Destroying Latin America: Journalist Mary O'Grady on Populism, Protectionism, and Prohibition

"The inequality produced by liberty: This, for the socialist, is the soft underbelly of pro-market rationale and the best place to attack," says Mary O'Grady, a columnist who covers Latin America for the Wall Street Journal. "I would argue that it's the intellectual stream that prevails in Latin America, and it's the reason the region can not hope to reach its potential any time soon." 

O'Grady made a presentation at Reason Weekend 2012, Reason Foundation's annual donor event. He talked about why Latin American countries are so susceptible to socialism and identified the "three P's" of "Populism, Protectionism, and Prohibition" as the primary sources of the region's biggest problems.  

About 32 minutes. Filmed by Joshua Swain and Anthony Fisher. Edited by Zach Weissmueller.

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Comments

[Sam Grove]

O'Grady made a presentation at Reason Weekend 2012, Reason Foundation's annual donor event. He talked about why Latin American countries...

Mary is an unusual name for a he.

[cw]

O'Grady's pretty well-known for her coverage of Latin American politics. I'm surprised Mr. Weissmueller botched her gender.

[sloopyinca]

Confusing a smart woman for a man is a pretty common occurrence and an honest mistake.

[Ice Nine]

I suppose I shouldn't be laughing at that, but...

[TheZeitgeist]

Libertarians finally get a savvy girl to talk to them about interesting things and they still blow it. Par for the course I'd say.

[sloopyinca]

Haha. That's very close to my wife's reaction to what I wrote.

It was a look of derision mixed with sympathy mixed with "you're not getting laid today."*

*But I will be getting laid today. Because I'm the man and she's the woman.

[Groovus Maximus]

I love ya to death sloopster, but you may have to add the term "couch duty" to your vocabulary after that remark.

[sloopyinca]

Oddly enough, that's probably where round 1 will be tonight!

[darius404]

We all know what's REALLY going on here. Spell check is obviously sexist in ADDITION to being racist.

[PS]

Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean,
My fists got hard and my wits got keen,
I'd roam from town to town to hide my shame.
But I made a vow to the moon and stars
That I'd search the honky-tonks and bars
And kill that man who gave me that awful name.

[Suki]

+100 Johnny Cash!

[edcoast]

Now you gonna die!

[Richard_KY]

OT but worth reading from Le Monde:

Locking down an American workforce, Prison labor as the past and future of American "Free market" capitalism:

http://mondediplo.com/openpage.....-workforce

[The Immaculate Trouser]

Cool story, bro.

[Sevo]

Ya know, it looked worthwhile to quote a particularly bull-shit-filled paragraph from that screed, but the reason squirrels see to think that makes a word longer than 50 characters.
Regardless, Richard, linking propaganda doesn't say much for your ability to think.

[Suki]

That was fantastic. Sharing. If you watch to the end, Reason links to this awesome video: http://youtu.be/K29P3HdzPfI I think it is a Brian Doherty production for the History Channel.

[JeremyR]

And yet, Reason is in favor of all these people from Latin America, who feel this way, to come to the US via open borders and vote for a bigger welfare state.

They're ruined their own countries, why would we let them in to make ours even worse?

[Sevo]

JeremyR|4.28.12 @ 9:41PM|#
"And yet, Reason is in favor of all these people from Latin America, *WHO FEEL THIS WAY*, to come to the US via open borders and vote for a bigger welfare state."

Are you familiar with the term 'non-sequitur"? You should look it up.

[Atanarjuat]

I guess you didn't watch the video, cuz O'Grady's entire premise was that intellectuals and the elite in Latin America have created the conditions where the state's enforced equality and promised entitlements work against private property, entrepreneurship, and freedom. She even mentioned that Latin American immigrants to the US are no less likely to be entrepreneurs. It's not the intellectuals and elite who are going to migrate here.

[SAL]

As a libertarian Brazilian, I can understand your point; most Latin-Americans, whether intellectuals or entrepreneurs, are generally in favor of big government. In Brazil, to talk about privatization of education or healthcare is nothing short of blasphemy; collectivism is deeply ingrained in the nation's psyche, and this is not going to change any time soon (as O'Grady correctly points out). On the other hand, don't you find it unfair that the few Latin-American libertarians that exist be forced to live in Latin America for their entire lives? I mean, I am not particularly happy about paying 40k dollars for a car that costs 18k in the United States [brazilianbubble.com/ car-prices-comparison-brazil-x-usa/], for example.

[Gray Ghost]

It's not the intellectuals and elite who are going to migrate here.

The nastiness of the drug wars is changing that. The wealthier areas of Houston are turning into Monterrey Norte as many former residents of Mexico move up here to avoid the shootouts and kidnapping. See, for example, this article in the Houston Chronicle. IME, I've seen lots of new ads in the Galleria catering to Mexicans and lots of very pale Spanish speakers in the shops, almost a majority of the higher-end patrons.

Can't blame them for leaving. It'd only take one time having a gun stuck in my face to scare me into changing my ways.

[RingoMooo]

Looks like those guys are having a blast. Wow.

http://www.Dodging-CISPA.tk

[joy]

identified the "three P's" of "Populism, Protectionism, http://www.nikewinkel.com/ and Prohibition" as the primary sources of the region's biggest problems.

[alaamiah]

Thank you very much