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Facts
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- Drug-trafficking gang detained holding 93 kilos of cocaine in Moreno [04/15/2011]
- Gov’t says political reform 'will not distort the open primary election process' [04/15/2011]
- Gov’t officializes use of combined-list ballots for October elections [04/15/2011]
- Ex-Bodegas Giol site demolition commences [04/15/2011]
Facts
In the early part of the 20th century, the vast quantities of meat and grain Argentina exported to the world made it a country of colossal wealth. A phrase heard in New York, London and beyond was “As rich as an Argentine.”
Today, Argentina’s most important crop is soybeans.
The country possesses vast tracts of mineral wealth and agriculturally fertile pampas. Once, much of what was consumed in Argentina was made there, if inefficiently. “You could wait 10 or 20 years to get a phone,” said Uki Goni, a prominent Argentine writer. “Then, in the 1990s, we privatized everything. Now you get a phone in two or three days.”
Last year, a shortage of coins in the country made buying groceries and riding the bus a chore. Since hoarding itself is not a crime, the government charged hoarders and dealers with putting national security at risk.
The average Argentine has plenty to grumble about. One in three is still poor and inflation is heading for 30 per cent, although the government rigs the figures at a third of that.