I don’t agree with much of this incomplete article.
Chile’s number one contributor to it’s GNP is mining...almost exclusively copper mining. The mining industry is responsible for the development of the largest middle class in Latin America, (LA).
It is almost the only country in LA where a middle class family can afford to put their kids through university...it isn’t just the wealthy with college degrees.
If you drive around any city in northern Chile, La Serena, Antofagasta, Copiapo, you will see housing developments all over the place...small, single family homes with a Toyota parked out front. This does not happen in most LA countries.
The main reason for the continuing dance with the Marxist left is is the Marxist takeover of the universities. All the kids I worked with had degrees in mining engineering, chemistry, geological engineering...the hard core science and engineering degrees...they all cursed the stupid leftist direction the country was heading and despised the university left movement.
The left in LA is very well organized...much more so than the working stiffs who just want that home with a Toyota.
The left, as someone else mentioned, controls the universities, the corrupt left-leaning Catholic Church, leftist environmental groups, and of course, the media who produce a constant drumbeat of how worker’s wages haven’t kept up with inflation, yadda, yadda...the usual drivel.
And another seldom mentioned ingredient is that the agriculture industry is very sympathetic to the left...they are the favored industry of the left and the industry greatly resents the mining industry. The mining industry pays very well and nab the best and brightest of the labor force. The Ag industry has to compete for labor and always lose to the miners. There aren’t many Toyotas parked in front of that small home owned by workers in vineyards.
The Ag industry has been responsible for preventing several new mines from going into production, not only in Chile, but Peru and Argentina as well.
They do this by teaming up with the left, the Church, and NGO environmental wack jobs. I have photos of a Catholic church in a small Andean town located miles below a new mine in the permitting stage where the Church allowed the anti-miners to paint a mural on the walls showing all kinds of disasters if the mine went into production.
Just a few thoughts on some of the reasons Chile is circling the bowl...I’m not so certain it is as dire as this article sort of suggests...the article is a little short on examples.
As long as copper continues to provide the bulk of the country’s GDP the left will have a hard time doing the Salvador Allende thing again. In spite of what the leftist media yammers, Agusto Pinochet was NOT unpopular in Chile. I have had this discussion with Chileans and many, many will quietly say that Pinochet saved Chile and the country would be just another Peru, Ecuador, or Bolivia if it wasn’t for Pinochet.
I lived for a year two doors from Pinochet’s Santiago residence...very safe neighborhood!!
The sexual abuse of minors by clergy of the Catholic Church in Chile and the failure of Church officials to respond and take responsibility attracted worldwide attention as a critical failure of Pope Francis and the Church as a whole to address the sexual abuse of minors by priests.
Catholic Church sexual abuse cases in Chile - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Catholic_Church_sexual_abuse...
Catholic Church Faces Reckoning in Chile as Sex Abuse ...
www.nytimes.com › World › Americas
Jul 31, 2018 — The Vatican investigators issued a 2,300-page report based on 64 interviews, accusing Chilean church leaders of failing to investigate credible ...
Chile: Catholic bishops apologize for failing sex abuse victims ...
www.dw.com › chile-catholic-bishops-apologize-for-fai...
Aug 4, 2018 — Chilean prosecutors said last week they are investigating 158 members of the church, including priests, clerics and laypeople. .
Thanks Cuttnhorse for the insights of one who has been there and lived there.
In this country there are a number of universities with agricultural engineering departments. Ag-Eng students were like the science and engineering majors - politically conservative. The only liberals in the sciences were a few coeds. Of course the guys generally avoided them.
Do the Chilean universities have ag-eng departments? Or is there an effort to discourage step change in agricultural efficiency because of perceived threat to the manual labor?
Would you consider Chile a safe country to visit? If yes, what are the 2 places that are must visit? I had an engineering prof from Peru. He said never to go there, even he would not go back, because it is very corrupt and dangerous. That was when Sendero Luminoso was making headlines all the time. Not sure that country has changed significantly. Chile at that time had not turn itself around.
Thanks for the imput. Most of the postings in FR about Chile were about the attacks on Catholic churches. Where no such analysis was given as to the reasons .This comes as a surprize