They're benefiting enormously from capitalism: "How can this be? It’s true that Bolivia has been on the receiving end of a staggering boom in natural resources for much of the past decade, as both the volume of its gas and mining exports and the price they fetch abroad jumped at the same time. Export revenue grew six-fold in the decade after Evo Morales, the charismatic hard-left president, took power, from $2.2 billion just before of his election to $12.9 billion at the peak of the boom."
But like all good socialist countries, at least they're stifling dissent: "The point here isn’t to idealize Bolivia’s socialists: The country remains badly governed in important ways. Corruption remains endemic in Bolivia’s public sector, with most infrastructure contracts given out on a no-bid basis to ruling-party cronies. And while nowhere near as extreme as Venezuela’s turn to dictatorship, Bolivia’s political scene has seen worrying authoritarian drift, closing down the spaces for dissent that any proper democracy needs to function."
If you honestly care, reasons for the sharp dissimilarity between the two socialist South American countries are easily Googleable.
Whatever, guy. If you can't / won't tell me, then you're not so sure yourself. I do know this - the one thing that all socialist countries share in common is their eventual failure.
Real answer: Bolivia. They're doing swell economically. Even moreso in a global context. I'll also name one socialist disaster story: Venezuela.
Same era, same continent, same kind of population, same style of government, rampant corruption in both, similar dependence on oil exports as oil prices were crashing. Maybe, just mmmmaybe, socialism is but one factor behind a country's wealth or lack thereof.
And in this specific, very real comparison, it's not nearly the primary factor. (Hint: Bolivian socialists made different, smarter fiscal decisions than Venezuelan socialists. Second hint: Saudi Arabia's government is taking steps to try to diversify their economy... hmmm, why?)
Now, there are loads of reasons why socialism sucks and is a dead end - that's why socialism is waning as a major global force. But don't rewrite the facts before your eyes to suit your viewpoint... well, of course you can keep doing just that, if you want. But it'll make those "there's one thing I do know" declarations hollow and uninformed.
9 comments:
Then why is socialist Bolivia not collapsing, but in fact thriving?
Gee, why don't you enlighten us, Einstein?
Sorry to piss on your one-ideology-fits-all comfort zone, Copernicus.
If you honestly care, reasons for the sharp dissimilarity between the two socialist South American countries are easily Googleable.
"As socialist Venezuela collapses, socialist Bolivia thrives. Here’s why."
They're benefiting enormously from capitalism: "How can this be? It’s true that Bolivia has been on the receiving end of a staggering boom in natural resources for much of the past decade, as both the volume of its gas and mining exports and the price they fetch abroad jumped at the same time. Export revenue grew six-fold in the decade after Evo Morales, the charismatic hard-left president, took power, from $2.2 billion just before of his election to $12.9 billion at the peak of the boom."
But like all good socialist countries, at least they're stifling dissent: "The point here isn’t to idealize Bolivia’s socialists: The country remains badly governed in important ways. Corruption remains endemic in Bolivia’s public sector, with most infrastructure contracts given out on a no-bid basis to ruling-party cronies. And while nowhere near as extreme as Venezuela’s turn to dictatorship, Bolivia’s political scene has seen worrying authoritarian drift, closing down the spaces for dissent that any proper democracy needs to function."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2017/01/05/as-socialist-venezuela-collapses-socialist-bolivia-thrives-heres-why/?utm_term=.a083cdce4acb
If you honestly care, reasons for the sharp dissimilarity between the two socialist South American countries are easily Googleable.
Whatever, guy. If you can't / won't tell me, then you're not so sure yourself. I do know this - the one thing that all socialist countries share in common is their eventual failure.
I said if you "honestly" care. Your foreseeable reply confirms that conditional adverbs can save a lot of wasted time and energy.
Name me one socialist success story.
Medicare.
Real answer: Bolivia. They're doing swell economically. Even moreso in a global context. I'll also name one socialist disaster story: Venezuela.
Same era, same continent, same kind of population, same style of government, rampant corruption in both, similar dependence on oil exports as oil prices were crashing. Maybe, just mmmmaybe, socialism is but one factor behind a country's wealth or lack thereof.
And in this specific, very real comparison, it's not nearly the primary factor. (Hint: Bolivian socialists made different, smarter fiscal decisions than Venezuelan socialists. Second hint: Saudi Arabia's government is taking steps to try to diversify their economy... hmmm, why?)
Now, there are loads of reasons why socialism sucks and is a dead end - that's why socialism is waning as a major global force. But don't rewrite the facts before your eyes to suit your viewpoint... well, of course you can keep doing just that, if you want. But it'll make those "there's one thing I do know" declarations hollow and uninformed.
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