Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller provides an overview of the podcast's mission and discusses the recent episode recording process, which was affected by his being in an unreachable location for a month. He mentions that the next episodes will be pulled from the 'greatest hits' or 'greatest misses' archive. Johnny also shares his personal habits, such as reading and listening to audiobooks, and notes the growing trend of older expats using audiobooks. He shares a story about an email from a listener named Dr. Zen, who is an alpha dog type of person fighting a legal battle in California and planning to move to Latin America as a backup plan.
Johnny then discusses the challenges of running a business in California, particularly for those who hire unskilled workers. He mentions that many of these workers seem to have perfect Spanish, which he finds amusing. He talks about his personal approach to business, where he prefers to make his own mistakes and learn from them. He emphasizes the importance of having a thick skin when starting a new business, especially in the United States where there are many obstacles. He also mentions the difficulty of starting a brick-and-mortar business in California, citing high costs of living and the exodus of entrepreneurs from the state. He then shifts focus to Ecuador, discussing the recent changes in immigration laws that affect foreigners, including fines for overstaying visas. Johnny notes that while these laws are being enforced, there is often a delay in implementation, and he finds the situation humorous, comparing it to George Orwell's work.
The podcast segment discusses the challenges Ecuador faces with an influx of undocumented immigrants, particularly Venezuelans, and the broader issue of unregistered aliens from other countries. Johnny Mueller highlights the difficulties Venezuelans face in obtaining legal documents due to the disarray of their government, which has led to many Venezuelans in Ecuador being unable to update their passports or obtain new ones. He also touches on the situation of expats and backpackers who have overstayed their visas, often settling into a more laid-back lifestyle in Latin America. Johnny shares anecdotes about expats who have become part of the local culture, often marrying locals and raising families, and explains how some European backpackers end up staying in Latin America long-term, finding it more appealing than their home countries.
Johnny discusses the phenomenon of gringos (Americans) overstaying their visas in Latin America, particularly in countries like Nicaragua and Costa Rica. He highlights that while many northern European women end up overstaying their visas and living illegally, American women are rarely found in the same situation. Johnny shares a story about a gringo who married a Mexican woman but never reported his marriage to immigration, leading to a long period of overstaying. The man eventually had to pay a fine to avoid deportation after his brother died and he needed to return to Mexico for the funeral. Johnny also touches on the legal process of obtaining residency through marriage, noting that all 20 Latin American countries allow it but require a one-year waiting period. He criticizes the lack of common sense among some gringos and highlights the existence of an underground market for marriage of convenience.
Johnny discusses the dynamics of dating and mating sites, highlighting the differences between first-world and foreign-focused platforms. He notes that first-world sites often cater to individuals looking for casual fun and social experiences, while foreign-focused sites attract women with specific goals, such as securing financial stability and residency through relationships with first-world men. Johnny also critiques the tendency of governments to mislead citizens about their financial situations, using Ecuador's budget shortfall as an example. He warns that official statements about economic conditions should be viewed skeptically, as they often mask deeper issues.
The podcast segment discusses the financial challenges facing Ecuador, including rising taxes, a growing budget deficit, and the government's struggle to manage its debt. Johnny Mueller highlights the lack of transparency in Ecuador's debt figures and the broader issues of tax evasion and informal economies in Latin America. He also touches on the impact of recent policy changes, such as the 12% VAT tax on private health insurance, and the broader implications for expatriates and local workers.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller addresses the topic of Argentina and its appeal as a potential 'plan B' for expats. He acknowledges that Doug Casey and his followers promote Argentina as a sort of 'Galt's Gulch,' but notes that only about 2% of people can afford to live there due to high property prices. Johnny points out that while it's fine if you have the money, there are significant issues with Argentina's labor unions and inflation. He highlights recent strikes by bank workers and other public sector employees, which caused widespread disruption, including ATM outages and service interruptions. Johnny explains that these strikes are often due to inflation and the demand for higher wages. He also discusses the broader implications of high inflation, noting that living on US dollars can be beneficial in such environments, but warns that this is not a sustainable solution. Finally, he promotes his Expat Insider Seminar in Guatemala as a way to get a better plan B, emphasizing the advantages of the region and encouraging listeners to sign up for more information.
Topics
Podcast introduction, Episode recording process, Audiobook habits, Listener interaction, Legal battle and relocation plans, Business challenges in California, Immigration and visa issues in Ecuador, Personal approach to business and learning from mistakes, Immigration challenges in Ecuador, Venezuelan migration to Ecuador, Legal documentation issues for immigrants, Expats and overstaying visas
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:16 Introduction to The Expat Files 00:00:54 Episode Recording Process 00:01:21 Audiobook Habits and Listener Interaction 00:03:07 Listener Interaction and Legal Battle 00:08:23 Ecuador's New Immigration Law and Enforcement Delays 00:08:58 The Ministry of Human Mobility and Orwellian Comparisons 00:09:54 The Impact of Venezuelan Migration on Ecuador's Immigration System 00:10:23 Johnny Mueller's Perspective on Residency and Legal Documents 00:11:13 Johnny's Two Cents on Expats and Illegal Residency 00:13:00 The Trend of Gringos Overstaying Visas in Latin America 00:13:29 A Gringo's Overstaying Visa Story 00:15:52 Residency Through Marriage in Latin America 00:16:32 Introduction to the Dating Dynamics Discussion 00:17:02 Contrast Between First-World and Foreign-Focused Dating Sites 00:18:16 Ecuador's Budget Shortfall and Government Transparency 00:20:15 No Instant Inflation in Ecuador 00:20:32 Expect a Big Rise in Taxes 00:20:39 Ecuadorian Budget Office Warns of Difficulties 00:21:02 President Moreno Announces 12% VAT Tax 00:21:41 The Failing Social Security System 00:22:07 Debt Levels and GNP in Ecuador 00:22:39 Accounting Issues and Former President Correa 00:23:11 Tax Evasion in Latin America 00:24:21 Introduction to the topic of Argentina and its appeal as a 'plan B' for expats 00:24:44 Johnny explains that Doug Casey and his followers promote Argentina as a sort of 'Galt's Gulch' 00:24:49 Johnny highlights the strength of Argentina's unions and their impact on the economy 00:25:16 Johnny discusses the effects of high inflation on Argentina's economy and labor strikes 00:26:10 Johnny promotes his Expat Insider Seminar in Guatemala as a way to get a better plan B
Transcript
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 out to play And now that I wonder Hello there all you expat 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 Here's something you didn't know, I've been out at some unreachable locations for about a month now So the shows you've been hearing for the last couple weeks were pre-recorded and in the can Actually all the shows are pre-recorded about a day or two before they go out Though this time I built up a six show backlog
[00:46] Because I knew I was going to be unreachable and unable to record for about a month Now this show, first going out on April 29th, 2018 Is the last one I have in the can so the next two shows will be pulled out from the greatest hits archive Or maybe it's greatest misses, whatever you want to call it I mean hey you long time listeners know I've been doing this for what, seven or eight years now And I've got over 750 shows out there Well you know what they say some people are born to listen and others born to talk And I can tell you when you're a listener you win that race every time Because as my mother used to say Johnny you should shut up once in a while, you know you don't learn anything by talking But what saved me was I like to read I'll read anything even the Drano bottle or whatever else is under the sink in the bathroom cabinet
[01:33] Hell you spend as one scientist calculated About 150 days of your life sitting on the throne in the john So why don't you make good use of it and read something Skip the pawing at your smartphone, that's highly unsanitary you know Or at least check out an audiobook Meanwhile the number of toxic chemicals under the sink keeps growing and growing So at least I'll always have reading material Speaking of audiobooks a lot of older folks, retired folks are into those these days I see quite a few mostly older expats sporting earbuds And I say bully for them But I'll tell you what's really weird running into an expat sporting earbuds Who's listening to one of my shows Yep it's the miracle of modern whatever Which sort of makes me wonder what I'd be doing if I hadn't gotten into this radio slash podcasting biz
[02:19] Wonder what restaurant I'd be washing dishes at By the way speaking of audiobooks How many of you listeners out there are into that Sure beats listening to Kanye, Pitbull or Daddy Yankee Fact is I'd rather listen to a chorus of cattle breaking wind to be definitely more melodic Chances are a concert of cows would smell better too But I digress man did I digress Now some people say Johnny you're real brave saying this kind of stuff on the air Especially when you're in an undisclosed location To which I say what you calling me yellow Go ahead put Kanye or Pitbull right in front of me and I'll say it right to their faces In fact I'll spray it right in their faces But where were we? Oh yeah we weren't much of anywhere Alright then let's get back on track Here's an email from a guy who signs it
[03:05] Dr. Zen says Dear Johnny I am a faithful listener and a faithful risk taker too All my life when people say you can't do this or you can't do that That's usually enough to give me the motivation to try it When I was a kid I used to walk across this bridge on my hands for a buck Simply because people said I couldn't do it Even now I bet I still could For a hundred bucks maybe inflation you know I'm in my mid 50s now and I've had a dozen or so businesses in California And true to form most of them failed but two of them ended up taking off Of course that was a while back before Governor Moonbeam and his associates decided to tax and regulate most businesses out of existence Then he says Johnny right now I'm having a fight with California State over some water and land rights
[03:53] And being that everyone is saying I will surely lose this fight or go broke trying That only makes me want to fight it out to the end I admit I am an alpha dog That means I'll lock horns with any other alpha dog that threatens me even if I'm wrong And true to form I like a good fight but deep down I know I'll never win against the state But no one's gonna tell me what to do I've earned my right to make my own mistakes and by God if I go down trying At least I'll have the satisfaction that I did it my way Just like the Sinatra song However I'm not so single-minded that I don't have a plan B So Johnny I'm coming down to Latin America to check it out Make some contacts and have myself kind of an insurance policy That is before the state of California bankrupts me
[04:41] In fact right now I'm in the process of divesting things and getting some of my assets out of the country Like I said I'm not one who's ever walked away from a fight So I gave my accountant and US lawyer a chunk of change And I said keep slugging and when the money runs out so will I Meanwhile I've got a plan B So Johnny put me down for your seminar in July I'll be down to scout out some business ideas I know it'll help that my Spanish levels around a four or five You pick that up you know if you're a business owner in California Especially if your business involves hiring unskilled workers You know they all seem to have perfect Spanish Go figure huh? So if you're a hands-on type boss like me you do pick it up So Johnny I'm coming down and like I said
[05:26] I'm the kind of guy who likes to make my own mistakes The trick is at my stage in life anyways To have as much fun as you can till you trip over your own feet As long as you don't blow a hole in your bank account Just one thing about making your own mistakes He says remember I'm Dr. Zen And you always learn more about your mistakes and failures than your successes You need some failures along the way you need it to get a thick skin I found there's nothing more valuable than having a thick skin When you're trying to start a new business You run into so many brick walls especially here in the States If you're the fragile sort you'll just cave And end up punching a time card working for someone like me So anyway Johnny see you at the seminar Unless I punch out some California bureaucrat And end up in an orange jumpsuit
[06:11] Signed Dr. Zen Alright doc thanks for that Though I must say seems a bit angry for a Zen kind of guy huh? Though I often wonder about you listeners up in California Why is it you're still there? I mean look you're in a state that's bellwether for the rest of the country They always say as California goes so goes the rest of the country Oh no not good Truth is I don't know how anybody can think of starting a brick and mortar business in California That's for sure In fact I just read in the news that people Entrepreneurial types are leaving San Francisco and Los Angeles in droves Not only is it terribly difficult to do business The cost of living is well out of control Especially housing and rent But you knew that already
[06:57] Alright moving on here Hate to keep giving you bad news about Ecuador Sure it's still a great place for a plan B But it's going in reverse fast Listen to this Coming directly out of a gringo expat English language rag slash website Starts out Foreigners living in Ecuador without valid visas Have until Monday April 2nd That's already passed now To get their affairs in order After that they face fines as high as Get this 6,000 US dollars Alright let's stop there for a second I have to say In every single Latin country I've met gringos and expats Whose visas are no longer valid Or they've overstayed their visas That's actually pretty common Especially with the backpacker crowd Remember in most Latin countries you get 90 days
[07:45] Then you have to either pop out of the country And get a stamp from an adjacent one Proving you've left Or go down to that country's immigration office And get a 90 day extension But normally you can only do that once a year That means if you're on a tourist visa And 90% of people are You can only stay legally in almost all Latin countries For 180 days Then you have to get out Of course once you've gone out And stayed in another country for a couple days You can come back and start the process again That's legal But the truth is You meet gringos and expats constantly Who've overstayed their visas Therefore they're no longer valid And just lately in a case of Ecuador Subject to very heavy fines Alright then the article continues It says like many provisions Of the country's new immigration law Enforcement may be delayed
[08:31] As with most everything in Latin America Laws are passed without making provisions For enforcement or personnel But eventually they do get around to it And make examples of people too Then it says proof of this fact is That the April 3rd deadline date Is the 3rd deadline issued By the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility The agency responsible for immigration Yep you heard right The Ministry of Human Mobility Man that always makes me laugh Does that not sound like a chapter out of George Orwell? So why is Ecuador suddenly becoming So tough on immigration and visas etc? That is Except of course on Middle Easterners and Muslims As mentioned in a previous show Anyway well here's why For one thing the governments found out
[09:17] That it's completely broke And we'll get to that shortly But according to Raul Abad Ecuador's regional director From the Ministry of Human Mobility Hmm again with the human mobility thing I'd just like to have that on your business card Anyway he says The root of the problem is The massive influx of Venezuelans Who've entered the country in recent months Then he says Although Venezuelans are the largest group Of unregistered aliens in Ecuador Turns out thousands of citizens From other countries are also Unregistered Or have overstayed their visas And are therefore in the country illegally Including those from Cuba, Haiti, Colombia, Peru And the United States All of whom will now be burdened With the new visa requirements
[10:03] And it's the Venezuelans Who've really thrown a wrench in the works He says They have the worst problems of all Since they have an inability To obtain legal documents from their own country The Venezuelan government Is in such disarray They either cannot or will not provide documents Or legalize documents by a postal By the way it's me Johnny again You guys and gals looking to get residency In most Latin countries know You have to get certain documents from your home country Apostoled in your home country By your state government That'd be good contact reports Marriage certificates Proof of income Things like that So they're saying Venezuelans can't get their government to do that anymore Even worse it says In Venezuela they're not even issuing passports anymore
[10:48] So there are many Venezuelans in Ecuador Whose passports have expired And cannot get an updated one or a new one And according to Ecuador immigration officials More than a half a million Venezuelans Have entered since 2012 With up to 40,000 of them unregistered Or with expired documents And nobody knows how many gringos And expats are in Ecuador illegally That means past their normal 90 day visa allowance Alright here's my two cents on that All I can say is that I meet gringos constantly Who've been in a particular Latin country for years Some are illegal and they'll admit it Though they all came in legally They're well past their expiration date You'll find some of those guys mostly out in the boonies And at various small town beaches
[11:33] Off the tourist trail Normally they've settled down into a very rustic pattern They've picked up a Latin girlfriend Wife for family along the way By the way it usually happens to gringo guys I really haven't met too many American gringos Who've overstayed their visas for a long long time However over the years I've met quite a few European ladies Mostly backpacker types Who've overstayed their visas for years And are definitely illegal Oddly enough most of them have really gone native Or grungy hippy take your pick You know sandals, tattoos, piercings, the works And they're not loners They're usually hooked up with a Latin guy I have a family, kids, living the laid back kind of hippy life A stark contrast from the normal Regimented northern European lifestyle So how's that happen?
[12:20] Well, glad you asked The story usually goes something like this They get out of a university in Europe Work a few years, don't like it much And when they get that month off They go backpacking in Latin America And find a completely different world Of laid back and manana type people Then, vacations over They go back to Europe, work another year And they just can't stand it Every day's torture And all they're thinking about is Getting back to Latin America and manana time So they work a year, get that month off again Only they know it's not going to be a month They're going back and staying And what do you think happens when a young first world lady Comes down to Latin America? Well, it's like bees to honey The bees being the Latin guys So many of these ladies end up hooking up with these guys Having a kid or two Moving to a laid back beach town or out in the boonies
[13:07] Man, I'll tell you last time I was in Nicaragua In Costa Rica I ran into dozens of mostly northern European ladies Who had overstayed their visas And had been in the country illegally A long, long time Yet oddly enough You rarely meet an American lady in that situation Though it does happen and I've met one or two Still, it's gringle males Who take the cake for overstaying their visas Sometimes for years And lately my favorite story on that note Is a gringle I met at a party Married a Mexican girl And never bothered to go down To immigration and report that he was married If he would have done so within a certain time period His residency would have been automatic But he didn't do it And you know it would have been easy To keep himself legal By just popping out of the country every once in a while In fact I asked him if he didn't feel
[13:52] A bit of cabin fever Being stuck in Mexico all that time Without ever leaving He said nah, Mexico is huge There's plenty to do If I was stuck in Costa Rica or Belize, yeah I'd have left I'd have had cabin fever But Mexico is huge So for five years Or was it seven? He'd overstayed his visa And then he got news from his family up in Arizona His brother died Now this guy was only maybe 40 years old Married to a Mexicana Had a couple kids And of course with that bad news from the states He had to go to the funeral It was his only brother Anyway, they were living in Mexico City So he went online Booked himself a ticket Packed up everything Went to the airport Walked up to the Delta Airline Ticket counter Handed over his passport The lady attendant scanned it Said Wait a minute Your last entrance stamp was years ago
[14:39] You never left And you've got no residency seal in your passport By the way, she was referring to the fact That when you get residency in the Latin country They take your passport for a couple of days And paste a one-page permanent residency sticker And it looks just about like the first page on your passport It's got your photo on it too So you'll actually have two photos in your passport Your normal ugly one And an even uglier one For your Latin country residency page Well naturally this guy didn't have that And the attendant told him He'd been in the country so long He was in deep doo-doo So the next day he went to Mexican immigration And paid a fine of around 6,000 US dollars Which he didn't have But luckily the members of his family up in Arizona Chipped in and sent him a remisa
[15:24] By Western Union Hey, Latinos in the states Send remisses to Latin America Why can't gringos do it? The thing is, this guy was bright But he had no common sense Nor did he have a Latin lawyer to consult with And to think, all he had to do After he got married, that is Was to take a few trips to Mexican immigration And he'd have been a legal permanent resident Yep, some of us are so smart Yet so dumb And sometimes so cheap By the way, speaking of getting residency through matrimony All 20 Latin American countries will permit that But there's a one year waiting period For good reason too Since it's a well known fact That one of the easiest ways to remain In a foreign country legally Or even get citizenship in a foreign country
[16:11] Is to marry a local So there's a nice thriving little underground Or gray market business And that kind of thing Marriage by convenience, you might call it In fact you'll even see it advertised In certain sleazy journals And in some places on the net And that by the way is pretty much what's behind all of those Russian, Colombian and Asian mating and dating hookup sites Although they don't come right out and say it It's mostly lonely heart first world guys Introverted, homely, caustic or just unlucky in love But making first world salaries Hooking up with third world ladies Who really don't give a damn about What kind of guy they're hooking up with As long as he makes first world money And has a first world passport And therefore can assist in upping her lifestyle Drastically And provide a means to get permanent residency
[16:58] In a first world country So there really is a huge difference Between the mating and dating hookup sites In the first world Versus those sites that specialize In hooking up with foreign ladies Turns out the ladies and gents On those first world hookup sites Are generally much less serious Let them just want to have fun Meet new people Have different experiences and all that Whereas Russian, Colombian and Asian hookup sites Are just loaded with young ladies With a definite game plan That's right Hook up with a first world guy With first world dough Who can supply a first world visa But you knew that already, right? So bottom line, you guys Just remember that old song Looking for love in all the wrong places By the way, if you believe I'm wrong about this
[17:43] And you think those foreign ladies Just want to meet and be friends and chat With a nice first world guy once in a while Then riddle me this How come there just aren't Any mating and dating hookup sites For first world gringas and Europeans Looking for Latin guys Hey, I'm not saying they don't have Latin, Russian and Asian guy Mating and dating sites But mostly it's just guys Looking for guys You probably knew that already too Oh, and remember earlier When we were talking about Ecuador I don't want to keep beating on that little country But you need to hear this article The title, Massive Budget Shortfall Sends Ecuador's government back to the bond market So what's that mean and who cares? Well, it's about the lies governments tell their people
[18:29] To get votes, stay in office And to make the citizens think they're in good hands With the president government But the fact is these days Whatever a government spokesman says on the record Something that sounds positive You should be thinking exactly the opposite And if that spokesman says something negative In other words, they're doling out the bad news You should be thinking it's much, much worse Than they're presenting it Take the following article, for example It says Ecuador is now facing a $5 billion deficit And so they have no choice But to return to the international bond market in 2018 Says financial advisor to new president, Lendon Moreno Ah, but before Moreno got in We all thought the government was totally flush At least that's what former president Correa
[19:14] Took credit for upon leaving office Said he left Moreno a budget surplus My healthings change in a year and a half Anyway, the article goes on to say According to Miguel Caravajar Head of Moreno's political affairs office The government is preparing legislation That would raise the national debt limit To allow for emergency international bond issues Hmm, sound familiar? Well, in a way it does The U.S. does that about every fiscal period Except the U.S. can print money And get away with it At least they have been for some time Since the world operates on the U.S. petrodollar Though if you've been paying attention To what's happening in China right now You know the petrodollar could be doomed Because China's the biggest oil importer And you know, if any other country except the U.S. Prints massive amounts of money
[20:01] You get instant inflation And a country like Ecuador can't even print money Because it uses the U.S. dollar And that complicates things The only way they could raise money quickly Is to go to the bond market That's one way to get an influx of cash With minimal inflation So there's no instant inflation Like what happened in Zimbabwe and Venezuela But in order to pay the bond holders their interest That's why they buy them in the first place They have to raise taxes So while you folks living in Ecuador Are thinking about having a plan B there Expect a big rise in taxes of one kind or another Anyway, according to this article The Ecuadorian budget office says We face enormous difficulties if we do not act quickly To cover the budget gap Adding that they hope the deficit can be covered
[20:47] Without raising taxes or eliminating subsidies For gasoline and LP gas But he said these options Raising taxes cannot be ruled out Insert belly laugh here You know what that means, right? Because surprise, surprise the very next week President Moreno announced a 12% VAT tax On all people who have private insurance policies That'll affect 940,000 people So he just raised your current health insurance premiums by 12% Then it says part of the problem lies in the fact that last week The Ecuadorian constitutional court ruled The government must resume its support For the country's failing social security system Which by the way includes the failing national healthcare system too That's the system gringos thought so highly of
[21:34] Many of them came down to Ecuador just to take advantage of it Then it goes on to say The government's social security and healthcare system Creates a giant black hole deficit of around 1.6 billion dollars annually And then he says something that's typical of the chaos in Latin governments And well in fact all governments Now get this, the president's financial spokesperson says Raising the national debt limit possesses its own problems Because we don't exactly know How much our true debt is Depending on who and how it's calculated he says It ranges from about 36% to 67% of GNP Which still by the way is below the US debt percentage of GNP Which is just over 100% And then he says and this is even crazier
[22:21] Our first challenge to get a handle on this is To arrive at a definition of debt Say what? And these guys are in charge of a country? Talk about copying the failed US system of debt management It's like the three stooges are in charge And finally he says We blame the system of accounting on former president Rafael Correa Hey why not, that's what governments do best Pass the buck Or I should say second best What they do best is steal That was me Johnny that slipped that in Then he says back then Expediency and convenience rule the day And many of our debts were not called debts at all But given other names Now we will be facing the consequences Man does that sound familiar
[23:07] So the government's reporting bad news Which can only mean it's much worse Now the thing is in all Latin countries Between around 20 to 50% of all working people Pay no taxes at all They either make too little or they're in the gray market Working for cash and off the books completely And as for Latin businesses Depending which country you're in Between 20 and 50% of those are off the books too So they pay no taxes And really there's no hope of rounding these guys up And putting them into the tax base Not when you've got all those huge street markets Where everything's paid for in cash So what do you think is going to happen When they raise the taxes even more They're going to squeeze the businesses That are on the books of course And all those fat and happy expat gringos Who they know have incomes, pensions, and social security Many multiples of the average Ecuadorian worker
[23:53] So expect to be gouged Hey here's a brain teaser for you Which of the 20 countries in Latin America Is most unionized Apart from Cuban, Venezuela of course Isn't that funny, the more socialized the country is The more unionized it is That seems to be a general rule Hey way back when unions were great Until of course they got so big they needed Full time administrators and leaders And power corrupts and all that Anyway the answer is, time's up Argentina, yeah, Doug Casey's favorite place In fact they get a lot of emails from people saying Johnny, why don't you talk about Argentina much Doug Casey and his followers have their own little version of Galt's Gulch Of course only about 2% of us could ever afford to live there Since the lots start at around 2 or 300 thousand bucks And that's just a lot Which is perfectly fine
[24:39] It's cool if you got the money then you can live anywhere you want And you know I like Doug Casey But here's what he's not telling you about Argentina Or his blogs and newsletter don't say much about The unions are so strong they could bring the country to a halt And they have For example last month bank employees All unionized went on strike And it happened on a weekend so the public Had four days without bank services at all So most all ATMs in cities ran out of cash After the second day Hey how would you deal with that? And why do you think they went on strike? Higher wages of course And why would they strike and shut down the country for higher wages? Well it's because Argentina's inflation last year was 25% And when you have high inflation People get raises all the time or they get pissed off
[25:25] And the banks were offering only a 9% raise So Argentina's banks are unionized And of course all their government workers and teachers That's true in almost every country right? How about this? At last year's World Economic Forum in Buenos Aires Bus and subway workers went on strike For a day and caused chaos and confusion That's what they intended to do Why? Well they wanted a bigger raise too And as usual Argentine teachers went on strike They do that every year In fact they did it twice last year Oh and did I tell you that Argentine bank workers Went on strike twice in one month? Right before a four day holiday too Which really caused chaos Five days with no banks ATMs running out How would you deal with that situation if you were running out of cash? Anyway just a little heads up
[26:10] Why I don't recommend Argentina for anyone's plan B In fact I'd never recommend any country that's got double digit inflation That kind of stress you just don't need Though for the time being when other countries' inflation is measured against the US dollar If you're living on an income or pension of US dollars you'll do fine Still you have to remember that the US dollar is the ultimate unbacked funny money Soon enough it'll have its day of reckoning So if you're in a high inflation country you might just be cleaning up if you're living on US dollars But it can't last Which inevitably leads us to the question How's your plan B coming? Have you got adequate boots on the ground yet to make some intelligent decisions? Are you hooking up with people and developing a network? How about the real world of boots on the ground? No, not Cancun or Costa Rica There's a way you know to get the ultimate fast track plan B going
[26:57] Just come on down to my July 2018 Expat Insider Seminar And it'll be in and around Guatemala Go to www.thenewexpat.com Click on Johnny's Seminar link and get all the info and signup details Remember the early bird specials are running You don't want to miss out on that Plus we'll be spending about a week In that famous Alti Plano region that almost no one's ever heard of But you have right? That means perfect spring weather all year round Not to mention three to four growing seasons No ice or snow and no heating or air conditioning bills You have to see it to believe it so come on down You've been listening to The Expat Files living in Latin America If you need some help with your own plan B You can schedule a one-on-one phone call with me But first download my free plan B questionnaire at www.thenewexpat.com
[27:45] Better yet, if you want to get your plan B going from right up there in the States Just sign up for my 9-hour Expat Essentials course Get the perfect plan B blueprint by going to www.theexpatfiles.com Slash Academy No spamos