During a time of turmoil in many of the world’s regions, one corner of the globe is receiving little attention -- a sign that things are going rather well there despite the audible commotion elsewhere. South America, a continent that for decades made unwelcome news, has settled into a steady, if not exactly sedate pace of progress.
To be sure, the Southern Cone is not free of problems -- far from it. But compared to the atmosphere of crisis stalking the developed West, or the political upheaval battering the Middle East, it looks downright placid and, dare we say, promisingly stable.
The continent’s cycles -- of economic boom and bust, of kleptocratic regimes driving each other out of power and of perilous dependence on the economic fortunes of the United States -- seem to have eased into the past. South American nations are certainly feeling the impact of the global economic and political waves, but they are staying afloat and moving forward amid the storm.