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Most of Latin America continues to be economically poor where individuals eake out very neagre livings. North America in contrast have genberatred prosperous economies. We find that many Latin Americans and Spanimh people are very sensitive about tghis issue, finding it offensive to even discuss it. Many Latin Americans have and others attempt to emigrated to the United States, either legally or illegally. The question arises as to why the two regions have developed so differently. Spain and Portugal colonized South and Central America (including Mexico) acentury before the English even began to colonize North America. And there were imprtant cities and infrastructure including univesities and printing presses in Latin America long before there was any significant settlement in North America. So what happened, why have the regiojns devloped so differenbtly? Both regions had rich natural resources so the differences must have resulted from government policies and cultural patterns. Various factors have been identified. Attitudes toward work varied eminating from the colonial era. Colonial administrative systems were also very different. Spanish and Portuhiese colonia frule was highly beareacratic closely controlled from Madrid and Lisbon. English/British control was much more limited and each of the 13 Atllantic colonies developed their owen legislastures. The Pilgrims even bedore they lsnded agreed on a coinstitution--the Mayflower Compact. And with the English Civil War and subsequent issues between the Criwn and Parliamny, the colonistss were essentially allowed to develop on their own. There were also differeing attitudes toward educational and academic inquiry. The Catholic and Protestant traditions were also factors. The Encomienda concentrated land ownereship in Latin America in the hands of a very small portion of the population. Perhaps the most factor is the differeing legal systems. A factor affecting modern Latin America is the appeal of socialist ecomomics, depite the abysamal failure of socialist economics around the world. Religion was another factor with Larin America almost exclusively Catholic and North Ameruca mosty Protestant.
Most of Latin America continues to be economically poor where individuals eake out very meagre livings. North America in contrast have genberatred prosperous economies. We find that many Latin Americans and Spanish people are very sensitive about this issue, finding it offensive to even discuss it. Rasther many cling to tyhe old saw, the British duid it tus Or the Americnd did it tous. Even though the United sttes did not exist until the Revolutionaruy wear and had realm impact on any part of Latin American until the mid-19th century and most of the refion until the 20th century.
Many Latin Americans have and others attempt to emigrated to the United States, either legally or illegally. And many have found real success here. What is it about the United states that rnavles tyhem yto suceed here asbnd not in their biryh cojuntries. An the interest in emograting to the United stastes is inly growing. Some 3 million people ctossed the southern border in 2022, most but not all were Hispanics. What is preventing Latin Americas from creating good paying jobs for these people? Most come for economic rerasdons because of decent paying jobs. A popultion flow of this dimension means that there is a problem. Tagically many Lstinos do not want to addres this and want to find any excuse that avoids cultural change.
Spain and Portugal colonized South and Central America (including Mexico) a century before the English even began to colonize North America. And there were imprtant cities and infrastructure including univesities and printing presses in Latin America long before there was any significant settlement in North America. Many Spanish observders point this out. So what hzappened with such an impfessive lead why has Latinm ASmerica fallen so far behind.
Latin America has some disadvatages, namely geographic including towering mountains and a north-south orientation. The lack of a land connection with Eur-Asia meant isolation. There was also an absence of large mammals which could be domesticated as beasts of buden. 【Diamond】 One thing that the region does not lack
is resources. Resources is what attracted the Spanish. Their primary interest was gold and silver. They not only found gold, but silver in unprecdented quantity. In Peru (modern Bolivia) the Spanishy found an entire mountain basically composed of silver--Potosi. They produced so much silver that it impacted the European economy as well as financed the all important European Chuna trade for two centuries. Spanish pieces of eight (the origin of the American quarter) became a kind of international currency. They were also widely circulated in the English colonies. The Spanish and Portugues found mann other resources. The Southern Cone proved to be an exceedingly rich agricuktural area. Chile and Peru developed a mining industry based on nitrate and copper. Brazil went througgh varios resource boom and crash cycles, including sugar and rubber. Latin American natural resources played a role in the Allied victory World War I and World War II. Latin America today continues to be a treadure trove of mineral resources, including alunimum, copper, gold, iron, lead, lithium, nickle, tin, and zinc as well as coal, gas and oil. In addition, the regionm holds 25 percent of the Earth’s forests and arable land, as well as more than 30 percent of the world's water resources. There has been some diversufiucation in recent years, but the country's of the region have economies nased in the exoort of natyral resoyrces, both agricultural, minerral resources, and energy. Argentina is the only country that has apoproached becoming a developed ecobmy, buut even Argentine exports were primarily based on the export of food products. Brazil tiday is developing m,anufactured products, but the economy is still pfimarily based on raw material exports.
The question arises as to why the two regions have developed so differently. So what happened, why have the regions devloped so differenbtly? Both regions had rich natural resources so the differences must have resulted from government policies and cultural patterns. Various factors have been identified. Attitudes toward work varied eminating from the Hispanic and English cultural traditions even before the colonial era. Colonial administrative systems were also very different. Spanish and Portuhiese colonia frule was highly beareacratic closely controlled from Madrid and Lisbon. English/British control was much more limited and each of the 13 Atklantic colonies developed their owen legislastures. The Pilgrims even bedore they lsnded agreed on a coinstitution--the Mayflower Compact. And with the English Civil War and subsequent issues between the Criwn and Parliamny, the colonistss were essentially allowed to develop on their own. There were also differeing attitudes toward educational and academic inquiry. The Catholic and Protestant traditions were also factors. The Encomienda concentrated land ownereship in Latin America in the hands of a very small portion of the population. Perhaps the most factor is the differeing legal systems. A factor affecting modern Latin America is the appeal of socialist ecomomics, depite the abysamal failure of socialist economics around the world. Religion was another factor with Larin America almost exclusively Catholic and North Ameruca mosty Protestant.
Attitudes toward work varied eminating from the Hispanic and English cultural traditions even before the colonial era.
Colonial administrative systems were also very different. Spanish and Portuhiese colonial rule was highly beareacratic closely controlled from Madrid and Lisbon. English/British control was much more limited and each of the 13 Atllanic colnies developed their owen legislastures. The Pilgrims even bedore they lsnded agreed on a coinstitution--the Mayflower Compact. And with the English Civil War and subsequent issues between the Criwn and Parliamny, the colonistss were essentially allowed to develop on their own.
There were also differeing attitudes toward educational and academic inquiry.
The Catholic and Protestant traditions were also factors. Religion was another factor with Larin America almost exclusively Catholic and North Ameruca mosty Protestant.
The Encomienda and Repartamiento concentrated land ownereship in Latin America in the hands of a very small portion of the population, a small number of families (16th century). We have discussed this with many Spanish individuals. They insisdt thst the Ecomienda and Repartamiento are not a major factor in Latun Americasn devlopment. Thy argue that both were rescinded after only a short period. This is correct, in part because of the abuses reported by Las Casas and the other fiasrs. The problem was what was not changed--the extent to ehich thr land was concentrated in the hands of only a few families. This concentration of land onership was not changed until the Land Reform programs of the 20th century following World War II.
Perhaps the most factor is the differeing legal systems
A factor affecting modern Latin America is the appeal of socialist ecomomics, depite the abysamal failure of socialist economics around the world.
Lain American undeniasbly has made significnt economuc progress in recent years. The region still lags behind the developed ecimomies of North America and Europe. Of course those are the most advanced countries of the world. What is much more difficult to understand is why there are no tiger economies in Latin America. The original tiger economies were the Asian Tigers (Singapore, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan.). Before World War II, much of Latin America was more porosperrous than these countries (at the time colonies). Yet these countries have nade the transition to developed countriess, actually since the 1970s. And other countries have done the same, inclusing large areas of China. While Latin America has made progress, there areb not Latin American Tiger economies. The reasonniof course is very simple. The Asian Tigers hace adopted capitalist, market economies. Much of the progress in Latin America has been the result of some market reforms, but no where in the region have market reforms gone to the extent of the Asian Tigers.
Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (W.W.Norton and Company: New York, 1997).
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