Friends returned from a long-planned trip to Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) and commented on the degree of economic disarray the country seemed to be in.
The political leadership allowed itself to be taken in by China’s financial debt peonage schemeBelt and Road Initiative, and now is basically bankrupt.
But in addition, the “leadership” hit on what is probably the wet dream of many a Western eco-fanatic: turning Sri Lanka into the world’s first 100% organic farming nation. The results are predictable to anyone who hasn’t drunk green bong water.
The dismal effect on domestic food production is bad enough, but it has also wreaked havoc with Sri Lanka’s main export product: Ceylon tea.
It has gotten so bad that school exams are canceled for lack of… paper, as explained below. More on the background there too, including on the Tamil-Sinhalese civil war (1983-2009) and on the toxic rule of family clans like the Rajapaksa.
Arthur C. Clarke, who saw the potential of his adopted country, must be spinning in his grave…
Spin, strangeness, and charm 