Is our freedom decreasing with each passing year?

freedomLast week we published an article titled, “Welcome to the Propaganda Factory – How May I Violate You Today?”.  The first half of this article was my response to an email received last week claiming I was an immoral, godless deviant who would rob my clients blind because my worldview differs from his.  If you haven’t read it, I would suggest going back to this article and reading his note and my response.

You will either be offended or amused.

My point in bringing this up was the irony of the the timing.  He made claims to my lack of morals because I do not subscribe to his christian system of beliefs (I will reiterate here, if you are a christian, I respect your viewpoint as long as I receive the same courtesy).

The very same day this article was published, I got into a heated debate about gay rights with a right-wing conservative christian friend.

The catalyst for the argument was the Chick-fil-A controversy where Mr. Cathy (CEO) made recent comments about his support for anti-gay organizations and reaffirmed his christian beliefs.  My friend takes this one step further and continually pushes for legislation stripping gay couples of their rights to equal treatment.

Bible – New Testament – Matthew 7:1 – Judge not, that ye be not judged.  Ahhhh, christian hypocrisy at its finest….

Personally I find it ironic that the divorce rate among christians is over 50% and yet they claim moral superiority over a gay couple who want to marry and have equal treatment under the law.  But I digress…

Do we really want a bunch of politicians and lobbyists legislating morality?  Is that really how you want to live?

The US is already on the verge (or possibly already there) of a full-on police state environment.  Do you really want the morons that rule the country dictating how you manage your family and your relationships?

In 1999, the US government took over the Mustang Ranch (oldest and most profitable brothel in Nevada).  In less than one year it went bankrupt.  If the government can’t even make money selling sex, do you really think they have any business legislating your morality?  Think about it.

For those christians (who are in support of this type of legislation) reading this, I ask you, “What comes next?”

What happens if the next US dictator and his band of miscreants decides your version of morality needs to be reigned in and passes legislation making some aspect of your life illegal?

The argument my friend keeps making is the gay lifestyle is an abomination unto god.  Ok.  So be it.  But at what point does the gay couple holding hands at Starbucks negatively impact your life?

You claim it is unnatural.  Fine. Do you really think the human race will come to an end and procreation will cease to exist?  The smallness of your mind astounds me.

The irony of it all was on Friday after publishing last week’s newsletter, my wife and I boarded a plane to Amsterdam to celebrate our 17th anniversary.  For us, Amsterdam is a quick, non-stop flight and we were just going away for a long weekend.

Not to mention, Amsterdam is just damn fun.

freedomOnce we arrived at our hotel, the concierge greeted us to discuss activities in the city for the weekend.  He promptly told us that Saturday was the largest gay pride parade in all of Europe, and maybe the world.  I couldn’t help but laugh after the previous day’s debate with my christian friend.

If you’ve never been, Amsterdam is a very cool city to visit.  It is very old, with some very interesting architecture and is criss-crossed with canals that can take you throughout the city by boat.  There are some great restaurants and very nice clubs.  On our first night we had reservations at a place called SupperClub.  When booking the reservation, they asked if we wanted a table or a bed…

On Saturday walking around the city, we stopped several times to watch the gay pride parade.  It was held in the canals with hundreds of boats loaded with party-goers (both gay and straight) blaring loud music, dancing, barbequing, drinking beer and of course, smoking pot (seemingly another immoral behavior by many religious fundamentalists).

We saw nothing indecent or disturbing, contrary to the perceptions of the close-minded.  We only saw thousands of people having fun, enjoying life and respecting one another.  What an awful thing to teach your children…

My point in sharing this story is – FREEDOM.

Each one of you reading this newsletter are adamant about freedom.  If you weren’t, you wouldn’t be subscribed.  We all come from different backgrounds, with different parents and different circumstances, but we share one common thread – we all want to be free to live our lives as we see fit.

I only hope you grant others the same courtesy, even when their life choices differ from your own.  We made the choice several years ago to internationalize our life for many reasons; adventure, culture, travel, life experiences, business opportunities, and more.

But it can really be summarized in one word – FREEDOM.

For those of you still on the fence about internationalizing your life and your assets, I would encourage you to get out of your comfort zone.  Take action.

Yesterday I finally booked my flights to Panama for our upcoming offshore conference; Global Escape Hatch – Panama 2012.  I wanted to confirm that my wife could go with me on this trip, so we had to wait for confirmation from a family member who is now coming to stay with our kids in Riga while we are gone for 2 weeks.

We are flying a few days early to Panama City so we can spend time there exploring the city.  After that, we are off to Bocas del Toro for the conference.  When the conference ends, we will be in Quito, Ecuador for several days just exploring the region.

If any of you are still on the fence about joining us in Panama, now is the time to take action.  Red Frog Beach only has 5 more villas left for rent and we only have a handful of tickets.  This is going to be an amazing event.

Two days ago, I was talking to a friend of mine, Yanik Silver, and he told me based on the level of speakers and quality of information we are providing at the event, our pricing is WAY too low.  His suggestion was that next time we charge a minimum of $15,000 per person.

I’m not sure our spring conference will be that expensive, but I promise you it will be much higher than this one (click here to register today).

For those of you that have already purchased your tickets but  haven’t made travel or accommodation arrangements yet, get it done or else you will be forced to stay in a hotel on the mainland.  If any of you will be arriving early (my wife and I along with my business partner will be in Bocas del Toro on September 16th), let me know.  We would love to meet you and have a drink.

Until next time, live well.