Please read this article on neoliberalism by Jonathan J.B. Mijs, a doctoral candidate in sociology at Harvard: European data suggests the gig economy helped create Trump, Sanders
With all the general malice towards Bernie supporters coming from Hillary supporters around here, with all the misinformation gleefully spread by the mainstream media about Bernie supporters, I recalled reading this article by a Harvard sociologist about how neoliberalism leads to “citizens’ diminishing solidarity with the poor” and how and why the Democratic party has shifted so far to the right: neoliberalism leads to less empathy for others.
With recent “grand bargain” offers to start the dismantling of Social Security by President Obama (Republicans in their animosity punted, plus red states depend on it), with his TPP and other trade deals continuing the selling off of American sovereignty to multinational companies, and of course with the infamous failure to indict too-big-to-jail bankers, with Eric Holder claiming jailing of banking criminals would “destabilize” the economy, the evidence is undeniable that the Democratic Party, with this their biggest of policy betrayals, is indistinguishable from the Republican Party in regards to economic policy.
Before Obama, we had 8 horrid years of W’s sustaining the neoliberal policies of Bill Clinton, who triangulated in repeal of Glass-Steagal and otherwise dismantled regulation of financial markets with his pathetic SEC. And before that 12 years of Republicans makes for 36 years of attacks on the poor and middle class, which has all but been declared dead as of late. With Bill Clinton’s heartless repeal of welfare and implementation of crime bills that devastated the poor and middle classes, we are looking down the barrel of a new era of serfdom, mass poverty, with no safety net.
There has been a war waged on the poor and middle classes for decades now by both political parties… So per this article, I drew some conclusions about this head-scratching acrimony coming from Hillary supporters in the 2016 presidential race.
Here in our microcosm, we have triumphant Hillary Clinton supporters standing on the necks of Bernie supporters, trying to stamp out our populist campaign, and deny Bernie any role at the convention. Their hate is palpable. Why? Per Mr. Mijs:
In recent research with Michèle Lamont at Harvard University and Elyas Bakhtiari at Boston University, my coauthors and I link the success of Trump’s kind of politics to the worldwide adoption of neoliberal economic policies.
Neoliberal policies are government measures that shift control from the state to the market.
[snip]
Our research reveals the intricate relationship between those policies and the ways in which citizens define who belongs, who is deserving and who is worthy.
[snip]
Citizens in those countries most affected by neoliberalist policy reform have come to draw strong exclusionary lines between themselves and people at society’s margins, specifically Muslim immigrants and the poor.
theconversation.com/...
My bold. The article is extremely telling. It explains from a sociological perspective how from presidents to policy makers to bloggers how people became so hateful with lack of much empathy for the poor and middle classes, and certainly toward those who advocated for them.
I am sure Hillary supporters will squeal for being called out in this way but how else do you explain 36 years of Democrats’ feet on the necks of the poor and middle classes? Of Hillary and the DNC trying to shut out Bernie and how do you explain their smearing of millions of her prospective future voters? Of Hillary voters who never discuss these issues but rather spew hate and deflection?
I thought it was just corruption and perhaps these people felt guilty about what they’ve done but now it seems it is much more: they think they are better than Bernie voters and poor people. They suffer from Neolib Syndrome.
We who try to defend the policies of the former Democratic Party, the New Deal Democrats and working poor Democrats, have our work cut out for us.
Bernie is not going to be the nominee but our cause goes on. Do not let the hate of the neolibs deter you. They have been manipulated themselves and know not what they are doing….