Neoliberalism Is Destroying Our Lives and Many of Us Don’t Even Know What It Is
http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/neoliberalism_is_destroying_our_lives--and_many_of_us_20160427
via truthdig:
“The ideology that dominates our lives has, for most of us, no name,” writes George Monbiot. “Mention it in conversation and you’ll be rewarded with a shrug. Even if your listeners have heard the term before, they will struggle to define it. Neoliberalism: do you know what it is?”
Its anonymity is both a symptom and cause of its power. It has played a major role in a remarkable variety of crises: the financial meltdown of 2007-8, the offshoring of wealth and power, of which the Panama Papers offer us merely a glimpse, the slow collapse of public health and education, resurgent child poverty, the epidemic of loneliness, the collapse of ecosystems, the rise of Donald Trump. But we respond to these crises as if they emerge in isolation, apparently unaware that they have all been either catalysed or exacerbated by the same coherent philosophy; a philosophy that has—or had—a name. What greater power can there be than to operate namelessly?
So pervasive has neoliberalism become that we seldom even recognise it as an ideology. We appear to accept the proposition that this utopian, millenarian faith describes a neutral force; a kind of biological law, like Darwin’s theory of evolution. But the philosophy arose as a conscious attempt to reshape human life and shift the locus of power.
Neoliberalism sees competition as the defining characteristic of human relations. It redefines citizens as consumers, whose democratic choices are best exercised by buying and selling, a process that rewards merit and punishes inefficiency. It maintains that “the market” delivers benefits that could never be achieved by planning.
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who don't pay much attention to politics are going to be fooled by an obscure old term that seems to indicate some of its meaning, but people who frequent political forums really should look up the terminology that's served up to them.
I actually originally came to DU to get away from Far Righters and their love for any lie that served their purpose at the moment -- and that stink eye that's so intrinsic to the syndrome as well.
Put up or shut up man.
That's a perfectly condensed and yet concise summation of the Third-Way corporatist dems. 
That's an understatement but I completely agree.
Many also think it's make believe and not real. Ugh.
Basically Bernie Voters know this. Hillary voters, not a fucking clue.
like Bernie!
That's helpful. Hug.
There is nothing liberal about it. 
Ya beat me to it.
This is so true. It's destroying our lives and most of us don't even know what it is! There was even a poster in this thread that seemed to be very confused. 
If anyone is lost about what the term means, please go the library and get this book:
Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, by Naomi Klein.
... mountain grammy's "Bible." 
and real.
As well as all the comments.
I can't think of anything I despise more than money - yes, it's useful, yes, it helps us survive with the constructs of society... but it is not indicative of the value of a human being, of human life - we are so much greater than that. The notion that a so called "free market" is somehow noble or grand is ridiculous. It is a belief, a practice, an ideology of idolatry that is rooted in a lack of empathy, compassion, human understanding or anything that resembles nobility.
The notion that competition is a defining characteristic of human relations is a huge part of the problem. Consider typical employment as regards purely financial concerns - the employer struggles to get the most productivity out of the worker while rewarding them as little as possible (ultimately increasing their financial capacity). This is made clear by the deep economic inequality of our time, by the difference between CEO and worker pay, by people working 80-100 hours a week just to pay the bills.
Where does this leave us? Well, with a crumbling infrastructure because those who can pay for it don't want to. With a lack of access to healthcare, food, the basic necessities of survival and prosperous life - because those who can pay for it don't want to. Why should they? They have private jets, mansions, people to cook and clean for them, access to almost anything they want. They can stash their money offshore to avoid paying taxes, pay minimum wage to any employee and claim nobility because they are "job creators". The notion that competition is a defining characteristic of human interaction has rewarded them immensely. They have crushed opposition, risen above the odds, won the race. They have more toys than they know what to do with, enough money to provide a lifetime supply of toilet paper.
The ultimate result of this kind of ideology is a barren wasteland. You can only take just so much, drain just so much... care just so little, before there are deep consequences. We are beginning to see just how deep - with climate change being the greatest example of this. We could end it, change it, repair the environment... with a few simple steps (simple if you consider that, if we don't, we're all screwed) like eliminating our fossil fuel subsidies. This has not happened, despite the growing consensus and fear that humanity may be facing an extinction level event. Some people... "got theirs" and have no interest in "using theirs" for the betterment of humanity or the world. Perhaps they figure, "Someone else will take care of the problems".
It's not just about who is rich and who is poor. It is about the simplest of things, things we ought to learn as small children. The value of sharing, of caring, of helping our neighbors, our friends, our families. The value, not of competition and wealth as the end result, but of cooperation, of mutual kindness, empathy and compassion... the end result being a better world, greater happiness, a more enlightened human race. Less suffering, less pain. This is noble. This is wisdom. This is beauty. Neoliberalism is none of these things - rather, I would suggest that it is the opposite.
We (human beings) are more than flesh and bone. We are beings capable of astoundingly deep thought, compassion... courage - and kindness. Our value, I would suggest... lies within that, not within our financial wealth, how well we compete, how well we crush the opposition. We gain far more when we work together, when we combine our strength to serve each other... than when we defeat the competition.
Common sense... unfortunately, is not so common. It should be a matter of simple common sense to understand these simple concepts. That we are all made better by kindness, by working together, by giving a damn. That we are all made worse by greed, selfishness, cruelty and ignorance.
Just my ten cents, forgive the rambling - I'm running on caffeine and adrenaline at the moment. 
