“Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina”

This is a history lesson. It happened in Argentina, it is happening in the U.S.

Original author unknownAdditions by Hadley RobinsonCorrections and additional help by Steve Barracca, Ph.D.

America

In the early 20th century, Argentina was the seventh richest country in the world.

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Like the United States, Argentina was blessed with abundant agriculture, vast swaths of rich farmland laced with navigable rivers, and an accessible port system. Its level of industrialization was higher than many European countries; railroads, automobiles, and telephones were commonplace.

In 1916, Argentina elected a new president, Hipólito Irigoyen. He formed a party called The Radicals under the banner of “fundamental change” with an appeal to the middle class.

Among Irigoyen’s changes: mandatory pension insurance, mandatory health insurance, and support for low-income housing construction to stimulate the economy. Put simply, the state assumed economic control of a vast swath of the country’s operations and began assessing new payroll taxes to fund its efforts.

With an increasing flow of funds into these entitlement programs, the government’s payouts soon became overly generous. Before long its outlays surpassed the value of the taxpayers’ contributions. Put simply, it quickly became under-funded, much like the United States’ Social Security and Medicare programs.

The death knell for the Argentine economy, however, came with the election of Juan Perón in 1946. Perón, like Hitler and Mussolini, believed that government , not free markets, must govern a nation’s economy. Accordingly, he aimed his populist rhetoric at the nation’s “rich.” As a result, Argentine society became bitterly divided and violent as Perón exploited people’s envy, greed, and spite.

This targeted group swiftly expanded to cover most of the propertied middle classes, which became an enemy to be defeated and humiliated. President Obama has expressed similar sentiments. Like Perón, he wants to “remake America” which includes humiliating and destroying his political enemies rather than working with them to achieve some middle ground.

Under Perón, the size of government bureaucracies exploded through massive programs of social spending and encouraging the growth of labor unions.

High taxes and economic mismanagement took their inevitable toll even after Perón had been driven from office. However, his populist rhetoric and contempt for economic realities lived on. Argentina’s federal government continued to spend far beyond its means. President Bush did this and now President Obama is doing it even more – brazenly rewarding constituencies with wealth taken from others. As in Argentina, our economy is being run by people who have no business experience. None has even run a cash register in a 7-11. Business for them is mere theory – an intellectual abstraction.

Hyperinflation exploded in 1989, the final stage of a process characterized by industrial protectionism, redistribution of income based on how much one earns, and the growing intervention by the State in the economy.

The Argentinean government’s practice of printing money to pay off its public debts had crushed the economy. Inflation hit 3000%, reminiscent of the Weimar Republic. Food riots were rampant; stores were looted; the country descended into chaos.

By 1994, Argentina’s public pensions — the equivalent of Social Security — had imploded. The payroll tax had increased from 5% to 26%, but it was not enough. In addition, Argentina had implemented a value-added tax (VAT), new income taxes, a personal tax on wealth, and additional revenues based upon the sale of public enterprises. These crushed the private sector, further damaging the economy.

A government-controlled “privatization” effort to rescue seniors’ pensions was attempted. However, by 2001, those funds had also been raided by the government, the monies replaced by Argentina’s defaulted government bonds.

By 2002, government fiscal irresponsibility induced a national economic crisis as severe as America’s Great Depression.

“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” -- Winston Churchill

After decades of socialized medicine, Argentine healthcare is on par with other impoverished countries, ranking a mere 4th in Latin America. Travel magazines warn visitors to only seek medical help in foreign owned hospitals. Socialized medicine transfers the decision about how much or what kind from the citizen to a government bureaucracy. Not only does healthcare quality go down for the average citizen but it costs more overall. Those who for any reason cannot purchase their own insurance will have it paid for by others. When “others” become impoverished or move away, there is no one left to pay. It’s a “Robin Hood” scheme that works for a while – make others pay for your lack of thrift, your drug and alcohol addictions, your risky behavior, and/or lack of industriousness. Good healthcare is expensive and there is no system in the world where everyone is covered the same way and to the same extent (unless you’re lucky enough to work for the government).

In 1902, Argentina was among the world’s richest countries. Little more than a hundred years later, it is poverty-stricken and struggles to meet its debt obligations.

The United States is heading the same direction. Rather than working toward the common good, bitter partisanship dominates the political landscape. President Obama, our leader, ratchets up rather than calms down his rhetoric against his opponents– just as Juan Perón did. The middle class – who made this country what it is – will continue to shrink as wealth and influence move more into the Federal government. Sadly, there is little anyone can do but stand by and watch this once great nation implode politically and economically – just like Argentina. How does anyone fix greed, envy, spite, … sloth? What have we become as a people?

It won't be easy, you'll think it strangeWhen I try to explain how I feelThat I still need your love after all I have doneYou won't believe meAll you will see is a girl you once knewAlthough she's dressed up to the ninesAt sixes and sevens with youI had to let it happen, I had to changeCouldn’t stay all my life down at heelLooking out of the window, staying out of the sunSo I chose freedomRunning around trying everything newBut nothing impressed me at allI never expected it to

{Refrain:}Don't cry for me ArgentinaThe truth is I never left youAll through my wild days my mad existenceI kept my promiseDon't keep your distance

And as for fortune, and as for fameI never invited them inThough it seemed to the worldThey were all I desiredThey are illusionsThey're not the solutions they promised to be,The answer was here all the timeI love you and hope you love me{au Refrain}

Don't cry for me ArgentinaThe truth is I never left youAll through my wild days my mad existenceI kept my promiseDon't keep your distance

Have I said too much?There's nothing moreI can think of to say to youBut all you have to do is look at meTo know that every word is true{au Refrain}

DON'T CRY FOR ME ARGENTINA

Sung by Madonna

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