Tag: economics

What is Neoliberalism

On August 2, 2019

Milton Friedman–A famous neoliberal as a Least Weasel

The Basics: It is an economics term, not a political one. You cannot tell if someone is a neoliberal by whether they listen to Thom Hartmann or not. In other words, it is not referring to a liberal person politically.

So, really, what is neoliberalism? What is this thing that has taken over our normally happy, Game of Thrones Oreo eating lives?

The liberal part of neoliberal refers to someone who wants the economy run on personal freedom. Ostensibly, the economy would not be run by organizations but by individuals. In addition, they want laissez-faire** economic policies and a free market. Generally, this would be a person that would describe themselves as a libertarian.

A libertarian believes in a hands-off approach to the economy. In their world, the people will have freedom and the market will take care of itself. A neoliberal has all the bad of the libertarian along with more bad. Neoliberals will bail out companies that bring about a recession (remember 2008), do not flinch at the thought of doing the revolving door dance with government and endorse fiscal austerity (think of Greece). Free trade, deregulation, privatization and choosing winners or losers in the economy are all their bag, baby.

It is a libertarian with complexity and guile.

A libertarian world would look something like this:

Libertarian: You won’t pay taxes and you’ll have more money.

Citizen: Okay, but can I leave my driveway to go to work now?

Libertarian: Sure, you can, just hand over the $23.61 toll to use the private road I built. Isn’t life without taxes great!

A neoliberal world looks like our world, like this:

Neoliberal: Your real wages* have been frozen for 40 years and worker productivity has never been higher. We’re not gonna give you universal healthcare or repair the infrastructure and we’re not sorry for that little 2008 problem that we caused….kaaayyyy?

Citizen: Yeah, what’s with you guys, you suck, and weren’t you discredited way back before the internet or FDR or running water?

Neoliberal: Hey, did ya know everything can be solved by being an entrepreneur? If you got an Uber job in this fabulous gig economy then you could start making money on your own time, when ever you want. You would be your own boss.

Translation of the neoliberal speak: Low wages, long hours, no healthcare and more taxes to pay as an independent contractor.

Why You Should Care: You should care because you have been massively productive, not gotten a share of what you have produced for a very long time and, adding insult to injury, you’ve lied to about what is really going on. Example (yes, I love examples): The financial sector got bailed our with bags and bags of your money and you got kicked to the corner.

*Real Wages –These are wages adjusted for inflation

** Laissez-Faire —This refers to an economic system that allows everyone to do as they please. Transactions between individuals free from any kind of intervention like regulations. If you didn’t like those fruit pies I sold you yesterday (only 10% sawdust and 1% listeria) then your only recourse is not buy them again (if you recover).

What Do You Want?

By admin

On October 1, 0001

In Economics

What do you want? What do we want?

I don’t just mean for dessert or whether your considering the unicorn onesie or the cat in the hat onesie.*

What do you want your county or city or neighborhood to do with it’s resources? This is a question you’re asked a lot but rarely seriously but you and I do not know where we are going or where we might go unless you answer it for yourself.

The purpose of economics is to tell us how resources or goods should be disseminated. Not long ago this was determined by the lord of the manor (who took part of crops) or the chief, perhaps. If you were fortunate enough to be a pirate (yeah, you heard me) then the spoils were handed out equally. Pirates had more democracy than we do, believe it or not.

Do you see your resources going to feed the hungry, putting a space colony on mars or or possible saving your children from having to wear cooling suits for most of their lives? Maybe you have always dreamed of building a monster truck area the size of the Pentagon?**

Okay, now think hard about that. Have we done it?

Are we working towards it?

Is it a glimmer in the eye of anyone capable of doing it?

I think that most of us would say no, to this question. No single payer healthcare, no infrastructure kept up, no affordable housing, lots of debt, lousy retirement plans***, etc.

The guy who only wanted eggnog Oreos, though, I’m certain his dream will come true soon.

The hard working person who dreams of having the bridge on his commute fixed so that he doesn’t meet up with a watery death on his 43^rd birthday will say, “No”.

There are two reasons for this: neoliberalism and our complacency.

Under the not so gentle fist of neoliberalism we are at the mercy of THE MARKET. So, the market and not you, me or the eggnog Oreo guy or even the bunch over there that are holding hands singing Kumbaya determines what we do with our planet and our money.

Yes, you heard me right, our planet. Somewhere the decision was made that most of what is on our planet should go into the hands of people with lots of money. You get to send a penis shaped rocket and a car into orbit while the rest of pay our bills with charity because The Market SEZ: “Those with the most money have the most.”

There are not just many of us that think this is normal but that this is the way it should be but if the planet belongs to all of us and all of us put in a hard day’s work why is this okay?

*Okay, I have an opinion: Choose the cat in the hat and be thing 2. It’s the best choice and you know it

** This may be the only good use for it after global warming kicks in.

*** You may consider yourself lucky if you have any retirement plan at all, however, in the olden days (pre-1990’s roughly) actual pensions were much more common than the 401K’s and other plans that we have now. The current plans are tied to the market and that is not a good thing. Just imagine getting ready to retire at about late 2008. Nope, put those plans for your, “Get Fat On Deck” cruise away for another 40 years ‘cos you are not going any where, the financial sector just took your retirement.