Norris McDonald | Chile, Argentina, fascist economics and the paradox of ignorance

Argentina’s President Javier Milei has begged China to renew the US$5 billion line of credit that he had previously rejected. This extension would be until July 2026.

Argentina was the biggest recipient of China’s funds in Latin America, under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) before President Milei came to power. They had received over US$17 billion soft loans between 2005 and 2022 under China’s BRI.

It was this huge cash influx that had helped to keep Argentina’s economy afloat.

Milei also refused to accept the invitation to become one of the new members of the Russia-China led BRICS bloc.

The cash strapped Argentina is now having a change of heart. Mass rebellion has been occurring almost daily as workers and the middle class protest his draconian “belt-tightening” economic policies.

Real wages of workers have fallen by over 17 per cent. This has led to rising anger against Milei’s unrealistic ‘anarcho-capitalist shock therapy’.

Javier Milei has now come to grips with the harsh reality that the country needs China’s generous cash support to avoid the further collapse of the Argentinian economy. Hence, despite his previous anti-China bravado, he has gone begging for help.

Milei, having come to power via elections, has been acting increasingly autocratic.

He has fired thousands of workers and cut wages of others. Even university professors have had their salaries cut.

Other autocratic policies include seizing tax revenues that were to be dispensed to the various regions.

This led to a howl of protest by all governors. But Milei was not swayed. Having seized their tax revenues, he has threatened to jail any governor who opposes his draconian measures.

Is this democracy?

In the meantime, there is no good news on the horizon for Argentina. Basic prices for food and other necessities have now skyrocketed by over 248 per cent.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in their recent assessment, expects that Argentina will see a rapid decline in economic activity (by -3.5 per cent) for the rest of the year.

And yet, in terms of economic bailout, the IMF only offered US$800 million to Argentina.

Is this how they treat their new ‘poster-boy’ of international capitalism?

Milei’s dramatic shift in political attitude poses extremely dangerous signs, in my opinion, for the future of Argentinian democracy.

Let us recall that Argentina, like many Latin American countries such as Chile, has had a long history of brutal military dictatorship.

We can therefore argue that autocratic rule is in the country’s political DNA.

FASCISM AS STATE CAPITALISM

My friends, get rid of your belief that there is any such thing as “free market capitalism”.

The experiences of developing nations have shown that America and Western nations have used political coups and militarism as means to control the wealth of many developing countries.

This is what has led to the emergence of what is called Fascism.

Fascism is the forced imposition of capitalism on a society to protect the interest of the wealthy minority and international capitalism.

It is this type of extreme power grab we may well be seeing in Argentina, or, as in the case of Chile and many other countries in Latin and Central America, Africa and elsewhere, was based on the violent overthrow of democratic government.

And this is a key point here.

Fascist politics and economics are based on using the government, the state sector to solve the crisis of capitalism.

Brute force is a common feature of fascist politics and economics. And this is what is most favoured by imperialism as they seek to create a docile working class to work for cheap labour.

International capitalism and agencies such as the IMF want the state to play a role in society. But, from their standpoint, it must be to suppress trade unions and the working class and promote the so-called “unfettered development of a free market system”.

THE PARADOX OF IGNORANCE

Clearly, we can see from this that the issue is not whether there must be an activist political sector. As far as they are concerned, the governments must not talk about or promote social justice.

The 1973 violent, bloody overthrow of President Salvadore Allende’s democratic government led to a compliant fascist dictatorship created to facilitate imperialism plunder of Chile’s copper mines.

My friends, despite years of fascism and bloodshed, Chile ended up with the worst forms of poverty and inequality in the world.

There was no so-called “economic miracle” created in Chile, as the evidence shows.

My dear friends, at the end of Augusto Pinochet’s brutal rule, Chile’s national treasury had been plundered, with half the international reserves shipped overseas.

A measure of the economic chaos, created under the brutal Chilean fascist dictatorship, was the fact that over 50 per cent of the population never earned enough to save money or even have a decent standard of living.

No wonder Pinochet ended his repugnant, scornful rule in 1990 in disdain. And was imprisoned.

It is truly shameful, therefore, for anyone to talk about a so-called ‘Chilean economic miracle’.

The basic debate comes down to the role of government in society.

Is it the role of government and state agencies to promote the development of capitalism? Or must the government use budget and tax policies, and assertive investment, to create social justice in society?

What about the issue of promoting food and nutritional and health security and quality education? Should that be left to the ravages of a so-called free market economy?

What do you think?

This ‘dumbing down of society’ belittles the social justice role of government, aimed at getting the working class to see themselves as mere economic slaves who unjustly toil without getting social and economic benefits from society.

Don’t be fooled, my friends!

It is delusional, based on either ignorance or a deliberate attempt to mislead, for people to promote such ridiculous ideas about a so-called “Chilean economic miracle”.

The bloody experiences of Chile and all fascist regimes must be condemned and never ever be supported in any country of the world, be it in Argentina or elsewhere!

That is just ‘the bitta truth’!

Norris McDonald is an economic journalist, political analyst, and respiratory therapist. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and miaminorris@yahoo.com.