In recent years, many Western countries have experienced a continuous social revolution.France's yellow vest movement is typical.(AFP)
In recent years, many Western countries have experienced a continuous social revolution.France's yellow vest movement is typical.Social protests are caused by a daily livelihood problem, that is, the continuous rise in fuel costs and the decision to increase fuel costs in the French government.However, a social protest from such a issue that is not so important in many people, soon evolved into the largest social movement since the May Storm in France in May 1968, and soon expanded to many countries and regions around the world.EssenceOf course, the social movement is not limited to France, but the European countries, including Italy and Germany, will continue to occur in different forms of social movements during the rise.
However, in politics, more index social movements occur in the two old -fashioned capitalist countries of the United States and the United Kingdom. These two countries have always been a typical and pride of Western democracy.The United States started with the Wall Street Movement after the global financial crisis in 2008, to the rise and sustainable development of Trumpist, and Brexit referendum occurred in Britain.The incidents in the United States and the United States have huge internal and external impacts.In order to solve internal problems, the United States has externalized internal contradictions and implements trade protectionism and economic nationalism, that is, a trade war with many countries.Among them, the trade war between the United States and China is particularly severe, and it has begun to expand to conflict in other fields and even war threats.Brexit has a huge impact on the integration of the European Union. If the ending of hard Brexit will inevitably lead to worsening relationships between Britain and major European countries, bringing huge uncertainty to Europe.
Although the social movements of different western countries have different ways of expression or different outbreaks, the root cause of this wave of social movements is a new liberal economics rising in the 1980s.In the 1980s, the British and the United States successively occurred in the Schale Revolution and the Reagan Revolution, which people called the new liberal revolution.The Jachel Revolution and Reagan Revolution have some common characteristics: tax cuts, privatization, relaxation of economic control (especially for financial industries), weaken the society, restrictions and weak chemical unions, and reduce benefits.At the same time, neo -liberalism is not free for its essence, because the goals and values of neo -liberalism must be achieved through a strong government (even government power).In order to strengthen the support of internal people, the two countries have implemented a stronger policy.As a result, the British war occurred in Argentina, and the United States led the Cold War against the Soviet Union to a peak (that is, the final decisive battle).
From Keynesian to neo -liberalism
The reason why people call the Schale Revolution and Reagan Revolution as the New Liberal Revolution is because the theoretical basis of the two is a new liberal economics developed before.Theoretically, neo -liberalism is a response to Cainene's economics after the war.After World War II, Britain began the 30 -year Kanesist consensus. Whether it was the Labor Party or the Conservative Party's execution of Keynesist economics.To a large extent, Keynesianism was also the consensus of Western countries at that time.Under the guidance of Keynes' economics, public departments (state -owned enterprises) and social welfare in Western countries have expanded greatly. The government's role in economic life is increasingly strengthened, and bureaucratic institutions have expanded sharply.All these factors, coupled with the external oil crisis in 1973, caused a serious stagnation of economic stagnation in the 1970s of Western countries.
Economic stagnation has led to the dissatisfaction of the Western world to Keynesianism. Neo -liberalism stands out and replaces Keynesianism.Neo -liberalism has different schools, but the main ideological foundation comes from the Chicago school that people call. The main economists include Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman.From the beginning of it, neo -liberalism has responded to the two trends.The first is the response to the planned economy of the Soviet Union and the Soviet Union.After the Soviet -style planned economic model, the West has used huge people's property to criticize and block.These efforts are also the continuation of the efforts of the West earlier in the West and the surrounding Marxism.Followed by the socialist trend of Britain and other European countries.Although Socialism in Western Europe is different from the planned economy of the Soviet Union, because Keynesism does not deny that the government must have a certain plan for the economy, neo -liberalism has also regarded Keynesianism as a liberal enemy.These two concerns are fully reflected in the book of Hyek's way to the road to server. This book has been regarded as the Bible of Western Liberal Economics.
Starting from the economic role of against the government, neo -liberalism eventually evolved into market -based moralism.However, it is clear that neo -liberals only oppose the government's economic roles, and do not oppose strong governments, and even the rule of politics.In fact, they are really real, because they realize that to achieve the goal of neo -liberalism, they need a strong government to implement it.Their relationship with Chile is a typical example.For example, although the spontaneous worship of social and economic order for new liberals (especially Hayek), the social and economic order formed without any government intervention, they strongly support the dictatorship of Chilean soldiers Pinoten.The strong political leaders of Taxel and Reagan are also in line with their ideals.
The West has been a new liberal consensus or Washington Consensus since the 1980s.Prior to the outbreak of the global financial crisis in 2008, neo -liberalism went unimpeded and became popular all over the world.Just as Keynesianism has created a western political and economic crisis, neo -liberalism has also created a series of crises facing the West today.Some scholars (such as Andres Solimano, a Chilean economist) pointed out that the West is facing a triple crisis today: 1. Economic crisis (stagnation, lack of employment, weak investment, etc.) and economic crisis (there is no explanation ability and ability to explain in economics and economicsThe prediction ability is not related to the real economy); 2. The unfair income and wealth of the sharp deterioration and wealth are becoming very small at the top of the top; 3. Democratic politics is captured by strong economic elites and has become a tool for their pursuit of private interest.
Economy is getting more and more democratic
The sharp expansion of income and wealth differences is a common phenomenon of western society. In recent years, research in this area can be said to be sweaty.No matter what indicators are measured, the same conclusions can be obtained, including the differences between the poor and the rich, the wealth owned by the 1 % rich people, and the wealth owned by the 99 % population, the rapid narrowing of the middle class scalewait.Naturally, this difference is not only manifested between different social groups within a country, but also between the country, including the West and the non -West, the poor and the rich, the north and the south.
Over the past few decades, the Western world has shown a puzzling contradiction, that is, politics is becoming more democratic, and it is increasingly democratic.Politically, since the 1970s, with the rise of the Western civil rights movement, one person and one vote for democracy have begun. So far, one person and one vote have become the most solid foundation for Western democracy.This is also the ideal held by all democrats.But what about economical?Economic democracy means economically more equal.Western leftist (political liberals) have also hoped that economic democracy is achieved by one person and one vote for politics.But from experience, the Western economy has run counter to people's expectations, that is, it has become increasingly unequal.This contradiction is difficult to explain, and it is also a huge challenge facing western society.The only explanation given by people is that democratic politics has been captured by the economic elite, and they have transformed one person and one vote into one yuan and one vote.
From a historical perspective, capitalism has the sameIn essence, that is, profit.In other words, profit is the normal state of capitalism, which is also regarded as the driving force of human economic progress.However, while capitalism creates a huge amount of wealth for humans, it also causes extreme inequality of human beings.British writers Dickens and French writer Hugo described the suffering world created by capitalism, while Marx analyzed the original capitalist situation of that era in theory.It is easy to understand that capitalism has led to the rise of the European socialist movement, and the socialist movement is a contest between capital and social forces.
In Europe, two branches have appeared in the socialist movement.One of the Soviet -Russian Revolution, occurred in a relatively backward country. The theoretical basis is Marxism. It believes that private ownership is the source of human suffering. Therefore, social justice must start from eliminating the private ownership.The Soviet Russian revolutionary hopes that the national capitalism and planning economy will be implemented through Russia's chain of capitalism.Another road in Western Europe, it occurred in a relatively developed country, which tried to protect the interests of workers through social welfare policies.Kanesianism was formed during World War I and World War II, which began to emphasize the government's economic role to make up for the failure of the market.Kanesianism was indispensable before the 1970s, creating a comprehensive welfare society in the West.However, as mentioned above, because the role of the government has also caused its own problems.
The reaction to Keynesianism has gone to another extreme, that is, marketing of marketing.Just as the primitive capitalism in the Marx era has triggered a socialist movement, it is easy to understand why the market -based the purpose of the market can trigger a new wave of social revolution.
Democracy is powerless for capital
Where does the contemporary Western social revolution go?Regardless of the political or academic circles, people's goals for the social revolution are not clear, and governments of various countries have not solved an effective plan that caused social revolution.During the Obama administration, there was a trend of socialism in Europe. It mainly wanted to show its medical reform by increasing the benefits of the people at the bottom.However, in the financial field, the Obama government needs financial capital to create wealth, so the government still serves financial capital and relaxes the control of this field.The Trump administration can be said to be a reaction to Obama.Although Trump came to power through the populist movement, he still represented the interests of the large bourgeoisie.No one will believe that Trump's policy can solve the US issue; on the contrary, many problems including race will deteriorate and cause greater internal problems.In Europe, the welfare society has been highly institutionalized and difficult to shake, and can only continue to take the welfare line.In smaller and developed Nordic countries, the new version of welfareism has floated on the top, that is, the general salary system.However, larger countries such as France, Germany, and Britain are facing huge dilemmas. On the one hand, expensive benefits are unsustainable, but as shown in the French yellow vest movement, policies that reduce welfare or damage benefits are unpopular.
In the face of increasingly strong capital, Western democracy seems incompetent.Capital uses its own strength to control its own strength, control elections, manipulate media public opinion, and even go to the political stage to govern in person.The emergence and extensive use of social media, on the surface, empowers civilians, so that some outsiders of politicians have the possibility of governing power.But what is actually?Some outsiders start from the anti -construction system. Once they enter the system, they become part of the establishment and continue to serve the system; while other outsiders are still outsiders after governing, they seem to be weak in front of strong capital and system.But it can't be avoided.
The separation state caused by politics and economy can be said to be the ideal of the West.From the Middle Ages from the religious autocracy of the Middle Ages and the transformation of modern monarchy to modern democracy. Capital is the subject. Without the power of capital, it is difficult to see modern Western democracy.However, capital also draws an unbreakable myth for itself, that is, the checks and balances of economic forces for political forces are the basis of Western democracy.For a long time in modern times, this may be this, but today's situation has moved to another extreme, that is, democracy is powerless for capital.Undoubtedly, how to deal with the relationship between capital and democracy?This is a huge political challenge in all Western countries.
Not only that, the tremendous changes within Western countries may evolve into conflicts between countries.This is the case of World War I and World War II. At that time, the populist movement at that time was easily transformed into an external nationalist movement, while the nationalist movement often led to conflicts and war between countries.The modern world order was established in the West. So far, the change of this order is inseparable from changes within Western countries.It is foreseeable that the social revolution of contemporary Western countries will inevitably be reflected in the changes in world order.Therefore, the social revolution that the West is experiencing must also be a severe challenge to the world.In this regard, people must not take it lightly.
(The author is a professor at the East Asia Research Institute of the National University of Singapore)
The article only represents personal point of view
