Panama Investor Blog

Just for laughs, The New "Stimulus" Package

This is one of the best (and funniest) explanations on how the new economic stimulus plan will really work.  (Hat tip to http://panamaconnections.blogspot.com).

Three contractors are bidding to fix a broken fence at the White House. One is from Chicago, another is from Tennessee, and the third is from Minnesota.

All three go with a White House official to examine the fence. The Minnesota contractor takes out a tape measure and does some measuring, then works some figures with a pencil. "Well," he says, "I figure the job will run about $900: $400 for materials, $400 for my crew and $100 profit for me."

The Tennessee contractor also does some measuring and figuring, then says, "I can do this job for $700: $300 for materials, $300 for my crew and $100 profit for me."

The Chicago contractor doesn't measure or figure, but leans over to the White House official and whispers, "$2,700."

The official, incredulous, says, "You didn't even measure like the other guys! How did you come up with such a high figure?"

The Chicago contractor whispers back, "$1000 for me, $1000 for you, and we hire the guy from Tennessee to fix the fence."

"Done!" replies the government official.

And that, my friends, is how the new stimulus plan will work.

Provincial fair off to a good start

Each March the capital of our province holds it annual "county fair". It is very much like the state fairs we have back in the U.S. where local farmers bring in their produce, cattle, horses and other livestock for various competitions. But in an agricultural economy like Panama, it carries much more significance, as it represents the productivity of the people and the land. Agriculture is the main economy of this part of the country.  The David fair is probably the largest provincial fair in all of Central America, due to the concentration of agriculture in an area between the Costa Rican border, the mountains and the sea. Over 12,000 people attended the opening and over 100,000 are expected over the next 10 days. The fair brings an estimated $30 million into the local economy as farmers from all over Panama come to attend this important part of life in Panama.

Why I love Panama-Part I

Many people who read my blog may come to the conclusion that I don't like Panama.  I write many posts that point out mistakes or missteps that the casual reader might take as just a  foreigner with an ax to grind or a superiority complex. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I love Panama and her people so much that I pick on her constantly, like a younger brother picks on his big sister.  I have been fortunate throughout my life to be able to live anywhere I want to and yet I chose Panama over all the other countries in the world.

My  rants against the policies of the government and the folly of the governed is because I believe Panama could be a much better place than it is today and I am increasingly concerned that it is drifting more and more the way of my home country, the U.S.A..  Highly in debt, corrupt and well on its way to socialism. Don't get me wrong, I love America. The America of my grandfather and all 8 generations of my family who I can trace back to Virginia of the late 1600's.

I post the negatives because I believe that Panama is such a small country that she could be easily managed and should be the envy of the  entire world? How many democratic republics in the world have a self generating gold mine called the Panama Canal? And although many  here might make the argument that her sovereignty was taken from her during the many years the U.S. owned the canal, most, who truly understand the benefit would gladly trade that loss of temporary sovereignty for the gold mine it is today. She did not have to go into debt to build it, it was "transfered" along with billions of dollars in fully developed real estate with few strings attached. She did not have to pay for the training of her people to manage and operate the resource, they were paid to learn. Panama does not need to waste precious resources on a military to protect the canal because the world will rush to protect her if she were threatened. Panama only needs to spend her revenues in a responsible way and on internal activities for the betterment of her people.

I guess because I have been here for ten years and have seen the significant changes take place that negatively affect the business environment, I forget about the day to day life and just how good it really is. For the many people I have enticed to come and live here, they tell me life could not be much better and when I stop and smell the roses, I quickly come to the same conclusion. I have the people of Panama to thank for this and my family who have suffered through my long hours of work and my sharing of the woes of the world. This afternoon my youngest son and I went out on the golf course and flew a kite. Tomorrow I will go back to ranting, but for now I want to savor the smell the roses.

Why Some People Have A Better Head For Languages

This article from Science news may help some of us not feel so bad about our poor language skills.

ScienceDaily (Oct. 26, 2008) — Learning a second language is usually difficult and often when we speak it we cannot disguise our origin or accent. However, there are important differences between individuals with regard to the degree to which a second language is mastered, even for people who have lived in a bilingual environment since childhood.

Read the whole story here.

Hey U.S., welcome to the Third World!

I don't find many opinion pieces in the LA Times that I would subscribe to, but this one I think hits the nail on the head (except for the political finger pointing). Thanks to Okke for sending this to me.

Dear United States,  Welcome to the Third  World!

It's not every day that a superpower makes a bid to transform itself into a Third World nation, and we here at the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund want to be among the first to welcome you to the community of states in desperate need of international economic assistance. As you spiral into a catastrophic financial meltdown, we are delighted to respond to your Treasury Department's request that we undertake a joint stability assessment of your financial sector. In these turbulent times, we can provide services ranging from subsidized loans to expert advisors willing to perform an emergency overhaul of your entire government.
As you know, some outside intervention in your economy is overdue. Last week -- even before Wall Street's latest collapse -- 13 former finance ministers convened at the University of Virginia and agreed that you must fix your "broken financial system." Australia's Peter Costello noted that lately you've been "exporting instability" in world markets, and Yashwant Sinha, former finance minister of India, concluded, "The time has come. The U.S. should accept some monitoring by the IMF."

Read the rest at LA Times

Time to leave the "stress belt"

A recent study about the personality traits of people from various parts of the U.S. was recently unveiled and confirmed some predictable results. People from New York are neurotic and unfriendly while those from North Dakota and Georgia are where the nicest people live. I think if they had done a similar study of the people living in the rural parts of Panama, they would have won hands down.

Excerpts:

Researchers created the first ever map of its kind is based on the results of   a six year online survey of 620,000 people.

They claim it reveals how certain types of people are more likely to live and   flourish in different parts of the country and showed links between   personality traits and social phenomenon, like crime rates.

"What is particularly impressive is that the results show the effects of   personality on people's social habits, values and lifestyles are so   pronounced that they have an impact on much bigger social forces."

The findings show that people living in eastern states such as New York are   likely to be anxious, stressed, impulsive and prone to heart disease and   cancer.

The results revealed clear patterns of personalities - neuroticism is highest   in the east along a line stretching from Maine to Louisiana - the "stress   belt".

Religious fervour is most prevalent in states such as Kansas, Florida,   Arizona, Missouri and Utah, where residents mostly exhibit the conscientious   personality trait.

Rates of robbery and murder are highest in states populated by people with the   openness personality trait such as Columbia, New York, Oregon, and   California.

The nicest Americans, who share the agreeableness personality trait and are   said to be warm, co-operative and friendly, are from States such as North   Dakota, North Carolina and Georgia.

Read the whole story here at UK Telegraph

Panama inventor a leading light in developing greener energy

Looks like an inventor here in Chiriqui is taking things into his own hands and feet to solve the world energy crisis.
La Prensa

Excerpts:

Clement’s moral is, the sooner we stop relying on oil, the faster we’ll achieve a global society with “sustainable life” and a greater respect for the environment.

These ideas, incarnated in his many energy-saving inventions, have earned Clement a bevy of honors, including the third prize award in the “fire” category at the Energy Globe Awards, the so-called Environmental Oscars, and an open invitation to talk about renewable energy at the Universidad Autónoma de Chiriquí.

But it’s Clement’s low-cost bicycle generator for Panama’s rural regions, capable of illuminating four 60-watt lightbulbs for several hours, and a micro-hydroelectric project that functions with water from small streams and creeks, that have won the electromechanical engineer most acclaim recently.

These creations testify to Clement’s belief that wind and water generators are indispensable to ensuring sustainable sources of energy. In fact, instead of diverting the flow of a river and harming aquatic habitats, Clement explained that his mini-hydroelectric plant runs on a scant 10 percent of a creek’s total water channel.

“From now on, we must think more carefully about whether to approve hydroelectric plants requiring dams, or those that use only enough water to activate the generator’s equipment,” he said.

Panama was a North American peninsula

This interesting article is about a new studies that shows Panama was once a peninsula of North America before a land bride was formed to South America which literally changed everything.

Excerpt: "Scientists knew Panama was a North American peninsula, possibly as early as 19 million years ago because fossils that are closely related to North American land mammals, such as rhinos, horses, peccaries and dogs have been found in the Panama Canal during ongoing maintenance," said Kirby, lead author of the study. "But we were not certain when this peninsula first formed and how long it may have existed."

One of the major effects of the formation of the Isthmus of Panama was the intensification of the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean. While the area that is now Panama was still a peninsula, ocean currents moving north along the north coast of South America spilled over to the Pacific Ocean through the wide Central American Seaway, also called the Atrato Seaway. As tectonic plate movement joined the peninsula with South America to form the present-day Isthmus of Panama, equatorial ocean currents between the Atlantic and Pacific were cut off, forcing water northward into the Gulf Stream current.

Read the ancient history here at Science News....

Earthrace reaches Panama Canal

Although having little to do with developing and investing, this article has a few fantastic photos of this most interesting vessel that is vying to beat the around the world record. There has been concern that the delays in the canal transit would spoil their attempt. Looks like their on track for success. Its now Day 12 of the 2008 Earthrace RTW record attempt and the boat has so far covered 4970nm. She is racing to beat the 1998 speed record of 74 days 23 hours and 53 minutes.

Click for further information on
                                                       Earthrace Round the World Record attempt 2008                     
                     

To be governed means....

Thanks to a reader for sending me this link to a quote from Pierre-Joseph Proudhon.

"To be governed is to be watched, inspected, spied upon, directed, law-ridden, regulated, penned up, indoctrinated, preached at, checked, appraised, seized, censured, commanded, by beings who have neither title, nor knowledge, nor virtue. To be governed is to have every operation, every transaction, every movement noted, registered, counted, rated, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed, licensed, refused, authorized, endorsed, admonished, prevented, reformed, redressed, corrected.

To be governed is, under pretext of public utility and in the name of the general interest, to be laid under contribution, drilled, fleeced, exploited, monopolized, extorted from, exhausted, hoaxed and robbed; then, upon the slightest resistance, at the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, vilified, annoyed, hunted down, pulled about, beaten, disarmed, bound, imprisoned, shot, judged, condemned, banished, sacrificed, sold, betrayed, and, to crown all, ridiculed, derided, outraged, dishonored."

Read more at Gaia...