Introduction: Neoliberal Fantasies

Abstract

A sensation of progress prevails where precious little has been achieved. The election of Barack Obama in 2008 heralded feelings that the country would finally awaken from a rather troubled sleep. Campaign slogans, including “Yes We Can” and “Change We Can Believe In,” left the impression that life in the USA was about to start anew. There was a sense that the financial meltdown that preceded Obama’s inauguration, though deeply painful, might now augur a better, wiser tomorrow. Grave issues could at last be addressed: racism would cease to exist; climate change would be reversed; the USA would mend global ties frayed from the unilateral actions undertaken by the Bush administration; and power would at last be redistributed from the wealthy few to the masses. Riding a wave of good feelings, years of poor decision-making would disappear with the wave of a hand.¹