EDITORIAL: Which way, Argentina?

The people of Argentina keep ELECTING these types of individuals. It must be OK! It seems to be so dificult to 'do the right thing!' Really, you seem to always get what you ask for, they thought daddy was ok, so they voted for mommy! WHO KNEW!?!

Barack Obama should look at what is going on in Argentina. He is a Socialist/Marxist who thinks his smooth rhetoric can overcome gravity.

I am a U.S. citizen living in Argentina and know firsthand that this editorial is false and is an exaggeration of what is really happening. First, since the 1920s, there have been dictatorships and leaders who have implemented neoliberal policies, such as Carlos Menem. Argentina's 2001 economic collapse was due to its adherence to IMF and World Bank regulations, and not due to socialist policies. By selling industries to private foreign companies who did not commit to long-term investments, Argentina lost its ability to produce as it did during its most prosperous years as the 1930s. Second, this is a political crisis more than an economic crisis. The four agricultural associations leading the protests are not even the most powerful agricultural producers, and only represent a small faction of the rural sector. The biggest producers are outside of these associations, contracting out the production and leasing their lands. The Rural Society, the most powerful of these associations, benefitted and supported the last military dictatorship which "disappeared" 30,000 people to prevent Argentine citizens from opposing new neoliberal economic models. These disappeared people were labeled as subversives--an alleged counterterrorism tactic, that ended up killing nuns, teachers, lawyers, and doctors who helped the poor. Thus, let's be more specific when referring to the farmers and who they are. Third, the fact that the middle and upper class are able to openly protest the government means that the Kirchners ensure political freedom. Previous governments and dictatorships killed and suppressed protestors. Finally, ex President Kirchner was granted emergency powers because he had to lead to country out of its collapse, after several other presidents were ousted before his tenure due to their failures to solve the crisis. Cristina Kirchner has committed political errors, but she ensures a democratic state. The taxes have not left the "farmers" in poverty---these associations are the richest of Argentina, and the vast groups of agricultural producers are unaffected. The shortages are due to the few associations unwilling to share the country's rich wealth. The political problem is how Cristina went about raising taxes. The Kirchners are the most democratic government since the 1920s. The solution is to find economic policies that both keep the manufacting and agricultural sectors strong while addressing the fact that 30% are living under the poverty line. Please check your historical facts before writing an editorial.