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1) No land reform
2) Poorly run central governments
3) Endemic corruption
4) Populations larger than most of their countries can support.
5) Lack of high quality and affordable health care.
6) Poorly maintained or non-existent infrastructure
7) Poorly structured educational systems.
8) No substantial industries outside of tourism and agriculture
9) Vast inequities between classes.
And
10) The Untied States
I knew it would not take long untill the big bad United States was blamed for this. The first 9 things pretty much sum it all up though.
Panama is NOT a dump. Yes, Colon is, but the rest of the country isn't so bad. In fact, Panama City has recently been building some of the tallest buildings in Latin America. The 70-story Pearl Tower is due to be completed this year.
Not actually the sign of an impoverished country. Panama City is actually quite modern and looks like Miami. Infact, most economic data that I have seen on Panama shows it is slightly ahead of even Costa Rica. There is even talk of Panama becoming developed by mid-century (do not know if that will actually happen but it could).
The difference between the richer and poorer CA countries is no more striking than the same contrast in South America. Nations evolve their own economies over time, with a number of factors entering into the formula. Guatemala's per capita GDP is similar to that of Ecuador. Honduras' is similar to Bolivia's. Panama's is similar to Colombia's. Costa Rica's is similar to Uruguay's.
I knew it would not take long untill the big bad United States was blamed for this. The first 9 things pretty much sum it all up though.
Of course count on some liberal or Hispanic to blame the U.S. for another country's problems. The fact of the matter is all those problems he listed, are caused by the widespread corruption in those nations. Corruption is like weeds. You can't get rid of weeds by plucking the stems out and leaving the roots intact in the soil. Solve the corruption problem, and you solve 99% of the problems that plague such countries.
1) No land reform
2) Poorly run central governments
3) Endemic corruption
4) Populations larger than most of their countries can support.
5) Lack of high quality and affordable health care.
6) Poorly maintained or non-existent infrastructure
7) Poorly structured educational systems.
8) No substantial industries outside of tourism and agriculture
9) Vast inequities between classes.
And
10) The Untied States
Items 5-8 are the result, not the cause, of poverty.
In some countries, there is a direct link between #1 and #10. Land in many CA countries was directly owned by US interests, and in some cases, political leaders who favored land reform were literally assassinated by the CIA or other US interests. (Arbenz, Guatemala, 1954, for example.)
I have often been mystified by Central America: El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua seem to be very poor, yet Panama and Costa Rica seem to be better off, financially.
Anyone knows the reason for this besides extreme politics?
Catholicism is a big reason. When you encourage people to have more children than they can afford to educate, feed and clothe it usually results in abject poverty. The same problem exists in the Philippines which is also Catholic.
Of course, corrupt leadership does not help.
Costa Rica has a lot of American expatriates living there. Real estate has really gone through the roof, from what I have heard. No doubt the influx of American retirement money has helped the economy there significantly.
Panama is NOT a dump. Yes, Colon is, but the rest of the country isn't so bad. In fact, Panama City has recently been building some of the tallest buildings in Latin America. The 70-story Pearl Tower is due to be completed this year.
Not actually the sign of an impoverished country. Panama City is actually quite modern and looks like Miami. Infact, most economic data that I have seen on Panama shows it is slightly ahead of even Costa Rica. There is even talk of Panama becoming developed by mid-century (do not know if that will actually happen but it could).
Yes, I know this. That's why I said I can't speak for Panama City. My experience is only in Colon. I guess I must have been to a poor area or something, at least it's nice to hear that the rest of the country is alright. Please pardon me for my statements then. I did not mean to generalize that the whole country is poor.
Of course count on some liberal or Hispanic to blame the U.S. for another country's problems. The fact of the matter is all those problems he listed, are caused by the widespread corruption in those nations. Corruption is like weeds. You can't get rid of weeds by plucking the stems out and leaving the roots intact in the soil. Solve the corruption problem, and you solve 99% of the problems that plague such countries.
check this out if you want proof on how the United States intervened in the affairs of these CA countries to protect its economic interests:
Do you think that Fidel Castro was fighting an imaginary enemy? Batista and the "tenidos" were in cohoots with the evil monied American interests that kept the majority of the people in poor conditions.
When I vacationed in Costa Rica (southwestern corner), I was amazed at how many acres of land was used for palm tree plantations, owned by golden State Foods, the supplier for McDonalds. This where the highly unhealthy "palm oil" is porduced in great quantity. the natives are mesmerized and very content by their "pura vida" culture which emphasizes simplicity, lack of material wealth, unusual to us as brainwashed Americans. Near Quepos, there were many waterside developments made for Americans since natives cannot afford them. they were southern Calif prices on those homes, unreal!
MMany thanks to the poster who commented about the "Arbenz coup". Arbenz was a democratically elected President of Guat who implemented parcelling out the land to the poor. 2% of Guat's popul held the land. The US just couldn't have that since it smacked of gasp- communism! Arbenz was overthrown by CIA backed coups and replaced by puppets of US interests. The same kind of coup was implemented in Iran that led to the installation of the Shah. In that case, the "chickens came home to roost" as Malcolm X would say. USA is pretty disgusting in a lot of ways, even with Obama in charge.
Of course count on some liberal or Hispanic to blame the U.S. for another country's problems. The fact of the matter is all those problems he listed, are caused by the widespread corruption in those nations. Corruption is like weeds. You can't get rid of weeds by plucking the stems out and leaving the roots intact in the soil. Solve the corruption problem, and you solve 99% of the problems that plague such countries.
Apparently, 150+ history of American interventions, Banana Wars, brave men in Uniform charging fearlessly to secure Banana plantations for United Fruit, US trained death squads, hundreds of thousands of dead, US sponsored coups&guerrilla wars, US corporations controlling large chunk of CA land and resources, US troops killing thousands of civilians in Panama in 1989 so the US (aside small victorious "war") could remove the disobedient puppet they helped to install.... list goes on. Yet, USA, naturally, has nothing to do with anything. It's all about "personal responsibility" on the local levels. Remarkably, I have yet to hear US government and its citizenry taking personal responsibility for hundreds of thousands of dead in CA alone who would be alive and well (for some time at least) if not for the beacon of freedom shining from up the North and pushing its corporate & ideological interests down everybody' throat.
As for "corruption" that's a favorite American Neocolonial trick:
1) buy off local elites (we know American politicians are incorruptible and corruption is not legally institutionalized over here to make things simpler)
2) hook the entire country on the unmanageable amount of debt
3) bring in IMF, World bank (CIA, US troops if needed),
4) Remake a local economy & social policies to high NA Corporate standards. This usually involves: cuts social programs, thorough privatization of public sector (and especially land), slums, sweat shops, wage freezes, union busting and so on
5) Grab resources & cheap labor as needed, directly or using proxies.
Maybe CA is poor by industrial standards, they would be much better off if not for NA (neo)colonialism, but they still have something that "rich" NA lost long time ago (or never had).
Why everybody measures "poverty" and "wealth" using "first world" standards? Why not to start a thread like why North America is poor and thoroughly pathetic in everything that doesn't involve industrial production&consumption & military build up? NA citizenry is so thoroughly deprived of the (non material) things that make a human life joyous, it cannot at this point in time understand the depth of its depravity. Many actually think that we are the "crown" of social&human development. If it's true, that's quiet a scary, depressing thought.
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