Rita Panahi: Right moves show voters reject far-Left idealism

Argentina is a country in crisis but its people have finally woken up and elected an anti-socialist leader, while hard-line conservatives are now winning elections across much of Europe.

THE GOOD

Argentina: Elections have consequences and after years of far-Left, Peronist rule Argentina is a country in crisis with the inflation rate hitting 143 per cent earlier this month. Argentina has gone from a wealthy nation with an enviable standard of living to one plunged into poverty and economic chaos.

This week, firebrand Javier Milei, a conservative, libertarian, vehemently anti-socialist, anti-woke anarcho-capitalist won the presidential election in a landslide.

The world’s media went into a predictable meltdown – similar to when Italy elected centre-Right Giorgia Meloni as prime minister last year – but Argentinians have finally woken up to the lunacy of watching close to half of the population living in poverty despite being blessed with abundant natural resources.

Argentina’s new president Javier Mile is no milquetoast politician. Picture: AFP

Milei is no milquetoast politician, he is an outsider who has been clear in his desire to tackle the bloated bureaucracy that has so poorly served the country. He understands the ideological battle in Argentina, and the broader West, is not limited to economic policy.

“You can’t give leftards an inch,” he said before the election. “If you give them an inch, they will use it to destroy you. You can’t negotiate with leftards … Since they can’t beat us
with real arguments, they use the repressive apparatus of the state (to destroy us)”. And like Trump before him, despite being falsely labelled a fascist and Nazi, Milei is ardently pro-Israel and plans to move Argentina’s embassy to Jerusalem.

Time will tell if he delivers on the comprehensive reforms he has promised or whether the “apparatus of the state” frustrates his agenda.

Anti-EU, right-wing populist Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party has won the most seats in the Dutch general election. Picture: AFP

The Netherlands: In the space of three days we’ve seen the triumph of the Argentinian Trump and the Dutch Trump. On Thursday anti-EU, right-wing populist Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party won the most seats in the Dutch general election.

Wilders, who wants a more restrictive immigration policy and an end to what he calls “the Islamisation” of the Netherlands is set to become the country’s first hard-Right prime minister.

“The people must get their nation back,” Wilders said.

He is likely to end the emissions war against Dutch farmers and walk away from many of the Netherlands’ destructive climate change policies.

From Italy to Sweden and Finland to stalwart Hungary and now the Netherlands, hard-line conservatives are winning elections across much of Europe. Meanwhile in the UK, the lily-livered, Malcolm Turnbull-esque Tories are trailing Labour in the polls.

Clare O’Neil has floundered under pressure in the crucial Home Affairs portfolio. Picture: Martin Ollman

THE BAD

Clare O’Neil: It’s been a shocking week for Clare O’Neil who has performed terribly in the aftermath of the High Court decision that saw convicted criminals including rapists, pedophiles and murderers freed from immigration detention.

O’Neil has floundered under pressure in the crucial Home Affairs portfolio, unable to answer simple questions, making contradictory statements and appearing wholly unprepared for the High Court ruling.

On Wednesday she couldn’t even confirm whether the released child sex offenders were wearing ankle bracelets, despite six days earlier accepting Peter Dutton’s amendments and passing emergency laws mandating the released detainees wear electronic ankle monitors. Perhaps less time mouthing off on X about Donald Trump Jnr and greater focus on her responsibilities as minister is in order.

Taxpayers deserve to know how much we paid for the ABC to settle its defamation matter with Bruce Lehrmann. Picture: Christian Gilles

ABC payout: Taxpayers deserve to know how much we paid for the ABC to settle its defamation matter with Bruce Lehrmann. Was there a financial settlement? Is the national broadcaster liable for legal fees?

Given it’s our money there should be transparency on who paid what to close this matter. Lehrmann’s defamation case against Ten and Lisa Wilkinson continues.

THE UGLY

The cowardice of the modern feminist movement is evident again as they remain largely silent in the face of the most horrific attacks against women by Hamas terrorists.

The same “progressive” feminists who rail against the supposed misogyny of “sexist airconditioning” (look it up) and risqué jokes are silent about the mass rape, torture and slaughter of Israeli women.

They are silent about a culture where the half-naked, broken bodies of brutalised women are paraded in the streets of Gaza and spat upon and struck by bystanders.

What we saw on October 7 is real rape culture in its most barbaric form.

Rita Panahi is a Herald Sun columnist