Cost Of Living In PR To Increase

The damage that idiotic, confiscatory tax policy can have on an economy is immense. Very sad (but not surprised with the new administration) to see it's getting worse in PR.

thats why I left puerto rico and I now live in the philippines,cost of living here is so very cheap,example,you can rent a whole house here from 3000 pesos up thats about 75 dollars
cigarettes here are 25 pesos per pack,thats about 60 cents,heheheheh

(Moderated: Inappropriate posting)

Brilliant, golfcoach47. All the suffering and financial tumoil PR is going through and that's the best you can come up with?

Puerto Rico has been steamrolling it's way to this point for many years due mainly to insatiable unchecked corruption and the inability of it's leaders to focus on much other than graft and their reliable ability to not be able to get together and agree on anything.. It is rapidly reaching a saturation point. I have read that some pueblos have refused to raise taxes on food, opting instead to raise food prices. Which in turn would increase the tax base. But these guys who run the government think the people won't notice that they are paying more taxes, only that food prices are going up. Victorglass, what you are seeing in the rapid rise in food and gas prices is also occurring here in Florida at a very rapid rate.  I shop at Walmart only because I have to due to their lowest prices. All of a sudden I find that I can no longer afford to buy the things I'm used to eating. And it's happening just about overnight! Beef prices are at something like a 40 year high. Earlier this month gas was $3.17 a gallon. Two weeks later it was $3.69!!. So a lot of those things aren't exclusive to PR. We had some bills passed in our congress lately that did away with some farm subsidies and other things that made food jump up in price rapidly. When I left PR in 2012 gas was about 97.7. That will go down some. But food and some other commodities I fear will just keep rising until the only people that can afford to eat anything worth consuming will be the very wealthy or those that have the good fortune of being able to grow their own. I'd love to eat organic instead of processed foods but organic milk here is $13.00 a gallon! But I fear PR will suffer at a more rapid rate due to not only what is going on now but also was has been done for a long time that can't be undone. I'm having trouble mustering up any optimism right now. Can anybody else join in and maybe shed at least a little bright light?

Bright light: Rincon has passed a law that bans the use of plastic bag in any store, I believe it goes into effect August 1st. But I must say my grocery bill has gone ballistic, and being  vegan doesn't help.

Meet the people at the Rincon farmers market. Many of them are vegan and some grow their own food. Maybe you could hook up with some of them for better prices or at least join a co-op. The farmers market in Aguadilla grows some veggies hydroponically. Network with all those people because they know others all over the island and you might be able to put a dent in your food bill & get better quality while you are at it. It might take a little more work than just going to the supermarket though. Try to talk with a woman named Ameena Montalvo. She's not a vendor there but she quite often brings some of her vegan cooking to give to the vendors. I'm not vegan but I love her food. And she's an absolutely wonderful woman. She and her husband live in a log cabin made of palm trees. If you meet her tell her Gregg (the knife sharpener) sends his love. Also seek out a woman named Vanessa. She's a vendor and makes wonderful cakes. She knows everybody you would want to meet. Tell her Gregg loves her too. Great people there. I have an American friend there by the name of Jay. He lives in the mountains in Arecibo and roasts his own coffee and often has china and fresh juice and some other fruits.

Maybee the hemp industry can save this little island?

To start from we would need politicians who are interested in doing something for the people. Right now the main difference betwen the parties is their view on the status of PR. I don't hear if and what they want to do to get the economy thriving.
Next to that corruption and ridiculously high "salaries" (or whatever they call the money they pocket) make that the wrong people are in power.
I lost all confidence in politicians in general and PR politicians specifically.

Thanks for all that info Greg. I've been going to Rincón for 12 years and do remember a knife sharpener - must have been you.