Thursday, May 17, 2018

Christine Berry — Yes, neoliberalism is a thing. Don’t let economists tell you otherwise

“The really fascinating battles in intellectual history tend to occur when some group or movement goes on the offensive and asserts that Something Big really doesn’t actually exist.”

So says Philip Morowski in his book ‘Never Let a Serious Crisis Go To Waste: How Neoliberalism Survived the Financial Meltdown’. As Mirowski argues, neoliberalism is a particularly fascinating case in point. Just as Thatcher asserted there was ‘no such thing as society’, it’s common to find economics commentators asserting that there is ‘no such thing as neoliberalism’ – that it’s simply a meaningless insult bandied about by the left, devoid of analytical content.
But on the list of ‘ten tell-tale signs you’re a neoliberal’, insisting that Neoliberalism Is Not A Thing must surely be number one. The latest commentator to add his voice to the chorus is Sky Economics Editor Ed Conway. On the Sky blog, he gives four reasons why Neoliberalism Is Not A Thing. Let’s look at each of them in turn:  
Open Democracy
Yes, neoliberalism is a thing. Don’t let economists tell you otherwise
Christine Berry

5 comments:

Kaivey said...

Wrong link, Tom. Comes to with an internet search.

Tom Hickey said...

Thanks, Fixed now.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/neweconomics/yes-neoliberalism-thing-dont-let-economists-tell-otherwise/

Konrad said...

On the list of ‘ten tell-tale signs you’re a neoliberal,’ number one is your claim that there is no such thing as neoliberalism.

Yes.

Here are more signs that you are a neoliberal…

[1] All your claims are the precise opposite of truth and reality. Skrinkage is “growth,” monopolies are a “free market,” and a federal budget surplus is “stimulative.”

[2] Every word out of your mouth is designed to promote privatization and gratuitous austerity, in order to widen the gap between the rich and the rest, and reduce the masses to debt slaves.

[3] You repeat standard lies over and over, e.g. Social Security is “unsustainable,” and the U.S. government has a “debt crisis” and “can’t spend money it doesn’t have.”

[4] You call yourself a “centrist.”

FROM THE ARTICLE...

“Essentially, neoliberalism privileges markets as the best way to organize the economy and society…”

WRONG. This is another lie of neoliberalism. Neoliberals are anti-free-market. Neoliberals use monopolies to eliminate free market competition. Neoliberals want total decriminalization for rich oligarchs, and total police brutality for the masses. Neoliberals want government handouts and bail-outs for themselves, and debt slavery for the masses. Neoliberals talk of the “natural” operation of the “free market,” which means that neoliberals want to own and control the market.

As for Ed Conway, he’s just another a**hole who seeks to get ahead by praising the rich and their crimes. Conway cheers for the guillotine list in order to keep his own name off the list.

Matt Franko said...

It’s not “a thing” it’s an ambiguous figure of speech used by left people who are politically opposed to various current policies and the results of those policies...

Tom Hickey said...

Like "society"?