Saturday, November 30, 2013

Oh, I'll Cry Alright

Argentina was at one point one of the wealthiest countries on the planet (late 19th and early 20th Centuries). It had a per capita GDP higher than Austria and Italy, four times as high as Japan, and nearly as high as the United States. So, what in the hell happened to it? Uh, try socialism and protectionism......................................................................................Yeah, that right, folks, starting in the '40s and continuing throughout the rest of the 20th Century, the Argentine government (initially under the auspices of Nazi sympathizer and protector of Nazi war-criminals strong-armed thug, Juan Peron) proceeded to a) close off the Argentinian economy to international commerce, b) nationalize numerous public services, c) engage in a hyperinflationary monetary policy (the printing of money to pay off its monstrous public debt eventually resulting in a 3,000% inflation rate) and d) establish state control (either directly or through massive government regulations) of most economic activities...........................................................................................Not surprisingly, the results of this madness were dozens of other countries proceeding to leap-frog Argentina (Japan in 1960, South Korea in 1980) and the country continuing to be an economic basket-case today. One can only hope here that the leaders of this once prosperous country will eventually see the errors of their ways and not have to fritter away another 70-80 years (maybe look to Singapore, Estonia, countries like that).  

9 comments:

dmarks said...

I'm sure the Perons and other rulers made out like bandits, still. Typically, the main beneficiaries of socialism and protectionism.

dmarks said...

Peron was a fascist in several senses of the word. His protectionism and "nationalization" of industries are perfect examples of authoritarian, fascist-leaning actions. Rulers deciding, not the people. And in the case of "nationalization", that is an example of the rulers expressing their avarice and greed by stealing from the people.

"One can only hope here that the leaders of this once prosperous country will eventually see the errors of their ways..."

Seems doubtful. They are getting worse with igniting fires of aggressive imperialism: wanting to conquer part of try UK again. Perhaps this time Buenos Aires will be bombed to ruins if they try to invade the Falklands again. Aggression needs consequences.

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

There seems to be evidence that the Perons also ended up with a fair amount of Holocaust booty as well. Nice, huh?

dmarks said...

Not surprising... fascists on either the left or right stripe have a strong (though not universial) learning toward antisemitism.

More recently, another left-wing fascist (i.e. socialist), also in South America (Hugo Chavez) blamed Jews for all the evil of the last 2000 years, and was one of those leaders on the world stage who was strongly in favor of Iran's nuclear weapon and war program.

Not sure about Allende, the left-fascist dictator of Chile. let me see: "The Jews are characterized by certain types of crime: fraud, deceit, slander, and usury," Allende wrote in the thesis.

"These facts lead one to assume that this race plays a role in crime," Allende wrote.


Well, I stand educated on this one now.

dmarks said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
BB-Idaho said...

Falklands? Couple thousand folks; I guess worth a bloody war or two.
Estonia as an example? They are 66th in GDP per capita ($22.1K), not too far above the maligned
Argentina ($18K) Nowhere near the US ($49.9K) or that paragon of the
north, Norway (%55.5): where it is noted, "The Norwegian economy is a prosperous mixed economy, with a vibrant private sector, a large state sector, and an extensive social safety net."
-all figures CIA worldbook

dmarks said...

BB: Blasting Buenos Aires was quite hyperbole, I admit. But still, that conflict (potential conflict) is one of those few examples where one side has absolutely no justification for their actions. Like 1930s Germany vs Poland. Nothing but naked imperial aggressionl

Will "take no prisoners" Hart said...

Estonia is new to capitalism, BB, but they certainly seem to have done a lot of the right things moving forward and their growth rate these days is significantly higher than all of those Western European countries who have basically tried to get out of the financial crisis by taxing the hell out of their inhabitants.

dmarks said...

Correct, Will: Estonia was run (and ruined) by strong, fairly pure socialism for decades.