Paraguay, had a very small upper and middle class. But they are very consumer oriented and spend lavishly on parties and on their homes. It’s a land of contrasts for sure. As a person writing a book on consumerism and the middle class and upper classes in Paraguay during the Stroesser dictatorship a lot of the early modernization and architecture in Paraguay was built with hydro-cruzieros from Itaipu and it was during this era that consumption by the upper classes became quite ostentatious.
My father is an American expat living in Asuncion. Here is what he wrote as a reponse to this article:
"I agree with most of the opinions stated by the writer Rasheed Griffith. What his piece omits, I don’t think intentionally, is more facts regarding Paraguay’s history.
Paraguay, in its move towards independence, resulted in a bloodless coup from its Spanish administrators, unlike its neighbors. Its location and culture evolved uniquely different from the countries surrounding it. Two extremely ill-advised and devastating wars in the past 150 years have resulted in a very weird outlook. Countries like Brazil, Bolivia and Argentina did not exactly appreciate or understand Paraguay’s isolationist or(underdog) position.
Today, Paraguay has a rapidly growing middle class that has no intention in going backwards. Consumerism and technology have fed this movement for better or worse. Most of its exports are meat or plant based, with little real manufacturing in the mix, yet its economy and currency is stronger than its neighbors. It’s a country with lots of contradictions, and politics is only one aspect of everyday life here.
What is clear, is that there is no or very little appreciation for a (efficient) rules based society, be it professional certification, zoning planning and enforcement, judicial system and on and on. It doesn’t necessarily make life here unlivable, you just have to adapt your expectations to align with existing priorities.
Ironically, capitalism as practiced here, is much more honest than our (socialized) system, the nanny state, found in the USA and many parts of Europe. It is, for lack of better adjectives, the typical ‘patriarchal’ society.
As the article from Mr. Griffith would suggest, there seems to be an unhealthy opinion for existing buildings and infrastructure from yesteryear. My wife and some our students at Paraguay’s Central Bank have echoed this same sentiment. Foreign direct investment is not likely to be local, rather than from external sources. Paraguay as an import world citizen is not trapped in time, but trying to evolve and find its place in a shrinking world."
Paraguay, had a very small upper and middle class. But they are very consumer oriented and spend lavishly on parties and on their homes. It’s a land of contrasts for sure. As a person writing a book on consumerism and the middle class and upper classes in Paraguay during the Stroesser dictatorship a lot of the early modernization and architecture in Paraguay was built with hydro-cruzieros from Itaipu and it was during this era that consumption by the upper classes became quite ostentatious.
My father is an American expat living in Asuncion. Here is what he wrote as a reponse to this article:
"I agree with most of the opinions stated by the writer Rasheed Griffith. What his piece omits, I don’t think intentionally, is more facts regarding Paraguay’s history.
Paraguay, in its move towards independence, resulted in a bloodless coup from its Spanish administrators, unlike its neighbors. Its location and culture evolved uniquely different from the countries surrounding it. Two extremely ill-advised and devastating wars in the past 150 years have resulted in a very weird outlook. Countries like Brazil, Bolivia and Argentina did not exactly appreciate or understand Paraguay’s isolationist or(underdog) position.
Today, Paraguay has a rapidly growing middle class that has no intention in going backwards. Consumerism and technology have fed this movement for better or worse. Most of its exports are meat or plant based, with little real manufacturing in the mix, yet its economy and currency is stronger than its neighbors. It’s a country with lots of contradictions, and politics is only one aspect of everyday life here.
What is clear, is that there is no or very little appreciation for a (efficient) rules based society, be it professional certification, zoning planning and enforcement, judicial system and on and on. It doesn’t necessarily make life here unlivable, you just have to adapt your expectations to align with existing priorities.
Ironically, capitalism as practiced here, is much more honest than our (socialized) system, the nanny state, found in the USA and many parts of Europe. It is, for lack of better adjectives, the typical ‘patriarchal’ society.
As the article from Mr. Griffith would suggest, there seems to be an unhealthy opinion for existing buildings and infrastructure from yesteryear. My wife and some our students at Paraguay’s Central Bank have echoed this same sentiment. Foreign direct investment is not likely to be local, rather than from external sources. Paraguay as an import world citizen is not trapped in time, but trying to evolve and find its place in a shrinking world."
Excellent comment. Thanks!