Prices of houses here in the Algarve are still rising, although much slower than previously. Maybe that means those who can afford to relocate out of the disaster zones have already made their moves.
Of course, it is always possible there will be a sudden outbreak of sanity in the political morass of Western so-called democracies, but that does seem to be increasingly unlikely, which means the decline of the West will continue. I suspect it is going to creep towards declining living standards and increasing irrelevance in the modern world. Rising economic prosperity and a more sane attitude to life and social mores is in future going to focus on the East.
The USA is still intent on spending far more than it makes every year which is leading more and more nations to abandon the dollar for international trade, and to abandon the ten year Treasury Bond as a monetary safe haven. If less countries require dollars to transact business, there will be less demand for the currency which will lead to a continuing decline in its value and therefore purchasing power.
The USA is also heading for a couple more military defeats, which will bring the number of failed military events it has been involved in since 1945 to over thirty. It has not gone unnoticed around the world that the globe’s primary military power has lost every military entanglement it has undertaken during the past seventy-seven years. Internationally the USA has become a laughing stock. And do remember that the USA was responsible for blowing up the Nordstream pipelines. I dont see how that can be regarded as anything but an act of war.
The EU has every year since its inception managed to decrease its share of international trade, and since its insane attitude to its primary trade partner, that share is set to collapse. Living standards are on the way down, and this will lead to a downward spiral in house prices. It really is time to misquote an old phrase. “Go East, young man.”
Politically speaking, this is not the time to be making enemies, especially as Europe is spectacularly short in so many things. Not only that, the level of corruption in Brussels has become yet another embarrassment.
I think over the course of this year I am going to have to shift my housing focus towards other parts of the globe where things are more rosy. However, this shift in wealth and social health is likely to be slow. These changes dont happen overnight, but it is certainly time to consider where one wants to be in a changing world.
A hundred and fifty years ago Europe was in turmoil and the sensible people simply went to the new world to start afresh, and they prospered. Now it seems is the time while Europe has stabbed itself yet again to move to pastures new, but this time those pastures are in the East, not the West.
I’m wondering if those folks who left India after the second world war will be considering whether now is the time to go back while things are improving there. I’m sorely tempted myself. Maybe now is the time for me to go East and see for myself what is really going on. I do have a couple of things to finish here in Portugal, but after that I will venture forth again and keep you guys posted.