The Good:

I have listened to several long-form Spanish interviews with Javier Milei, during which he discusses his plans to transform the Argentine economy. The man is charismatic, funny, and can articulate himself in a simple yet powerful way. His primary goal of improving the Argentine economy involves eliminating the Argentine central bank. He argues that decades of central planning, socialist and Keynesian mainstream economic policies, characterized by constant paper fiat money printing, have had a detrimental impact on Argentina.

Milei asserts his intention to deprive the Argentine central bank of the ability to create/print money at will. He argues that this increase in the money supply leads to inflation, devaluing the purchasing power of money. Consequently, the average Argentine suffers, having to work harder and longer to make ends meet because the fiat paper money they are compelled to use, due to legal tender laws, keeps depreciating in value. This results in purchasing fewer goods and services than it did in previous years, exemplified by the Argentine peso losing 90% of its value in just four years.

Indeed, central banks control the means of money production—a notion rooted in Marxist and socialist ideology, contradicting principles of a free market and property rights. Point number 5 of the Communist Manifesto, authored by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, explicitly advocates for the centralization of credit in the state’s hands through a national bank, with state capital and an exclusive monopoly. This exemplifies significant state intervention that adversely affects people in diverse ways.

The central bank monetary system primarily benefits only a select few at the expense of the majority. These individuals include those in proximity to power, such as politicians and bankers. They have the privilege of receiving the new supply of money when it is initially created, allowing them to acquire assets at lower prices before a subsequent wave of inflation occurs. This phenomenon is referred to as the Cantillon Effect.

Apart from his anti-Argentinian central bank policy, Javier Milei has also hinted at another good idea: the elimination of legal tender laws. In other words, let people freely choose what kind of money they want to use to save, get paid, and buy products and services. Thus, citizens can choose the type of money they value most. With draconian legal tender laws, the state forces citizens to use the state’s paper fiat currency. This is problematic because, as explained earlier, citizens holding such currencies suffer when central banks decide to increase the money supply for various reasons, ultimately devaluing the purchasing power of the fiat money they are compelled to hold and use for tax payments.

That’s why Melei has previously admired Bitcoin, a decentralized monetary network created to challenge the central banking system. Bitcoin aims to return money to the people (the free market) instead of being controlled by a central bank monopoly. His suggestion of allowing people to choose the type of money they value most for transactions and savings means they can opt for Bitcoin, gold, or any other type of money stronger than the Argentine peso. Given that Argentinians already prefer using and saving in dollars in the “black market”, Melei is eager to formalize dollarization in the Argentine economy.

I appreciate Javier Milei’s stance on lowering taxes. It seems fair, considering that nation-states, through central banks, indirectly tax citizens via inflation without acknowledgment. To compound matters, citizens are then required to officially contribute more of their hard-earned money through tax returns. While the rationale often cites social welfare and contributing to society, the reality is less noble. Without the inflationary impact of central banks’ fiat systems, people wouldn’t depend on inflated bureaucratic nation-states for financial assistance. It’s akin to a thief assaulting you, stealing your wallet that contained $1000, and then returning $1 for a bandage after breaking your nose.

I also appreciate the fact that Javier Melei claims to adhere to the Austrian School of Economics—a school of economic thought that emphasizes the importance of free market processes, hard money (currency difficult for a state or individuals to easily create or inflate), limited government intervention, and critiques of central banking. This school argues that economic phenomena are best understood through the actions and decisions of individuals (praxeology). Key figures associated with this school include Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, and Murray Rothbard. Rothbard, also a political theorist and historian, made significant contributions to Austrian economic thought by extending and developing the ideas of Ludwig von Mises, ultimately becoming a leading figure in the modern Austrian School.

The Bad:

Milei supports the USA and the Zionist Ethno-State of Israel, the original fiat state. The notorious Balfour Declaration, drafted by the British, outlined their commitment to establishing a “Jewish homeland in Palestine” and was addressed to the Rothschild banking family—the same Rothschilds who created the Federal Reserve in the USA, the central bank of all central banks, the fat fiat daddy of the SWIFT payments network.

How can Melei oppose central banking in Argentina but then associate himself with the world’s top central bank, which controls all other central banks globally? This central bank lies at the core of the global usurious fiat debt-based system. Can we truly consider Milei’s critiques of communism and socialism credible when the Federal Reserve, a central bank Karl Marx would be proud of, is at the heart of the USA?

Professor Saifedean Ammous, who also subscribes to the Austrian school of economics, has stated:

“The Bank of England, followed by the US Federal Reserve Bank, successfully controlled the world both militarily and economically. Their economic dominance enabled military control. Their motivation to do so is to subject the world to a central banking system that benefits them through inflation. This global central banking system played a fundamental role in financing the Zionist movement from its inception. The Rothschild family, a prominent banking family, played a key role in establishing the global central banking system and contributed significantly to funding the Zionist project.”

Melei always insists he’s anti-communism and socialism, which is good. However, the initial 30 years of Israel’s existence (from 1948 to 1977) were characterized by socialist rule, contradicting Milei’s claimed respect for “property rights.” How can one support property rights, as Javier Milei purports, while endorsing a nation-state that has and continues to infringe upon the property rights of the Palestinian people? He states he won’t ally with autocratic states but aligns with Israel, the nation-state that controls Palestinian water and electricity, subjecting them to collective punishment.

Meleis’s plan to dollarize the Argentine economy is an acceptable short-term measure. This is because the shift from a very weak fiat currency, the Argentine peso, to a slightly stronger fiat currency, the US Dollar, would likely slow down inflation. However, it is important to note that this won’t completely “end inflation,” as Melei sometimes claims. US dollars still experience a loss of purchasing power, as evident from the experiences of citizens in the USA or in countries that dollarized their economy years ago, such as Ecuador.

Javier Milei has named some of his beloved dogs after economists he admires, such as Murray Rothbard, Milton Friedman, and Robert Lucas. It’s unfortunate that Javier Milei didn’t share Murray Rothbard’s anti-Zionist stance. Rothbard, of Jewish descent, explicitly stated in his writings the Zionist Nation State of Israel is the main source of injustice towards the Palestinians. He emphasized that Jews and Arabs had peacefully coexisted for centuries under Islamic governance, notably in Spain. The ideology of Zionism, born as a response to European anti-Semitism, is identified by Rothbard as the root cause of turmoil in the Middle East.

The mainstream media often emphasizes that Melei follows the Austrian school of economics, a claim he himself makes. However, some of his statements and the fact that he named two of his dogs after Milton Friedman and Robert Lucas leads me to believe that Melei is more aligned with the Chicago school of economics than the Austrian school. Murray Rothbard disliked Milton Friedman because, in Rothbard’s view, Friedman wasn’t genuinely pro-free market, held anti-gold and pro-fiat money views, and supported the stabilization of prices (which involves state intervention). Rothbard considered Friedman only marginally better than the Keynesians in certain respects. It’s worth noting that the Keynesian school of economics, the predominant thought in most universities’ economics programs, supports the current global central banking system.

Melei has flirted and continues to flirt with the Zionist variety of Judaism (not all religious or secular Jews are pro-Zionism). Before winning the presidency of Argentina, Milei traveled to New York to visit the grave of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, known to adherents of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or simply the Rebbe. Schneerson had a significant influence on numerous political world leaders from across the aisle, many of whom sought his advice.

He received visits from presidents, prime ministers, governors, senators, congressmen, and mayors. Notable among them were John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr., Benjamin Netanyahu, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Ariel Sharon, Jacob Javits, Ed Koch, Rudy Giuliani, David Dinkins, Joe Lieberman, and many others. Javier Milei visited the gravesite of the Rabbi in New York again today (28/11/2023) but this time as the president-elect of Argentina.

In conclusion, one cannot genuinely oppose central banks and their debt-based, inflationary fiat paper currencies, criticize large intrusive nation-states and their bloated bureaucracy, express support for Bitcoin due to its genuinely decentralized monetary network, advocate for property rights, and simultaneously endorse Zionism. Javier Milei is a walking paradox; his stupid 1971 haircut is off the gold standard and backed by fiat debt.