anyway, Dave says he uses two different navigation software apps that avoid Google and keep you anonymous The first one is a no longer supported Microsoft software by the name of streets and trips similar to Microsoft map point That runs on my laptop

[14:57] He says it doesn't require internet data at all and is capable of adding numerous stops But unfortunately doesn't incorporate maps of Latin America Whereas Microsoft map point does have Latin American maps included the second app I use he says is an app for Android and iOS by the name of sidejic s Y G I see Which he says he runs on an old Android phone with no sim card or data installed it works directly off satellites He says and is very very accurate gives you mileage from point A to B to Tells you where to turn the time of arrival alternate routes all the Latin maps are available and the best part of all He says it's free. And since he says I'm not using a sim card or data

[15:43] Google you can just kiss my ass. You should try it. He says and see what you think Anyway, keep up the great work Johnny signed just one of many Dave's Well, thanks for that Dave and I guess this is the perfect time to tell you how I find my way around Latin America I don't use Google at all, but I use waves which connects to Google Maps So like everyone I'm getting tracked, but they're getting bad data on me for one thing I've got very few apps on my phone only whatsapp Which I hate but you got to have it down here if you're ever gonna get a plumber and the signal app Which is a copy of ways though? It's encrypted completely and to end they save no data And if you notice when you want to talk to someone new you add them to your contact list and then surprise surprise when you Pull up any one of your contacts. There's a little box. You can click that says eliminate messages in other words

[16:32] messages disappear based on a timer that you set from one minute to one week now if you don't select that button the Messages remain just like in what's up? But they're encrypted at both ends and the data is not recorded anywhere with signal or in the cloud It's on your phone and the other recipients phone that's it and if you chat or message with anyone on signal and You hit that box forcing the messages to disappear You'll always see that notification at the bottom when you're messaging with that person will say you've activated the disappearing message function Now I'm not suggesting you do that with everybody you might not have to do it at all But if you're doing critical things like sending documents or bank numbers wire transfer Maybe you sent a copy of a contractor a driver's license or passport to some or even a crypto address You'll find the disappearing message function is extremely useful

[17:20] So my advice in general is have very few apps on your phone though You'll definitely need what's up and the signal app if you're down here in Latin America now as mentioned I have the ways location map on my phone, and I know it's very insecure privacy wise because it's tied in with Google But if you recall I mentioned in a previous show that my sim card was bought by my cleaning lady I made a deal with her I gave her a free phone so none of it tracks back to me The other thing is I never have my GPS location function on except when I'm using that ways app and still I never Swish it on till I'm at least a mile away from where my home is that way every month or so when Google Sends you the breakdown of your whole life and where you've been which by the way really irritates me That's a huge invasion of your privacy and yet

[18:06] They think they're doing you a favor well at least you got confirmation that they're tracking every move you make and in my case It reflects the grocery and hardware stores parks restaurants airports and other places I've been but they can never Triangulate where exactly I live anyway I only really use ways and GPS when I don't know the neighborhood at all or I'm kind of lost But you know when you tell people that you keep their GPS turned off on their phone for most it's a big stumbling point A big hoop to jump through they give you a puzzled look like are you nuts? They think they absolutely have to have it activated because it connects with so many things on their smartphone Well, I'm here to tell you they're wrong You're the only need to have your GPS switched on if you're lost or confused on how to get somewhere Though most people think if they switch off their GPS They'll be somehow disconnected from the modern world and it'll be missing out on something. Yeah, they'll miss out on getting tracked

[18:57] So my advice once again when you get down here to Latin America Get yourself a smartphone have someone else like your cleaning lady maintenance guy would ever buy the SIM card for you download Just a very few essential apps and keep that GPS switched off until you absolutely need to use a location app Oh and use the brave browser duck duck go or start page calm as your search engines But you knew that already right now comes this email from Brad He says Johnny if you don't recommend Mexico. I've been there four times. He says nor Columbia I was there once nor Panama. I was there twice. He says nor Costa Rica. What's a gringo to do? Well Brad you heard me say this before if you got a ton of money You can live anywhere even if it's not a great place and has a lot of faults your money can change everything

[19:45] You can create your little protected first-world gringo spot like so many have done in Mexico But you know you're talking about synthetic Paradise instead of being held up by the gringo dollar might as well put a sign up This is for gringos only because the locals can't afford to get a foot in that door Oh sure, they'll be your maids gardeners and do the groundwork They won't be your next door neighbors unless they're the upscale 2% Latino crowd the upscale gringo wannabes And believe me over the years. I've come across dozens if not hundreds even thousands of gringo wannabes They're terribly shallow and materialistic sound familiar Hanging around with neighbors like that gets old pretty fast, but they throw damn good parties So yes, you can have your plan B and relocate in gringo iced areas It'll be just like a transplanted upper middle-class neighborhood in Cleveland, and you'll never have to learn any Spanish

[20:33] Hey, if that's your style have at it, but it's not for me remember I've been down here over 30 years now And I know all about the wants and needs of fresh newbie gringos and the wants and needs of gringos Who've been down here a long time there is a big difference all I'm trying to do on this program is give you the best options for a plan B Telling you about places where you can live in comfort safety have great weather beautiful views and have innately happy people around you Where there's low taxes minimal government interference and still have loads of privacy and freedom low cost of living is a big priority, too Now it's no coincidence that Brad in his email Talks about the four countries most touted by rags like Aarp and international living as the best places for gringos and expats to live only he forgot Ecuador So what I mean is he's listed the usual suspects places that gringos have piled into because of expat rag marketing

[21:25] It reminds me You know of the state of California back in the 50s and 60s man It was on top of the list the Golden State a place everyone if they could pack their bags and leave would go to jobs Opportunity fantastic weather beautiful scenery in fact my own uncle picked up his Chicago family and moved to Anaheim and around 1960 bought a nice middle-class house near Disneyland in fact He worked there as a technician slash engineer paid something like 20 grand for the house and now it's worth a million The property taxes are murder though the very same three-bedroom ranch style house in a Chicago suburb Worth a quarter of that the point is look at California now Everyone piled in the place including various Undesirables and it's an absolute disaster No one really wants to live there anymore people with dough are fleeing though. It did have its glory days

[22:14] It's day in the Sun That's the pattern you see when gringos pile into certain touted Latin countries to the countries Brad outlined That's of course not to say you can't find really nice locations in those four or five countries I'm throwing Ecuador in there, too So watch out if you plan on moving to one of those countries for the long haul you have to ask yourself and kind of project five Or ten years into the future and wonder what the situation is gonna be like cuz it won't be the same as it is today So you have to follow the trends and the patterns ask yourself What's Mexico gonna be like in five or ten years if you think it's gonna get better you're nuts and Colombia Hey, have you checked the news lately? They've had ten days of massive street riots 24 people just died Protesters and rioters have basically shut down all the big cities and Panama

[22:59] Well, it is a nice place if you got money because it's first world expensive Especially if you're dealing with real estate in first world style locations There are other reasons I don't recommend Panama nice place to visit But I wouldn't want to live there and here's one of them even before the Panama Papers thing Which permanently put all the banks and financial institutions under the microscope making it really difficult for gringos and expats to get bank accounts And I say corporations even before the Panama Papers thing a funny thing would happen at my expat insider seminars I've had a number of gringo expat attendees who didn't fly down to the seminar from the states They flew in from Panama kind of strange, huh? Turns out they thought they made a great decision by moving to Panama only to find out the hype did not match the reality So even ten years ago, I was asking myself

[23:46] Why are these people come into my seminar when they're already living in Panama? They made a decision They already have their plan B. What's wrong with Panama? Well, they told me what's wrong with the place and I mentioned those reasons many times on the show then again If you got lots of dough, you can live anywhere you want and create the perfect environment for yourself Oh and as for Costa Rica I really shouldn't have to explain why that place has not or has ever been on my plan B list I know I live there for about three years way before it got to the state that it's in now But I certainly saw the signs though I still get emails from going to bees and wannabes who want to move to Costa Rica They usually have been on vacation there once or twice and now they want to move there And when I do answer those emails, I don't go into great detail at all. I just tell them one thing I tell them I know dozens and dozens of gringos and expats who live there and

[24:34] Every single one of them has been ripped off by their lawyer or partner Whatever on some kind of golden opportunity real estate deal or a teak avocado Macadamia plantation or shrimp farm investment deal all of which seemed like a sure thing on paper Gringos arrived with rose colored glasses thinking they're gonna get rich instead They get drained though again if you've got lots of money, you could live well in Costa Rica The other insurmountable problem is that the locals are jaded They really don't much like gringos though at first they did but they've been invaded so heavily by tourists and gringos It seems to be a Latin country in name only foreigners own practically all the big projects and developments But the Costa Ricans themselves have never got proportionally rich and deep down. They're very resentful of that Why do you think they'll take advantage of foreigners every time they get the chance? Hey, it happened to everyone

[25:23] I know including me in fact expat Eddie always tells people who plan on moving to Costa Rica First time you get scammed or weasel out of five grand you got off cheap with a good lesson by the way I had a gringle friend in Costa Rica who got scammed out of six hundred thousand bucks and his own lawyer I knew the guy was in on it and in the end nothing happened to the lawyer But the six hundred thousand gone not so unusual for Costa Rica someday. I'll tell you that star So then where am I going with this? Well, the places I most recommend for a great plan B destination are those locations You won't see popping up on your daily news feeds like Yahoo news You won't see blogs and rags and aarp and Conde Nast traveler or international living or escape artists calm Talking about only once in a great. Well, that's a good thing and kind of a prerequisite for a nice calm

[26:12] Beautiful plan B destination and even in those Latin countries that are off the radar They have their little pockets of gringos and expats So when you first come down as a greenhorn you won't end up in a place where no one speaks English Which can't be scary at first. In fact, that's how plan B success stories usually go take Guatemala For example when newbie gringos first come down. They almost always go to Antigua, Guatemala That's the most gringo wise place in the country You can't get by there without knowing any Spanish at all. There are enough gringos who own restaurants shops boutiques, etc That was my destination the first time I ended up in Guatemala And I ended up living in Antigua about two and a half years and it's not that I left because I didn't like it I liked it a lot problem is my business partner half Canadian half Belgian ripped me off

[26:57] So I sold off my half of the business It was a bar and restaurant and then that very place a couple months later became the hottest bar and restaurant in town Well, guess what that hurt? I just couldn't stomach living in that place with that guy still hanging around and that newly booming business that I built I had to get a fresh start see some new faces Every time I drove past a place and it was right next to the Central Park It would just burn me up So I moved on because it left a bad taste in my mouth not because I didn't like Antigua I did but because I'd been burned so badly by my ex-partner The crazy thing was the guy was half Belgian and half Canadian who'd have thunk, hey You've been listening to the expat files living in Latin America If you need some help with your own plan B We can schedule a one-on-one phone or Skype consult Just send me an email the expat files at gmail.com

[27:44] And if you want to get on the waiting list for my next week-long expat insider seminar in Central America Where you're guaranteed to get a two to five year head start on your plan B Send me an email the expat files at gmail.com