News of opinion

Does corruption matter?

03-12-2021 22:16 The blatant politicisation of the Judiciary does nothing to make Argentina look like a good place in which to do business.

by James Neilson

As I see it

When the centre cannot hold

26-11-2021 22:52 The old order is in deep trouble. In its way, it has been far too successful, but it has also raised expectations so much that few are able to reach what they think are reasonable goals.

by James Neilson

ELECTIONS 2021: ANALYSIS

Left’s great election provides support for the battles to come

20-11-2021 12:13 We know that we’re living in hard times for the working-class majorities who expressed their social discontent at the ballot box.

by Nicolás del Caño, via Noticias Argentinas

ELECTIONS 2021: ANALYSIS

How to freak out the IMF, an Argentine story

20-11-2021 11:55 It is difficult to fathom an IMF that will ink a deal with a nation that upholds dual exchange rates, price controls, relentless monetary expansion, and massive energy and utility subsidies in the context of perpetual deficits and extremely high inflation.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

ELECTIONS 2021: ANALYSIS

The second half

20-11-2021 11:54 Lessons from last Sunday’s election – and pointers for what lies ahead.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

As I see it

Alberto in Wonderland

20-11-2021 00:00 If Alice had a world of her own, “nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t.” In the world of Alice’s spiritual descendant, the Peronist coalition own a resounding victory in Sunday’s elections after losing in Buenos Aires Province. No doubt Alice would have approved.

by James Neilson

AND THAT REMINDS ME…

An epic victory, or mythical?

20-11-2021 00:00 To my mind, last Sunday’s midterms have a historic significance for reasons other than those usually given – as heralding the end of Kirchnerism (although not necessarily Peronism) and that truly impressive Senate breakthrough, doubling opposition numbers in just six years.

by Michael Soltys

Heightened uncertainty

Deep in the rabbit hole, Argentina searches for its soul

12-11-2021 22:17 Once the dust settles, Argentina will find itself deeper in the rabbit hole it has lived in for nearly a century and with even less margin than it had in the past.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

Is a change of course possible?

12-11-2021 21:58 Despite all the unpleasant things that have happened to the country since a pro-Axis military dictatorship gave birth to Peronism, millions still see belief in what they regard as its virtues as part of their personal identity.

by James Neilson

special report

‘Tío Gildo’: a modern-day caudillo in the heart of South America

05-11-2021 18:34 The astute politics of Formosa Governor Gildo Insfrán have helped the 70-year-old to climb to the top of his province’s government and stay there for more than three decades – a record in contemporary Argentina. With the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, the intensity of his administration’s social control led to clashes with protesters, highlighting the institutional flaws that have permitted him to sustain his grip on power.

by Cindy Monzón

As I see it

The moment of truth is fast approaching

05-11-2021 18:00 In just over a week, we shall know how much support Alberto’s quarrelsome and ramshackle administration has managed to retain.

by James Neilson

Greenwashing?

Overseas trips and the green agenda

05-11-2021 17:59 Argentina’s international agenda had moderate pretensions. President Fernández needed to show himself as the proactive leader of a country that has a say in world affairs, even if we don’t.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Guest voice

We need archaeologists in Congress

02-11-2021 07:00 Argentina’s new legislators will be 'archaeologists' of the laws.

by Federico Sturzenegger

Digital dystopia

The lies behind Zuckerberg’s Meta & Google’s Goodness

29-10-2021 23:37 It is clear that the level of complexity behind managing and supervising content on the Facebook family of products is extreme, yet Zuckerberg simply doesn’t seem interested in it.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

The Tom and Jerry show takes an ugly turn

29-10-2021 22:09 For well over half a century, the International Monetary Fund and Argentina’s populist establishment have been playing cat and mouse with each other. Though the IMF comes equipped with very sharp teeth and claws, all its attempts to corner Argentina have failed.

by James Neilson

As I see it

In the land of the magic money tree

22-10-2021 22:11 Capitalism is the only system that really works. Fighting it, as social justice warriors and politicians who seek to outbid them say is the duty of every decent person, is tantamount to waging war on prosperity.

by James Neilson

Politics

The ‘Pact’

22-10-2021 21:58 The real question isn’t about macroeconomics or philosophy, but rather about whether Team Mauricio and Team Cristina can actually leave aside their differences and work together.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

ENVIRONMENT

Critics question climate crisis benefits of deep seabed mining

16-10-2021 09:00 Commercial mining of the deep seafloor is not yet happening, but momentum is building. In response, a growing number of experts are sounding the alarm about a variety of environmental, food security, financial, and biodiversity concerns.

by Marta Montojo & Ian Urbina

Guest voice

The case for streamlining Congress

16-10-2021 00:01 Streamlining Congress would establish criteria of austerity, meritocracy and transparency in the use of human resources, but has not been considered for the past two decades.

by Gabriel C. Salvia

As I see it

Peronism has its back against the wall

16-10-2021 00:01 In the eyes of a growing proportion of the country, Cristina, Alberto, Aníbal and the rest of them represent the very worst of a self-serving political elite whose members are more interested in their own personal welfare than anything else.

by James Neilson

Politics

The Berni Headlock and the Cristina Shake

16-10-2021 00:01 Whether on purpose or not, the pan-Peronist coalition led by Alberto Fernández and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is trying to drag the conversation away from the economic failures during their tenure in an attempt to claw back votes.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Facebook’s dilemma

How to evade taxes while being a major global corporation in a globalised and digital world

09-10-2021 11:55 Facebook, Google, Amazon, and the largest technology companies out there, most of them headquartered in Silicon Valley but registered in tax havens like Ireland, have long bent the rules in order to innovate, but also to their own benefit.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

Argentina now in the danger zone

02-10-2021 00:33 In a country in which parliament calls all the shots, the fall of an unpopular government would not present any constitutional difficulties, but here things are done differently.

by James Neilson

POLITICS

Filthy, dirty, sexy (monopoly) money

01-10-2021 23:04 Frente de Todos will put out all the stops to win back disillusioned voters in Peronist strongholds that didn’t go out to vote.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

Make way for the shantytown liberals

25-09-2021 00:01 Some commentators and politicians have been considering the intriguing possibility that people who live in the country’s squalid urban slums could be acquiring a taste for free-market capitalism.

by James Neilson

Chaos In Power

Vive la résistance?

24-09-2021 21:44 Minister Guzmán’s courage and President Alberto’s newfound heroism could be part of the ‘resistance’ against the onslaught of Kirchnerism within the ranks of the Frente de Todos.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

And that reminds me

D’(H)ont ask me

18-09-2021 00:01 The autistic power plays now underway are only likely to sustain voting anger against a dysfunctional coalition.

by Michael Soltys

opinion and analysis

Kirchnerites reaping the whirlwind

18-09-2021 00:01 For there to be any chance of the country emerging relatively unscathed from the mess Cristina, with the help of easily bamboozled voters, has got it into, Alberto would have to start behaving like a genuine president.

by James Neilson

Cataclysm

Sore losers

18-09-2021 00:01 The structural issues facing the Argentine political system are substantially more profound than the superficial and lightweight Alberto Fernández.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

PASO 2021: OPINION & ANALYSIS

Facing up to defeat

14-09-2021 10:09 The defeat was logical enough, but in Argentina, the logical does not always happen.

by Rosendo Fraga

As I see it

Closing time in the gardens of the West

11-09-2021 09:48 Perhaps it is premature to talk, as the British essayist Cyril Connolly did soon after World War II, of “closing time in the gardens of the West,” but for many it does feel that something like that is taking place.

by James Neilson

And that reminds me…

Twenty years can be something

11-09-2021 09:35 Just as in the preceding generation everybody seemed to remember exactly what they were doing on the day of John Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, so 9/11 has remained the object of universal recall in the last 20 years.

by Michael Soltys

ELECTIONS 2021: PASO PRIMARIES

Turnout and undecided voters prove to be obstacles for pollsters

09-09-2021 23:27 Pollsters agree that the result in Buenos Aires Province will be closer than expected, but none pick the same winner. Most of the undefined are Frente de Todos voters in 2019.

by Gabriel Ziblat

GUEST VOICE

The challenge of reducing the gap between exchange rates

04-09-2021 10:39 Continuing the current chasm is a recipe threatening economic revival and halting investments.

by Miguel Kiguel

As I see it

Playtime for politicians

04-09-2021 10:18 In Argentina, politics has always had more to do with tribal feelings than with anything else.

by James Neilson

As I see it

When weakness is strength

27-08-2021 23:23 In politics, having an unprepossessing alternative at hand can be a big advantage.

by James Neilson

As I see it

A most humiliating retreat

21-08-2021 21:36 The United States handed Afghanistan back to the Taliban because years ago most of her political leaders, including Donald Trump and Joe Biden, had come to the conclusion that “nation-building” was utter folly.

by James Neilson

Dirty politics

A hatchet job for the perfect punching bag

21-08-2021 09:26 President Alberto’s hypocrisy will lower the count in the most populous electoral district of the nation, along with his pseudo-apology, and his subsequent backtracking. Yet, Alberto was chosen specifically for this reason: he’s the perfect punching bag.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

Desperately looking for an exit

14-08-2021 07:27 Though representatives of both sides are only too happy to tell us how much they detest their adversaries, they show little interest in examining their own record.

by James Neilson

Scandal

Partying in Olivos

14-08-2021 07:22 The line between being an able negotiator with the capacity to speak “eye to eye” with almost anyone, and becoming a charlatan is a fine one, particularly in politics.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

VACCINES FOR SALE?

The Sputnik saga continues

07-08-2021 11:44 Several sub-national jurisdictions throughout Argentina have announced their own plans to procure Covid-19 vaccines. Both Buenos Aires City and the provinces of Buenos Aires, Cordoba, Mendoza, Salta and Jujuy have come out publicly with their plans to purchase the inoculations, yet not a single one has arrived to the country yet.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

Journey to an unknown destination

07-08-2021 11:31 If mere facts are anything to go by, Argentina is heading for yet another almighty crash.

by James Neilson

BLOOMBERG - OPINION

United States should look south for better supply chains

04-08-2021 11:31 When it comes to 'friendshoring,' Latin America has much to offer, and much to gain.

As I see it

A tragedy in the making

31-07-2021 00:41 The Peronists have little interest in confronting the unions. However, in view of what the country will be up against in the very near future, the more realistic among them must be having second thoughts.

by James Neilson

As I see it

Cuba’s hard-right dictatorship

17-07-2021 11:12 For fanatics, the cause they are devoted to is infinitely more important than anything else, and there can be no doubt at all that, despite the evident failure of the revolution to deliver the promised goods, there are still plenty of fanatics in Cuba.

by James Neilson

Cash money

‘Experts in regulated markets’

03-07-2021 23:22 Argentina’s ‘experts in regulated markets’ are making big bets just at the right time.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As I see it

A great time for malcontents

03-07-2021 23:17 In the rich Western countries and their cultural offshoots, what was once the fringe has become the centre.

by James Neilson

CRISIS IN VENEZUELA

Maduro, Guaidó and Alberto: the beginning of a new phase in Venezuela?

26-06-2021 00:33 Both sides of the Venezuelan grieta have publicly stated their intention to sit at the negotiating table. This is a massive step forward after years of deadlock.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

AS I SEE IT

Joe Biden and his gaffe-prone doppelganger

26-06-2021 00:25 Before the middle of last year, Biden was widely seen as an elderly man on the verge of retirement who had turned into a gaffe machine.

by James Neilson

Electoral dirt

Porno-politics and Argentina’s digital rumour mill

19-06-2021 09:57 The rumour mill is working at full speed these days, and don’t expect it to die down – elections are around the corner.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

News of opinion

Does corruption matter?

When the centre cannot hold

Left’s great election provides support for the battles to come

How to freak out the IMF, an Argentine story

The second half

Alberto in Wonderland

An epic victory, or mythical?

Deep in the rabbit hole, Argentina searches for its soul

Is a change of course possible?

‘Tío Gildo’: a modern-day caudillo in the heart of South America

The moment of truth is fast approaching

Overseas trips and the green agenda

We need archaeologists in Congress

The lies behind Zuckerberg’s Meta & Google’s Goodness

The Tom and Jerry show takes an ugly turn

In the land of the magic money tree

The ‘Pact’

Critics question climate crisis benefits of deep seabed mining

The case for streamlining Congress

Peronism has its back against the wall

The Berni Headlock and the Cristina Shake

How to evade taxes while being a major global corporation in a globalised and digital world

Argentina now in the danger zone

Filthy, dirty, sexy (monopoly) money

Make way for the shantytown liberals

Vive la résistance?

D’(H)ont ask me

Kirchnerites reaping the whirlwind

Sore losers

Facing up to defeat

Closing time in the gardens of the West

Twenty years can be something

Turnout and undecided voters prove to be obstacles for pollsters

The challenge of reducing the gap between exchange rates

Playtime for politicians

When weakness is strength

A most humiliating retreat

A hatchet job for the perfect punching bag

Desperately looking for an exit

Partying in Olivos

The Sputnik saga continues

Journey to an unknown destination

United States should look south for better supply chains

A tragedy in the making

Cuba’s hard-right dictatorship

‘Experts in regulated markets’

A great time for malcontents

Maduro, Guaidó and Alberto: the beginning of a new phase in Venezuela?

Joe Biden and his gaffe-prone doppelganger

Porno-politics and Argentina’s digital rumour mill

Argentina confirms first case of Omicron Covid-19 variant

Gruesome killing of five-year-old Lucio Dupuy shocks Argentina

Travel curbs reimposed across globe over Omicron fears

Non-binary community left in limbo as systems fail to recognise new DNIs

Housing crisis in Argentina: the need for a broader perspective

Marcelo Longobardi, sobre su salida de Radio Mitre: “Todos somos commodities, sacando a Lanata que es un rockstar”

Chile: encuesta muestra que la ventaja de Gabriel Boric sobre Kast se acorta

VTV: cambian la forma de dar los turnos en provincia de Buenos Aires

Axel Kicillof anunció un pase sanitario obligatorio a partir del 21 de diciembre

Pesca ilegal: la Armada Argentina y Prefectura Naval dispusieron un patrullaje por 300 buques chinos