The Glorious Triumph of Neoliberalism (or, How to Ruin an Economy in Style)

The Glorious Triumph of Neoliberalism (or, How to Ruin an Economy in Style)

Ah, Reaganism and Thatcherism—two of the greatest economic philosophies ever devised, if your goal is to concentrate wealth, erode social safety nets, and make trickle-down economics sound like a real thing rather than a punchline. These doctrines, forged in the fires of unwavering faith in free markets, promised economic prosperity for all. And, to their credit, they did manage to deliver astonishing results—if you happened to already be rich.

Meanwhile, their sworn enemies—Keynesians, Institutional Economists, and those pesky social democrats—had the audacity to suggest that markets are not perfectly rational, governments might have a role beyond tax cuts for the wealthy, and economic inequality is, shockingly, a problem. These dissenters clung to the absurd idea that investing in public goods, regulating corporate excess, and stimulating demand could actually lead to sustainable economic growth. Imagine the nerve!

So, in this article, we will examine how Reaganomics and Thatcherism set the stage for modern neoliberalism, the alternative economic theories they so vehemently opposed, and whether or not the legacy of unbridled capitalism has left us with anything other than a few billionaires, a couple of financial crashes, and an ongoing debate about whether workers deserve living wages. Buckle up—this is going to be fun.

Now, if you thought Reaganites and Thatcherites had a monopoly on economic delusion, let me introduce you to mainstream economic models, which have, for decades, somehow managed to ignore one of the most fundamental pillars of reality: energy. That’s right—while economists have spent countless hours fine-tuning their elegant, theoretical models about productivity, growth, and markets, many of them have conveniently left out the tiny detail that without energy, absolutely nothing happens.

Enter Steve Keen, the heretic who dared to point out that economies don’t run on abstract mathematical models, but on the physical laws of the universe. Unlike the high priests of neoclassical economics, who act as if money and labor alone can generate infinite productivity, Keen highlights a rather embarrassing oversight: energy isn’t just another input—it’s the input. Without energy, you can’t run machines, transport goods, heat homes, or even browse clickbait articles about how capitalism will save us all.

What are the consequences of this intellectual blind spot? Oh, just decades of flawed policies, wildly inaccurate economic forecasts, and the delusional idea that we can decarbonize without rethinking the very foundations of our economy. Growth, as it turns out, isn’t just something we can "will" into existence with free-market magic—it requires physical inputs, and fossil fuels have been the dominant one for centuries. But don’t worry. Mainstream economists assure us that we can seamlessly transition to a green economy without addressing the structural dependency on cheap, high-density energy.

So while Reaganites and Thatcherites were busy deregulating markets and convincing people that tax cuts would lead to a prosperity boom (spoiler: they didn’t), their intellectual counterparts in academia were churning out models that assumed energy was just another interchangeable variable, rather than the lifeblood of modern civilization. And here we are, decades later, wondering why the economy keeps getting hit with "unexpected" crises, while environmental collapse looms in the background like an ignored plot hole in a bad movie.

But hey, who needs energy when you have efficient markets and rational actors, right?

Austerity: The Perfect Rehearsal for the Collapse We Pretend Isn’t Coming

Ah, austerity—the economic equivalent of training for an oncoming famine by eating less voluntarily. While most people assume that government spending during crises is a logical response, true visionaries in the halls of power have realized something far more profound: why wait for a disaster to impose suffering when you can start early?

The usual defense of austerity goes something like this: “We need to cut spending now so we don’t go broke later.” Because, apparently, the best way to handle economic downturns is by shrinking the economy even further, gutting public services, and ensuring that only the wealthiest remain insulated from hardship. It’s a brilliant strategy—if your goal is to prepare the masses for the kind of economic devastation that’s coming whether we like it or not.

And let’s be real—something is coming. While politicians and economists fiddle with interest rates and argue over GDP figures, the actual world—the one with finite resources, ecological limits, and energy constraints—is quietly loading a freight train of consequences. The climate crisis, resource depletion, supply chain fragility, and our relentless need for exponential growth on a finite planet are all patiently waiting behind the smoke and mirrors of political rhetoric.

In that sense, austerity is actually a stroke of genius. It’s an accidental boot camp for post-growth economics, a crash course in how to survive when the fossil fuel bonanza finally loses steam and our economies can no longer pretend that infinite growth is possible. Sure, the implementation has been completely backward—instead of investing in resilience, we’ve gutted public infrastructure, education, and healthcare—but at least people are getting used to the idea of having less.

So, in an ironic twist, the same politicians who pushed austerity under the guise of "fiscal responsibility" may have inadvertently helped prepare the world for the real crisis—the one that isn’t about deficit spending, but about the cold, hard limits of reality.

Of course, there’s one small problem: while working-class people are being conditioned for this new era of scarcity, the elites have been hoarding resources, buying bunkers, and investing in private islands. But don’t worry—they’ll be the first to tell you that sacrificing for the greater good is important. Just as long as it’s you doing the sacrificing.

You're welcome.

Liberal Democracy: The Best System Money Can Buy

Ah, liberal democracy, the crowning achievement of modern civilization, where we the people™ get to choose which flavor of politician will serve corporate interests for the next electoral cycle. You see, while we like to think of our democracies as beacons of freedom and rational governance, the reality is far simpler: policy is a performance, elections are theater, and power—real power—rarely changes hands.

Take, for example, the United Nations, the world’s most prestigious club of professional hand-wringers, where well-dressed diplomats gather to draft urgent, historic, and completely meaningless resolutions. Year after year, they hold summits on climate change, poverty, and economic inequality, only to walk away with agreements so watered down they make homeopathic medicine look potent. And when global crises hit? Well, expect a strongly worded statement, a few rounds of "we must act now" speeches, and a commitment to discuss real solutions at the next conference in some exotic location.

Meanwhile, the great minds of liberal democracy continue their delightful refusal to acknowledge physical reality, clinging to the idea that economies can grow infinitely on a planet with finite resources. The modern political elite operates under the assumption that innovation, market forces, and an endless supply of hope will magically conjure more oil, more lithium, more arable land, and—most importantly—more GDP growth. Because if there’s one thing liberal democracies excel at, it’s avoiding difficult choices in favor of pretending the status quo can last forever.

The Radical Idea of Conservation (Or: Why We Can’t Have Nice Things)

Now, if we were being practical about things like resource scarcity and climate instability, you’d think the obvious solution would be conservation—using less, wasting less, adapting to the constraints of reality rather than fighting them. But that, dear reader, is not how liberal democracies operate. The mere suggestion of reducing consumption sends politicians into a blind panic, because our entire economic system is built on the idea that more stuff, more growth, and more spending is the only path to prosperity.

Instead, we get absurd proposals like "green growth", the idea that we can decarbonize while keeping consumption at full throttle—a bit like trying to lose weight while doubling your dessert intake. Renewable energy? Great—except for the tiny detail that building solar panels, wind turbines, and electric grids still requires enormous amounts of finite resources, many of which are controlled by the same people who profit off fossil fuels.

So, round and round we go, policy spinning in circles like Tolkien’s Ring of Tautology—one bureaucracy to rule them all, one bureaucracy to find them, one bureaucracy to draft a meaningless policy framework, and one to make sure nothing actually happens.

The Final Truth: This Was Never About "Good Policy"—It’s About Power

At the end of the day, this is not a battle between "good" and "bad" economic ideologies—it’s a narrative of power. Who has it, who wants it, and what they will do to keep it. Both sides—neoliberals and their Keynesian critics, free-market evangelists and social democrats, fiscal conservatives and progressive reformers—are guilty of the same sin: they all assume they should be the ones calling the shots.

The neoliberals want unregulated markets where corporations dictate policy. The Keynesians want a managed economy where governments dictate policy. And the rest of us? We’re just expected to play along, cast our votes, and trust that the next "bold reform package" will finally, at long last, fix everything.

And so, the world marches forward, not toward sustainability or justice, but toward whatever version of economic and political control best serves those already in charge. After all, why let resource shortages, environmental collapse, and economic instability go to waste, when they can be leveraged into another generation of power consolidation?

Welcome to democracy. Hope you brought a wallet.