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Argentina tops list of attractive countries for UK investments

Sunday, November 6th 2016 - 14:13 UTC
Full article 118 comments

So said British Deputy Foreign Minister Alan Duncan on Friday during the Business Networking Day, a gathering organized by the Argentine-British Chamber of Commerce at the Embassy in London. Read full article

Comments

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  • Think

    Chuckle..., chuckle...

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 04:02 pm - Link - Report abuse -8
  • gyforks

    Think, were you on tbe Anonymous march, if not why not? I was..


    Chuckle chuckle

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 05:15 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Meursault

    What makes me chuckle is the idea of a bunch of people living on some inhospitable then demanding all their food be flown in and millions in military expenditure so they can continue their capricious lifestyle.

    I think the idea of investing in such scroungers would make many chuckle, but Argentina on the other hand has a lot going for it.

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 06:29 pm - Link - Report abuse -11
  • Kanye

    More Assault

    You would - Malvinista

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 10:08 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Marti Llazo

    Myerdasault, you mean the Argentines in Tierra del Fuego demanding all their good be flown in? Most of their food arrives by lorry after crossing the Straits on a Chilean ferry, but they do receive other enormous subsidies .

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 10:11 pm - Link - Report abuse +10
  • Meursault

    No, clearly talking about those who live thousands of miles from their native country and demand that taxpayers cater to their every need to satisfy their ridiculous desire to live on a grim piece of rock in the middle of nowhere.

    Nov 06th, 2016 - 10:21 pm - Link - Report abuse -11
  • Marti Llazo

    Oh, Myerdasault, your are clearly referring to the Argentines who are squatting in Antarctica and expect to have their every whim satisfied by the Argentine taxpayers.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 12:14 am - Link - Report abuse +9
  • Meursault

    Last I checked those people perform a useful societal role in mapping the effects of climate change, wildlife populations, etc. As opposed to setting up a small village in the middle of nowhere, pretending its the 1950s with jam and jerusalem nonsense, pictures of the queen and getting everyone else to pay for it.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 01:01 am - Link - Report abuse -11
  • Kanye

    More Assault

    You share your concern and indignation with only a few regular posters.

    One cannot say that Voice/Think, Marcos Bingham, or Vestige really have the well-being of the UK or the Falklanders at heart.

    What's it to you if they pursue the freedom to respect the Queen and eat jam and cakes?

    Lol.

    Start swearing now.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 02:08 am - Link - Report abuse +5
  • Enrique Massot

    OMG, the English are coming!
    We are saved.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 04:54 am - Link - Report abuse -9
  • Kanye

    Mr. Enrique,

    Who's we?

    You live in Canada and always will.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 07:01 am - Link - Report abuse +7
  • gordo01

    How polite and friendly can you get? Mr Duncan - please remove your tongue from your cheek!

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:15 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • The Voice

    Moresalt, Think/Voice in disguise? If you can't beat em join em!

    British business aint daft yerknow. With Argezuela's record no one would be stupid enough to make a long term investment at this stage. All too suddenly Argenzuala could revert to 'basket case' mode and grab any worthwhile infrastructure. Don't worry, our SA monitoring station is on the job though keeping an eye and ear tuned to the real situation.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:18 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • James Marshall

    ...”first on the list of countries that are eligible and able to attract investment” of British capital.

    That list is very small....The larger list is the one with the countries that are actually attracting British capital. British diplomatic speak at its best......a cheeky snub to the previous Arg Gov. and kind words that mean very little. You have got to love British Diplomacy, so subtle.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:05 am - Link - Report abuse +5
  • Think

    Ahhhhh, Mr. Meursault...
    One of me favourite Camus characters...
    Seems to be that your kind of apatheism is even less popular than mine in here ;-)

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:58 am - Link - Report abuse -6
  • Marti Llazo

    I think that Somalia is higher than Argentina on the list for preferred investment opportunities.

    Just ask reekie -- about the rain of dollars from new foreign investment that never happened.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 11:06 am - Link - Report abuse +4
  • Enrique Massot

    Kanye:
    It doesn't matter.
    What matters is, a government is looting Argentina with the complicity of the mainstream media, in the face of the world, and articles like this keep the lie alive.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 11:51 am - Link - Report abuse -8
  • The Voice

    Not much left to loot! Its all stashed in Cristina's and Fatso's banks all around the world.

    Chuckle chuckle.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 12:30 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Marti Llazo

    Not much left to loot? There's that US$40 billion (or as they say here, thousand millions) in recently borrowed money that is likely to be soon frittered away, given out as subsidies to the unemployable, or spent on hack journalists conjuring up fanciful tales of how attractive The Failed State has become now. They've run out of excuses for blaming other countries, though. The decline is pretty much one of their own making.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 03:34 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Tarquin Fin

    Enrique,

    How is this looting taking place? I mean, we all know how looting happened during the previous administration. I'm curious to find out if this administration are using the same methods or have implemented some new clever mechanism.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 05:34 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    Pá vos, pebete...
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLsCuCLZ4mMsvzXFhm2nCZQpVODMweK8ot&v=MRtqKcIErkc

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 05:57 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • ChrisR

    Argentine Ambassador Carlos Sersale looks like a used car spiv with his latest mark in tow!

    Invest in Argentina? Which idiot in the FCO wrote that?

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 05:57 pm - Link - Report abuse -5
  • Meursault

    The failed state is the one that has the second unelected government in less than 10 years, no codified constitution, the head of state and church being the same person, an unelected upper house featuring members of the clergy and aristocracy, a lower house where a party can typically get 20% of the popular vote but not a single seat and where “majority rule” often translates to the party who forms government only having obtained ~35% of the vote.

    As for blaming others, the “great british public” (tm) has blamed migrants, the European Union, and foreign banks for everything imaginable. Now that's being rid of, a downward spiral completely unprecedented in the western world has begun which will result in complete economic collapse, the loss of Scotland (who I fear has been taken for a ride) and the last few colonial enclaves which are desperately clung onto. I wager that blaming others will still ensue.

    In the meantime, the country has experienced a budgetary deficit since 2002 and has since gone to war repeatedly, dished out millions to consultancies for every policy and public works project and has subsidies for athletes rivaling those of the former Soviet Union to fuel more nationalist fervor which got the country into that mess in the first place.

    Furthermore, leaders like Tony Blair, whose lies resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands and destabalised an entire region are allowed to walk free from prosecution and make tidy sums from public speaking.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 06:10 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Think

    Mr. Meursault...

    An impressive and concise summary of todays Britain...!!!

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c3sOuEv0E2I

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 06:45 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • Meursault

    Mr. Think,

    A somewhat less concise summary:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmyciM9DtQc

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 06:51 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • The Voice

    Moresalt, hasnt it occurred to you that we may be trying to rid ourselves of troublesome sections of the population? I thought not. :-)

    As for links from Stink - dont click on them!

    Yes, our lottery finances our atheletes not a corrupt government and their murders.

    We keep our overseas territories for good reasons - to keep an eye on pariah nations. And to maintain military installations and ports to oversee world order and maintain the peace. Its a hard task.

    Chuckle chuckle

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 07:25 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Meursault

    If that were the case, I doubt there would be very much of the population left.

    What delusions. The UK has nowhere near the weight nor credibility to police the world and its track record in “maintaining peace” has been atrocious, being one of the most prominent aggressor nations on earth. Sort out your own mess before claiming to be an authority on those of others, or maybe leave it up to the big boys like the US and China, yeah?

    Tell that to the European Union who has a pariah nation next door with delusions of grandeur and empire

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 07:48 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • Voice

    Hmmm....Meursault...
    Your link...
    “This video contains content from Channel 4, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds.”
    That being the UK...
    Sooo... you are not in the UK...
    Why are you concerned about the costs of the Falklands then...?
    I'm concerned because it costs me...

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 07:57 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Think

    Mr. Voice...

    No problem wiewing it down here in Patagonia, though...
    Just a lot of very drunken Anglos having... “fun”.
    Specially young bleached Anglo ladies..

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:13 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • The Voice

    Moresalt, you have attracted a fan! Or are you talking to yourself?
    We are more concerned about endlessly subsidising parts of the UK, not the Falkands. The coffin dodgers will recieve their heating allowance quite soon - off to Le Manoir for lunch, it doesn't stretch to a dinner :-(
    Free bus passes and TV licences, 2.5% minimum annual increase in pensions guaranteed. It all has to be paid for you know.

    Chuckle chuckle..

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:19 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Meursault

    No need to see it, you can continue to numb your mind with the populist garbage in your profile picture instead. Goes best with some chippy chips and gravy, with a side order of mediocrity.

    If you walk around any UK town on a Friday or Saturday night and you'll get the picture. Sort of like Sarajevo in the 90s but with more skin showing. It's actually the UK's primary export - go to any European city with an Easyjet or Ryanair flight and you can see hordes of these rats pillaging away, ruining it for the rest of us with their boisterous drunkenness and lack of manners. Worse than animals.

    Why are you so concerned about what goes on thousands of miles away from you and doesn't affect you in the slightest?

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:25 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • Briton

    Meursault ,
    Seems to intelligent and forward to be an argy stodge,
    Almost certainly an [ AKA ] or a brit,

    Still,
    with all this future investment Argentina will benefit greatly,
    and the trolls on here will still moan,

    Enjoy the moment Britain is coming to help you.lolol

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:28 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Tarquin Fin

    Think,

    Other than showing an amazing skill for counting, I can't really follow that guy in the video when he rushes to the conclusion that USD 56bn has been stolen.

    At least Macri is issuing bonds to fight the “inherited” deficit. Your boys layered the old retirement plan (AFJP) into the ANSES funds to finance politics.

    This is what keeps kirchnerites and zurdos up all night. No matter how hard they try, they won't see a cent from the state.

    This reminds me of one of my favourite Peter Sellers' scenes.

    - Does your dog byte?
    - No
    Clouseau tries to pet the dog an gets bitten.
    - I thought you told me your dog did not byte!
    - That's not my dog!

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:49 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    Hmmm...
    “Meursault”...
    - Not an Argie...
    - Not an Anglo either...
    - Not very fond of Anglos...
    - Informed, travelled and coherent...
    - .................................................. Française?

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:54 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Briton

    Well he could Russian you know, lol.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:56 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Voice

    So no answer as to why it concerns you...
    Should I be concerned as a tax payer where my money is spent....I should think so...
    Just Brit bashing for Brit bashing sake then...?

    btw...the Shetlands is not government property to dish out to all and sundry, it's privately owned...
    I'm all for sensible solutions..but that is not one of them...

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 08:57 pm - Link - Report abuse -4
  • Briton

    They all bash to Brits,
    jealousy or envy perhaps.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:01 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Think

    Mr. Voice...
    - What about Gruinard Island then, that auld guid for fostering of thieves and rebellis...?

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:12 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • Voice

    Anthrax Island..Mr. Think..that's just mean...

    French..nah...an Anglo alright, just not in Angleterre ...

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:18 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Think

    Just joking Mr. Voice...
    - You know I have nothing against them Kelpers staying in Malvinas as long as they stop being functional to the Engrish Imperial Designs in the Southern Hemisphere...

    And I Think..., Mr. Meursault is as Anglo... as you are...

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:32 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • The Voice

    The UK is not trying to cling on to colonial enclaves, these ex colonial enclaves hang onto the UK, the UK helps many of them to exist. As for the sick Chavs that misbehave in our towns and abroad, they dont represent the vast majority of decent Brits. You have obviously little experience of the UK or its people.

    Where do you come from Moresalt? Fess up!

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:34 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • James Marshall

    'The failed state is the one that has the second unelected government in less than 10 years'...

    Which governments have been unelected, if you meant unelected PM, then you are still wrong, the UK does not elect a PM. Whether she has a mandate to lead is another matter, but she is certainly an elected member of the house and is the elected leader of the Conservative party.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 09:51 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • DemonTree

    @ Mersault
    The UK is a country that has a monarch who does not rule, an official state religion that no one is obliged to follow (and it does not suffer from the sort of religious influence on government that the USA does); it has no codified constitution but has never been ruled by a dictator nor suffered a military coup. The political system nearly always results in a strong government, avoiding the sort of paralysis we have recently seem in Spain and Belgium. The last arguably unelected government was in 1945, and when World War II ended they promptly called an election.

    Every country has problems and the UK now has a lot more than it did before, but to be honest I think plenty of countries would gladly suffer those kinds of problems in exchange for their own.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:06 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    As Monsieur Meursault so concisely wrote above...:

    La Démocratie à l’Anglaise...:

    1) The unelected head of state and church being the same person...

    2) An unelected upper house featuring members of the clergy and aristocracy...

    3) A lower house where a party can typically get 20% of the popular vote but not a single seat...

    4) “Majority rule” often translates to the party who forms government only having obtained ~35% of the vote...

    Très très démocratique, indeed...

    Chuckle, chuckle

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:11 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • gyforks

    Not happy with parliament? Blow it up!

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:13 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    On the other hand, it works and it's worked for a long time. No bloody revolutions, no coups, no jailing the opposition on trumped up charges. Just gradual improvement and a stable society, regular elections and regular peaceful changes of government. A few more reforms might be nice, but things could be a lot, lot, lot worse.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:22 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    Mr DemonTree

    - It surely has worked for perfidious Albion for a a loooong time...
    No bloody wars, invasions, revolutions, et al (in Britain), no coups (in Britain), no jailing the opposition on trumped up charges (in Britain) etc,... etc..., etc...
    Just all over the rest of the World, courtesy of HMG..
    Recent victims?
    Afghanistan... (for nearly 200 years, as a matter of fact... )
    Iraq...
    Libya...
    Syria...
    Yemen...

    A few “reforms” would indeed be nice before things get a lot, lot, lot worse..., laddie.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 10:43 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    You have a point, but AFAIK only Iraq was opposed by the UN, and the UK parliament voted against bombing Syria - leaving the war to continue and letting ISIS grow.

    Doing nothing also has a cost and those last 3 on your list were all civil wars. It's not always obvious what the best course of action is even if you do have good intentions.

    Anyway it doesn't make the UK a failed state, and it's nothing to do with the political system. The USA was/is the main player in all those wars you mentioned and has a very different system of government.

    Nov 07th, 2016 - 11:08 pm - Link - Report abuse +4
  • Marti Llazo

    Let us count the many coups and Dirty Wars in recent years in .... “democratic” Argentina. Well, sometimes trying to give the appearance of “democratic.” Oft times not. Peronism isn't considered fascist just as a figure of speech.

    Actually, more of a kleptocracy.

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 12:25 am - Link - Report abuse +3
  • DemonTree

    Comparing to Argentina seems a bit unfair. Let's compare to our neighbours in Europe instead: France is on it's Fifth Republic after the crisis caused by the war in Algeria. It's officially secular but has banned the burka, and was flirting with allowing burkini bans. Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden are all monarchies, and Denmark, Norway and Iceland all have state religions. They seem to be doing okay. Italy invented fascism, Spain was a dictatorship until 1975, Portugal until 1974. Germany... well. They are okay now.

    I won't blame the Eastern Block countries for communism since that was mostly Russia's doing, but some of them are flirting worryingly with the far right now. Hungary is particularly bad. Really though, that is just another reason to try and keep the EU together. :(

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 08:35 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • The Voice

    Ask an Argie where they would prefer to live - Argieland or Britain? No contest! We already have Think/Voice and Nostrils too I suspect. Their English and knowledge of Britain is just too good to be credible as Argieland residents. Probably resident in Brook Street or nearby.

    Chuckle chuckle

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 09:49 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Pontefractious

    Meursault.. - Frenchman ? Figures. They never forgave us for giving them back their country in the Second World War. If he thinks the UK is in such a mess, what can he possibly think about France ?

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 12:52 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    Mr. DemonTree

    Comparisons, as statistics are very tricky..., laddie...

    IMHO..., the current British Electoral System (as in its time, the Magna Charta) were and are designed to perpetuate and serve the “Ruling Class”..., or what today some call...: “the 1%”

    IMHO, this lack of democratic representativity explains, on the one hand the political passiveness of them Engrish folks during the last centuries...and, on the other hand, their current use and abuse of the EU as a “Prügelknabe” for their repressed political frustrations...

    Some 75 years ago (but still, perfectly valid) a brightly awake young Engrishman described some of it one trillion times better than I ever could dream of doing...:

    - “England is not the jewelled isle of Shakespeare’s much-quoted message..., nor is it the inferno depicted by Dr Goebbels...
    More than either it resembles a family, a rather stuffy Victorian family, with not many black sheep in it but with all its cupboards bursting with skeletons....
    It has rich relations who have to be kow-towed to and poor relations who are horribly sat upon, and there is a deep conspiracy of silence about the source of the family income...
    It is a family in which the young are generally thwarted and most of the power is in the hands of irresponsible uncles and bedridden aunts...
    Still, it is a family. It has its private language and its common memories, and at the approach of an enemy it closes its ranks...
    A family with the wrong members in control - that, perhaps, is as near as one can come to describing England in a phrase.”

    (Feel free to read it all, Engrishmen..., it's just excellent)
    http://www.k-1.com/Orwell/site/work/essays/lionunicorn.html


    But always remember proud Engrishmen...:
    “A seed may grow or not grow..., but at any rate a noble parsnip seed never grows into a silly Turnip. ”
    (Paraphrased from G. O. by “El Think” ;-)

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 02:39 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • The Voice

    Think, as usual you left out all the good bits. As for Argieland there aren't any good bits are there? Which is why you are resident here rather than there.… Enjoy your porridge ;-)

    Chuckle chuckle…

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 04:05 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    Thanks for the link, but I've already read it. Really it's strange how much you seem to like British culture, while hating Britain.

    Anyway, a lot has changed since then, I remember thinking when I read it that the bad is no longer so bad, and the good no longer so good as Orwell describes them.

    I agree the electoral system was designed to serve the ruling class, and the rest of the people have been given more power only grudgingly, but they were given more power. Hence no revolutions.

    I certainly don't think it is perfect either; I'd like the first-past-the-post system to be reformed, though not to simple PR. I'm sure there must be some country with a hybrid model we could copy. And although having life peers instead of hereditary ones in the House of Lords is an improvement, it's still a rather flawed system.

    What I don't want is radical changes, when these so often end badly. If British people are politically passive (which I am not sure is true) then that may not be such a bad thing.

    As for the EU, it's a complicated subject. I think it's true that some of the out voters were taking out their frustration with the current government, but there were a lot of other reasons for the vote, some good and many bad.

    But there's deeper reasons for people's discontent, not confined to the UK. Aren't we seeing something similar in the US right now with Trump? Was the US system designed to serve the ruling class? However the system is designed, it is always true that the people with the most money and power can influence it to serve their own interests.

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 07:18 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    Mr.DemonTree

    I luuuuuv French culture while I keep a critical eye on them haughty Frogs...

    I luuuuuv German culture while I keep a critical eye on them haughty Krauts...

    I luuuuuv italian culture while I keep a critical eye on them haughty Wops...

    I luuuuuv Spanish culture while I keep a critical eye on them haughty Spics...

    I luuuuuv Japanese culture while I conserve a critical eye on them haughty Japs...

    I luuuuuv British culture while I conserve a critical eye on them very haughty Poms...

    And so on...

    Only the latter are in open geopolitical conflict with Argentina though...

    That's the reason of my critical comments on these pages...

    No hate whatsoewer...

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 07:42 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • The Voice

    The engagement of two or more nations in military conflict, using conventional weapons to target military infrastructure and invade/defend sovereignty

    Examples:
    Gulf War II Iraq 2003; Displacing an evil dictator.
    Gulf War Kuwait & Iraq 1990-91; Defending sovereign nations from a dictator
    Falklands War 1982; Defeating and ejecting colonialist invaders.
    World War II 1939-45: Defeating an anti semite evil dictator supported by Argentina.

    Invade sovereignty - too right Think. Arses got handed to you on a plate although we refrained from attacking the territory you squatters stole from the Amerindians.

    Falklands sovereignty? You never had it, you will never get it. Yet, no hate from us, just vigilance..

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 08:52 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    Now you are sounding like CapiTroll, he's very critical of all those countries.

    But I guess it doesn't really matter what your motivation is, as the result is the same.

    Should I be keeping a critical eye on the haughty Argentines?

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 08:54 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    Mr. Demontree

    BUT most certainly...!

    Specially if the Argie navy sailed up there, invaded a couple of Scottish Islands and demanded all fish and oil 200 miles around...

    By the way...
    Is this Brexit story for real...???
    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwu_xj6UAAAFn45.jpg

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 09:18 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • Marti Llazo

    Tinkle: “ Specially if the Argie navy sailed... ”

    Argentina doesn't have a navy anymore, since it failed to pay for the patches for its last surviving gomón de cuatro plazos.

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 09:49 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    I though you said there was no oil?

    But which ones d'you want? I reckon we could probably spare that Gruinard Island you mentioned. ;)

    And yes it is, I saw it on the BBC. Looks utterly retarded doesn't it? The more honest thing to do would have been to put the price up or make the bar shorter.

    @ Marti
    Don't they still have a sailing ship? Unless the Liverpudlians nicked it and sold it for scrap...

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 09:52 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    DemonTree...,Laddie....

    You are just parroting what the Turnips say instead of THINKing
    Please link me to one of my comments where I express “Hate” against Britain...
    Or to one where I say there is no oil in Malvinas...

    I have always been critical about the UK's geopolitical strategies down here and I have always said that the oil in Malvinas is not commercial...

    News today confirm my oily opinion once again...:

    1) It has been confirmed today that Noble Energy is abandoning all their engagements in the South Falklands/Malvinas bassin...

    2) Premier Oil shares lost today a whopping 11.44% of their value...!
    http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/prices-and-markets/stocks/summary/company-summary/GB00B43G0577GBGBXSSMM.html?lang=en

    3) Rockhopper Exploitation shares have historically bottomed today at 23,25 pennies = -5.10% !!!

    Besides..., just as an example of oil commerciality..., I recently returned from Bergen (freaking expensive alright) and the talk of the town are the new giant oil & gas potential of the Barents sea and the enormous Johan Svendrup field which, on its own, could prolong the Norwegian oil bonanza till 2050 -60...
    All that at an oil break-even price of just 20 U$....
    Please compare it with the fairy-tale 45 U$ break-even price those deep crisis ridden minion Anglo oil companies down in Malvinas have publicized some weeks ago...

    I repeat what I always have said...:
    There is no commercial oil in Malvinas...

    Have a nice evening...
    El Think

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 10:30 pm - Link - Report abuse -3
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    My mistake, I thought you said there was no commercial oil.

    Were you critical of the UK's 'geopolitical strategies' before 1982?

    Your posts have given me the impression you wish ill on Britain, and that you cheer when anything bad happens. So I don't think it matters much whether you actually hate us or not.

    Nov 08th, 2016 - 11:31 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • The Voice

    Argie Navy - about 5 canoes! Bahahahaha. Of course Hissing Sid and Colin wish us ill. Don't be taken in.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 01:36 am - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Marti Llazo

    Just as there is no commercial oil or gas in the Vaca Muerta.

    But in the Falklands basins there are something like 2 -4 billions of barrels waiting for their moment.

    There was a time when tight gas and offshore drilling were unthinkable and commercially impractical.

    But then, there are some people who do understand the value of future projects. A good part of my first million dollars was had by holding onto things until the arrival of their moment.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 01:36 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Meursault

    No commercial gas or oil yet pretty much every large oil company has either signed an MOA or already started setting up drills... How many companies are surrounding the sheep herders again?

    Based on this and your absurd claims that Colombia's GDP is higher than Argentina's (which is laughable even taking into account the dodge INDEC numbers), I'm going to go out on a whim and say that “first million” was you purchasing a bunch of Monopoly boards and piling up the little notes.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 07:03 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Think

    Monsieur Meursault...

    :-))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 08:05 pm - Link - Report abuse -4
  • DemonTree

    Out on a whim lol. I like it.

    I reckon Meursault is an American; if so he has my commiserations.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 09:42 pm - Link - Report abuse +4
  • Meursault

    Yes, whim. I lost an arm and a leg when I gave Marti a small loan of a million dollars for “2-4 billion barrels” which don't exist, and even if they did, would only be extracted the day pigs sprout wings.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 09:59 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • Marti Llazo

    Argentine tax monies are being used to develop the Yegua Muerta oil territory. Without massive subsidies, that production would not be commercially viable.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 10:07 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Meursault

    Hardly any shale oil is currently viable with the current oil price. Subsidising (hardly massively by any stretch of the imagination) to make it attractive to investors while the price is low and get a head start in production (which will take a few years) for when oil prices rebound is sensible policy. It's because of this policy that, despite low prices, Vaca Muerta is one of the few places on earth which oil companies currently have any interest in investing in - and it's really showing. The subsidies have been lifted a couple of times already when oil has gone above $47 and will disappear completely once it stays above that amount (which it certainly will).

    I'm starting to wonder whether you are one of these stereotypical self-loathing Argentines who complain about absolutely everything and barely have a single positive thought pass through their mind. You know, the ones who stash all their money abroad and then, without a single bit of irony, complain about a lack of infrastructure and public investment. For some inexplicable reason, these people never move out from Argentina, and if they do, it's only a matter of time before they come back and realise that the rest of the world isn't all milk and honey.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 10:30 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Think

    The mistery of Monsieur Meursault's origins continues...

    Lots of British spellings...
    Some American inflexions...
    And a “more than superfluous knowledge” of the Argentinean monied class...

    But,who cares...
    As long as he keeps running rings around the Anglo Turnips in here, Think is happy...

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 10:45 pm - Link - Report abuse -4
  • DemonTree

    Meh, he's dull. Far too sensible. I prefer CapiTroll. :)

    I'm more interested in Marti's origins anyway.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 10:59 pm - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Meursault

    Mr Think, you may disagree, but there are two polarised and very incorrect visions of Argentina in the country. Those who thought the country as like Germany under Kirchner and those (like Marti) who have such a poor outlook that they seem to think Argentina's GDP is half of what it is in reality and seemingly want things to go badly in some odd form of self-flagellation.

    Though it's certainly no rose garden, Argentina is a country with a great deal of promise and it's articles like this one that demonstrate that it truly has the potential to be at the top of its game once more and make up for ~70 years of lost time in the coming decades. If a new political party can emerge and replicate what Maci did but on the centre-left, then the country has a bright future guaranteed with a new sensible and balanced party system.

    In the mean time though, those deluded individuals like Marti will have an audience of willing anti-Argentine uptickers on sites like these, entirely a result of confirmation bias.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 11:04 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • Think

    Demon Tree
    Reason IS dull...
    About Turnip MartiLlazo...
    Two things we know about him...
    1) Turnip MartiLazo is, for sure, not a native Spanish speaker...
    2) Turnip MartiLlazo is a somwhat frustrated person... Using his own words, he hates “Latrinamerica”... yet he resides in Santa Cruz, at the very bottom of it...

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 11:12 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    Do you think so? I don't agree.

    Anyway I've changed my mind; what do you think about his two visions of Argentina?

    @ Meursault
    Are there any signs of such a party emerging? What do you think of Macri anyway?

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 11:26 pm - Link - Report abuse +4
  • Meursault

    Well, if he isn't one of the types I described (the ones who make grossly exaggerated and tragically inaccurate statements about their own country and sit there bemoaning everything in the comments section of La Nacion) then he's almost certainly married to such a person or has spent such a significant amount of time with such people to the point that he now also believes that Argentina is Angola. It's probably for this reason that he fails to see that (despite its many, many mishaps) Argentina is still by far way the best positioned country in Latin America, rivaled only by Chile and Uruguay.

    @Demontree, yes there are signs. Look no further than Martin Lousaeu - incredibly intelligent and articulate that he makes the current roster of European politicians look meek by comparison. I'm sure he'll pull off a victory in Buenos Aires in 2019 and replicate the same path Macri's party took in building a political base from the capital.

    As for Macri, putting aside ideology and political views, I think he's the first step towards sensible politics, though there's still a long way to go. Even those not on the centre-right should applaud a bit of normality that will (hopefully) put an end to the Peronist-Radical dichotomy which has plagued the nation.

    Nov 09th, 2016 - 11:35 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • DemonTree

    To be fair, I don't believe I have ever seem Marti say anything good about any country on here. Isn't Brazil supposed to be the best positioned country though, being part of the BRICS and all?

    Is that Martín Lousteau? I'd never heard of him before, but that's not too surprising. Think certainly never mentioned a new party emerging, I don't think he's a big fan of the new normality.

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 12:09 am - Link - Report abuse +3
  • Think

    Ok, Mr Meursault....

    It's evident that you are a foreign residing in Argentina....
    One of the positive Thinking ones..., not like that Turnip MartiLlazo...

    Martincito Lousteau..., huhhhh?
    Have nothing negative to say about the boy...
    A typical product from my old Colegio Nacional... Bright, decent and trustworthy...
    (And married to the daughter of a veeery nice lady of my acquaintance)

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 12:40 am - Link - Report abuse -3
  • DemonTree

    What makes you think he's not from Argentina?

    And weren't you were saying the K's were going to get back in at the next election? Is there really room for a new party?

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 08:09 am - Link - Report abuse +1
  • The Voice

    “Argentina is still by far way the best positioned country in Latin America, rivaled only by Chile and Uruguay.”

    Moresalt, you forgot one very important drawback - the basket case known as the Argentinian population!

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 10:29 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Marti Llazo

    “......the basket case known as the Argentinian population!....”

    Not so much the population, which has enormous but perennially unrealised potential, but the counterproductive institutions, which of course are ultimately supported by the people and provide self-destructive limitations on any real progress here. Overcoming the negative effects of those institutions is obviously one of the principal challenges of the present government and we should not only expect glacially slow progress, if any, but the likelihood of backsliding when a new populist wave takes over. In the meantime all we are seeing is lipstick on a pig.

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 01:04 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • golfcronie

    Moresalt
    You are correct by saying that companies are drilling now for a return when the oil price rises. Exactly what Premier and Rockhopper oil companies are doing in the FALKLANDS they are proceeding with FEED to bring first oil in perhaps 2019.

    Nov 10th, 2016 - 10:36 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Think

    Much respected Monsieur Meursault

    As I have expressed before..., I find your postings to be of excellent quality and very well informed...

    Please allow this humble Patagonian to complement them with some... “personal experience and perspective” on Argentinean political loaded language, doublespeak and downright lies...

    You say...:
    “If a new political party can emerge and replicate what Maci did but on the centre-left, then the country has a bright future guaranteed with a new sensible and balanced party system.”
    I would say...:
    “If a new political party can emerge and replicate what Maci -SAID HE WOULD DO - but on the centre-left, then the country has a bright future guaranteed with a new sensible and balanced party system.”

    You say further...:
    ”As for Macri, putting aside ideology and political views, I think he's the first step towards sensible politics, though there's still a long way to go. Even those not on the centre-right should applaud a bit of normality that will (hopefully) put an end to the Peronist-Radical dichotomy which has plagued the nation.“
    I say...:
    In politics..., it's kind of difficult to ”put aside ideology and political views“...
    This is true all over the World..., including Argentina...
    I think Mr. Macri's DISCOURSE could have been a first step towards sensible politics, IF HE DID MEAN ANYTHING HE IS SAYING IN THAT DISCOURSE..., something his previous record as a very corrupt Industrialist, a very corrupt city mayor and a very corrupt president + all the relevant economical and social indicators during his 11 months at the Argentine helm clearly denegate...
    There's still a long way to go..., indeed...
    Even I... on the Olof Palme/Bernie Sanders centre-left school of thought... would applaud a bit of normality that would put an end to the Peronist-Radical dichotomy which has plagued Argentina long enough...
    ”IF” THAT BLOODY MACRI & Co. had clean intentions and were telling the truth.
    Something they don't.

    Have a nice Weekend
    El Think.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 01:52 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Marti Llazo

    Tinkle, you forgot one more thing:

    The country here is perpetually run by argentines.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 03:10 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Clyde15

    The one question that is bugging me. Who in the UK has got money to invest and why don't they invest it here !

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 03:13 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Think

    Q...: “Who in the UK has got money to invest...?”
    A...: The 1%

    Q...: “Why don't they invest it in the UK...?
    A...: ”Profits are higher elswhere...

    Anything else...., Lowlander...?

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 03:23 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    @ Clyde15
    The 1%, and also pension funds and businesses.

    Returns can be higher in developing countries because of the greater risks, and UK businesses may see an opportunity to move into a new market.

    Plenty of investment also comes into the UK from other countries, or at least it used to.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 03:47 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Think

    Thanks for your complementation, Mr. DemonTree....
    The 1% that owns all big businesses and gets about 70% of the pension funds investments, it is...

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 05:33 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Marti Llazo

    And that 1 percent is evidently smart enough to avoid new investment in Argenzuela.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 06:03 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • DemonTree

    Where do you get that figure from, Think?

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 06:32 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Think

    Try the internet.., my comfortably numb lad...

    (But of course..., you have excused yourself before... saying that you are not ready to waste your time searching for things that may...or may not be true...;-)

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 07:09 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    The internet says that the top 10% of households that have any pension wealth own 48% of it. 76% of households have some private pension wealth.

    Not very similar to your figures, which for all I know you made up on the spot.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 07:25 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Think

    Geeeeeeeeee.....
    I'll try again, Mr DemonTree...

    You say...:
    “The internet says that the top 10% of households that have any pension wealth own 48% of it. 76% of households have some private pension wealth.”

    I say...:
    Your info is correct...
    “76% of households have some private pension wealth...”
    This pension wealth from that 76%... is administered by them “Pension Funds”...
    Them “Pension Funds” invest ~7 out of each 10 of their dollars in businesses, proyects and/ or developments owned by the 1%...
    Or, as I so clearly wrote on my comment above...:
    “The 1% that ........... ...... gets about 70% of the pension funds investments...”

    Is me Engrish soooooo bad that you can't understand it?
    Or is it that you just don't want to understand it?

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 07:44 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    Oh I see, I thought you meant the 1% get 70% of the profits from pension funds.

    But if a pension fund invests in a business, doesn't that usually mean buying shares in it, which means said pension fund now owns part of the business? Which in turn means less of the business is owned by the 1% (though probably still a high percentage).

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 07:58 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • Think

    Good boy...
    Next time try to “read what I write”... instead of “thoughting what I meanted”...;-)

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 08:12 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    Ah, the ever-humble Think. Of course it's my fault for misunderstanding you, you couldn't possibly have been unclear.

    Anyway, the original question was about investing in Argentina. A UK pension fund has money provided by its members, which it could potentially invest in Argentina. Therefore someone other than the 1% has the money to do this.

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 08:41 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    Ah, the ever-haughty Anglos... What's unclear about...:
    “*” The 1% that ......... gets about 70% of the pension funds investments...”*”

    1) You misread and misunderstand something written in plain Engrish... your native language...
    2) You accuse auld humble Think of “making figures up on the spot.”
    3) You are made aware of your misreading and misunderstanding...
    4) You react by saying...: “I thought you meant the 1% get 70% of the profits from pension funds.”
    5) You don't show any self-reproach nor a shadow of an apology for your mistake or your false accusations.

    Of course it's your fault..., laddie...

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 08:58 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • DemonTree

    Is this one of those stupid cultural things? Blaming someone else for a misunderstanding is considered rude around these parts. You're supposed to say it wasn't their fault, even if you're damn sure it was. It goes along with the apologising when someone else bumps into you. ;)

    So, if you actually weren't intending to be insulting, I apologise for reacting angrily.

    Of course accusing someone of inventing figures is also rude, but technically I didn't do that; I said for all I know you could have done.

    Besides, you still haven't given any evidence for them, so why should I apologise?

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 10:05 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    IMHO, there is a clear “difference” between “Silly Cultura Thingsl” and “Silly Culture Things”...

    An example of the former did I experienced in here when an Anglo called me every name in the book because all my figures were thousandfold wrong...
    Problem was that i was using..., as they do in most places in the world..., a period as the thousand separator and a comma as a decimal ditto...
    .... That was clearly a “Cultural Thing”... an “Anglo Cultural Thing” against a “Most of the Rest of the World Cultural Thing”...

    An example of the latter, are we having just now...
    After misreading a simple piece of text..., you accuse me of “making figures up on the spot” and, when confronted with your error..., you react..., not by checking my original postulate..., but by saying that no apology is due because I haven't given any ”evidence“...
    .... This is evidently a ”Culture Thing“... a ”Haughty Culture Thing”...

    Nov 12th, 2016 - 10:58 pm - Link - Report abuse -2
  • DemonTree

    I take it you were trying to be insulting, then.

    Why would I apologise for my 'false accusations' when I don't know if they are false? The fact I was wrong does nothing to prove whether your numbers are right.

    If you wish to throw out figures and facts and then refuse to give any evidence for them , that is your choice; but I won't apologise for not believing them, no matter how many names you call me.

    We could have avoided this whole pointless digression if you had just given me your link the first time I asked.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 12:57 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Kanye

    DT

    How very faux-Argy of Think/Voice, he loves to play the aggrieved party.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 01:46 am - Link - Report abuse +1
  • DemonTree

    @ Kanye
    I was foolish to argue with him about such a pointless thing. Inequality is a big problem in the UK and it's been getting worse. Now that we are apparently living in a post truth society, what are the chances of anything improving?

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 10:53 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    Mr. DemonTree

    You say...:
    “We could have avoided this whole pointless digression if you had just given me your link the first time I asked.”

    I say...:
    We could..., indeed..., have avoided this whole pointless digression if you had just tried to do what my nick suggests you to.......................: “ T - H - I - N - K ”

    I'm “Mr.Think”...laddie, not “Mr. Anglo Educator”..., nor “Mr. DemonTree's Mom”...

    Capisce?

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 11:01 am - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    @ Think
    If you claim something, it's your job to prove it, not mine.

    You are too lazy to post a link that you presumably already have, why should I do your work for you?

    As for thinking, it's important to have the correct facts to start with, otherwise people are likely to come to incorrect conclusions. I'm sure you can think of recent examples of this phenomenon.

    Back on topic, from what I have been able to dig up, 54% of shares in UK companies are owned by foreign people or institutions, 12% by individuals, and only 3% by pension funds. It's kinda hard to work out from that how much is owned by the 1%.

    Also, if those UK companies were to invest in Argentina, more than half of the profits would be going to people outside the UK. Presumably the same thing happens in reverse too.

    Do you think more investment in Argentina would be a good thing, whether from Britain or elsewhere?

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 11:55 am - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    Mr. DemonTree

    1) Correspondingly..., if you accuse auld humble Think of lying, it's your job to prove it, not mine.
    You are too lazy to search for some truths that you presumably already feel in your guts..., why should I do your Thinking for you?

    2) It ain't no kind'a hard to find out how much is owned by the 1%....
    Start by googleing “1%” or “99%”... keep reading... and Think...

    3) You are absolutely right...: ”If those 1% owned and controlled UK companies were to invest in Argentina, more than half of the profits would be going to some 1% owned and controlled Argie companies...

    4) You can rest assured that the same thing happens in reverse too....
    That's Rule 101 of Wealth Concentration..., lad...

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 12:17 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • ElaineB

    @ Kanye. It is more a Southern Cone thing. If they do something wrong they can't say sorry they twist it around to try to make it your fault. It isn't personal, it is just the childish inability to admit a mistake. I have seen it with the most intelligent and kind people. They just cannot own a mistake - like their whole being depends on always being right. It is, of course, a weakness not a strength. It IS one of those cultural things.

    @DT

    Mr. T is just playing with you, though you have totally outwitted him. He hasn't got too personal and nasty yet, but he usually saves that for female posters.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 12:33 pm - Link - Report abuse +2
  • Think

    This picture just ticked in me Chubutean Think tank...
    What a gilded future this could herald for our beloved WASP Anglosphere...
    https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/styles/story_large/public/thumbnails/image/2016/11/13/00/farage-trump.jpg

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 01:14 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • DemonTree

    @ ElaineB
    I see. He's clearly not interested in a sensible conversation at any rate.

    To be fair, I've met plenty of people here in England who won't admit to making a mistake, and I've caught myself doing the same thing too. Is it really worse in Argentina?

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 02:00 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • ElaineB

    @ DT

    In Argentina? No more so than the rest of the Southern Cone. I first encountered it in Chile and let it slide as their propensity to childishly argue black is white in the face of evidence seemed unimportant; even funny. Then a Chilean friend explained it to me in the context of business as well as personal situations and I became tuned to it. Over the years I saw and heard of many instances across the counties. I suspect it has a lot to do with the machista culture and what a blow it is to a weak self-esteem to admit they were wrong. Something else you quickly discover is that behind all the macho posing is a massive but paper-thin ego. An Argentine woman described it to me as an over-inflated balloon.

    All that said, if you understand it, it is less offensive. Though it can be fun to wind them up on occasion - just to see how many twists and turns they will take to avoid admitting they are wrong. I have seen women do the same out of embarrassment rather than a need to be right.

    You are right that there are insecure people everywhere but it seems magnified in SoAm and that has a lot to do with the macho culture.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 04:16 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • DemonTree

    @ ElaineB
    Lol at the over-inflated balloon. :)

    Is the Southern Cone Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay? It sounds very inconvenient in business anyway, surely no one is going to continue doing something that loses them money, so do they just change their mind and then pretend they thought that all along?

    I don't think I really understand the macho culture. Did it make it difficult for you to do business there?

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 07:08 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • ElaineB

    @ DT Plus Paraguay.

    The macho culture has not been hindrance to me personally. I always thought Chile should have the tourism strap line “If you want to experience time travel come to Chile: it's 1950 here”. Once I had it figured it is pretty easy to either laugh about or manipulate to one's advantage. I could tell you some hilarious stories of the macho culture in action. I guess the difference is that as a foreign woman I am not intimidated by it.

    It is not so much fun for the women there, or in Argentina. We have touched on it in discussions here before but the levels of domestic violence are high. Opportunities for women are far less than in developed countries. Pay for the same job is far less. They are a second class save for a few exceptions.

    Business is different rules for different countries. Argentines want to nick a quid off everyone but it isn't personal. Chileans cannot make a decision so procrastinate forever hoping they never have to make one.

    Class is a whole other subject when it comes to South America. Prejudice is ripe and everyone is scrambling to find something that makes them feel superior to others be it gender, colour or class. This is a typical problem in developing societies.

    I have travelled the length and breadth of both countries, spent time with all levels of society and I have yet to find the 'scum' referred to by our resident armchair racist. Most people are just trying to get through life as best they can. They want the same basic things everyone wants. And 99.99% of people are great.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 07:55 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Think

    ....................... And 99.99% of people (in Chile and Argentina) are great...
    That leaves us with just 6,500 souls that ain't so great...

    As Mr. DemonTree would put it...:
    “Where do you get that figure from, ElaineB?
    The internet says something very different than your figures..., which for all I know you made up on the spot...
    If you wish to throw out figures and facts and then refuse to give any evidence for them , that is your choice...; but I won't apologise for not believing them..., no matter how many names you call me...”

    Chuckle..., chuckle...

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 10:26 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • DemonTree

    @ ElaineB
    Is Paraguay much different to the other three? It does have an interesting history; I first heard about it when someone was comparing 19th century Paraguay with today's North Korea.

    That line is kind of off-putting, I've never wanted to visit the 50's, it sounds stifling. Especially when it comes with a side order of domestic violence and second class citizens. :( At least it sounds like people there are working to improve things.

    Those business rules make me wonder what the rule is for Britain. Maybe something like people never say what they really mean due to politeness? I'm sure Think can come up with something suitably unflattering.

    @ Think
    I'm 100% sure she made that figure up on the spot and 100% sure she won't mind my saying so. :)

    Anyway you shouldn't complain, that's a very flattering description. I certainly wouldn't say the same about people in Britain.

    Nov 13th, 2016 - 11:13 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • ElaineB

    @ Think

    I can only speak about the people I have met and come into contact with. I was dispelling the assertion by someone who has never been there that there are 12m scum in Argentina. It isn't true.

    @DT

    Paraguay is the second poorest SoAm country after Bolivia, so it has its problems.

    I wouldn't let anything you read on here stop you from visiting Argentina or Chile. They are both beautiful and exciting countries. You just have to keep an open mind and appreciate that these are developing countries with different cultures. If you can embrace that, you will receive a warm welcome.

    Nov 14th, 2016 - 09:18 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Marti Llazo

    “...these are developing countries with different cultures....”

    That is the politically correct and polite way to say “corrupt and inept.”

    Not so long ago we did some studies related to retail sales efficiencies in Chile. Sample result: In the case of sales checkout in hardware stores, it took 5 to 8 times as long when compared to a similar purchase in Canada. When we went back to visit more recently, the transaction time had actually increased! Not sure whether that is part of “developing” or “different culture.”

    Nov 14th, 2016 - 01:15 pm - Link - Report abuse +1
  • ElaineB

    @ ML

    Ha! Yes, they are incredibly slow to do anything. They work long hours but if they were just a little more efficient they could cut their hours in half. That is why I suggest they should all have the middle name of procrastination. The first mobile phone I purchased there took half a day and most of the employees of a department store getting involved. It was just a phone.

    The first time I lived in Argentina I could not fathom the length of time people take to make a simple withdrawal from an ATM. There seemed to involve much discussion with the whole family, printing a statement, further discussion, withdrawing money, further discussion, another statement, as the queue grew ever longer. I wanted to step up and show them how it is done in seconds. But I didn't.

    That said, it is the way it is. Maybe they see us as rushing through life and not fully appreciating the complexity and enjoyment of making a purchase or withdrawing cash. They make a whole family outing of it. Just look at the supermarkets in Chile. I notice the entire extended family joins in the weekly shop, getting in the way and pointing at everything. You half expect to find them picnicking in the dairy aisle just to make a day of it.

    I have closely questioned friends in both countries about why even the most basic and simple transactions take so long but they just regard me as impatient and in too much of a hurry.

    Nov 14th, 2016 - 01:58 pm - Link - Report abuse -1
  • Marti Llazo

    It is true, Elaine, the most pleasurable and significant activity here and one that must be savoured for all time in the company of extended family and their dogs, the experience that most characterises the noble cause of “hacer patria” and without which Latin American life is simply not worth all the bother, is the spiritual pilgrimage past the broken sidewalks and the broken-glass mud-fields that pass for parking, to marvel at the wonder inherent in the preliminaries leading up to the five-minute counting of small coins for the purchase of a 2-pack of single-ply toilet paper (which the chilenos refer to as “comfort” [spelt 'confort.'])

    Nov 14th, 2016 - 04:36 pm - Link - Report abuse +1

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