Argentina

The upcoming 30th anniversary of the Falklands war has heightened tensions between the two countries.

With Greece in turmoil, a look at the debt defaults a decade ago in South America could prove instructive. Had Europeans diagnosed problems and acted quickly, they might have come out of this like Uruguay, in 2002. But it looks like Greece may be following Argentina, which defaulted on $100 billion in 2001.

Over the past decade, Argentina's cattlemen have quietly shifted their cows from grass to grain. Blame soaring world prices for commodities like soybeans, as well as government policies discouraging export. Argentine chefs say the switch to grain-fed beef marks the loss of a cultural icon.