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Radio War Nerd EP #205 — Recovered History of Neoliberalism & Fascism (Patreon)

Published:
2019-11-13 22:17:00
Imported:
2026-06
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Recorded: November 10, 2019

Mark Ames recovers the early history of neoliberalism in 1920s Italy and 1930s France. From the first proposal of "neo-liberalismo" in 1921 by Fascist thought-leader Massimo Rocca, and the Mussolini regime's liberal/"neo-liberal" austerity regime; to French intellectual Louis Rougier's 1938 conference in Paris founding and branding "neoliberalism" as a new political movement. 

Total time: 1:53:06

Direct link to this episode's mp3 here.

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Comments

Allie S-M

In a perfect world, I’d love to have access to a list of every work mentioned in every episode you’ve done

Ellen Harold

In a celebrated passage in Homer's Iliad, VIII. 306-308, a dying warrior is compared to a poppy: "And he bowed his head to one side like a poppy that in a garden is laden with its fruit and the rains of spring; so bowed he to one side his head, laden with his helmet." I don't think Homer was a gardener, because the poppy flower hangs down as a bud, but straightens up as the flower is about to open and stays upright after the petals fall and the seed pod forms. In any case, I think the poet was thinking of the bloody color and the fragility & evanescence of the flower, since if you pick it the petals drop off right away. https://fifepsychogeography.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/cimg2570-001.jpg

CR

Ellen Harold

I think it is interesting that J.S. Mill, the great philosopher of political liberalism, ended his life as a socialist. I haven't read Walter Lippmann's The Good Society (now I will have to) but I did read Ronald Steele's wonderful biography of him. It is my impression that Lippmann was miffed that FDR didn't come to him for advice, and that was one reason he turned against FDR and wrote the Good Society, which, as Mark Ames points out, gave such hope to conservative economists. A constant in Lippman's thinking was a fear of "mob" rule and a desire for a technocracy. (Rule by technocrats is a feature of neoliberalism in contradistinction to classical economic liberalism). About other things, however, Lippmann was always changing his mind after realizing he was wrong. I don't know if he actually repudiated the Good Society, but when World War 2 broke out, Lippmann, a Jew of assimilated German background, had a nervous breakdown and decided he wanted to convert to Catholicism. His wife, however, who was a lapsed Catholic, wouldn't stand for it & absolutely forbad his conversion. Anyway, Lippmann ended up going to a "rest home" for six months during the war. He spent the rest of his life as a pundit opposing the Cold War and then the Vietnam war, which is rather endearing.

A Sentient Katamari of Bad Life Decisions

I'd absolutely love an episode on Fiume. I'm sure Annibale has something unique to say about it? And hey, it can't be too long a trip from Turin, hint hint.

Benton

The e-fence sensors you mention at 26:30 originated as part of Project Agile (see Surveillance Valley).

Ellen Harold

Why do you think Mansfield's is the best, very briefly? Really curious.

Snackator

hey, great comment. what are those episodes matt christman was on talking about italian fascism? I sure would like to get his take on it.

Avery

I'm not sure I can truly answer the Strauss question, but as far as I can tell from having attended a Straussian school in New Mexico, Strauss matters far less than anyone thinks he does. The school's influence on neoconservatism is largely hyperbole and misreading. The main Straussian journal Telos is read only by its own writers.

Avery

You don't *need* a philosophical program to weaponize elitist snobbery. Friend of the show VDH justified the Iraq War based on pure aesthetics and dilettantism.

Knut Nicholas Figenschou

If I'm not wrong the movie 'the big red one' starts with a scene set on November 11th in 1918 with Lee Marvin killing a German soldier and being told later that day that the war has been over for 4 hours.

Some Guy

You should have Steve Keen on, to talk about the Bretton woods conference and the creation of the postwar trade order and the way it broke in the seventies...

xnfec

or Michael Hudson perhaps? Or C.Derrick Varn if you really want to explore libertarianism. Carls Zha's former co-host, Nathan, had a good interview with him before they folded the podcast.

xnfec

That was depressing. the Adam Curtis film, The Trap, had interviews with James Buchanan, in parallel with the Marketisation of the NHS and the resulting gaming of the system of monitoring by bureaucrats to produce favourable outcomes. All this sounded like it would meet with Buchanans approval. Also, the show took the lid off of a favourite UK sit-com called Yes Minister. At the time I found it very funny and it was. However, it now seems it was a very subtle piece of propaganda. Hand in glove with this goes the demonisation of the working class and their lifestyles. Michael Perelman in The Invention of Capitalism notes this. We see it today with the dergatory term Chav in the UK which manages to demonise both people and public housing. You still see stories in the papers about people degrading themselves on holidays in Spain or Greece. It seems that anything the poor do that is not making money for the rich is fair game. Having listened to this I now see where it comes from. Sadly it is still here. For a science fiction angle, Jerry Pournelle co-authored a book with Stefan Possony on the strategy of technology or somesuch and would often refer to him fondly in his blog.

Francisco Rodriguez Rascon

Nice, I wonder if you guys have read Quinn Slobodian's Globalists. Or maybe have him on the show.

xnfec

I think at the end of the film he tries to save the life of one under similar circumstances at the end of the sequel.

JoR

Having your pet at an old age is very tough, especially when they're sick/injured (or both) at the same time for a year or more. My dog injured his legs for the last year of his life, and quickly had other problems (tumors, loss of hearing and other mental problems). The fixes were astronomical in price, so unfortunately we couldn't help him much besides getting some dog pain killers for him lol. Is the fundraiser for Genghis still going on or is it finished? Is there a link?

CR

Avery

Claiming "seriousness" is really the only gambit remaining to the PMC at this point. The language isn't intended for you really. It's only meant to shut you up, while they look consistent by saying the same things to the business sector.

Gee Mama

Re: being the last guys killed before the armistice, there's a nice French novel and film adaptation, "See you up there."

Steven Thomas

Great episode guys, any chance we can get a free preview of this? I know A LOT of people that could use an education on liberalism and this would be a great resource.

Elliott

This might be one of my favorite episodes. This deep deep dive really reveals these concepts which are being talked about more and more often in our current times. I keep on telling friends to subscribe because of this episode.

Matthew White

It was really rich hearing the quote from Churchill praising fascist Italy for paying off its debts knowing that at that time Churchill was (in today's $$) millions of $$ in personal debt, which was a feature of nearly all of his adult life. I guess debt is really only a problem when it involves the poor getting anything out of it.