Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
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Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#2The economic system of Argentina as described sounds like the one of Zimbabwe prior to the farm seizures.
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#3The story seems like a wankfest on American dogoodery. Argentina and the US had similar economies in the early 19th century. End of story. They diverged after that and Argentina handled one disaster after another very poorly. America chose a different path. But, the author seems to have a very different history book than the one I had. The land wasn't free native Americans had lived on the land. But the policy of Manifest Destiny meant they couldn't be included in the developing country, ever. He also conveniently glides over the role the US had in destabilizing Central and South America.
The US economy has been very successful, but make no mistake there is nothing lucky or virtuous about it. If other countries, people, or economies had to be destroyed to further it's goals they were very good at that.
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#4Ars Technica recently referred to one of the moments that, according to this account, made America what it was.
They draw a parallel with current filesharing lawsuits and point out that in the past the government favoured thieves ('squatters') over the property owners.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2008/03/copyright-cr...
It's also a minor subplot in the Deadwood TV series.
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#5The story seems like a wankfest on American dogoodery. Argentina and the US had similar economies in the early 19th century. End of story. They diverged after that and Argentina handled one disaster after another very poorly. America chose a different path. But, the author seems to have a very different history book than the one I had. The land wasn't free native Americans had lived on the land. But the policy of Man…
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Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#6(disclaimer : I'm French). Instead of answering the US-bashing comment, better read what Nikola Tesla has to say about the US in 1919 :
I wish that I could put in words my first impressions of this country. In the Arabian Tales I read how genii transported people into a land of dreams to live thru delightful adventures. My case was just the reverse. The genii had carried me from a world of dreams into one of realities. What I had left was beautiful, artistic and fascinating in every way; what I saw here was machined, rough and unattractive. A burly policeman was twirling his stick which looked to me as big as a log. I approached him politely with the request to direct me. "Six blocks down, then to the left," he said, with murder in his eyes. "Is this America?" I asked myself in painful surprise. "It is a century behind Europe in civilization." When I went abroad in 1889 - five years having elapsed since my arrival here - I became convinced that it was more than one hundred years AHEAD of Europe and nothing has happened to this day to change my opinion.
-- extract from "My Inventions"
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#7The story seems like a wankfest on American dogoodery. Argentina and the US had similar economies in the early 19th century. End of story. They diverged after that and Argentina handled one disaster after another very poorly. America chose a different path. But, the author seems to have a very different history book than the one I had. The land wasn't free native Americans had lived on the land. But the policy of Man…
I think you might have a point if the success of the US economy was the result of the failure of others but that's simply not the case (and this is also why Argentina seems like a fairly apt pairing given that Argentina also had people who preceded the colonists who lived there).
Examples abound of countries who have pursued more liberal economic policies like that of the US who have done tremendously better than those who took routes similar to Argentina (e.g. take Hernando De Soto's work on property rights for example or any myriad of economic/regulatory indicators used by the World Bank/Economic freedom index). If you want to see countries whose people and economies were truly destroyed, look at those who sided with and aligned their economic views with the rivals of the US (e.g. Soviet republics) or Peronists like Argentina.
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#8It's hard to be a superpower with 37 million people, but in 1900 Argentina didn't yet have 5 million. And in 1950 it hadn't reached 20. Uruguay was vrey rich in the 1950s, yet it had no influence in the world because it only had 2 million inhabitants.
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#9(disclaimer : I'm French). Instead of answering the US-bashing comment, better read what Nikola Tesla has to say about the US in 1919 : I wish that I could put in words my first impressions of this country. In the Arabian Tales I read how genii transported people into a land of dreams to live thru delightful adventures. My case was just the reverse. The genii had carried me from a world of dreams into one of realitie…
Very difficult to follow: "...five years since having elapsed here" Where is here? "...it was more than one hundred years AHEAD" Who was ahead? Didn't he just say America was behind? Also he went abroad in 1889, five years after having arived here? What??? I though this was from 1919? Plus, he went from where to where, and when?
Re: Argentina: The Superpower that Never Was (& Why the US Ascended)
#10(disclaimer : I'm French). Instead of answering the US-bashing comment, better read what Nikola Tesla has to say about the US in 1919 : I wish that I could put in words my first impressions of this country. In the Arabian Tales I read how genii transported people into a land of dreams to live thru delightful adventures. My case was just the reverse. The genii had carried me from a world of dreams into one of realitie…
Very difficult to follow: "...five years since having elapsed here" Where is here? "...it was more than one hundred years AHEAD" Who was ahead? Didn't he just say America was behind? Also he went abroad in 1889, five years after having arived here? What??? I though this was from 1919? Plus, he went from where to where, and when?
OK, so when he arrived, he thought America was 100 years behind. Five years later, he had become convinced that America was 100 years ahead, and even after re-visiting Europe, he still hasn't gone back to his old way of thinking.