The Crisis of Neoliberalism

This Book Examines The Great Contraction Of 2007-2010 Within The Context Of The Neoliberal Globalization That Began In The Early 1980s. This New Phase Of Capitalism Greatly Enriched The Top 5 Percent Of Americans, Including Capitalists And Financial Managers, But At A Significant Cost To The Country As A Whole. Declining Domestic Investment In Manufacturing, Unsustainable Household Debt, Rising Dependence On Imports And Financing, And The Growth Of A Fragile And Unwieldy Global Financial Structure Threaten The Strength Of The Dollar. Unless These Trends Are Reversed, The Authors Predict, The U.s. Economy Will Face Sharp Decline. Summarizing A Large Amount Of Troubling Data, The Authors Show That Manufacturing Has Declined From 40 Percent Of Gdp To Under 10 Percent In Thirty Years. Since Consumption Drives The American Economy And Since Manufactured Goods Comprise The Largest Share Of Consumer Purchases, Clearly We Will Not Be Able To Sustain The Accumulating Trade Deficits. Rather Than Blame Individuals, Such As Greenspan Or Bernanke, The Authors Focus On Larger Forces. Repairing The Breach In Our Economy Will Require Limits On Free Trade And The Free International Movement Of Capital; Policies Aimed At Improving Education, Research, And Infrastructure; Reindustrialization; And The Taxation Of Higher Incomes. Frontmatter -- Contents -- Introduction -- Part I. The Strategy Of The U.s. Upper Classes In Neoliberalism: The Success And Failure Of A Bold Endeavor -- Part Ii. The Second Reign Of Finance: Classes And Financial Institutions -- Part Iii. A Tripolar Class Confi Guration: Breaking Wage- Earning Homogeneity -- Part Iv. Financialization And Globalization: Lifting Barriers - Losing Control -- Part V. Neoliberal Trends: The U.s. Macro Trajectory -- Part Vi. From The Housing Boom To The Financial Crisis: U.s. Macroeconomics Aft Er 2000 -- Part Vii. Financial Crisis: Storm In The Center - Global Capitalism Shaken -- Part Viii. The Shadow Of The Great Depression: Difficult Transitions -- Part Ix. A New Social And Global Order: Th E Economics And Politics Of The Postcrisis -- Appendix A. The Dynamics Of Imbalance: A Model -- Appendix B. Sources -- Appendix C. Acronyms -- Notes -- Index Gérard Duménil, Gérard Duménil, Dominique Lévy. Bibliographic Level Mode Of Issuance: Monograph Includes Bibliographical References And Index. English