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The authoritarian face of neoliberalism
How do we explain the strange survival of the forces responsible for the 2008 economic crisis, the worst since 1929? How is it that the economic policies that created the Great Recession emerged stronger than ever? When the system broke, a number of the world’s most prominent economists hastened to announce that neoliberalism was over. But reports of its death were greatly exaggerated.
For Pierre Dardot and Christian Laval, neoliberalism is no mere dogma. Supported by powerful oligarchies, it is a veritable politico-institutional system, one capable of perpetuating itself aggressively. Far from representing a break, crisis has become a formidably effective mode of government.
Never-Ending Nightmare demonstrates that this political straitjacket has succeeded in preventing any course correction by deteriorating democracies. To make matters worse, the so-called governmental Left has actively helped strengthen this oligarchic logic. The result is to raise the possibility of a definitive exit from democracy in favour of technocratic governance, free of any control by ordinary citizens.
However, nothing has been decided yet. The revival of democratic activity, which we see emerging in the political movements and experiments of recent years, is a sign that the political confrontation with the neoliberal system and the oligarchical bloc has already begun.
Description
The authoritarian face of neoliberalism
How do we explain the strange survival of the forces responsible for the 2008 economic crisis, the worst since 1929? How is it that the economic policies that created the Great Recession emerged stronger than ever? When the system broke, a number of the world’s most prominent economists hastened to announce that neoliberalism was over. But reports of its death were greatly exaggerated.
For Pierre Dardot and Christian Laval, neoliberalism is no mere dogma. Supported by powerful oligarchies, it is a veritable politico-institutional system, one capable of perpetuating itself aggressively. Far from representing a break, crisis has become a formidably effective mode of government.
Never-Ending Nightmare demonstrates that this political straitjacket has succeeded in preventing any course correction by deteriorating democracies. To make matters worse, the so-called governmental Left has actively helped strengthen this oligarchic logic. The result is to raise the possibility of a definitive exit from democracy in favour of technocratic governance, free of any control by ordinary citizens.
However, nothing has been decided yet. The revival of democratic activity, which we see emerging in the political movements and experiments of recent years, is a sign that the political confrontation with the neoliberal system and the oligarchical bloc has already begun.
