You write "Their basic economic insights weren't wrong—markets do generate prosperity, innovation does solve problems, global trade does create value"
I would point out that we already had markets and innovation before 1980. And as for global trade, why is creating value (i.e. stock market capitalization) preferable to rising living stand…
You write "Their basic economic insights weren't wrong—markets do generate prosperity, innovation does solve problems, global trade does create value"
I would point out that we already had markets and innovation before 1980. And as for global trade, why is creating value (i.e. stock market capitalization) preferable to rising living standards for all, which was the previous objective of economic policy?
You write "The neoliberal reforms of the 1980s and 1990s weren't inherently wrong. Many government regulations had become inefficient and counterproductive. "
Yes they were, but the relevant aspects of neoliberalism have little to do with regulation, and much more to do with tax policy. Tax rates affect economic *culture* as well as their short-term economic effects (i.e. what economists study). Higher tax rates have a short-term negative effect on growth, leading people to believe that lower taxes promote growth. However higher tax rates can have a longer-term positive effect on growth due to cultural shifts, which manifested during the postwar years.
You write "Their basic economic insights weren't wrong—markets do generate prosperity, innovation does solve problems, global trade does create value"
I would point out that we already had markets and innovation before 1980. And as for global trade, why is creating value (i.e. stock market capitalization) preferable to rising living standards for all, which was the previous objective of economic policy?
https://mikealexander.substack.com/p/what-is-neoliberalism-an-empirical#:~:text=Neoliberalism%20is%20not%20about%20economic%20growth%3B%20it%20is%20about%20growth%20of%20financial%20wealth
You write "The neoliberal reforms of the 1980s and 1990s weren't inherently wrong. Many government regulations had become inefficient and counterproductive. "
Yes they were, but the relevant aspects of neoliberalism have little to do with regulation, and much more to do with tax policy. Tax rates affect economic *culture* as well as their short-term economic effects (i.e. what economists study). Higher tax rates have a short-term negative effect on growth, leading people to believe that lower taxes promote growth. However higher tax rates can have a longer-term positive effect on growth due to cultural shifts, which manifested during the postwar years.
https://mikealexander.substack.com/p/how-economic-culture-evolves
https://mikealexander.substack.com/p/why-progress-seems-stalled#:~:text=The%20question%20is%2C%20why%20have%20things%20evolved%20in%20this%20way%20since%20the%20advent%20of%20the%2021st%20century%3F