Political culture matters, a lot

By: Hugo Marcelo Balderrama - 25/11/2024

Guest columnist.
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Statista Research Department estimated that 65.1 million people in the United States were of Hispanic origin in 2023, making Hispanics one of the largest and most important ethnic groups in the country.

Of that group, 85% come from families whose economic conditions in their countries of origin bordered on extreme poverty. However, that same percentage expresses their discontent with the American way of life: It is a society centered on work with almost no time for fun, is the most common complaint of many Hispanics.

Note the paradox: they are practically leaving poverty behind, joining the American middle class, which means having more than one car and a comfortable house, but they complain that the United States is not what they would like it to be: an eternal carnival.

Axel Kaiser often describes this phenomenon as Populist Ethos. Basically, the almost pathological need to always be the victim, even when not being one. That is why, even in conditions of material well-being, Latin Americans have to play the victim card. Something like: In our countries we had more time for partying, rumbling and having fun.

But the Populist Ethos also feeds another of the basest human feelings: envy. Hispanics, in the vast majority of cases, tend to believe that redistributing wealth from the richest to the neediest is the best way to build more prosperous nations. Between a society without rich people and one without poor people, they prefer the former.

So any charlatan who wants to seize power only has to offer two things: 1) Harm the rich, and 2) Promise to share the fruits of his actions with the "poor."

We have been practicing this disastrous experiment for decades, always with the same results of extreme poverty and dictatorial systems, but we are willing to try again. It is very sad, but in countries like my native Bolivia, being corrupt, lazy, uneducated, a bad father and mediocre is easily excusable. What they will never forgive you for is being a successful entrepreneur and an educated person.

Paradoxically, this lack of political culture always results in systems that produce a caste of super-rich people, not as a result of their business or commercial skills, but thanks to corruption and abuse of power. Cristina Fernández, Hugo Chávez, Fidel Castro, Rafael Correa and Evo Morales are clear examples of how immoral, uneducated people whose only skill is crime can raid the heritage of entire nations, but can also stay on top by liquidating those who oppose them, regardless of whether they are on the same side.

What can we do?

I am fully aware that it is impossible to change the culture of nations, but we can start with the most intimate and important circles, for example, our families.

Take advantage of any opportunity to explain to your children that freedom and capitalism are important pillars for our lives. The former allows us to choose which path we want to follow. The latter is the only system that guarantees us productivity, decent wages and opportunities to escape poverty. That waiting for the State to solve problems is, in reality, the biggest of our problems. That taking care of the body and cultivating the mind are the greatest displays of self-love. That democracy is not limited to casting a vote on election day, but requires a permanent civic commitment. That political culture matters, and a lot.

«The opinions published herein are the sole responsibility of its author».