Plan B, II

When we ran our Plan B contest last semester (choose the best country to live in while we await the decline and fall of the US empire), we never voted on a winner because our automated survey instrument broke down. But instead of voting, we should pick a winner from emigration patterns:

The Heritage Foundation suggests some more obvious choices in its 2009 Economic Freedom Index. Five English speaking — or at the very least English friendly — countries rank ahead of the United States (Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand). Right behind the U.S. is Canada, Denmark, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Chile. Should the U.S. continue its slouch towards socialism, all of these would be likely places for some of America’s best and brightest to land in the event of economic collapse.

It turns out that Costa Rica, one of the entries, doesn't look so good.

Costa Rica is ranked #46 on the Economic Freedom Index. Costa Rica already has national health care and is working towards being carbon neutral. While it has small government and lower taxes than the U.S., good luck opening a business or getting a hearing in court in a reasonable amount of time. Corruption is a big problem in Costa Rica, with Heritage proclaiming, “The government does not emphasize enforcement of anti-corruption laws, regulations, and penalties. Some foreign firms have complained of corruption in the administration of public tenders.”