IL Postcard

In Praise of Filthy Lucre

Date: 03/02/2008

Monday, March 3, 2008

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We all measure the quality of our lives by different rulers…how generally happy and healthy we are, how secure we feel, how many possessions we have, how free we are to travel…to pursue our individual interests...to work toward some important personal goal.

But as you do your own measuring—no matter which ruler you use—take a close look at how that ruler is scaled. The chances are good that you’ll find its divisions ticked off in dollars, euros, or some other currency.

Money isn’t everything. That being said…it’s a tough slog without it. And many of the things that make our lives more comfortable, more secure, and more enjoyable are directly obtained or enhanced using it.

Not surprising, then, that you’ll find most of the articles in this month’s issue of International Living magazine dealing with the stuff. Even less surprising when you consider that money seems to be on everyone’s mind right now.

These are anxious economic times, especially for many Americans who are trying to dodge the economic pendulum as it swings from boom to bust. It is the nature of pendulums to swing, of course, but that doesn’t make it any less spooky to see one bearing down on you, dragging entire industries and sectors of the world economy along with it to the down side.

In times like these, as you know, a global perspective is especially helpful. No single country is 100% immune to rampaging pendulums, but solid strategies for building and preserving wealth don’t stop at national borders, either.

The ability to see the world from above borders rather than from behind them, and the expert advice on how to take advantage of that perspective, is what International Living is all about.

From Lee Harrison’s advice on Costa Rican corporations to Paul Terhorst’s thoughts on global diversification…you’ll find plenty of fodder in this month's issue of IL magazine for developing your own “pendulum survival” strategy.

We may indeed wish that we could do without money. I submit, in fact, that much of the motivation for considering international wealth strategies to begin with is inspired by that very desire.

But it’s only when we have enough money that we can finally arrange things so that we don’t actually need the filthy stuff.

In this month’s Last Word, Steenie Harvey puts her finger firmly on that seemingly contradictory dream. She paints a picture of the good life on a tropical isle where the local economy chugs along on yams and banana leaves—cash won’t buy the time of day.

Having the money to make your dream a reality…aye, there’s the rub. But you might find a promising approach to doing just that between the covers of this month’s issue.

I certainly hope so.

Dan Prescher
Publisher, International Living