Interestingly, this many years after the fall of communism, some of the Eastern European nations have yet to match the GDP they had under "communist" regimes. Parts of Russia and the former USSR struggle to reach 40% of their former standard of living.
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Romania seems to be qite a bit worse off, and Bulgaria is not far behind. Mildova, Ukrane, Byelorus and the "stans" are all a lot worse off.
The idea that every nation will prosper under some sort of free capitalism is basically a myth. The culture and the economic system are clearly related. The best capitalism has done in a Hispanic country is Puerto Rico, which is far below Mississippi, and half of its citizens live in the States.
Spain, which is mildly Eurosocialist, has far and away gthe strongest and most equitable economy in the Hispanic world. It makes more sense therefore, for Argentina, Bolivia, Venezuela and Central America to emulkate Spain than to trust their fortunes in the hands of guys like Milton Friedman.