Neoliberalism In Argentina In The Past 10-20 Years

[janitor91]

That's fine, i have decided to investigate Argentina and i understand neoliberalism is no longer even relevant today, that's pretty relevant. Whether it was there is a debate at least. But what i would like to know is neoliberal schools of thought which might be relevant in society. I am not comparing todays Argentina to a neoliberal outlook, just if there is anything that can be related whatsoever.

What would your opinions be of the current state of the Economy then? And the future it has with such a high inflation level for example. Also the World Bank describing Argentina as the most proctectionist in the World? How would you see that?

 

[citygirl]

I'll be a wee bit snarky. You need to do some research on your own. Read the history of the last 20 years of Argentina/gov't/political practices and policies.

Then come up with a list of specific questions and I'm sure people will be willing to share their experiences. But saying "what is your opinion on the current state of the economy" is without merit and won't yield you any concrete results. Understand that you are going to have 100 different answers. Most people who post on this board aren't "expats", they're passing through. Many live on USD/Euro so will respond based on the blue rate. Others don't and will respond based on their personal experiences. Many are workers and will talk about the need for annual 30+ raises. Others are business owners who will talk about how these type of raises are hurting them and may lead to closing down of businesses, etc.

Do you see the issue with asking such general questions as you have posed?

 

[janitor91]

I'll be a wee bit snarky. You need to do some research on your own. Read the history of the last 20 years of Argentina/gov't/political practices and policies.

Then come up with a list of specific questions and I'm sure people will be willing to share their experiences. But saying "what is your opinion on the current state of the economy" is without merit and won't yield you any concrete results. Understand that you are going to have 100 different answers. Most people who post on this board aren't "expats", they're passing through. Many live on USD/Euro so will respond based on the blue rate. Others don't and will respond based on their personal experiences. Many are workers and will talk about the need for annual 30+ raises. Others are business owners who will talk about how these type of raises are hurting them and may lead to closing down of businesses, etc.

Do you see the issue with asking such general questions as you have posed?

I know, i was just trying to gather general opinions of different people (I know you will get a contrast of opinion because of how different people are).

I have been gathering a lot of research but i seem to have been hit by the magnitude of this task in that it's a LOT bigger than i realised. By getting opinions on here i could investigate those opinions moreso. Obviously i know i need a reference to go with anything of note anyway and want something that flows in thought.

 

[dennisr]

Argentine economics:

You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors kill you and take the cows.

 

[Matiasba]

My opinion:


Neloberalism in Latam sstarted during the 70s, with the militaries and inconstitutional governments. The univesrity of chicago and the chicago boys leaded that. Watch noemi Klein in youtube.
Then it continued in the 90s, most of them ended in crisis (as well as south east asian countries, mexico, russia, etc)
the way the latam countries got out of neoliberalism was by intervening in economy, centre-half left policies, keynesianism, etc

 

[ajoknoblauch]

Argentine economics:

You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors kill you and take the cows.

You, however, do not set the "fair price."

 

[ajoknoblauch]

My opinion:


Neloberalism in Latam sstarted during the 70s, with the militaries and inconstitutional governments. The univesrity of chicago and the chicago boys leaded that. Watch noemi Klein in youtube.
Then it continued in the 90s, most of them ended in crisis (as well as south east asian countries, mexico, russia, etc)
the way the latam countries got out of neoliberalism was by intervening in economy, centre-half left policies, keynesianism, etc

Well, that's not exactly what Chile has done, and they are doing better over a longer time than any other South American country. South Korea has embraced that sort of economics, and has become one of the world's most vigorous economies.

I am not a market fundamentalist, but it's clear that Argentina's current path is utterly unsustainable. I know Naomi Klein, by the way, and while she's smart and engaging, she has a very naive view of what happened in Argentina. The tactic of occupying factories, in the hope that superannuated technology will support prosperity, has its limits.

 

[camberiu]

My opinion:


Neloberalism in Latam sstarted during the 70s, with the militaries and inconstitutional governments. The univesrity of chicago and the chicago boys leaded that. Watch noemi Klein in youtube.
Then it continued in the 90s, most of them ended in crisis (as well as south east asian countries, mexico, russia, etc)
the way the latam countries got out of neoliberalism was by intervening in economy, centre-half left policies, keynesianism, etc

So tell me Matias,

Where in the 1970s LATAM (outside of Chile) did the military dictatorships implement privatizations, flee floating currencies, fiscal responsibility and small governments? I can tell for sure that not in Brazil nor Argentina (or Uruguay, or Peru).

 

[sesamosinsal]

I think you would have a tough time characterizing any Argentine gov't as neoliberal, even Menems. No one gets to power without being populist and esposing those ideas. So what is characterized as neolib is really not but as mentioned, that phrase is a popular scapegoat one to toss around

What definition of "neoliberal" are you using? Depending upon the discipline--such as economics or international relations--we could be talking about a whole different subject.

If we are talking the poliecon definition, then Menem by and large would be qualified as a neoliberal in the 1990s. Sure, he manipulated the "free market" by keeping the ARS at parity with the dollar, but he certainly supported economic liberalization, free trade, privatization, etc.

CFK, at least nowadays, is opposed to economic liberalization, free trade, free markets, and privatizations of government services. Perhaps Menem has recognized his failures. Cavallo certainly hasn't; in fact, according to him, Argentina needs to go back the 1990s.

 

[ajoknoblauch]

So tell me Matias,

Where in the 1970s LATAM (outside of Chile) did the military dictatorships implement privatizations, flee floating currencies, fiscal responsibility and small governments? I can tell for sure that not in Brazil nor Argentina (or Uruguay, or Peru).

Even the Chilean milicos kept the copper sector - the backbone of the economy - in the public sector. It is still a state enterprise.