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[quote=”sprite”]
David, I suppose if you don’t believe silver coins are good for money in a fiat currency crash, you could pay your hospital bill with chickens. There would be a lot of feathers and pooh to clean up at the payment window though.[/quote]I’m not a disbeliever in silver coins. I just wonder how this will work in practical application. Suppose, for example, you bring a U.S. Silver Eagle* to your local pulpuria. How much will it buy in colon-expressed terms? Who will decide? And what will you accept in change if it’s worth more than your purchase?
*$1.00US face value; silver content value unknown and variable; numismatic value similarly unknown and variable. Remember, this is Costa Rica we’re talking about.
[quote=”DavidCMurray”][quote=”sprite”]
David, I suppose if you don’t believe silver coins are good for money in a fiat currency crash, you could pay your hospital bill with chickens. There would be a lot of feathers and pooh to clean up at the payment window though.[/quote]
I’m not a disbeliever in silver coins. I just wonder how this will work in practical application. Suppose, for example, you bring a U.S. Silver Eagle* to your local pulpuria. How much will it buy in colon-expressed terms? Who will decide? And what will you accept in change if it’s worth more than your purchase?
*$1.00US face value; silver content value unknown and variable; numismatic value similarly unknown and variable. Remember, this is Costa Rica we’re talking about.[/quote]I have never lived through a currency devaluation/crash. I believe we all are about to, though, and I guess we will find out the answer to our questions.
I have no idea how things are worked out in such dire situations. However, if money is nothing more than convenient barter chits, and all confidence in fiat paper currency is lost, then silver and gold will probably be looked upon as the best barter chit available. This has been the case for the last 6000 years regarding silver and gold and people always manage to work these things out.
Every single fiat currency in history has crashed to zero value. This is a fact. No fiaty currencyu in history has survived the conditions it created. The average life span of a fiat currency is 28 years. The US dollar became fiat in 1968…more than 40 years ago. Do you think that maybe we are due for a crash now?
It is a valid question. What will YOU use when paper is no longer accepted? I am betting on silver eagles and similar coins. I am less concerned with whether or not the full silver content will be honored as long at it is honored for some content.So I only get two gallons of gas instead of three for my silver eagle. So what? The paper gets me no gas at all.
[quote=”agarcia”][quote=”sprite”]I follow my advice where it applies to my unique circumstances. As difficult as it is to get off the grid, to escape the reservation, I believe it will be more difficult to stay,
There are ways to drop off the radar and to stop participating with system while still being able to survive….so far.
Timing my exit is the tricky part because I have obligations in the States which I feel morally obliged to meet. Those obligations end soon.
As far as how I intend to relate to my new Tico neighbors, wealth disparity between us will not be evident to the extent that I can help it. This is essential because I will be living amongst them as part of the community.[/quote]
You are contradicting yourself from your previous post. You were pointing out the best course of action for people, but you haven’t even made those moves yourself nor even contemplated how you could function in society without cash, bank accounts and only precious metals. I think you have a romanticized notion of what it would be like to live here amongst the locals. You will still be seen as a foreigner and your bank account or stack of gold ingots will set you apart whether you hide it or not. There exists much discrimination and xenophobia in Costa Rica which can be fairly subtle. You clearly hate where you live and have probably worked yourself into a mental corner where your only option is Costa Rica. If you eventually move here, I think your perceptions of life here will be far from reality and you’ll end up hating it here as well. Costa Rica will not be the panacea to all your hang-ups. Just some words of advice from a long-time resident of Costa Rica.[/quote]
Thank you for your advice but it really is not needed. I am not naive as to the drawbacks of living in Costa Rica. I am also not without experience in living abroad. I am a fluid Spanish speaker and well versed in rural Latin life style. I have woken up to the roosters crowing and the aroma of Cuban coffee many, many times over the decades in Cuba and Puerto Rico. I am also pretty honest with myself regarding my limitations. I will do quite well in Costa Rica.
Of course, I will be seen as a foreigner. So what? I have yet to experience any bigotry in CR. I haven’t even experienced any in Miami, which is nearly as Latin as any place on earth. Like crime and personal assaults, I suspect many times, it is the victim’s behavior and attitudes which invite bigotry.
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