[icepat]

I think you may be right, at least in the developed Western nations. However, there are plenty of countries someone could settle in that have less developed infrastructure, and economies. You would be able to live in the same standards as several decades ago if you worked remotely for a small number of hours a day.

I don't mean this to denigrate these countries, but the living standards in some countries are very different. These countries are often "cheap" by Western standards. You could settle in the Balkans, for example, and work a few hours each day, four days a week, and cover expenses very easily with a freelance salary.

I know several Americans who moved to Croatia on DN visas specifically because they could only afford to live there on their freelance salaries.