Given today's new thread about the concern a current overstay has generated, I think this one deserves a bump. Most of the expats who made comments haven't posted in a number of years and, at the least, newer members will be able to see how much attention this question has been getting for a long time.
Of course the only reason it's been an unanswered question for so many years is because the government never answered it by taking strong actions to curtail the "abuse" of the tourist visa, even though it could have at any time. I don't think it has been a major pollitical issuse that resonated with the Argentine people and I can only draw my own conclusions based on the comments of my Argentine friends, who all have the same basic answer:
"This is Argentina. Anyone who wants to come here to live is welcome and can become a citizen in two years."
I never heard even a single one of them express contempt for foreigners, but one night, six years ago (29 de junio)?ñ, during the only conversation I have had in English with a resident of Punta Alta since my arrival on el 25 de junio 2010, I told the woman with whom I was speaking, about the expats from this group who were applying for citizenship in Argentina.
Her reaction was filled with instantaneous disbelief and contempt, but it wasn't directed towards the foreigners. It was directed to the country of Argentina. She could not fathom why anyone who could live in the USA would choose to live in Argentina, though she agreed that Punta Alta had its advantages over CABA, especially as a place to raise a family, but she was completely disgusted with both sides of the government.
