Need Help, What is your definition of a neo-liberal?

Question

Looking for simple, truthful definitions. Should be self explanatory, one or two sentences in length, and no vulgarity.

Examples:

1. Neo-libs never lose elections, they get stolen by republicans.
2. Neo-libs don't know what they are for, they know what they are against.
3. National Security be damned, as long as it hurts the republicans.

Rukiddin you see my point exactly...

So coragryph, what is a neo-con?

Don't feed my crap about Iraq. We discussed this stuff back in the late 80s it is not NEW.

How about I call them MoveOn liberals?

Answer 1

The word would translate as "new liberal" -- but since there is no neo-liberal movement, and there is no common usage for the term in politics -- and since nobody I've ever heard describes themselves as such -- it is basically meaningless.

None of your examples apply.

Answer 2

"Neo-liberalism" is a set of economic policies that have become widespread during the last 25 years or so. Although the word is rarely heard in the United States, you can clearly see the effects of neo-liberalism here as the rich grow richer and the poor grow poorer.

"Liberalism" can refer to political, economic, or even religious ideas. In the U.S. political liberalism has been a strategy to prevent social conflict. It is presented to poor and working people as progressive compared to conservative or Rightwing. Economic liberalism is different. Conservative politicians who say they hate "liberals" -- meaning the political type -- have no real problem with economic liberalism, including neoliberalism.

"Neo" means we are talking about a new kind of liberalism. So what was the old kind? The liberal school of economics became famous in Europe when Adam Smith, an Scottish economist, published a book in 1776 called THE WEALTH OF NATIONS. He and others advocated the abolition of government intervention in economic matters. No restrictions on manufacturing, no barriers to commerce, no tariffs, he said; free trade was the best way for a nation's economy to develop. Such ideas were "liberal" in the sense of no controls. This application of individualism encouraged "free" enterprise," "free" competition -- which came to mean, free for the capitalists to make huge profits as they wished.

Economic liberalism prevailed in the United States through the 1800s and early 1900s. Then the Great Depression of the 1930s led an economist named John Maynard Keynes to a theory that challenged liberalism as the best policy for capitalists. He said, in essence, that full employment is necessary for capitalism to grow and it can be achieved only if governments and central banks intervene to increase employment. These ideas had much influence on President Roosevelt's New Deal -- which did improve life for many people. The belief that government should advance the common good became widely accepted.

Neoliberalism refers to a political movement that espouses economic liberalism as a means of promoting economic development and securing political liberty. The movement is sometimes described as an effort to revert to the economic policies of the 18th and 19th centuries classical liberalism. Strictly in the context of English-language usage the term is an abbreviation of "neoclassical liberalism", since in other languages liberalism has more or less retained its classical meaning.

In the study of international relations, neoliberalism refers to a school of thought which believes that nation-states are, or at least should be, concerned first and foremost with absolute gains rather than relative gains to other nation-states. The notion is often connected with neoliberal economic theory.

Answer 3

Although all of what you mentioned is interesting, My thoughts on what Neoliberalism represents is a break away from traditional liberalism in favor of this new truly bizarre group who are for anything and everything and believe that you can accept them and tolerate them without it effecting your personal or family life. They seem unfocused, and both naive and without innocence all at the same time...

Answer 4

Gosh, I didn't have a good definition until yours! I just call them that because it irritates me that they call conservatives "neo-cons" all the time, but no one has been able to give me a standard definition for it. Oh, and it sounds insulting like "neo-Nazi."

Answer 5

A "neo-liberal" is a liberal that can't define the word "neo-conservative" but knows it's "bad" and so uses it in almost every question or answer.

Answer 6

You can add...
Truth be damned, as long as they win elections.

and

Political stance on any topic should always be based on audience, no matter how often you change it.