Without getting too political in this thread, remember the source of the article. Note that quotes like this: " A 2001 government default was followed by 12 years of leftist rule that left Argentina struggling to rebuild its treasury and clean up its reputation in the global financial circle" are not particularly instructive, because it wasn't the "leftist rule," it was the incessantly-corrupt, bat$^!* crazy rule. Note that neighbo(u)rs Chile and Uruguay have had predominantly "leftist" rule during years of stability and growth.