Newsletter Subscribe
Enter your email address below and subscribe to our newsletter
All voices matter
On November 1, the Argentinian president was elected, but he is not your ordinary president or like the one we have (sorry, Mr. President).
So, who is this person, and why is he trending?
Meet Javier Milei, a self-described “anarcho-capitalist” and libertarian. For his abrasive attitude and inflammatory words, Milei, a 53-year-old economist with wild hair (like super wild) and bushy sideburns, has drawn a similarity with Donald Trump.
During the election season, Milei was mostly recognized as an oddball. He’s a former rock musician who formerly played in a Rolling Stones type of band and rose to fame as an economist and TV and radio analyst.
Once he used a chainsaw on stage and shattered a piñata in the air while campaigning. He’s said outrageous things, like labeling Pope Francis a filthy leftist and hailing American bandit Al Capone as a hero.
But what’s interesting is when he finished first in the country’s primaries, he thanked Conan, Murray, Milton, Robert, and Lucas.
Hmmm, but you must be thinking, so what? These five people must be important to him.
Well, they are not real people; they are his dogs.
He referred to them as the best strategists.
Milei adopted a dog in 2004 and named it after Conan the Barbarian Movie. González, an Argentine journalist and unofficial Milei biographer, said in the Buenos Aires Times that the pet became Milei’s “true and greatest love” and that Milei grew to consider Conan “literally his son.”
He said that when he felt neglected by others, the dog saved his life and spent countless Christmases alone with him.
But Conan died in 2007. So, he got genetic copies of Conan, the dog, which were created in a laboratory in New York.
Milei’s raged rants regarding the corrupt political class struck a chord with Argentines trying to make ends meet and angry with politicians they blame for their plight.
According to political commentators, Milei’s election indicates less personal approval and more of a protest against the established order.
His ideas include closing the central bank, abandoning the currency, and cutting expenditure, potentially harsh policies that have resonated with Argentinians frustrated with the economy.
In the bigger picture, Argentina is part of a regional pattern of the rise of an outsider with an appealing pitch that connects. Simply get rid of the political elite, and everything will be fine.
Join Our Knowledge Hub: Sign Up for Diverse Insights Today!