3 ms·

In my opinion Argentina is cursed more for its lack of direction than a deficit in education. During the 20th century (and 21th) its has been a common practice

by raphar 17y ago

In my opinion Argentina is cursed more for its lack of direction than a deficit in education. During the 20th century (and 21th) its has been a common practice to destroy or undo the previous administration efforts. Almost every group that had governed Argentina, gained power, rebuilt everything (laws, institutions, education...) until it got replaced or defeated. A century of this, has left the country walking in circles, incapable of taking advantage of the oportunities that had appeared, and that might had improved its situation. Nevertheless I don't lose my hope in my beloved country.

diego_moita 17y ago
As a Brazilian I agree because I see it happening here. But I believe that it is also related to education. Uneducated people are the ones that elect the most corrupt/incompetent politicians and are the ones that never understand discussions about policies. Off-topic: hope you guys get to the Worl Cup ;-)
- diego 17y ago
  Argentina is (and has been) doing better than Brazil by pretty much any indicator of education, but Brazil has obviously done much better in terms of economic development. http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ar-argentina/edu-education http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ar-argentina/edu-educati... http://www.nationmaster.com/country/br-brazil/edu-education http://www.nationmaster.com/country/br-brazil/edu-education Argentina's education was world-class for a significant part of the 20th century and is still pretty good. Unfortunately the article didn't provide any evidence or citations to back up its hypothesis. "Uneducated people are the ones that elect the most corrupt/incompetent politicians and are the ones that never understand discussions about policies." For starters, Argentina had many governments that were not elected by the people. Second, can you prove that educated people always make the choice that's best for the country? Third, there are abundant counterexamples of dictatorial countries that did great in terms of their economics and industrial development. Like other people said, Argentina's problem is not education but the lack of coherent policies over the decades.
  - diego_moita 17y ago
    > Argentina is (and has been) doing better than Brazil by pretty much any indicator of education, but Brazil has obviously done much better in terms of economic development Well, first I never claimed and don't think that we're doing much better than you guys. Honestly, I am not bragging on anything. Now, I agree that Argentinian education is better than Brazilian. Your stats show it and I know it. But put it just like that is simply lying with stats. Argentina has 32 million habitants, Brazil has 180 million. Scale means a lot here; Brazil has almost six times more people. Similarly, India has a worse education than Brazil, but produces more knowledge and science simply because it is 5 times bigger. > Argentina had many governments that were not elected by the people I might accept that for a small part of the country's history, the military dictatorship. It is not valid for the whole period of Peronism and everything else since the 80's. > Second, can you prove that educated people always make the choice that's best for the country No I can't. And that's not my point. My point is that, in average, uneducated people make worst choices than educated people; not that educated people are infalible. > Third, there are abundant counterexamples of dictatorial countries that did great in terms of their economics and industrial development. Also not my point. I am not interested in seeing dictatorships working. I want to see democracies working.
    - Daishiman 17y ago
      I would argue that Peronism is in many ways an extension of fascism, since it's "democratic", but if you wanted to hold your job in the public sector you'd better show public support for Peronism. Likewise if you were a large industrialist and didn't want your factory shut down by the government-controlled unions.
- joeyo 17y ago
  Education (alone) is not sufficient. Look at Uruguay. (Uruguay had one of the highest rates of literacy and school enrollment in the Latin Americas.)

by raphar 17y ago

diego_moita 17y ago

As a Brazilian I agree because I see it happening here. But I believe that it is also related to education. Uneducated people are the ones that elect the most corrupt/incompetent politicians and are the ones that never understand discussions about policies. Off-topic: hope you guys get to the Worl Cup ;-)

diego 17y ago
Argentina is (and has been) doing better than Brazil by pretty much any indicator of education, but Brazil has obviously done much better in terms of economic development. http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ar-argentina/edu-education http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ar-argentina/edu-educati... http://www.nationmaster.com/country/br-brazil/edu-education http://www.nationmaster.com/country/br-brazil/edu-education Argentina's education was world-class for a significant part of the 20th century and is still pretty good. Unfortunately the article didn't provide any evidence or citations to back up its hypothesis. "Uneducated people are the ones that elect the most corrupt/incompetent politicians and are the ones that never understand discussions about policies." For starters, Argentina had many governments that were not elected by the people. Second, can you prove that educated people always make the choice that's best for the country? Third, there are abundant counterexamples of dictatorial countries that did great in terms of their economics and industrial development. Like other people said, Argentina's problem is not education but the lack of coherent policies over the decades.
- diego_moita 17y ago
  > Argentina is (and has been) doing better than Brazil by pretty much any indicator of education, but Brazil has obviously done much better in terms of economic development Well, first I never claimed and don't think that we're doing much better than you guys. Honestly, I am not bragging on anything. Now, I agree that Argentinian education is better than Brazilian. Your stats show it and I know it. But put it just like that is simply lying with stats. Argentina has 32 million habitants, Brazil has 180 million. Scale means a lot here; Brazil has almost six times more people. Similarly, India has a worse education than Brazil, but produces more knowledge and science simply because it is 5 times bigger. > Argentina had many governments that were not elected by the people I might accept that for a small part of the country's history, the military dictatorship. It is not valid for the whole period of Peronism and everything else since the 80's. > Second, can you prove that educated people always make the choice that's best for the country No I can't. And that's not my point. My point is that, in average, uneducated people make worst choices than educated people; not that educated people are infalible. > Third, there are abundant counterexamples of dictatorial countries that did great in terms of their economics and industrial development. Also not my point. I am not interested in seeing dictatorships working. I want to see democracies working.
  - Daishiman 17y ago
    I would argue that Peronism is in many ways an extension of fascism, since it's "democratic", but if you wanted to hold your job in the public sector you'd better show public support for Peronism. Likewise if you were a large industrialist and didn't want your factory shut down by the government-controlled unions.
joeyo 17y ago
Education (alone) is not sufficient. Look at Uruguay. (Uruguay had one of the highest rates of literacy and school enrollment in the Latin Americas.)