TheDeadFlagBlues
Junior Chimp
Posts: 5,987
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« on: January 26, 2017, 02:53:39 PM » |
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« edited: January 26, 2017, 02:58:56 PM by TheDeadFlagBlues »
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He deserves no credit for this. This was the only way he could avoid being lynched in public at some point over the next year. The notion that "Mexico hasn't been taking care of its own people" has an element of truth to it but it's also somewhat bogus. As ag says, the issue is that the Mexican state is corrupt and inefficient; this means that some people benefit handsomely from social programs and others don't. The PRI built a pretty formidable welfare state during the "Mexican miracle" years but it was only for segments of the population because they were a syndicalist party. Public workers did well, collecting a lot of rents, the industrial proletariat did less well and campesinos were fleeced, hardly benefiting with the exception of corn subsidies. If you were only informally employed, you were even worse off than campesinos for the most part and, in Mexico, there are many who are not formally employed.
My family benefited from the state. They're not outliers. There are many middle class Mexicans who are public sector employees or who have benefited from Mexican higher education etc. Unfortunately, there's a lot of luck involved, which is common in states that have a history of clientalism. It's necessary to present both facts here: Mexico, contrary to common belief, is not an impoverished country and some of its social programs are functional and successful, and some of its industries and markets are flourishing. On the other hand, Mexico is a deeply segmented and unequal country, where millions live in conditions reminscient to Guatemala while millions drive luxury sedans in major cities.
I have to say, it's astonishing how Americans feel fit to opine on Mexico when they know so little about it. We are neighbors but only one neighbor has a good understanding of the other neighbor. Mexicans are well-versed in all things American these days. Americans continue to see Mexico as a land of ignorant peasants and criminals. Even as we lament off-shoring to Mexico, we can't conceive of that as something that embodies how Mexico is changing.
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