He was a Jack-in-the-box. An outsider who got more than seven million votes at the PASO primaries last Sunday. No one expected such a huge victory of libertarian Javier Milei. No major poll predicted it. They never saw it coming. None of them. I’m not a political analyst, but I can’t help thinking that voters in Argentina are so disappointed, so disheartened, so fed up with traditional political parties, that many of them decided to choose a newcomer instead. The trouble is that Milei’s radical ideas sound rather extreme. As extreme as his vehement, almost theatrical behavior. I wonder: is he playing a character or is that his real personality? He calls his sister “the boss”, and refers to his dogs as his “kids”. Not to mention his hairstyle. Or does he wear a wig? He loves looking like a rockstar rather than a presidential candidate. Let’s bear in mind a couple of things. He’s openly against abortion, supports the right to bear arms, and believes selling human organs should be legal. Against all evidence, he has stated that climate change is a “socialist lie”. Quite scary, in my opinion. Truth to tell, Milei’s not my cup of tea.
Buenos Aires Times, Aug 19, 2023