On Thu, 4 Aug 2011, SA wrote:
> Bhaskar Sunkara, supreme commander of the Jacobin Liberation Front, has
> advised me to post this stimulating and provocative blog post to this list.
>
> http://jacobinmag.com/blog/?p=891
I think your post is excellent.
But the only virtue I can see in Matt Yglesia's post is that it served as the fodder for yours.
In his concluding paragraph, Yglesias calls the approach he favors "progressive neoliberalism," and he defines it as "growth + redistribution." But growth + redistribution is Hubert Humphrey liberalism. There's nothing neo about it. I thought the neo in neo liberalism was about dereg, privatization and relative weakening of union and government power (outside military and punitive spheres).
If Yglesias thinks neoliberalism, Humphrey liberalism and progressivism are all the same thing, how can one argue distinctions with him?
And if he doesn't see any difference among them, what does he mean by calling himself a neoliberal? I'm beginning to think it's just because he thinks it's a sexier term for liberal.
I'm also beginning to wonder why he has a rep. Has anyone here ever followed his blog?
Michael