 This is Mises weekends with your host Jeff Dice Ladies and gentlemen welcome back once again to our Mises weekend show We're so happy to be joined by a returning guest Yuri Maltsev I'm sure most of you know him. He's a senior fellow here at the Institute Defected from the former Soviet Union in the late 1980s. He's a longtime professor of economics at Carthage College He's he's traveled all over the world and spoken on socialism and communism and written many many articles So Yuri it's been too long. Welcome back to the show. Oh, thank you. It's so nice to be with you Well before we get into Some things I want to talk about including the death of Fidel Castro Let me get your quick download on Trump's victory. What do you think? Libertarians got right and got wrong about Trump. It's it's obviously something most of us didn't expect Yes, I would I kind of think that that we made a near escape from from sharing a socialist future With with Cuba and North Korea So I am kind of with some reservations definitely Because Trump is not ideal, but from another hand Trump really kind of Reminds me a little bit of a random Characters and then I think he himself he believes that he's the second comment of Horde Rourke he gave this interview I don't know if you're familiar with you know He he kind of described himself as a is a great fan of the environment and to the fountain head is Sitting on his desk or his life So hopefully if he will be following this model or John Galt or whatever then then we will see an Anti-communist anti-socialist in the White House from another hand he has some this tendencies of being protectionist of being Kind of having a stronger conservative state That definitely is not very attractive, but I completely agreed with Walter block who Who even started this this website libertarians for Trump? It's on the Facebook I think So that that's much better than the alternative It's unfortunately that that's fortunate that that we have a thriving thriving consumer market But then politics the supply of good characters is very limited But I do think a lot of libertarians miss were mistaken when they thought that that Trump was worse than Hillary Don't you agree? I think that from a cultural Perspective I think in a Trump administration. There's at least a possibility that libertarians have a voice Maybe a one or two slightly libertarianish cabinet members. I think in a Hillary administration Libertarians absolutely would not have a voice Exactly exactly and also for me because I came from the socialist State and for me any capitalist is better than socialist That was that was not a matter of choice for me because Trump is is whatever you like him or not But here's the capitalist he was creating value of his life and if you will look at It mrs. Clinton what kind of value she was creating she was one of the one of the most corrupt figures and And there's a all this kind of rumors about this russian hand and elections and the Putin was manipulating things Putin was manipulating her as well if I'm reading russian press put in in 2012 Putin's stuges provided 34 million dollars to her foundation for this uranium one deal so that's There's a funny caricature in this vestia where a Putin is addressing mrs. Clinton saying that I want to refund Oh here's his money Yes, so that's so that's definitely would be a choice. Yes, and some some libertarians whom I know They they voted for mr. Johnson and mr. Johnson And I know Well, fortunately all the libertarians are from california. So so they they vote doesn't matter whether whom they vote for But I think that that was a clear cut choice. Yes And and now here's the pointing some you're absolutely right some people with a lot of libertarian leanings I like the cpa pig. This is this is great It is Well, so obviously the big news story the last week or so is the death of fidel castro You wrote a great article for mrs. Dot org entitled fidel castro hero or cold-blooded murderer I like your creationist term castrophilia to describe some of these fawning obituaries in the western What why is why are western liberals still so dopey? Why do they still have this romance about socialism? It's just because they're socialists because they're socialists they're trying and this is very bad for for their cause because Because to be openly associated with the people like fidel castro. It's it's amazing. Yes I kind of Made a joke today in the class that that look i mean trump was elected and immediately immediately fidel castro died and In the stock market is doing well. So the fidel castro is and and again crediting trump with this He was the only one who called him what fidel castro is a thug and murderous thug Yes, everybody else. I mean look at canadian prime minister. Look at our president They are talking about About educational system in cuba, which is not educational. It's a system of propaganda System of brainwashing healthcare. What kind of healthcare is there? I I have a friend cuban friend in cuba I would invite him to speak to my classes and One lady who watched the cco movie by my Michael Moore, I'll call him the biggest propaganda person in the world He's pretty big and And she asked she said well, I can see that this kind of like a disaster Around us, but I heard you have a very good medical system and my friend. He said, um, yes We have an excellent medical system excellent healthcare system But it can be improved and we see the room for improvement If we would have doctors medicines clinics hospitals, then it would be excellent And and then when we're working out of them out of the room He in russian he said uh healthcare healthcare swim to miami. That's the only healthcare I know And that's exactly what it is. It's uh, it's unbelievable if you will look what people would reduce to This is public slavery. Nothing else Well, you traveled to cuba a few different times talk a little bit about your experiences there Did it did anything remind you of your youth in the former soviet union? I would say that cuba was way more depressing even than the soviet union And then you see misery you see you see literally falling apart Apart real estate, I mean there's high rises which which were built in 1950s Now they're completely decrepit states the the Indoor plumbing is gone elevators are gone Can you imagine you live on the 12th floor and you need to go in the middle of the night Then what you run down you go to this huge outhouses they built around And then you climb back some people Save on this kind of and that's why there is a stench around all this all this real estate Many people are dying every week every week the the buildings are collapsing because They don't have any money for maintenance Even the ocean drive the the the nicest part of Havana You see a lot of abandoned houses houses with no rules houses with no Windows it's it's kind of like a Guatemala looks like a superpower in comparison to cuba Yeah, it's amazing that I noticed you you said that in the article and I think all of us who have kids We could do them a big favor by traveling with them to the third world And letting them see that all the the benefits of capitalism don't just grow on trees You know a great point you make in this article is about this Division of people into the proletariat and then the elites in socialist societies and you you coined this great term socioeconomic apartheid And this is what western socialists don't understand that That socialism doesn't create any form of equality. It just spreads around the misery and creates It actually creates a superclass of elites that capitalist societies don't have Can you elaborate a little bit on on how this works? Exactly because I really believe that socialism nothing but But the system of of of public slavery state slavery is not such thing as public And if the system of state slavery where and the state is also a state of the fiction state is people who are who are Kind of the great leaders people with the they call it with a vision Marxist revolutionaries and they are collective owners of this Sea of slaves and why do I call people slaves because Because if you remember John Locke, he was asking a question Who owns you? I mean who what is the self ownership people and the socialism do not own themselves Somebody else owns them the people are telling that's why that's why even our state is Is a form of socialism because they all the time trying to tell us What to do what kind of toilets to have and and what kind of shower heads and what not? That I remember was a brilliant Brilliant questioning that rent fall was questioning. I think mrs. Hogan who was representative of Osha about about what they direct his toilet to be like and everything else So they're depriving us of choices, but we still have some choices so we we still own ourselves in a kind of Well in in in a more limited way than it was 100 years ago, but still we we have a self ownership Well in Cuba the great leader he is telling us what to do and and if not if you don't do what they want Then they kill you and Raul Castro the surviving brother. He was a mass murderer himself. He liked to kill And Che Guevara, which Which kind of is still a hero on college campuses in the united states He personally murdered 2700 people. He liked it. He he was a trigger happy person And and then also the I think the lord actor Actons dictum that that power corrupts an absolute power corrupts. Absolutely is absolute for socialist countries I mean the people the first soviet government was the government of intellectuals people like Trotsky He was writing poetry in french Lenin knew six languages could play piano very well But then the logic of the system the logic of enslavement of of his fellow fellow citizens They turned them into worse mass murderers ever known to human history And and the same happened in a little cuba So today in cuba The population is about 11 million people but 4 million cubans are living all over Latin America in the united states in spain In in in madrid that it's a cuban cuban quarters So this is a this is a family which which is the criminal family criminals It's a mafia mafia, which uses socialism to To exploit their own people But this mystic endures. I mean there's this castro chic. There's this che Guevara chic that that western liberals Will excuse almost any depravity Committed by leaders In socialist countries as long as they're socialists You know, it's it's interesting to me that this somehow manages to endure even today When thanks to the internet we have all this information at our fingertips about white life is actually like in these countries Yes, exactly and I was uh today I was Listening to brian williams He he made this a speech about fake news fake news he was Generating fake news all his life and the people like him who presented socialism as a working system as a system which Which provides people with equality when the system is exactly the opposite from this The slave master and the slave are they never equal and And this is this is the real fake news which Being taught about socialism being taught in all campuses being published in all mass media That's that's what it is. I mean this is Because people were brainwashed and they're still and also I think haik He made it it's obvious and and very clear in his in his great in his great piece Why intellectuals love socialism uh that because socialism gives intellectuals claim to power Claim to power the people like like say trump were building houses building buildings And that's why I think they hate him so much that he lives better than them He is much richer than than a college professor But college professor believes that she or he knows way more than Than donald trump and he does not deserve any political power and that's why I think they They were trashing him and still doing that in an unheard of manner. I just every morning. I'm listening to two national public radio, which is called national propaganda radio and just to Getting getting real angry because this is this is unbelievable Lies lies and lies and there was no dictator that they didn't like I remember how they were praising a few good charmers how they were praising people like nikita khrushchev That's that's just disgusting Well, there's a harvard poll taken a harvard university study Conducted earlier this year that the washington post reported on And it claims that about a third of millenials. Let's say people under 30 in this country Now reject capitalism in favor of socialism Obviously you teach a lot of young people at carthage you you travel and speak to a lot of young people Do you think that's true? Do you think millenials are are You think a third of millenials are socialists Yes, well rasmus and paul is even putting this number at 50 so that's The good thing I believe that many people young people who believe in socialism actually don't know what it is They believe that it's some kind of like a touchy feely society When when everybody is happy and dancing around and singing kumballai or whatever But but it's the reality is completely different The good thing is also that even those people who today are saying that therefore socialism when they will graduate from the university And say the real world then all this socialism Would would would would go away almost right away I am receiving some very nice letters and emails from former students Who would say that they were maybe skeptical in my classes when I was praising markets and and and human freedom, but now they understand that that I was right and and And it's very good. I think that Winston Churchill He made this point that if you are 20 and you're not a socialist then you don't have a heart But if you are 30 and still a socialist you don't have brain and and that's exactly what's happening that people who just Some of some people still kind of are still retarded even in the early 30 but But but I don't see I don't see that that That this cultural war was is completely lost. I think we still have some hope because Irrespective to what all mass media was was telling us irrespective to all this hysteria against trump against capitalism against everything Then still we have we have the president elect who is who is an apologetic capitalist Well, it's interesting. You're of a generation, you know teaching at carthage where you have tenure we have a lot of young phd's Who are trying to develop careers out there who don't yet have tenure are necessarily an academic job And it's it's very very frightening The environment in which they're entering it at these universities They really have to keep their conservatism or their libertarianism Under wraps. Have you ever felt pressured by the faculty at carthage to tone it down? Um Yes, I did but not not so much for one reason is then I think they don't want to meddle with me because I saw socialism I saw the beast in the eyes And so I would say that that I just that what I'm saying about social is way more credible than what do they say I was disgusted with Walter Williams and he said you cannot tell my truth and I cannot tell your truth Just because we're from different backgrounds and different skin pigmentation And I think he was absolutely right. Yes that That's one thing another thing. I don't really have much to lose I mean, I I've been in the Soviet Union. I couldn't Couldn't openly say what I and so then I would defect to United States and in here would mimic The the the ruling the ruling elite So I I kind of I wouldn't say a wild but I don't I don't care what what some people because I have I think I I know what what the truth is and I am sharing it And my colleagues, I think in the beginning they thought that my first day in in in college was was just amazing The knock on my office Knock at the door and the gentleman is coming. He said, oh great. You're from Moscow. I'm a communist too I said you're a communist. He said great and we'll have another communist on campus So we can already start to sell because you need three communists to start the party sell And I said, well, I would disappoint you, but I'm not a communist. I'm actually anti communist But I'm not anti you. I mean that's that's whatever and say he was very nice and even invited me for for a dinner Then maybe half an hour later another knock I'm opening the the door and there is another professor professor of of chemistry And he said hi amazing. I don't know how could they how could they hire you? And I said, uh, why are you communist too? He said no, I'm not a communist. I'm a libertarian and I am reading your articles in the in the Freeman in the freemen magazine and I'm even using use them in my classes about health care And and so that was pretty bizarre. So we have some diversity Since then both of them are retired but But still that's good that it is a private college and so we have we have a lot of Freedom that means that we'll have collective adoptions. I mean, I can use any a book I like in my classes and And we don't have mutual visitations and whatnot. So so I kind of like it because I came to cartage for Just one semester to find a real job But but it turned out to be my life long employment. I'm 25 years here Well, Yuri, we're about out of time. Uh, tell us what's what's next for Yuri Maltz of what do you have going in 2017? Will you be in South Africa in January as as you have been in recent years? Yes, I am going to South Africa with my students because there's an institution Very similar to the von Mises Institute called the free market foundation of South Africa In the free market foundation, usually we will have a nice seminar for students With people like Leon Lou and uses Davey. They are great South African economists The libertarian economist Herman Mashaba who was chairman of the board of the foundation now He was elected. He was elected as a mayor of Johannesburg and he is also like Trump He's one of the richest people in the South Africa and he devoted himself to the fight for freedom instead I mean he he could enjoy his his wealth anywhere in the world instead of that He is digging into all this This corruption and all this looting if he calls it in the biggest in the biggest South African city So I really like it. I think I'm more South African than russian this day And um, and I am going back there in august With friends already. So if anyone is willing to join me, I would be happy to see you in South Africa Well, we'll be interested in hearing your report and and what's up with this Libertarian Leaning new mayor of Johannesburg So Yuri, uh, first of all very Merry Christmas to you and your family And uh, thanks so much for your time and joining us and ladies and gentlemen. Have a great weekend