I think it’s quite frightening that
1) we do not know how algorithms choose what news to show and when,
2) we are getting most of our news on these platforms, and
3) we don’t talk about this often enough.
AGI will *always* be 2 or 3 years away.
I don't know about you but 'ban dangerous politicians, expel hate speech from platforms, mandate antiracist education' to me sound like very weak tools to fight far-right movements. Too big a focus on rhetoric and ideas, not so much on material conditions.
oh wow, looks like I wrote an actual article haha. Thanks!
Immer gern 🙂
If you want to dig deeper on the German Milei story, read this piece by Ute Löhning. Currently only available in German, but you know the tools. rega-net.org/de/recherche...
Plus: Argentina and Germany are structurally very different economies. Importing the chainsaw logic into a context where the diagnosed disease doesn't exist in the same form is a political choice, not an economic prescription.
There are also democratic concerns. Milei has governed largely through executive decree, bypassing Congress where possible (he's the first president with a minority in both chambers of Congress). He has attacked the judiciary, the press and independent institutions.
Researcher Can Cinar for The Conversation writes, "the supposed victory over inflation is actually the institutionalisation of lower wages and a lower standard of living for most people." theconversation.com/javier-milei...
But there's also other facts: Since he took office in 2023, the country’s manufacturing output has dropped dramatically, with over 2,000 businesses shutting down, 73,000 jobs lost. Critics say Milei has made people so poor they can't participate in the economy. buenosairesherald.com/economics/ar...
There's been serious criticism of Milei's policies. But I'll start some facts: Inflation did fall dramatically (from 200%+ when he took office to 31% by end of 2025), Argentina recorded its first budget surplus in over a decade and GDP grew 4.4% in 2025. www.batimes.com.ar/news/economy...
It's important to note: none of this proves actual policy change in Germany. The country still has strong trade unions, a constitutional debt brake and a new coalition (w/o FDP) + now-Chancellor Merz in 2024 was speechless by Lindner's remarks. But: What the evidence shows is there's infrastructure.
There's some infrastructure, too. For example, in Dresden (in eastern German state Saxony), there's a new deregulation institute explicitly branded after him now. www.milei-institut.de
But it's more than simple admiration. For example, Bagus has spoken to the AfD's Bavarian parliamentary group and a Bavarian Landtag enquete commission on deregulation. That's direct policy-adjacent influence on the mainstream-to-far-right spectrum. www.instagram.com/p/DHdWQVuop2E/
There's also FDP Secretary General Nicole Büttner, who, more recently, posted a selfie with Milei at Davos 2026, calling him a "blueprint for Germany and Europe". His "appetite for reform" is what makes many in the FDP feel enthusiastic about Milei. www.instagram.com/p/DT0J7CUgrn1/
There are also prominent FDP politicians who have praised Milei & his policies. One of them is Lindner. As Germany’s Finance Minister in 2024, he said we should dare “more Musk and Milei”, code for cutting social & environmental spending. He said this during a coalition dispute that later collapsed.
The foundation has hosted multiple events w/ Philipp Bagus, an economist specifically praising Argentine economic policy for German audiences. Bagus is professor in Madrid and knows Milei personally. He did his PhD under Huerta de Soto, Milei's intellectual mentor. okdiario.com/economia/hue...
German taxpayer money has funded an office of the foundation in Buenos Aires for over 40 years. The foundation operates in the same political space as the people now running Argentina, and it is now actively promoting Milei's model for Germany.
There is some evidence for this claim. The Friedrich Naumann Stiftung (taxpayer-funded foundation of the FDP, Germany's liberal party) has played a not-so-minor role here.
Did you know that Javier Milei's chainsaw political movement is now being actively promoted here in Germany? Yes, we have our own supporters of anti-state economic policy and right-libertarian thought. But now they're going international, connecting the dots between domestic debates and Milei.
They are threatening the Pope. “The United States has the military power to do whatever it wants in the world. The Catholic Church had better take its side.” newrepublic.com/post/208820/...
My latest for Middle East Eye: satellite imagery analysis reveals that an Ethiopian army base in western Ethiopia is being used as a weapons & logistics hub by Sudan's UAE backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF), to launch cross border attacks on Sudanese army positions from Ethiopia.
The only exception here is Spain, which has denied the US. Some US aircrafts have been relocated to Germany and France instead even. Thanks to Max Colchester and Bojan Pancevski for this article (unfortunately behind a paywall). www.wsj.com/world/europe...
Despite what Trump says about Europe, NATO's top military commander Grynkewich recently said: Most European allies "have been extremely supportive." The continent hosts around 40 US military bases and some 80,000 personnel. Europe *is* the launchpad for Middle East and Africa.
According to US/German officials, it's "the nerve center of America’s operations against Iran". In the UK, heavy B-1 bombers were loading munitions at RAF Fairford. In Greece, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, is undergoing repairs in Crete.
Trump has been calling Europe cowards for staying on the sidelines. Europe was *not* on the sidelines. It just can't say that out loud. For example, attack drones were being directed from Ramstein in Germany, one of the largest US bases in the world. www.thenation.com/article/arch...
European leaders were publicly saying "this isn't our war." Their military bases and "logistical support" tell a different story. A thread on the not-so-hidden infrastructure behind the Iran war 🧵
According to US and German officials, it is "the nerve center of America’s operations against Iran". In the UK, heavy B-1 bombers are loading munitions at RAF Fairford. In Greece, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, is undergoing repairs at a naval base in Crete.
Trump has been calling Europe cowards for staying on the sidelines. Europe is *not* on the sidelines. It just can't say that out loud. For example, attack drones are being directed from Ramstein in Germany. The base is one of the largest US bases in the world. www.thenation.com/article/arch...
Instead: oil prices, political commentary are what dominate the front pages. So here’s the question: Why is a major escalation with civilian casualties treated as secondary, while its economic consequences take center stage?