Work and Consumption; Neo-liberal Economics
Thinking Allowed
BBC
4.4 • 997 Ratings
🗓️ 13 November 2013
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The truimph of Neoliberal economics in the post Recession world. Laurie Taylor talks to US Professor of Economics, Philip Mirowski, about his analysis of why neoliberalism survived, and even prospered, in the aftermath of the financial meltdown of 2008. Although it was widely asserted that the economic convictions behind the disaster would be consigned to history, Mirowski says that the opposite is the case. He claims that once neoliberalism became a Theory of Everything, providing a revolutionary account of self, knowledge, markets, and government, it was impossible to falsify by data from the 'real' economy. Neoliberalism, he suggests, wasn't dislodged by the recession because we have internalised its messages. Have we all, in a sense, become neoliberals, inhabiting "entrepreneurial" selves which compel us to position ourselves in the market and rebrand ourselves daily? Also, why do work almost as hard as we did 40 years ago, despite being on average twice as rich? Robert Skidelsky, Emeritus Professor of Political Economy, suggests an escape from the work and consumption treadmill.
Producer: Jayne Egerton.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Take some time for yourself with soothing classical music from the mindful mix, |
| 0:06.0 | the Science of Happiness Podcast. |
| 0:08.0 | For the last 20 years I've dedicated my career to exploring the science of living a happier more meaningful life and I want |
| 0:14.4 | to share that science with you. |
| 0:16.1 | And just one thing, deep calm with Michael Mosley. |
| 0:19.4 | I want to help you tap in to your hidden relaxation response system and open the door to that |
| 0:25.4 | calmer place within. Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:29.7 | This is a Thinking Loud Podcast from the BBC and for more details in our terms of use and much, much more about thinking aloud. |
| 0:40.0 | Go to our website at BBC.co. UK. |
| 0:44.0 | Hello, shall we have a student demonstration? |
| 0:47.0 | I'll bring the banners, you start the chance. |
| 0:49.0 | Everybody ready? |
| 0:50.0 | Off we go. Well we're accustomed even one might say habituated to students |
| 0:59.3 | protesting about the world outside the walls of their campus. |
| 1:03.1 | But it was something of a novelty a couple of weeks ago |
| 1:05.1 | to come across a news of undergraduates |
| 1:06.8 | who were intended on leading a revolution, |
| 1:08.4 | not against foreign despots, |
| 1:10.3 | but against their own teachers. |
| 1:12.4 | Yes, economics undergraduates at the University of Manchester have formed the post-crash |
| 1:17.0 | economic society which has questioned the contents of their present syllabus. |
| 1:21.0 | Earlier today I asked Maif Cohen the chair of that Manchester society |
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