[noodle]

i agree.

there's a lot of issues in the history of argentina that are brushed by in an attempt to make this a simple economic policy debate.

for example, they were quite politically unstable. there was a coup in the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s. the ruling military government died in the 80s after a brief war. a prosperous economy is difficult to foster without a stable governmental structure, regardless of what that structure is.

[gojomo]

But might the political instability also be a symptom of the educational level?

(Anyone want to plot education-in-1900 vs. coups-in-20th-century?)

[noodle]

could be. i'm sure there's a lot of chicken/egg questions that could be asked with respect to a lot of issues in the country.