When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
Geopolitics

In Case You Missed It: Our Weekly Olympic Roundup (Bonus Edition)

London 2012 roundup for the week: everything you need to know -- and some things you don't:


Articles:

Welcome To The *Lodnon Oimplycs*

Finally A Chance To Shine: Libya's First Olympics Without Gaddafi

Olympic Biz - Why London Is Rolling Out Red Carpet For China

Fearing Doping Tests, China Has Banned All "Foreign" Food For Olympic Athletes

World's Biggest Online Community Hoping to Cash in on the Olympics


Crunch It:

Olympics: Bad Badminton And Crashing Cyclists, Is That Strategy Or Cheating?

New Zealand Olympics Athlete Says He's No Pimp

Former U.S. Team Member Answers Vital Question: Do Olympic Swimmers Pee In The Pool?

Eight Badminton Players Disqualified For Throwing Games

Olympic Horses: Most Pampered Athletes In The Olympic Games

Sour Grapes? China Swimming Prodigy Raises Red Flags

Bed Bugs Invade London Just In Time For The Olympics

London 2012 Gets No Medals For Its Dreadful Marketing

Oh No They Didn't: First Day Of Olympic Events, First Major Diplomatic Gaffe

Perils Of Olympic Tweeting: Greek Athlete Kicked Off Team For Racism

The World's Most Famous Street Artist Banksy Takes On The Olympics

French Paralympic Athlete Gets Stolen Arm Back

Bonus video:

Phelps wins a medal, Lego-style...

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Ideas

The Demagogue's Biggest Lie: That We Don't Need Politics

Trashing politics and politicians is a classic tool of populists to seduce angry voters, and take countries into quagmires far worse than the worst years of democracy. It's a dynamic Argentina appears particularly vulnerable to.

Photograph of Javier Gerardo Milei making a speech at the end of his campaign.​

October 18, 2023, Buenos Aires: Javier Gerardo Milei makes a speech at the end of his campaign.

Cristobal Basaure Araya/ZUMA
Rodolfo Terragno

-OpEd-

BUENOS AIRES - I was 45 years old when I became a politician in Argentina, and abandoned politics a while back now. In 1987, Raúl Alfonsín, the civilian president who succeeded the Argentine military junta in 1983, named me cabinet minister though I wasn't a member of his party, the Radicals, or any party for that matter. I was a historian, had worked as a lawyer, wrote newspapers articles and a book in 1985 on science and technology with chapters on cybernetics, artificial intelligence and genetic engineering.

That book led Alfonsín to ask me to join his government. My belated political career began in fact after I left the ministry and while it proved to be surprisingly lengthy, it is now over. I am currently writing a biography of a molecular biologist and developing a university course on technological perspectives (futurology).

Talking about myself is risky in a piece against 'anti-politics,' or the rejection of party politics. I do so only to make clear that I am writing without a personal interest. I am out of politics, and have never been a member of what Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni calls la casta, "the caste" — i.e., the political establishment.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest