The Lost Paradise of Panamá

As Panama’s Independence Day and Flag Day draw near, November third and fourth, I thought about freedom, true freedom, and what it means to people everywhere. Here’s a picture of an Iraqi dinar that the world will never see in use again. Ever. I received it from a soldier who served in Iraq. Someone I have never met. He had read one or more of my books, which in part, takes place in Panamá. My name is written in English, and Arabic across the front of the retired note.

Dictators are a dying breed, but there are still too many in the world. But not in some places. Not in Iraq. And not in Panamá.