The genius of prosperity is found not in government stimulus programs but in the ethic of work and discovery in average citizens who take pride in their labour. Prosperity and economic growth driven by ideas is a process initiated from the bottom up, not the top down.
Ansell’s book Why Politics Fails has deep faith in the latest political and economic research. It’s not as if he is wrong, only that his solutions rely on a change in the hearts and minds of people, a tall order in any age.
Critics of elitism are generally correct that a society based solely on merit moves society in the wrong direction. But when committees, or commissars, take over the central role of markets, the route for society takes an even more dangerous turn.
Chile has one of the richest and most successful economies in South America. Now, their socialist president threatens to abolish the “neoliberal model” that brought them their prosperity.
Woke thinking compartmentalizes groups according to their identity rather than class oppression. Wokism breaks this connection by moving us into tribes disconnected from each other. This undermines classical liberal thinking and even the leftist emphasis on class solidarity.
Every year, millions fall below the poverty line, but millions rise above it, too. We need a better understanding of the causes of and solutions to poverty than simplistic, emotional appeals.
Now that China is the senior partner in its relationship with Russia—and Russia’s leading international backer—it is the only country that can guarantee the terms of any armistice or peace agreement.
After World War II, liberal democratic countries rose rapidly, even more so after the collapse of the Soviet Union. That trend is now in reverse. What is causing this crisis? Inequality is to blame, sure, but don’t count out the culture wars too.
Canada is an example of a thriving democracy that does a good job of integrating immigrants, but that doesn’t mean the underlying tensions between peoples and cultures have disappeared. How to best welcome newcomers into society is still an open question.
Robert D. Kaplan’s latest book is about deep regret written by a keen observer of war. It outlines how he got the Iraq War wrong and reminds us that the potential for tragedy is always present.
