Why I don't use the word "neoliberalism"

[koganbot]

Tweetstorm on why I don't say "neoliberalism." Potentially way more interesting post on this subject if I bring in hairstyle (not a pejorative) and hallway-classroom and real life. Someday.

People complain that "neoliberalism" is vague but "socialism" encompasses François Hollande and Pol Pot.

— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) July 18, 2017

Problem not vagueness but that "neoliberalism" is mostly used as a pejorative to smear Clinton-Obama as essentially like Thatcher-Reagan. /1 https://t.co/A4WzPHrsMU

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Whereas socialist often used as a self-identifier, and you can ask people what sort of socialist they are. /2

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Doesn't mean you can't use "socialist" to mischaracterize or misunderstand people, but "neoliberal" used for little else. /3

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

More charitably I'll say people who use the term want to understand e.g. why Dems are doing such a bad job of reducing inequality, racism. 4

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

But, though you can say that mixed-economy liberals underestimate the intractability of free-market capitalism... /5

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

...you're dishonest if you say that mixed-economy liberals embrace the unfettered free market, much less the intractability. /6

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Okay, it might not be what you mean; rather, that neoliberals are too accommodating. But why not use the word "liberal," without the smear 7

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Btw, this not directed at Yglesias, who only uses term ironically, as if directed at liberals like himself. E.g., https://t.co/SiraqbGNZ1 /8

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Problem for those who feel farther left is that merely using "liberal" doesn't explain how they aren't themselves mixed-economy liberals. /9

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

The task here, though, is to be inventive in self-definition oneself, if one is farther left, and creative in one's ideas. /10

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Aware @delong calls himself neoliberal, with interesting reasons, no doubt. He's pretty left. This was before current sneer use of term. /11

— Frank Kogan (@koganbot) July 18, 2017

Comments

[belecrivain]

wait, have you been using Twitter all this time? I'm so behind!

[koganbot]

Mostly using it to link my LJ posts, but I do toss in the occasional, illuminating wisecrack or doomed attempt to convince politicos who've never heard of me to listen to Seo Taiji And Boys.