I know you want to see pictures of paradise but today you get this.
I nice cup of mate goes a long way when its raining like hell. I sat protected in the cockpit enclosure sipping mate and watched the sky fall for hours yesterday. The seawater became brown with mud from the local streams and my thoughts focused on my experience watching TV last week.
I stayed with a friend in the city who is all plugged in and saw Obama was reelected. I’m not going to get into who I like or didn’t as I don’t have an opinion, well, one that matters anyway. What I did find shocking was all the hoopla on my facebook feed. Lots of name-calling and childish Obama comments.
Living in the 3rd world, all I can say, is the election outcome was the will of the American people, and we should all support that will save the outcome! We should be grateful we are allowed to vote and an given an opinion. Majority rules, that’s the American way. Don’t take it for granted.
I live in Panama and the “people” don’t have the choices we do. People are poor here. Hotdogs, pills of any need, and cheese slices are all sold individually. I often see an old woman or man in the pharmacy buying one or two tablets for pain or whatever ailment they have. I see mothers in the store buying 2 hotdogs and a slice of cheese all the time, usually accompanied by a few .5 cent candies for the little ones. People go food shopping here with less than a dollar.
What really gets me however is the American two-party system. The few hours I saw on television were more akin to a football game than a presidential election. Everyone just seemed to be rooting for their home team and going on why their leader was “better”and why the other guy isn’t. Why is it always Republican vs. Democrat? Wouldn’t a little more variety in our political diet prove more nourishing? America seems “divided” and not “United” as she should be, bad sign guys? If the American system is working the way it should, then the right guy got elected. What I really don’t like is the over-sensualized aspect of the whole election process. ALL candidates regardless of their party should be allowed equal airtime and exposure otherwise it just seems that the guys with the most campaign-money wins. I suppose that’s the American way as well, bummer! The 2-party system divides Americans. “United we stand, divided we fall”, think about it?
People have socialized care here and in most countries I visit. Tourists visiting Panama automatically get 3 months of free healthcare regardless of nationality. I don’t know much about “Obama care” but if its about less guns and more for the care of people I’m all about it. It never is that simple though is it? I’m sure its an over-complicated mess lining someone’s pockets. Caring for people regardless of their income is good will, not good business, and we should be pioneering that forefront even if it means buying one hotdog at a time, which it wont.
I held a series 7, 65, and 66 license with the Securities and Exchange Commission I believe I have a decent grasp on how economies work. I’m not just a poor bum on a sailboat, I choose to live at “poverty” level because I don’t want to be a part of the system. I’m amazed that with our defense budget we aren’t seeing individually wrapped hot dogs in the 711 yet? Guys, it all boils down to quality of life, and the average American quality of life is still “through the roof” compared with most other countries. I’d really like to throw a glass of water on the fuel that’s burning our defense budget. But luckily we (Americans), are all entitled to our opinions.
If you have anything to add, be my guest.
Enough politics, moving on.
My charter guest is coming on the 14th and plans have changed slightly. He wants to see the city and I’ll be in Panama with him. We will sail for San Blas the first window we have after the 17th. I don’t expect any favorable wind and will most likely have to burn 10 hours of fuel, ARRG.
I’m really looking forward to shooting some fish and testing out my new lobster traps. Carla is in Patagonia visiting her sister and having a blast. Shell be back in a few weeks and we will re-connect in the San Blas.
I know I’ve been a little quiet but the book is demanding much of my time.
“United we stand”!
– alex
HI Alex,
I’ve had problems gaining access to your website for about a week but finally was able to get through today. YEAH! Although the election didn’t go my way of thinking, I agree with you. Respect our great ability to vote. The majority does rule and all Americans should should stand behind our process and those who represent us. The beauty of our system is that our future is always in our hands every four years. Demacracy is not perfect and ugly at times but it is the only system that takes into account the people. I have lived with the native people in Panama (jungle/military) and you are so correct. The fact is that most Americans just don’t understand the poverty that much of the rest of the world lives in. That being said, the people of Panama were wonderful and happy for that matter. As a medic in the Army, I was the closest thing to a doctor that any of the villagers had ever seen. I treated a man that was brought to us with a severe scorpian bite and was very sick. I gave him pain medication, knocked him out for a day and cleaned his infected wound. Later that month I was walking through the village. Every one just stopped and stared as we were not suppose to leave our jungle base (right after our invasion for Noreaga). We were fully geared and it made the folks very nervous. The man I had treated at our base medical station recognized me. He started telling everyone his version of his healing and the entire village turned out and surrounded us. The all started touching me, showing me appreciation and bringing me gifts (pineapples, trinkets). For a kid from Arkansas, it was life changing. We are so lucky! I understand that not much love is lost from you and our military. On this Veterans day, I would like to thank all of our veterans. Our veterans have created more freedom for mankind than any other force / country in the history of the world. There are and alwasy will be very bad people on this planet. Many running countries and who see our way of life as a threat to their power and suppression. America, not perfect in demacracy nor our use of our great military is still the best in the world and most importantly, for the world and the free man. Support them both. They are both responsible to our great nation of free and voting men. Happy Veterans Day to all my fellow veterans. I would like to address one situation in our counrty. Our spending and politicians borrowing money to buy our votes. We could cancel all military spending along with all discretionary spending and we still couldn’t pay for our entitlements. We could take every dime earned from the so called rich and it wouldn’t even make a dent. We are in big trouble as a nation (if you believe history repates itself). No nation on the face of the earth in all of history have made it through unscathed when they did what we are doing as far as spending. It ALWAYS ends badly and ends up hurting the very people you are trying to help disperportionately. It may not be next year or even the next decade but our counrty will pay ultimately and it will end badly. It has 100% in history and we have numerous examples playing out before our very eyes in current world affairs. Even a better reason to learn to sail and be self suffecient as you teach on this site. Thank you for your ear and know that I respect every mans opinion.
Jmullins68
Thanks for the input even though we don’t necessarily share the same perspective on the military, well maybe we do?
I believe in a strong defensive and less invasive military. There is certainly a time to fight and protect the American way of life. However this fight has been over for quite some time.
Freedom means living in peace, not war. it’s time to breath free, un-bloody air once again. Not to mention what it will do for our economy and taxes?
My “patriotism” has been quite dark since 911, I’m hoping that will change in the Comming years.
Cheers
Alex, you asked, do we have anything to add? Yup, damn right I do … http://www.contrarianism.net/2012/10/30/the-reason-i-do-not-vote/
Contrarian,
I agree with so much of what you said. The only problem is people will always vote, even if it’s the inbread cousins of the candidates, power by “not voting” just isn’t a reality. There needs to be equal media funding / exposure for all candidates and parties so “the people” can make more educated decisions, and give them more control. A Two-party system makes “us and them” and not “you and I” if you know what I mean?
That being said I surly don’t have any answers, I’m just grateful to be able to live a life of freedom. It’s too bad land-people can’t enjoy a life free of land taxes and all the trappings that accompany land-living. I’m sure ” they” will find a way to tax sailors as they travel one day, I just thank God it’s not today.
Carla’s at her hippie-sisters place in the mountains of Patagonia, I’m so jealous I didn’t have the money to join her, next year for sure. Her sister, husband, and two-children possibly live a life I could manage on land. I’m a chop-wood for heat kind of guy for sure. And Patagonia just seems so bloody Amazing!
I hope to see things change for the better, more life, less death. It’s all about Love, everything else is irrelevant.
Peace!
Alex – you are the richest man I know.
Contrarian,
I must say i’m pretty happy with my situation, Life’s good ;)
I guess I just got caught up in the fairytale. Ronald Reagan made it sound so attainable. I grew up in a country where you could ride in the back of a pickup, swim at your own risk (just about anywhere), hunt (just about anywhere), drive your own car without a safety restraint, go without auto insurance (we didn’t know there was such a thing), etc.
I really don’t consider myself ‘American’ anymore. Everything that I considered America to be has changed. There is no freedom to live the ‘American Dream’. It’s all a cleverly devised scheme to keep people in debt, and paying taxes, ’til they’re getting dirt shoveled in their faces.
Now, I will say that I feel very fortunate and blessed to have been born here. There are opportunities here that are not available in most other places. The problem is the cost. If one does not wake up from the dream and escape the system, they will end up ‘grinding at the mill’ the rest of their lives and thinking it’s a grand way of life!
So, that said, I am doing the best I can to get myself, and my family, to a place of self sufficiency. Choosing to live on less, and be free more, is my way of escape. The wife won’t sail away so, we’ll have to be land dwellers for now.
P.S. Not sure if I’ll bother to vote again. Seems fruitless. The train is on the same track regardless of the engineer.
Pirate soul,
The days of riding in the back of a pickup with your friends have been gone for a while. I miss the America of the 70’s and 80’s. I miss not being afrade I could drive home after having a beer or two. My ex got a DUI for having two glasses of wine and all in all it ended up costing about 10 grand. The IRS is hounding me for taxes from 1999, and 2000 regardless of the fact the statute of limitations has far past. America just isint very cool anymore and I hope we find our mojo again. We are going to hit the “financial cliff” they talk about on CNN and I think it’s going to be a steeper and higher fall than we realize. Don’t worry buying one hot dog at a time isnt so bad as long as we have our health.
I’ve had many oppertinuities being an American and I’m grateful for them. I’m also grateful I can live out in the world.
Homeland security is a joke, ask any sailor who has sailed into US water. It’s all a shell game to capture the Average Americans tax dollars. The boogie man just isint there, and if he is he’s won.
I’m sitting in a nice hotel tonight waiting for my charter guest to arrive later this evening. Pool and jacuzzi on rooftop, so nice. He wants to get a taste of living unplugged and out of the system. I’ll ask him to do some writing so you can hear things from his perspective.
I’m watching TV now, it’s just so dumb. If I watched CNN all the time I’d be afrade too.
Cheers
Be glad you don,t have “FOX’ news there …you would jump off the cliff….