What is neoliberalism? I first heard the term six months ago but have since encountered it on a daily basis. To understand the analyses that will be posted later on this site, we have to understand this, which is the main reason for the social problems that I will be criticizing. I want to be clear that both major parties, Republicans and Democrats, have, in many ways, adopted neoliberal outlooks.
At its most basic, neoliberalism is the ideology that market values should govern society. Market values include the idea that everyone is rational & independent. They reject helping others (whether through government entitlement or charity) because that distorts "market prices." Neoliberalism has been able to thrive in American society because it fits well with our American Dream of "pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps."
At its most basic, neoliberalism is the ideology that market values should govern society. Market values include the idea that everyone is rational & independent. They reject helping others (whether through government entitlement or charity) because that distorts "market prices." Neoliberalism has been able to thrive in American society because it fits well with our American Dream of "pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps."