In this essay I will argue that Kevin Rudd is correct in criticising the neoliberal attitudes. To quote David McKnight “In effect, Kevin Rudd sees the financial crisis as the Berlin Wall of the free-market, marking the end of an era”. (McKinight, 2009)
“The current crisis is the culmination of a 30-year domination of economic policy by a free-market ideology that has been variously called neo-liberalism, economic liberalism, economic fundamentalism, Thatcherism or the Washington consensus.” (Rudd, 2009)
‘A modified form of liberalism tending to favour free-market capitalism’ (Neo-liberalism, n.d.) The term neoliberalism developed between the two world wars of the 20th century, and is credited to two notable economist of the era, Milton Friedman …show more content…
(Rudd, 2009)
As a method for economic development, neoliberalism has been utterly disastrous. However it has been an excellent method of re-establishing power for the affluent elitist. If history is anything to gauge the effects of neoliberalism, it is that it was deliberately created by a particular group of individuals., and because people made it, then people can undo it. The days of deregulation and unrestricted financial controls are over, and cannot be able to reappear, the effects to the worlds economies is to high.
Financial markets are not continually self-adjusting or self-regulating, the effects of the early 1980’s recession, Black Monday, the 1994 Mexican Peso crisis, the dot-com bubble, the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis in the US and the European Sovereign debt crisis, should have been enough of a warning sign, including the now infamous 1998 bailout of the hedge fund Long Term Capital Management. However, nevertheless with all these cautionary signs, supporters of the neoliberalism approach haven’t faulted, continuing the unconditional commitment to the cause due to the severe personal greed of the ‘free-market’
“The current crisis is the culmination of a 30-year domination of economic policy by a free-market ideology that has been variously called neo-liberalism, economic liberalism, economic fundamentalism, Thatcherism or the Washington consensus.” (Rudd, 2009)
‘A modified form of liberalism tending to favour free-market capitalism’ (Neo-liberalism, n.d.) The term neoliberalism developed between the two world wars of the 20th century, and is credited to two notable economist of the era, Milton Friedman …show more content…
(Rudd, 2009)
As a method for economic development, neoliberalism has been utterly disastrous. However it has been an excellent method of re-establishing power for the affluent elitist. If history is anything to gauge the effects of neoliberalism, it is that it was deliberately created by a particular group of individuals., and because people made it, then people can undo it. The days of deregulation and unrestricted financial controls are over, and cannot be able to reappear, the effects to the worlds economies is to high.
Financial markets are not continually self-adjusting or self-regulating, the effects of the early 1980’s recession, Black Monday, the 1994 Mexican Peso crisis, the dot-com bubble, the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis in the US and the European Sovereign debt crisis, should have been enough of a warning sign, including the now infamous 1998 bailout of the hedge fund Long Term Capital Management. However, nevertheless with all these cautionary signs, supporters of the neoliberalism approach haven’t faulted, continuing the unconditional commitment to the cause due to the severe personal greed of the ‘free-market’