[nraynaud]

I think you're right on the first 2 points actually. I'm skewed towards smaller cities because I don't like big capitals, and I should not project that on analysis of the situation. And It's been 10 years now, with a good majority since 2007, it's time to see some results.

[nraynaud]

scratch that, the Kirchners doubled the GNP, the debt went from 160% to 40% of the GNP, and unemployment from 25% down to 8% (less than here in France). These are results.

[rorra]

And according to the government, Argentine poverty index its of 5.4% (sooner or later people from Switzerland will start migrating to our country, we are in a better shape than them), and the inflation is 10% every year. At least that's what the government say. The agencies who used to metric the inflation, got an economic fine from the government, the government don't even let you to advertise the price of food.

Do you know for real what's the unemployment index? Can we ask that to the economic minister? This is our economic minister: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmoOnEIzU18

Definitely the situation is much better than in 2001, we know that, we hear that every day, every time you say something is not right, or that you complain, you hear "hey, you wanna get back to the 2001?".

The answer is always the same "I don't want to get back to the 80s, or 90s, or to the 2001, and neither the lack of freedom of Venezuela or the communism from Cuba".

Yet the debt restructuring was a great deal, and we have to thank all the people who have lend money to us on the past and that accepted that we were going to pay only 25-30% of the original debt at a longer term.

You know, I can own the bank 140% of my income, and if I made them to accept that I’m just going to pay 25% of what I own them (or go broke and pay nothing at all), I’ll get my debt to 35% of my income. Certainly, it was a great deal for Argentine, but it doesn't mean that the country did so good that it was able to pay the debt.

[alpeb]

I feel for you. It doesn't stop to amaze me how people still defend those countries economical models, just to spite the "evil empire" in the north it seems, because they don't make any sense. The video you post is indisputable. Also, Venezuela is currently suffering toilet paper shortage. Their government is saying it's because people are eating more and thus shitting more. That's the kind of arguments governments pull out here south. Frigging failed countries, one just has to flee as soon as one has the chance.

[pmelendez]

"Their government is saying it's because people are eating more and thus shitting more"

I read that on Twitter yesterday but I couldn't find a source. Not that I don't believe because I had heard worse, but was it true? Who said that?

[alpeb]

I read it here http://www.semana.com/mundo/articulo/no-papel-higienico-porq... which supposedly is a reputed Colombian magazine, but trying to find the exact part in the video I couldn't find it. So maybe it was just a gross misleading misinterpretation by the magazine. Venezuela gives plenty of material to criticize so it beats me why a journalist has to recur to lies...

[rafaelm]

It's not the first time government officials in Venezuela have said something similar. They say that the constant power outages (in one of the largest oil producers in the world) are because now the venezuelan people are so well off thanks to the govt that they have more money to spend on air conditioning,refrigerators,etc... Same reason why you cannot buy a car in a dealership (and used car prices double year after year), why there are constant shortages of basic food,etc.

[spikels]

This is just too hilarious to be true and it seems not to be direct quote from a government official but more the popular interpretation of a widely ridiculed statement by the head of the Venezuelan stats office.

http://en.mercopress.com/2013/05/24/toilet-paper-shortage-is...

[pmelendez]

Thanks for this. I couldn't find that in the video either but that video doesn't show the whole interview, so who knows?

I had heard worse thought, like a congressman asking to investigate DirectTV because it was spying venezuelans through receivers... Oh well...

[patrickaljord]

> Definitely the situation is much better than in 2001

It is also better than in 2001 in Peru, Chile, Brazil, Uruguay and even Colombia. Those countries have had more than 5% economic growth, little inflation and with no crazy socialist policies. Also, Argentina was rock bottom in 2001 so they could only go up from there. Anyway, I totally sympathize with your situation. Tienes que ser fuerte y si las cosas se vuelven peor, largate de ahi, no hay porque sentirse culpable. Uruguay tiene playas bonitas :)