South America Has Troubles, Too …

I find it hard to belive that the following was written by a very
liberal American (obviously less liberal than liberal Europeans.)…
@Georgie:

Gerardo Bongiovanni, who runs Argentina’s premier free-market think-tank said, “Argentina has 14 currencies. One national currency, the peso, and 13 others which have arisen spontaneously across the country. Many of these are printed illegally, in Chile, and brought into the country. Barter is still widely used. There are demonstrators called ‘piqueteros,’ most of them from the trade unions, who barracade the roads everywhere, stopping all traffic.”
With bank accounts frozen by a desperate gov’t., most Argentines have lost 75% of their savings. The middle class is now almost poverty stricken. The country has defaulted on more than 140 million (that’s thousand thousands) $s of external debt. It no longer has sufficient dollar reserves in the Central Bank to back the value of the peso.
Argentina, one of the most cultured and wealthy countries of the hemisphere, fell apart quickly. Three years ago, the countries per capita income was 8,909 $s, or three times that of Poland. After it fell into recession, per capita sank to 2,500 $s, about equal to Jamaica and Belarus. Argentines are increasingly hungry, desperate and in despair.
Columbia is sunk in a seemingly endless civil war between the elected gov’t. and Marxist guerrillas financed by drug traffickers. In Venezuela, a foolish leftist romantic, President Hugo Chavez, is using immense oil wealth to further destroy his country.
Impoverished countries, like Peru, with poor governance, are seeing a resurgence of guerrilla movements. Brazil just keeps getting poorer and suffering the most intense income differences between the poor and rich of any region of the world. During the 1990’s, Paraguay, like many Latin countries, moved toward an uneasy form of democracy. But greed, violence and corruption consumed even that small promise.
When you look at these countries, potentially as rich as Croesus, with intelligent people and every opportunity on today’s world stage - and particularly when you look at Argentina - it becomes impossible not to conclude that the problem is the culture. The historical self-indulgence of the countries that came out of the south of Spain, With its authiritarian “amor” for dictatorships, rigid class systems and inbred corruption, is really to blame.
Mark Falcoff of the American Enterprise Institute wrote recently: “Argentina’s crisis is economic, social and political, but it is also spiritual and cultural.”
The largest problem in modern development, for Latin America, has been to insert the correct values and priciples for democracy and capitalism into societies that do not have them.

WOW! This lady speaks 5 languages fluently, has a personal relationship with many current and past world leaders, and has spent extended time (more than just your decadent two week vacation) in many countries around the world. - Xi

@c_c_:

… the amount of poverty there is nearly overwhelming - particularly given the contrasts between the very wealthy and the very poor.

That is what I said! Currently the Brazilian Real is 3.803 to the US Dollar.
@GZ:

fact: french guniana a country in south america is still under french rule. I think they have a problem with imperilism too.

Isn’t that a wee bit redundant?

Caio, Xi

T_6, sorry, errata correcta.
Do you think they can go from a romantic president (Ven.) and a faltering republic (Arg.) to communism? I think they will try something else first. What … I don’t know, but not straight to communism. :cry: Do you really believe that the educated who come to power next(though as I said, I don’t believe they will be the first in power) will be communist leaning? Your ‘native’ comment leads me to think otherwise. - Xi

@TG:

:lol: Fascist skinhead.

Are you talkin’ ta ME? 8) @TG:

Us communist are educated and we are more than willing to lend a helping a hand. :)

Imperialist wolf in sheep’s clothing! :evil: @TG:

When I spoke of native, I was refering to the plight of the Southern proletariat.

Do not call my worthy struggling comrades peons! :P - Xi

Y,
I disagree. Your answer is too simplistic.
That’s why I posted the above. - Xi

T_6,
Nope, don’t shave it. Just watchin’ the race to see if gray hair is gonna be the only occupant left when the receding hairline dominates.
@T_6:

Who’s calling who a peon? :P

You mentioned the proletariat (same thing.) - Xi

Excuse me, I have to go find a mirror! - Xi