Can’t See The Forest For The Trees
Oct 24th, 2007 by Don Ray
I am sure you have all heard the expression, that you couldn’t see the forest for the trees. Well if there were no more trees, would that improve the situation. Of course the meaning behind that expression is that you were too close to the problem to see and understand it. Many Panamanians are too close to the forest to see the trees.
I just got back from PriceSmart, where I met an interesting couple from the Hill country in Texas. We got to talking and the conversation turned to the negative changes that are occurring in Panama. Some examples are easy to see. Large money developers are coming to Panama, or have been here for some time, and are buying up large partials of land extremely cheap. The land currently is cultivated and being used for either raising cattle or for agricultural purposes.
The developer will take the land, clear it and put up more gated communities and charge rates that will approach those in the states. They will entice gringos to come to paradise and live where the weather is great, the people are friendly, and the food is plentiful and cheap. They will say that they are creating opportunities for Panamanians and things are better because they are here. Poppy Cock.
These developers could care less about the average Panamanian. They only care about how much money they can line their pockets with. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see the future, if Panama doesn’t wake up and put some control’s on these people. Chiriquí is the bread basket of Panama. The majority of milk products, fruit, vegetables, beef, poultry, pork and basically everything that a Panamanian needs to survive is produced in Chiriquí.
A person coming to Panama and buying three pineapples for a buck will think that prices are indeed cheaper than the prices they have been paying from Hawaii. Well what do you think that pineapple is going to cost when Panama has to import it? When the farms disappear and are taken over by developments, what is going to happen to the current prices of all Panamanian food products. If Panama can’t produce all that is needed to feed its population, do you think that food prices will remain low?
Panama is supposed to have strict laws to protect the environment. However, many of these new developments will clear trees without planting new. I heard a rumor today that an Italian or an Italian firm was planing to come into Panama and clear all of the trees it can buy for shipment to other parts of the world. Hello Panama. Haven’t you been paying attention to global warming?
Panama is a small country. It is a wonderful country. But it is a country on the precipice of destroying what makes it so wonderful. Panama needs to look toward the future and think about its people. Not the wealthy Panamanians, who can pick up and move to another part of the world if they had to, but the average worker that is making a dollar or so an hour.
I would like to see Panama set some regulations and enforce them to prevent these developers from destroying Panama. That may be too optimistic to think that can happen. It is too easy to grease a palm and things that shouldn’t happen will continue to happen.
So what should be done. I don’t have the answer, but I think I can see the writing on the wall. If things keep going the way they are, the average Panamanian will be pushed further down the food chain. The developers will leave if it makes sense to them. They will have scraped every last dollar they can from Panama and non Panamanians. They can now go live in a villa in any part of the world they want. Wasn’t there some fable about killing the goose that laid the golden eggs?
Well said brother Don! You echo my sentiments exactly.
Reuben Blades can read between the lines!
Hi 2wheels. Thanks for stopping in.
Hi Don - what you say is absolutely true & it’s a pattern repeated around the world. I live in Calgary and am appalled at the rate at which agricultural land around our city is being eaten up by new neighborhoods. Who do they think is going to feed all of these people? It’s very scary to see that many people think milk comes from a grocery shelf & meat from the butcher. Not sure how we can stop this in Canada, or Panama, but pushing for legislation is a good start. Some countries have actually frozen agricultural land and do not allow it to be used for housing. Has the time come?
Liz
Hi Liz. Thanks for dropping in and leaving a comment.
I think the time is here for Panama to make an intelligent decision and protect the farms.
The very profound truth is that we are caught up in a cycle of greed–not just the oligarchy-types, but nearly all of us, trying to fend off discomfort, suffering and death by insulating ourselves with things and money. That it doesn’t work hasn’t begun to slow us down. Occasionally a truly powerful and intelligent person will step up and make some changes, a la Julius Caesar. Each such person does in fact have a great influence, though the cost is usually extremely high, again a la Julius Caesar, but without them as examples the aspirations of the powerful tend downward. They are the singular ones who aspire to be great rather than simply rich. On a slightly less elevated level we see people like Paul Farmer who show us what humanity can be with greed. The rest of us poor suckers usually just try to be decent people in the midst of the din. Thanks for your thinking, Don Ray, it does remind us to try.
Hi Frank. I appreciate your taking the time to comment.
I know just what you’re saying, Don Ray. When my husband and I moved to Costa Rica in 1993, it was a wonderful country to live in. We left in 1996 and returned in 2000. We were stunned with the changes. Costa Rica sold out to the highest bidder. We escaped to Panama in 2003 because Chiriqui reminded us of the old Costa Rica. I sincerely hope Panama doesn’t follow Costa Rica’s lead. Chiriqui is a wonderful place to live.
Hi Kathy.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
I read a comment on Craig’s List recently that espoused the (arguably) true notion that wherever the white man (aka gringo) goes, problems soon follow. Problems such as: inflation, crime, apathy, jealousy & greed. I guess an objective view of such an accusation would yield a ‘net’ true response although law enforcement is extremely lax down here. I notice most of the drug runners, for example, are commonly deported and will never face trial/imprisonment. Good deterrent.
I have been taken aback by gringos who seem hell-bent on holding the local folk down by employing this twisted logic akin to: ‘Don’t pay that worker more than a buck an hour! That’s all they’re used to being paid!’ While out of the other side of their mouths the same gringos complain that prices on everything are rising! I guess local folk don’t eat, drink, support children, travel, cook or buy anything but rice & beans. Right. No wonder these sticky issues materialize amongst the citizenry and their guests. I’ve been accused of paying help too much and I’ll ruin it for others.. So be it.
In any case, a thinking person has to conclude that development and it’s attendant problems, especially by Europeans, will continue at a brisk pace as the euro/pound continues to rise against a dollar hanging on by it’s fingertips. I remember visiting Canada (loonie VERY strong now as well) over the years and cheering as my USdollar bought $1.35 Loonies. Look at the score now. You may even start to see more of an influx of Canadian investors in CA to boot!
All of the economic forecasts are obviously subject to change at a moments notice the way things are going in the ME. My advice would be to relax, find a new restaurant or beach and do the best to take care of your families…wherever they may be. (Oh, buy some loonies too!! I think Scotia has ‘em).
Hasta………..!
Hi KK. Thanks for dropping in.
None of us like this, but don’t blame (just) the Gringos; the wealthy families here have far more to do with it because they are the most influential power group and they are only to eager to cash in by allowing or even promoting this.
When you live in highrises during the week, spend all day in an office and weekend at private compounds at the beach, it really doesn’t mater very much to you what the heck goes on around you. That’s the sad reality EVERYWHERE, not just Panama. And that’s the lifestyle of those who control this country.
The ones in power are only too willing to sell off their patrimony since it really means nothing to them.
Mike
(living in Paitilla but not part of that mentality)
Hi Mike. You are correct. It is not just one thing, it is a combination of things, but typically it is the “Haves” and the “opportunists” that cause the majority of the problems in my view.
I think that the developers cause a lot of the current problems, but they would not be able to buy land to develop on if someone didn’t sell it to them. They also wouldn’t build the expensive developments if others weren’t so willing to part with their money.
Again it is the “haves” that are able to do it.
Don Ray,
For the most part, I agree with your editorial – which I suggest that you translate into Spanish and distribute to all newspapers and local radio stations. If you do so, it might be a good idea to be even more emphatic (if possible) that the problem is the developers, and that there many good folk who come to Panama and try to become part of, rather than isolated in gated communities from, the Panamanian community.
Two or three years ago, I was quite worried about the same things. However, agricultural areas may well be less inviting for development now than formerly. They tend to have infrastructure suitable for agricultural use but not for dense residential development – or, for that matter, for construction of large houses on five acre lots. Roads, telephone and even electric service are such that many foreigners find them unacceptable, and significant upgrades cost lots of money.
Several years ago, the funds to deal with these and other “problems” were available and speculators were anxious to supply them. That may no longer be the case. First, the housing slump in the United States has diminished the numbers of people able to retire to Panama by reducing the equity in the houses which they must sell in order to retire to an anticipated lavish life style here. Second, land and building costs in much of Panama have increased dramatically. Third, the recent change in the duration of tourist visas to thirty days makes it difficult for potential retirees to investigate the possibilities in Panama. Fourth, many of those who do come will find that their expectations, fed by developers and various publications, are delusional. Fifth, if demand decreases, so will land prices, providing less incentive for farmers to sell their land. This will be even more likely if (as seems likely) the Free Trade Agreement between the United States and Panama fails to be approved by the Congress. Valid or not, there seems to be an expectation on the part of farmers that, with implementation of the agreement, they would be unable to compete with “cheap” food products imported from the Untied States.
We have already seen a building bust in Panama City as well as an increasing crime rate there and in the Boquete area; there appears to be an increase in “for sale” advertisements from folk who came to Boquete a few years ago. We know several people who have already left the Boquete area for greener pastures in Panama or elsewhere.
We own about five hectares in a rural area equidistant from Boquete and David, where we grow oranges and raise and train horses for sale. Our Panamanian neighbors are wonderful people, and we are doing our best to become part of the local community. We are, I think, succeeding. We very much want to keep our part of “paradise” rural and undeveloped.
Please do whatever you can to publicize your views; the local people listen to the radio and should have the benefit of your well articulated views.
Best wishes,
Dan
Hi Dan. Thanks for adding your viewpoint. I appreciate it. I am not quite sure that I am the one to carry this forward, but I did want my views stated. I like Panama and I want only the best for it and its citizens.
It is easy to keep punching holes in the air by pointing at “the big guys”, but I’m wondering if a lot of the people in “the families” aren’t actually working hard at making some things better. I’m thinking in particular about the hospitals in David and especially in Panama City. As I understand it, one of the major hospitals in the city is associated with Johns Hopkins. That, I suspect, could never have happened if some very influential local people hadn’t worked their tails off to get it to happen.
There is no doubt that many of the privileged people in Panama are forever trying to get more for themselves, but I’m betting that the smarter ones or more enlightened ones could use the kind of public support that Dan Miller suggests above. It will take some real investigative work though to find which direction to send our applause in. What, for example, are the issues being debated about the work on the canal? Who needs support for their arguments? I’m going to start spending a little less time on the Chatter and a little more time on La Prensa (etc.) to see what I can find.
Hi Frank. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
A recent study from the U. K. to determine the world’s happiest countries, that is, the people therein, put Panama fourth. The U.S. was one hundred fiftieth. Too bad the U.S. and its values are moving here.
Well said Doc!
Hi Don, nice piece of writing. Also good comments. We can all do finger pointing at the wealthy, the developers, and the people who sell land for high prices. What we need is a solution. All I can think of at the moment is to set aside agricultural land in a particular zone so that it remains as such. Panama already has enough park land that is thoroughly protected. It does not, however, have enough zoned agricultural land. Perhaps the right authorities could be contacted and would be sympathetic to doing this. If something like zoning is not done, Panama being a small country with a limited amount of agricultural land will be importing its food, no question about it. The suggestion to put this in Spanish and broadcast it sounds to me like a good idea.
Hi Bob. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. My intention in writing this post was to raise awareness. I am sure that I have been a little more caustic than needed, but I was afraid that anything less, would not have provoked any responses. I hope the right people get interested and involved and make a difference.