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Looting Breaks Out In Argentina
If you were wondering why the Argentinian leadership were unwilling to pay off a few 'annoying' hedge funds with a few billion dollars (and were pissed about losing one yacht), then perhaps this report from the BBC will enlighten. Argentina authorities have sent hundreds of troops to the southern city of Bariloche after a spate of looting. Critically, Bariloche is not some shanty-town, it is one of the nation's most popular ski resorts and 'relatively' affluent. The following clip sums up the dangerous situation the nation finds itself in, despite the government's assurances that this is a "false picture of social and political collapse." Looks real to us?
Click image for link to clip (not embeddable)
Via BBC:
Argentine authorities have sent hundreds of troops to the southern city of Bariloche after a spate of looting.
At least three supermarkets in the popular ski resort were targeted, causing panic among local residents and tourists.
Dozens of people, many with their faces covered, broke into the supermarkets stealing electronics, toys and clothes.
The government blamed small criminal gangs but local authorities pinned the attacks on anarchist organisations.
Governor Alberto Weretilneck called for federal troops to restore order in Rio Negro, in the country's Patagonia region.
"With this type of action, these groups have been trying to paint a false picture of social and political collapse," the provincial authorities said in a statement.
The attacks took place in San Carlos de Bariloche, an Andean resort popular with tourists from other South American countries.
Local police said other shops and depots on the outskirts of the town were also targeted by looters. All shops closed after the thefts.
President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been in constant communication with the province's governor, according to her spokesman Juan Manuel Abal Medina.
He said the Bariloche attacks were linked to the sabotage of power lines earlier on Thursday in the neighbouring province of Neuquen.
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No not again!
Coming soon to a town near YOU!
probably mexicans
You are just saying that just because there is no welfare there and hence no niggas.
Jesus is back, hes righting things and he's starting in Argentina
Interesting that reporting is coming from BBC
Interesting that prince William postponed his honeymoon to visit Falklands in South America by himself
Argentina has oil
Western powers trying to paint Argentina as the next rogue state?
...and the difference between Argentina and Iraq, Iran, Syria, etc??
Obviously not the OIL... just how the banks collapse them in order to possess EVERYTHING.
Let's see .... wire cutters, gas mask, track shoes and ..... bullet-proof backpack.
I'M GOOD TO GO.
Yes. All of Latin America, actually.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdetail.aspx?NewsID=1771236
"FerFAL" is proven right again. [he has written extensively on his experiences as an Argentine after the 2001 collapse] I'm sure he is enjoying a "Christmas bowl" in Northern Ireland while smiling broadly at his admiring wife and sons.
ZH pushing BBC propaganda in order to appease the naggers who lost a ship and the only collateral they might get their tentacles on. This loan of money that was never collateralized in the first place.
Anyone learning anything here? Did you not see the store shelves still 70% full of worthless crap still? Did the looters look hungry? Did the police in this affluent city look organized?
How is this story a threat and not a confirmation that spineless Tyler has influenced a trade?
Anonomitity is a tool and so are you in a game where sumtin comes from nuthin. All about the USUSRY as even you can be used by nobody and get what they got while they beg and beg to give it to the suckubus. Debit is only as real as one participates in it - who do you owe?
IAMSLATTERY
Or Republicans from South Carolina.
First, Tyler i did give you the breaking news. I was one of the first on sight yesterday.
Second, what does this have to do with Mexicans ? Braindead mule .
Third, breaking news .... IT HAS SPREAD to other provinces. 5 killed today.
If you're looking up to see what's making all that noise up there... it's that joke about Mexicans whooshing over your head.
Award yourself the Pulitzer for your cracking story.
no i awarded myself some
Argentine vigilant Freedom ....
Argentina -- ah, of course ! That lovely country south of the Equator, where the government, in recent years, confiscated all private pension holdings in order to right said country's fiscal keel ?
Social justice, bitchez.
Everybody gets their fair share....
Socialism at work. I won't cry over their misery since they voted themselves into it. USA to catch up in a few months.
Next stop, La Estancia de Cafayate. I wonder if Doug Casey has retained the services of Academi yet...
Man, that company changes names more than I change ... nevermind.
If looters were shot on sight, there would be a lot less looting.
Does that same insight work on government?
With the inaptly named perversion called "obama care", "medical justice" is the new form of "social justice".
Coming to a Western country near you soon....
it actually did. august 2011 in england.
Don't cry for me....
You could post that on the Boner thread as well...
Christmas looting, way more fun than Christmas caroling!
Anybody who follows Ferfal knows Argentina is on the brink of complete social breakdown. Here's one of his latest, apparently the criminal justice system has collapsed and lynch mobs are now in fashion.
http://ferfal.blogspot.com/2012/12/mob-lynches-rapist-in-buenos-aires.ht...
C'mon, if that happened here this is the first site that would defend the locals. Esp if it was a minority on white crime... Please..
Who's attacking the locals? In the absence of a functioning justice system, they did exactly what they had to do. The point was, there is no functioning criminal justice system down there now. If civilized society had a Maslow's Hierarchy of needs, a criminal justice system would be right at the bottom of the pyramid.
I just don't understand why isolated stories of crime or looting justify claiming Argentina is in some state of collapse.. Relative to what? Facist Dictatorship? Crony banker elite oligarchy?.. You all are making it sound as if there was some kind of what we would consider "Normal" system there ever... Oh Look! New Orleans is fucked up! ... See! the sky IS falling!.. It's stupid... Nothing against you per se. Just the tendancy of ZH-ers some times to behave like Springer viewers- surprised and shocked when the uneducated, ignorant, impoverished, Moron does something foolish..
I don't believe anything about Argentina unless it comes from Simon Black, or maybe Doug Casey.
Well then, Your world view must be kaleidoscopic... Congratulations.
I agree. I was told by those two that
When the night falls down,
I wait for you, and to come around
And the world's alive
With the sound of kids on the street outside
When you walk into the room
You pull me close and we start to move
And we're spinnin' with the stars above
And you lift me up
In the wave of love
Oh, baby do you know what that's worth?
Oh Heaven is a place in Argentina
They say in Argentina, love comes first
We'll make Argentina a place on Earth
Oh, Argentina is a place on Earth
geezer, i get jokes...
shut up , you have no clue about Argentina, stop acting as you know what you are talking about.
Justice system works fine here, better than most first world countries, it is VERY slow and sometimes corrupt but not more than anywhere else.
the problem THIS TIME is the bitch we have in power,,, for now!!!,
I love to see criminal being lynched. This is not a mob killing criminals. It is the real justice.
Of course, lynch mobs do not tend to require quite the stringent burden of proof that a legal system provides, so there will be some "innocents" hanging in the breeze along with the guilty.
The Romantic tradition is that killing innocents is just fine as long as it amuses the brutes.
Because the innocent look so different from the guilty when the mob is seeking their blood...
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a60_1349631090
Have followed Ferfal's observations and recommendations regarding survival and EDC/survival gear for some time. But the Argentinian crisis is more than 10 years old and opinions are mixed about whether it's stabilized. Not as an indicator of a stable society, but the movie Assassination Tango was shot in Buenes Aires in 2002 (2001?), which seems unusual immediately following the supposed 2001 currency collapse/societal chaos. And why isn't Ferfal blogging on the idea of societal breakdown rather than flashlights that he likely gets for free?
Isn't Argentina one of Simon Black's great escape destinations? Nothing can go wrong with that.
Popcorn! Candy! Ice cold beer!
Zero Hedge is the best seat in the house to watch the birth of a new social contract.
(after a neo dark age of rape, pillage, and murder)
I am the optimist!
Salon the Illiterate Greek
Prepare, and do your part:
Freedom Fighter's Manual
"Not a shanty-town" Who loots a shanty-town? Who's gonna steal poor people's stuff. What do they own -a skinny chicken and some dirt. Go uptown. Get some brie and iphones.
I think the point is that the authorities (of whatever country) tend to defend the wealthy enclaves first and foremost. The fact that this looting broke out in a wealthy resort-town indicates a breakdown of the ability of the authorities to maintain order.
As you head south from Bariloche on Highway 258, you'll see that the whole south side of town (away from the beautiful lakeshore) is a poor slum.
These are the folks who scrape out a living, getting seasonal work in the hotels and restaurants.
Every city in Argentina, including its ski resorts, has slums. Don't imagine Bariloche as a southern version of Aspen!
mostly people in the construction sector live there. I choose Bariloche over Aspen anyday.... Maybe it was your bed i used in that mantion? Man she was hot.
With enough MSM coverage, Merry Christmas Lootings will become all the vogue !
Coming soon to Doug Casey's Galt's Gulch retreat in Cafayate
Do you really trust to Zionist-controlled BBC? If you do, CNN is the best source of information.
Definitely Argentina has many problems. Too many people bought too many promises and lies.
The BBC is not "Zionist-controlled", that's nonsense. It is instead 100% white liberal in outlook, so NYT on the TV.
I remember not too long ago, one of the service providers in Israel replaced BBC with Al Jazeera, because the Arab news was less biased.
Hunh, just like our Obongo voters here.
Here is another case of looting.
http://www.thekomisarscoop.com/2006/08/fees-for-our-friends-the-scandal-that-taints-andrew-cuomo/
You mean Andrew Cuomo is a dirty corrupt cunt who looted HUD to the tune of a hundred billion dollars, all to ensure his election to the NY Governors office?
Wow what a surprise.
And he's signed off on the Buffalo Bills public lease financing for their NFL stadium
Great Link! And great blog! Pretty good eh?
the lifties gotta eat and have their ganja
Coming to a town near you soon!
Must be end of ski season.
Actually there was fresh snow two days ago (maybe further south) despite it being summer...
Things in Buenos Aires got so bad, FERFAL moved to Northern Ireland. Yes, Northern Ireland.
http://www.themodernsurvivalist.com/
If you've got a day or two to read about what is coming to a US city near you, check out Fernando's blog. Scary stuff, but good advice.
That was a bad move, 50% of the working population of Northern Ireland is employed by the state (government), the highest percentage in the UK, aka buying social peace. When the UK goes Greek, which it will (2015-2020), and there are forced mass layoffs of state workers, things will get troublesome there again.
Ferfal needs to get himself down South before then.
@JenkinsLane
Yeah, I think his decision about Northern Ireland says a lot about how bad things are in Argentina. Like choosing Cleveland or Gary, Indiana after Detroit.
Cursive,
I have been following the kick-offs in N.I for nearly three weeks about the Ensign not been flown out side a coucil building.
It isnt the type of place I would choose when the locals are as fickle about a fucking flag mate.
Agreed. I've got family in NI and used to go over there all the time as a kid. It's a nice place, rains alot so it's very green.
The problem is, as I said, social peace is being bought. Aside from government workers, if you add retirees, and trial balloons are now being
floated in the UK media regarding the end of government pensions, and the unemployed, the percentage of people there financially dependent
upon government must be 65%+. When the SHTF in the UK, i.e. a debt to GDP ratio of around 90% by late 2015 early 2016 (by my guesstimate),
the money will stop and trouble will start there again.
There's no point fleeing somewhere to end up somewhere else where an ethnic conflict is simply being papered over.
How far South? Dublin? Cork?
What Would Wolfe Tone Do?
Dunno, I hear Cork's nice. I've only ever been to the North and Donegal, where it rains constantly.
As the UK economy cools, the scent of opportunity rises in the mists of Ireland.
Though torn in two
We can be one.
When I was a kid I was in my Grandfather's kitchen in Belfast and I heard a loud boom. I asked my Grandfather what the sound was. He
said it was a bomb going off.
Let's not get all misty-eyed over it, blood will be spilt there again.
He needed an editor. Give me liberty or give me death. Much better.
He has an excellent book to help survive mild currency collapses and lawlessness like Argentina.
Get a vehicle that can jump curbs in case of a criminal gang road block for example.
Agreed. It's the only book of it's kind that's actually written by someone, at street level, who has actually lived through a
degree of economic collapse.
From a different source, I read that it's best to start shooting first (at the roadblock) and ask questions later.
Actually, Selco over at SHTFSchool.com isn't a bad read either.
He went through the Bosnian war trapped in his city by the two opposing factions for a year. Writes about what it took to survive and the conditions. It's best to start at the beginning of his blog. Pretty moving stuff.
I concur. Read what FERFAL has said about the collapse of the Argentinian economy. Read his book, too.
Not to worry.The US Taxpayer maintains a military base in Argentina. Everything will be fine.
fucking very wrong !
will these people stealing iShit count towards sales for AAPL?
ES lower by 17 handles. Oh boy, this is distasterous. Doesn't feel as if PPT is hard at work to hamper what "should" happen? Complacent optomism and numbess takes quite a while to reverse.
17 handles? that is so 5 mins ago. We're comin off the lows!
"Off the lows". You are going to make Maria's panties wet.
Governor Weretilneck?
Now thats a proper surname that is, wont take Mr Weretilneck five minutes to sort this lot out.
There was someone in the ZH threads yesterday who said this was happening at that moment.
Doug Casey
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-12-20/art-cashin-assault-weapons-mental-health-and-video-games#comment-3082919
He was talking about Spain.
".....to the southern city of Bariloche after a spate of looting."
So there are two cities in different countries with this same name?
My error. Thank you. :)
Ok maybe I read that wrong. =)
There are more than 2... many cities and villages in South America are named after villages and towns in Spain.
maybe if ANYONE on here got the name of the city right it would have been easier for you.
San Carlos de Bariloche, Rio Negro , Argentina.
Sorry about that.
Is that a policeman on a horse or a looter? Jesus...
The horsemen of the apocalypse ride!
He´s just stolen the horse .....
Thank god they don´t sell guns in supermarkets there, only horses.
The Argentine Governmint started looting the people long ago. What we are seeing now is called civil insurection brought on by despair.
Ah, reminds me of London in the summertime <nostalgia>
Its spreading, there are copycat lootings in at least 4 other cities so far ....
Argentina is bankrupt and goes default AGAIN ! jeez who's been stupid enough to lend them some money ? Can't hedge funds understand the meaning of "junk bonds" ?
Lack of yield makes some ugly folios for the foolios, yo.
Thats what Credit Default Swaps are for. If nobody else, Ben Bernanke will make you whole on your CDS on your Argentinian Bonds to prevent a system wide collapse, but only if you are TBTF.
"Authorities say this is a 'false picture of social and political collapse'".
This collapse is not happening. What you are seeing is not true. You need to go have your lieing eyes checked. Look, over there! A rich person!
I thought that was San Diego at first.... oh well, give it time....
from my visits to SD everyone there is too stoned or lazy or stupid to loot.
from having been based out of san diego for 5 years, i can tell unequivocally - that assertion is spot on
SD is arson-induced brush fires, not looters.
From the link to BBC, it can be seen that the crowd (looters) are throwing rocks at the authorities.
Obviously gun control works in Argentina ( Har Har )
Sadly, we in United States will only have rocks when the final looting (by authoriteis) ocurrs.
Argentines have the right to bear arms... except in order to own or purchase a firearm, one must have proof of employment and income. The looters... not so much.
I need to get myself some freakin' hoodies....so valuable for looting and staying incognito.
stock up at walmart before they are banned. a nice big backpack is a must for carrying the loot(or ammo)
let me get my checklist and a pen.........
Don't forget the Guy Fawlkes mask......provides cover for a lot of 'mischief'!
Remember when bank robbers would use POTUS masks in the 80s?
We need some Ben and Bankster masks en masse.
Imagine being burned alive by a thousand copies of yourself!
Get yourself an 'Obama' mask......he IS doing MOST of the looting, after all!
There's a sale on the ones with the glow in the dark targets over the killzone.
Buy one for the whole family.
Heads up.... Boner news conference coming...... What a sad excuse for markets ; Complete manipulation
He's still in town? Last I heard he pushed all his work of on others and went on vacation.
Must be an office party before he heads to the airport ...
It's a good thing they keep opting for more of the same after each collapse.
Almost looks like the end of the world.
Study Argentina's society and economics well - it is America's future
: "broke into the supermarkets stealing electronics, toys and clothes."
Desperate citizens steal food; not "electronics". These are paid thugs. The Central Bankers are trying to start "Latin Spring".
This is life under the boot of the crony socialist banker cabal. Rule of law we don't need no stinking rule of law. Capitalism bad - Socialism with a feminine face Good. All your bank accounts are belong to us!
Anyone considered the Myan's may have been right, today marks the begining of the end.
Check out the Central bank. Looting there becomes an artform.
who could have seen this coming?
Looks like Bankers raiding the Treasury except they get a police escort instead of tear gas.
From Ferfal:
Gold Sale Banned in Argentina
"After the ban on foreign currency, most of all targeting the UsD, people turned to gold and silver as protection from inflation. At first there was a limit on how much you could buy, 100gr. a day, then they downright banned precious metals entirely. The Argentine government doesn’t like the word “ban”, so they are calling it a “suspension” for now. Either way, you cant buy it." El Central suspendió la venta de monedas de oro y plataLa medida se adoptó por la alta cotización de estos metales, a nivel mundial.
http://tn.com.ar/politica/el-central-suspendio-la-venta-de-monedas-de-or...
Just buy Gold and move to Argentina, or so some contributor told us. I was in Argentina when the Peso (on par with the Dollar like the Drachma is on the Euro these days) collapsed
and all the cool cosmopolitan types already were in Dollars
at Citi branches and thought nothing could happen to them.
Anyone for a case study ? Go to Argentina, right now.
Go see Buenos Aires in her pre-war European beauty and
American sophistication and make sure you read up plenty
on decadence before !
You can buy gold and silver in Argentina... you just cannot, at present, buy coins from the central bank in gold and silver as you could in the past. I am not sure about the status of unminted gold and silver. I know that this has been the subject of much discussion as gold miners here want to export unminted gold and silver, and the government has indicated many times that it is willing to be somewhat flexible in the way unminted gold and silver are treated. For the moment, however, I assure you that I can go to a local store and buy unminted gold.
Argentina is doing it's small bit to prop up the global ponzi system. The PTB want as much gold sales as possible channelled into the western and Asian markets, to paint the appropriate picture for the markets.
The Government IS NOT SELLING the government gold and silver, man.
Try to get it right. Nobody has banned gold and silver transactions in the market.
To be "Fair and Balanced" the voicover on the clip is full of false statmeents. Argentina is NOT drowning in debt, because no one will lend it money .... there are a few holdouts still around from the defaiult of 2001, but thats it. The gov´t is soon going to have to learn how to run a deficit when you have no access to debt markets and you become the pariah of foreign-trade ... its a trade and deficit problem, not a debt problem.
Unemployment is NOT 18%, its around 6-7% .... are they real jobs(?), of course not ... but they are drawing salaries.
And there is absolutely NO austerity, the gov´t is spending like crazy trying to keep consumerism going, but ..... what is killing the Argentinian people at the moment is inflation which runs at 25-30% per year .... strangely the BBC didnt mention that.
"The gov´t is soon going to have to learn how to run a deficit when you have no access to debt markets"
The government of Argentina figured this out long ago. You print money, and this is why you have inflation. The government of the U.S. likewise has no access to debt markets... because the Fed purchases all long-dated paper effectively preventing market rates of interest. If a real market for sovereign debt existed anywhere in the world, a lot more countries than Argentina would be bankrupt. As you print more money, it becomes more difficult for someone to accrue capital to invest in a new business... as a result, demand increases but productive capacity does not... which results in... more inflation.
As to unemployment, I can assure you that you are correct. Unemployment in Argentina is not 18%... but much of the work is short-term and en negro... chungas working for a couple days under the table on construction projects and the like. Much of the economy here is local, under-the-table or barter, unmeasurable, and off-the-radar. Much of the economy of the rural areas of Argentina and the small towns function without banks, without the national government, and without imports or exports: in the fashion that many of the folk on Zerohedge believe is the way an economy must function to survive a global financial crash... because... you see... the local economies adapted to a financial crash 10 years ago and learned how to cope already.
In many ways, Argentina is 10 years ahead of the rest of the world. And that, my friend, is why I live in Argentina right now.
Just Christmas shoppers hunting for a bargin. Nothing to see here
So how is Doug Casey's little paradise doing?
More of the same in Argentina, this time with two dead...
http://losandes.com.ar/notas/2012/12/21/muertos-heridos-santa-saqueos-68...
It's a Jew World Order, and you're the 99% goyim.
The problems today in Argentina are not organized or supported by any foreign group. The problem is largely the media. For some time, local radio stations and television stations have been promoting the 21st as the end of the world... and mostly as an excuse to fiesta (as if the Argentines need another excuse to fiesta all the day and night).
As a result, everyone (and I mean everyone from cab drivers to school children) have been talking about fin del mundo day for a week or more. I was in Cordoba Argentina, Monday, and it was all anyone wanted to talk about. This looting has nothing to do with the global financial situation, the political or economic situation in Argentina, or anything else. It has everything to do with Disk Jockeys and Media personalities promoting a big party.
all these brilliant minds on Zh for this....
THIS THREAD IS USELESS . Most of you probably think Barcelona is in Italy.
Don't give out opinons on Argentina so easy when you have never lived there . 111 posts and nobody mentions Christina... ok...
I could live ANYWHERE in my MAZARATTIPREPER WORLD , i chose Argentina.... there is a place in Florida called Anna Maria i really like but you don,t want my money you prefer Mexican backpackers.
ps . dear gold bugs , stick to that !
There is resentment toward Christina (in fact, there was a demonstration against Christina on Tuesday in Cordoba, but only about 100 people). Keep things in perspective, however. There is no widespread hatred of Christina... most Argentines have a wait-and-see attitude about Christina's policy changes. Certainly, when Christina closed the dollar window last year, she lost a lot of support, especially among the middle class and small business proprietors, who preferred to save money in dollars. She still enjoys support from many of the youth (in large part, because the government provides a small stipend to students and college remains free here in Argentina).
There is widespread resentment of the police here and it is an old wound... that dates back to the military dictatorship of the 1980s and a wound which was aggravated by the crisis of 2001 and 2002. In addition, the police do nothing here except set up roadblocks to issue expensive traffic tickets that few people can afford to pay (I just had to pay a ticket for a friend... the cost-- with a discount of 60% if paid by December 18th, was 750 pesos.. a large sum for an Argentine laborer-- a week's wages). Without doubt, there is great animosity between the Argentines and the police here... and that is the real story.
the dollar issue is bigger . It Completely strangles many industries such as commodities , farming,the cattle industry , tourism, construction ect...the youth you talk about beg me to sell them dollars at 6.65 about an hour ago. THE DOLLAR IS THE CURRENCY HERE. not pesos not gold not alfajores, not cows, the mighty DOLLAR. Or do you think the Porteños in living or manic shopping Miami pay in leather? Well they could pay in pesos with argentine credit card , it only comes out like 40% more expensive. o right the dollar thingy not important,...
and to the majority of her supporters it,s not college that is free, it is EVERYTHING.
Finally, the riots started here because the police has been unarmed for more than a year. Trust me , those are NOT the worst slums in Argentina, the first supermarket was literally in front but when you face five cops with hockey sticks things change. Today 400 troopers came and the looting went on 2000kms from here..
But THANKs for the chat i needed it.
"and to the majority of her supporters it,s not college that is free, it is EVERYTHING."
I agree that this is THE problem in Argentina... the government runs a debt paying for too much for everyone in order to buy support... however, this is the problem in all of Europe, in the United States, in Japan, in all of the Western World. This is one of THE problems Zerohedge has been trying to point out.
I like Argentina's chances for several reasons, however. See my post below about how Argentina already had a currency crisis and the rural and local economies learned to survive on local resources without much use of banks and without much help from the national government. Trust me, almost every region of the United States would be a complete disaster in the wake of a currency crisis, because they rely on digital money transactions, imports, and the almighty dollar for everything. Without the dollar, the United States is anarchy... complete and total.
Finally, with the dollar window closed, Argentines are adjusted to a post-dollar world. Is it easy? No. But it is wise to wean the Argentines off the dollar, because it is going to happen... one way or another... the dollar is going down... whether Christina supports the dollar in Argentina or not.
Don't scare him like that, next time he won't talk to you at all.
Why would i be scared ? I did more beating up than the police.
If things where to really get out of hand i own a handgun and a Famas.
http://losandes.com.ar/notas/2012/12/21/buenos-aires-nuevos-hechos-viole...
I have lived in Argentina...still own an apartment in Palermo. K is the problem as far as I can tell. Under Nestor things seemingly improved. During his tenure, I decided to buy. I still don't regret that decision but sometimes wonder if my property is going to be nationalized. I am returning in 3 weeks for a vacation/inspection of the place.
Nestor Kirchner benefitted from the bounceback effect, after the massive devaluation in 2002 left Argentina hypercompetitive for a few years, until inflation eroded its temporary advantage.
Still, Nestor was a lot less polarizing than his lawyer wife Kristina. She manages to antagonize nearly everyone.
Kristina's economic policies of taxing exporters, severely restricting imports, and overvaluing the peso are both contradictory and disastrous.
I wouldn't worry too much about nationalization of the private property of individuals in Argentina... large multinational foreign corporations... well... that is another story... just ask the Spanish banks who owned YPF.
In the future, however, if you are interested in investing in Argentina, I highly recommend looking outside the capital to the provinces that are growing and are relatively stable and tranquil (the central and western portions of the country)... investment in land, apartments, new construction and the like is relatively inexpensive here... people are moving here from Buenos Aires... and many areas have been growing at a steady pace for some time with property appreciating in value.
You are so correct. Private property rights are sacrosanct in Argentina because it is one of the only ways to preserve one's wealth that even the corrupt politicians use this means. Nationalization of YPF and Aerolinas goes back to the rape and pillage policies of the "economic hitmen" and their Argentina cronies like Menem.
The problems of Argentina, high inflation, currency controls, etc., are the same problems coming soon to all the first-world countries, if it hasn't already arrive like Greece and Spain. The collapse of the EEUU is going to be 1000 times worse than here. Here, the Argentineans have had a lot of practice on how to survive and even prosper over the years. The last time EEUU collapsed was in 1929. And the yankees of today are not the yankees of GD1.
AurorusBorealus, I would like to chat with you privately about the situation in Argentina as I live here too. I sent you a Zchat request. Thanks.
La Nación reported a few weeks ago that la presidenta Kristina owns 88 million pesos worth of hotels, building lots, dozens of apartments, etc.
Meanwhile she hectors foreigners for failing to make financial investments in politically regulated industries, where her government basically expropriates profits with below-market price caps, dividend restrictions, capital controls, inflexible labor rules, etc.
Defensive passive investment in real estate as an inflation hedge does nothing to increase productivity and raise living standards. But when the currency value is grossly unstable, long-term financial investments make no sense, even aside from the political risk.
'Hotel Kristina' -- it's the Argentine version of the 'Hillary house' model home at Whitewater subdivision in Arkansas. You can check in, but you can never leave!