All nine were given equal power. What is so discouraging about the example of Uruguay is not only that its welfare programs persisted, but that they became more extreme in spite of the successive disasters to which they led. The story seems so incredible that instead of telling it in my own words, I prefer to present it as a series of snapshots taken by different firsthand observers at intervals over the years. Uruguay today offers the sad spectacle of a sick Welfare State. No politician comes out with the home truth that this country's wide range of welfare services has to be paid for with funds which have to be earned.
Demagogy is used as a sedative.
The result is that the foreign payments deficit is increasing, internal debt soaring, wage demands accumulating, prices rising, and the Uruguayan peso rapidly depreciating. Nepotism is rife. The foreign payments deficit has been running at a monthly rate of about 5 million pesos. The public servants are asking for a substantial increase in salaries. No politician here can hope to get a majority by advocating austerity, harder work, and the sacrifice of even some of the Welfare State features.