Is there a better place?

kw: observations, culture

A friend of mine who is much enamored of various conspiracy theories has decided to move out of the United States. He was asking my advice about Belize, I guess because it is still connected to Britain. I directed him to The World Factbook, a service of the CIA. Whether he will give the CIA any credence is another story, of course.

Besides its ties to the U.K., Belize has an economy that breaks down thus:

• 29% Agriculture
• 17% Industry
• 54% Services

That is encouraging, a service economy. However, there is one big red flag. Belize shares with Guatemala the distinction of being a source of human trafficking (sexual and forced-labor slavery), and the government isn't doing quite enough to take this scourge off the world's radar screens. I told him Costa Rica might be a bit more salutary environment: Also a service economy and the most stable democratic government in Central America. It didn't occur to me to ask if he speaks Spanish.