Welfare state capitalism is merely one incarnation of capitalism, and neo-liberalism is not such a striking reformation of the capitalist system: it is merely one part of the cycle of managing capitalism without really changing the nature of neoliberal, state-protected capitalism.
While the U.S. government's approach to the crisis may be 'more of the same' of the past twenty years, if not longer, one contrarian view suggests that from a grass-roots level there has been a fundamental shift in terms of the way Americans view prosperity and consumerism, which may have a more fundamental and long-standing effect on the way that corporations function. By reducing spending, Americans have slowed the astounding rate of growth and commercialism of the past twenty years, and by disdaining consumption for the sake of consumption and worship of the ultra-rich as ultra successful, have challenged the neo-liberal notion that success in a hypercompetitive global economy is always deserved. One of the great revelations of recent months has been how rich the 'very rich' really are, and also how little top executive do to deserve their exorbitant salaries and bonuses, compared to average Americans. The demystification of Wall Street and the degree to which the government is complacent in facilitating the growth of enterprise may make Americans far less trusting of politicians who seem overly beholden to the special interests of corporations and may deflate the cache given to entering financial industries.
Moving money to make money was one of the core principles of neo-liberalism: "large-scale derivative trading is a typically neoliberal phenomenon, although financial derivatives have existed for centuries. It is possible to trade options on shares: but it is also possible to create options on these options. This accumulation of transaction on transaction is characteristic of neo-liberalism. New derivatives are created, to be traded on the new exchanges - such as electricity futures" (Treanor 2009). But although neoliberal societies are network societies, they are not the 'open...
The Canadian Centre for Policy Initiatives, on the other hand, is an Interventionalist think thank that advocates government intervention in some cases, but chides it in others. On the other end of the spectrum, the Montreal Economic Institute can be described as a Neoliberal think tank. The organization, which was founded in 1999, seeks to "promote an economic approach to the study of public policy issues." By studying the organization's
As a result, to not totally lose out to Vietnam and China, other countries are competing by extending their operations 24/7 without further adjustments to the current government-mandated wages of their workers. Competition remains, as Vietnam and China can deliver like the other countries, but with significantly lower wages. Looking at the bottom line, only the workers suffer and are greatly exploited as a result of this competition among
Neoliberalism and Globalization Globalization may be an overused word, although the new version of international capitalism is still so recent that the actual system on the ground has outrun the scientific and theoretical vocabulary that describes it. As a system, international capitalism is rapidly eliminating geographical and political boundaries, as Marx predicted in the 19th Century. In the global, postmodern economy, branding also involves relentless synergy and tie-ins between various diverse
Wealth does not equate to happiness, a sense of purpose, dignity or respect. One of the key underlying assumptions of neoliberal philosophy, as derived from Milton Friedman, is that financial wealth is the ideal end goal of all activity. While financial wealth solves many problems it does not solve all problems. Opponents of globalization, whatever their other arguments, incorporate this understanding into their protestations. Naomi Klein goes further, suggesting that
The U.S. is a property owning civilization and a number of the people wanted land and housing. Americans however scarcely ever create savings. "The country itself lives on other countries' savings by issuing bonds to finance its excessive consumption. The current crisis began with cheap housing loans offered by banks. Banks provided loans but instead of holding the loan in their books, they packaged them into collateralized debt obligations (CDOs)
"Trade union organizers, economic justice advocates, leftists and anyone else who objected to the reforms began to disappear." By the end of his regime, Pinochet may have been responsible for the deaths "of at least 3,000 people and the disappearance of many thousands more." (Bidstrup, 2005) the unionization movements, such a critical part of other Latin American nations, had effectively been rooted out. One might state that need not condone
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