Neoliberalism: From New Liberal Philosophy to Anti-Liberal Slogan

In recent years, neoliberalism has become an academic catchphrase. Yet, in contrast to other prominent social science concepts such as democracy, the meaning and proper usage of neoliberalism curiously have elicited little scholarly debate. Based on a content analysis of 148 journal articles published from 1990 to 2004, we document three potentially problematic aspects of neoliberalism’s use: the term is often undefined; it is employed unevenly across ideological divides; and it is used to characterize an excessively broad variety of phenomena. To explain these characteristics, we trace the genesis and evolution of the term neoliberalism throughout several decades of political economy debates. We show that neoliberalism has undergone a striking transformation, from a positive label coined by the German Freiberg School to denote a moderate renovation of classical liberalism, to a normatively negative term associated with radical economic reforms in Pinochet’s Chile. We then present an extension of W. B. Gallie’s framework for analyzing essentially contested concepts to explain why the meaning of neoliberalism is so rarely debated, in contrast to other normatively and politically charged social science terms. We conclude by proposing several ways that the term can regain substantive meaning as a “new liberalism” and be transformed into a more useful analytic tool.

The Cost of the Last Six Years,From North Korea to Kosovo

As the Soviet Union collapsed and China shifted to the market, it was said that communism was nothing more than the longest road between capitalism and capitalism. It now looks like the Bush‐era neo‐conservatism is similarly a long road back to the realism from whence it departed. The US is now talking with North Korea and Iran instead of preempting them through war. A dissident Iranian scientist, the former top UN arms inspector and a former US secretary of state ponder this state of affairs.     

From Well-Having to Well-Being

To raise the notion of frugality in the midst of the greatest consumer boom in economic history may seem wildly out of place. But if globalization only half succeeds in lifting many more millions into the middle class in this century, by necessity frugality will become a virtue.     

From Emigrant to Immigrant Society

Abstract

As the host of complex factors that give rise to forced and voluntary migration change over time, the history of migration in any one country also changes. This paper is concerned with the processes of transition and change in migration patterns in the Republic of Ireland over the past fifteen years, as Ireland has moved from being a country of net emigration to one of net immigration. More specifically this paper considers the manner in which, as immigration acquires a negative label through reactive state policies enabled legislative provisions both migrant and local population groups focus on resource-based tensions. As a result, a complex set of barriers emerges to inhibit the formation (by migrants) of extensive social networks within Irish society and ultimately to restrict general social interaction and integration. This paper considers the manner in which, migrant interaction with the host society becomes more limited and of less relevance to the individual when social interaction takes place in the context of a heightened sense of difference and of barriers between local and migrant groups. As a consequence, the barriers and boundaries between the immigrant and the local population are further reinforced.     

From the Faith-Gap to Post-Liberalism

T he historian G ary W ills has aptly pointed out that, culturally speaking, the outcome of the recent A merican election may have taken us back to the time before the S copes M onkey T rial . M ore A mericans today believe in the immaculate conception than in evolution. F orty-three percent describe themselves as born-again C hristians . A arthur S chlesinger J r. argues there are today more evangelicals, a key constituency of the first faith-based presidency in A merican history, than mainline P rotestants .     

From intergenerational equity to intergenerational stewardship

This essay borrows from our civic humanist tradition to present an alternative to the more dominant neo-utilitarian approach to evaluating current decisions and their potential burden on future generations. The analysis first focuses on financial debt, and then applies the framework beyond the realm of financial policy. The framework exposes some limitations in the rational-quantitative approach to policy decision, and embraces the art of stewardship as a more encompassing and appropriate role in public life. Stewardship brings intergenerational obligations to bear on decisions that current analytic techniques fail to regard as meaningful. The ways and means of stewardship are matters more of prudent judgment and passionate commitment to ways of life than of rigorous analytic precision.

[A] man owes it to his children, to his neighbors to secure their future and rescue their lives from impediments to holiness and happiness. Therefore he has no right to acquiesce in tyrannical and immoral government.

Lord Acton⁽¹⁾