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YSK that “neoliberal” refers to a discrete set of economic policies including deregulation, privatization, and so-called “free trade” implemented by both center-right and center-left parties (self.youshouldknow)

submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by metic to c/youshouldknow

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Why YSK: I’ve noticed in recent years more people using “neoliberal” to mean “Democrat/Labor/Social Democrat politicians I don’t like”. This confusion arises from the different meanings “liberal” has in American politics and further muddies the waters.

Neoliberalism came to the fore during the 80’s under Reagan and Thatcher and have continued mostly uninterrupted since. Clinton, both Bushs, Obama, Blair, Brown, Cameron, Johnson, and many other world leaders and national parties support neoliberal policies, despite their nominal opposition to one another at the ballot box.

It is important that people understand how neoliberalism has reshaped the world economy in the past four decades, especially people who are too young to remember what things were like before. Deregulation and privatization were touted as cost-saving measures, but the practical effect for most people is that many aspects of our lives are now run by corporations who (by law!) put profits above all else. Neoliberalism has hollowed out national economies by allowing the offshoring of general labor jobs from developed countries.

In the 80’s and 90’s there was an “anti-globalization” movement of the left that sought to oppose these changes. The consequences they warned of have come to pass. Sadly, most organized opposition to neoliberal policies these days comes from the right. Both Trump and the Brexit campaign were premised on reinvigorating national economies. Naturally, both failed, in part because they had no cohesive plan or understanding that they were going against 40 years of precedent.

So, yes, establishment Democrats are neoliberals, but so are most Republicans.

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[–] BeautifulMind 1 points 1 year ago

Thanks for clarifying. Maybe it's the autism talking, but I did not infer that from context. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

Not that you asked, I think it's usually bad-faith rhetoric to insist on reasoning in the abstract about something based on a label you've put there. I'm used to seeing this kind of rhetorical pattern as a means of changing the subject into a tangent, and then talking about that tangent issue in the abstract as if it can then be related back to the initial question outside of the original context. For example: (x policy is 'socialism', and the Russians were socialist, tHeRefoRe dOiNg x MeAns wE gEt pOgRoMs).

Too often, I see name-calling arguments like this (but that's imperialism!/nuh-uh, it's not) to be bad-faith diversions from the question at hand; is the trade agreement desirable for the country or isn't it? Does calling it 'imperialism' change its substance? (hint: it doesn't) Probably the whole point to leveling charges of 'imperialism' when someone poaches your exclusive trade relations with a former client state is so you can call them names later without having to explain why you're the good guy and they aren't.