Argentine President Javier Milei recently made a fiery appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he strongly condemned socialism and other radical ideologies. In recent months, Javier Milei has garnered a reputation in the media for his right-wing and libertarian stances, a stark contrast to much of what is often delivered at events such as the World Economic Forum.
During his powerful speech in Davos, Milei explained the virtues of capitalism to world leaders while claiming socialism creates poverty. He also added that large government is “the problem itself” and “not the solution” while pointing out that leftist ideology has infiltrated Western governmental bodies.
“I am here today to tell you that the West is in danger. It is in danger because those who are supposed to uphold the values of the West find themselves co-opted by a worldview that inexorably leads to socialism, and consequently, to poverty,” Milei said in the opening of his speech.
Milei drew from the personal experiences of his homeland to illustrate how “collectivist” political ideology can destroy a nation. Argentina became a world power in the late 1800s, only to descend into poverty over the last century.
“We are here to tell you that collectivist experiments are never the solution to the problems that afflict the citizens of the world but, on the contrary, they are their cause,” the Argentine president stated. “Believe me, there is no one better than us Argentines to bear witness to these two issues.”
The libertarian economist pointed out that while woke politics seems to have accelerated over the past decade or so in developed Western countries, it has been present in Argentina for decades, where its effects are well-observed.
“They say that capitalism is bad because it is individualistic and that collectivism is good because it is altruistic, and consequently they strive for ‘social justice.’ Milei said. “But this concept, which in the first world has become fashionable in the last decade, has been a constant in my country’s political discourse for more than 80 years.”
Milei continued denouncing social justice for its moral shortcomings and lack of benefit for broader society. “The problem is that social justice is not only not fair, but also does not contribute to the general welfare. On the contrary, it is an intrinsically unjust idea, because it is violent. It is unjust because the state is financed by taxes and taxes are levied coercively — or can any of us choose not to pay taxes? Which means that the state is financed through coercion, and the greater the tax burden, the greater the coercion,” he added.
The newly elected president reminded world leaders at the forum that the material surplus much of the world enjoys today is entirely the product of free market capitalism and that the impoverishing aspects of socialism should not destroy it. “There has never been, in all of human history, a time of greater prosperity than the one we live in today,” he said. “The world today is freer, richer, more peaceful, and more prosperous than at any other time in our history.”
Argentina’s new President Javier Millei slams socialism while speaking at the WEF. pic.twitter.com/cQDBfu6CJq
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