Invisible Doctrine

Gabi's Review 

The Invisible Doctrine explains the history of economic governance by market forces as underpinned by an economic philosophy known as neoliberalism. Monbiot describes neoliberalism, which he makes clear has been adopted by both left and right sides of politics, as a type of “capitalism on steroids”; one which exploits and captures resources and labour to concentrate wealth in the hands of the few. He argues that neoliberal practices are responsible for the plethora of crises in our current world, beginning with the historic example of predatory capitalism on the Spanish island of Madera in 1506. He considers how the production of sugar in a boom-bust-quit model employing slave labour ultimately devasted the island’s population.  

Monbiot locates the origins of neoliberalism in the fears of the wealthy about collectivism in democracy; in their need to escape from tax and corporate regulation; and in the desire to control the labour movements against which their companies chafed. He describes how neoliberalism prioritises merit and punishes inefficiency; views competition as the key to structuring economies; and claims that the unregulated market is more effective in achieving beneficial economic outcomes than the use of social policy and planning. But Monbiot also, and crucially, considers the ethical implications neoliberalism: an ideology which in his view reduces people to consumers who can and should be managed, and which rationalises greed and selfishness as “light[ing] the path to social improvement, generating the wealth that will eventually enrich us all."

This so-called ‘trickle-down’ effect of wealth achieved by deregulation, corporate tax reduction and the privatisation of public services becomes for neoliberals the high tide that floats all boats. But as Monbiot makes clear, neoliberalism is based on a whale-and-krill-model of benefits in which the planet bears the scars. The outcomes of neoliberal practices include suppressed wages, compromised safety, the decline of social services and a massive increase in social inequity, together with the running down of services and infrastructure. As Monbiot succinctly, and acerbically, writes: “The fairy tale that capitalism tells about itself - that you become rich through hard work and enterprise - is the greatest propaganda coup in human history.”

We could argue that Elon Musk’s vision of colonising Mars, a planet that can support neither atmosphere nor biosphere, is the epitome of the absurd endgame of this expansionist ideology. An ideology in opposition to a collaborative strategic policy of management aimed at protecting the Earth and its inhabitants. Given the global rise of autocracy and populism which disguises self-interest as economic sense, and which unscrupulously co-opts the marginalised for legislative support, Monbiot’s critique of neoliberalism is more critical now than ever. It’s a slim volume that’s immense in scope, as well as clear in the presentation of ideas. Perhaps it’s hard to imagine feeling deeply emotional when reading a book about economics, but this tiny work of non-fiction, with its account of centuries-old stories of human greed and self-interest, moved me to tears of despair. So how can we build new economic systems before the earth’s systems collapse? George Monbiot has ideas that transcend incrementalistic approaches to tipping points, but you will have to read the book for yourselves. I urge you to do so; it’s both ethically powerful and existentially necessary.

Publisher's Review 

How can you fight something if you don't know it exists?

We live under an ideology that preys on every aspect of our lives- our education and our jobs; our healthcare and our leisure; our relationships and our mental wellbeing; the planet we inhabit - the very air we breathe. So pervasive has it become that, for most people, it has no name. It seems unavoidable, like a natural law.

But trace it back to its roots, and we discover that it is neither inevitable nor immutable. It was conceived, propagated, and then concealed by the powerful few. Our task is to bring it into the light-and to build a new system that is worth fighting for.

Neoliberalism. Do you know what it is?