‘Neoliberalism’ Conspiracies Come ‘From a Parallel Universe’
16 July 2024
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Christopher Snowdon writes for The Critic
IEA Head of Lifestyle Economics Christopher Snowdon has reviewed Guardian columnist George Monbiot’s new book The Invisible Doctrine: The Secret History of Neoliberalism (& How It Came to Control Your Life).
Christopher wrote:
“The story arc of this ‘secret history’ is that the economist Friedrich Hayek invented an extreme form of capitalism known as neoliberalism in his 1944 book The Road to Serfdom which attracted some ‘fanatical disciples’ who set up some think tanks which attracted some ‘wealthy backers’ who pumped in so much money that the think tanks were able to brainwash politicians into abandoning social democracy, thereby leaving us with the red-in-tooth-and-claw, devil-take-the-hindmost, laissez- faire capitalism that enslaves us today.
“This is the umpteenth book by the Guardian columnist George Monbiot, who has something of an obsession with free-market think tanks, and with my employer, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), in particular. Written with the filmmaker Peter Hutchison, The Invisible Doctrine feels like a communiqué from a parallel universe. I would like to visit Monbiot’s Britain, a country where regulation has been slashed since Brexit, where the media are dedicated to giving people ‘an unremitting, visceral defence of capitalism’, and where the BBC presents the IEA as ‘an independent source of opinion’.
“It is only possible to believe this narrative if you filter out a great deal of information. You must first ignore the legion of think tanks, charities, pressure groups, trade unions, quangos and other special interests pushing relentlessly for a bigger state, and instead focus on a small band of free marketeers and their ‘rich backers’.”
Read Christopher’s full review here.
Christopher wrote:
“The story arc of this ‘secret history’ is that the economist Friedrich Hayek invented an extreme form of capitalism known as neoliberalism in his 1944 book The Road to Serfdom which attracted some ‘fanatical disciples’ who set up some think tanks which attracted some ‘wealthy backers’ who pumped in so much money that the think tanks were able to brainwash politicians into abandoning social democracy, thereby leaving us with the red-in-tooth-and-claw, devil-take-the-hindmost, laissez- faire capitalism that enslaves us today.
“This is the umpteenth book by the Guardian columnist George Monbiot, who has something of an obsession with free-market think tanks, and with my employer, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), in particular. Written with the filmmaker Peter Hutchison, The Invisible Doctrine feels like a communiqué from a parallel universe. I would like to visit Monbiot’s Britain, a country where regulation has been slashed since Brexit, where the media are dedicated to giving people ‘an unremitting, visceral defence of capitalism’, and where the BBC presents the IEA as ‘an independent source of opinion’.
“It is only possible to believe this narrative if you filter out a great deal of information. You must first ignore the legion of think tanks, charities, pressure groups, trade unions, quangos and other special interests pushing relentlessly for a bigger state, and instead focus on a small band of free marketeers and their ‘rich backers’.”
Read Christopher’s full review here.
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