Central America
 

OK, I'm trying to follow. Right-wing dictatorships show good economic growth and eventually turn into democracies, except when they are kleptocracies and don't, except that some kleptocracies (like the Phillipines) do evolve into democracies. Communist regimes do not show good economic growth and do not turn into democracies, except that some liberalize their economic policy and do experience rapid growth (like China and Vietnam). These countries are going to turn into democracies soon, notwithstanding whatever their leaders might try to do about it.

Central America
 

Actually, I think you can tell when these regimes are instituting the right policies. So you can't really tell in advance but you can tell pretty quickly. In general the US supported the good ones but we also supported some bad lemons we shouldn't have. We supported some, like Marcos, who we had no business supporting. However, I would posit that liberals did not like us supporting any non-democratic free market regime. They did support some regimes that were hostile to free markets. I understand why. Many of these socialist regimes when they got in instituted universal medical care and education like Castro and the Sandinistas - but these positive actions were completed negated by the fact that destroyed the economy.

Wolfie
 

Yeah, actually I'm more concerned about that Italian journalist who got shot. Anyone know if she's going to be OK? Will she have any scarring or disability? That would be awful.

Central America
 

Did Reagan keep handwritten notes explaining which of the right-wing dictatorships we were supporting would transmogrify into democracies?

Negated unless, for example, you're a poor Cuban kid who needs health care. In which case the trade-off maybe works some advantages.

Wolfie
 

I think Italy is pretty socialist, plus she's famous now, so if she is disabled she probably won't end up begging on the streets.

Though, the private security force in my neighborhood keeps the beggars off our streets (it's private property, you know!!) so I don't really care about that.

managed care
 

Ah that explains it, ShakeNBake Reno and Billybob were just trying to get him the superior healthcare that Cuban socialism offers.

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Central America
 

First of all you are using the logic that one exception disproves the rule. This is not Geometry, it is politics. You can't say - the theory that democracy is good is wrong because democratic Germany produced Nazi Germany.

Second - it is not right wing dictatorships - whatever the hell that means - it is pro-growth dictatorships. A kleptocracy is very different from a pro-growth dictatorship. Yes - sometimes a kleptocracy can turn into a democracy - but in the Philippines it came with US intervention and the resulting democracy is very unstable.

Third - Before Russia buckled no communist dictatorships turned into democracies. After Russia buckled some did. But many held on by keeping their countries poor - Cuba, North Korea, Burma and Vietnam.

After the end of the cold war it became obvious that socialism does not work. Cuba, North Korea and Burma all ignored the message. However, China decided, hey, lets switch to Capitalism. For once a Communist dictatorship decided to do the right thing. So China is now a pro-growth dictatorship. Vietnam following China's example, experimented with free markets, but changed its mind after it saw the political instability free markets caused.

And yes - China will become more Democratic the larger its middle class gets.

Because almost all of the other progrowth dictatorships go democratic - Spain, Portugal, Chile, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, Indoneisa, Malaysia etc.

Central America
 

Why are you so concentrated in Asia?

Was plated always in SF, or is it a new move for him?

Central America
 

Probably not - but the CIA, Weinberger and Schultz and almost every conservative think tank knew which dictatorships were instituting good economic policies and which ones were not. The liberals did not care. If it was not a left leaning dictatorship it was bad to Ted Kennedy and John Kerry regardless of its economic policies. If it was a left leaning dictatorship, like the Sandinistas, they were willing to give it some slack.



Of course. But universal healthcare does not justify condemning an entire nation to poverty, oppression and bad medical care (because the government can not afford decent medical care)

managed care
 

It's nice to know that your dedication to anti-communism is so strong that you think children should be taken from their parents. As a parent, I have a problem with that, but that's just me.

Central America
 

I thought you said Hussein was one of the bad ones.

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Central America
 

They also get rice steamers.

Central America
 

I lived in Asia for many years and travelled to most of the Asian countries multiple times for work. Stick with what you know.

Central America
 

It's dangerous to generalize outside of what you know into areas that you don't know. You made a worldwide rule based on your experiences in Asia. If you'd limited your scope, you (a) would have sounded smarter and less blowhard-y and (b) might have been, like, you know, correctish.

managed care
 

What is it with you conservatives and your revisions of history?

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