Zooming In at The UnPopulist Are Advanced Capitalist Liberal Democracies Victims of Their Own Success? A Conversation with Brink Lindsey
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Jul 27, 2025 Brink Lindsey, senior vice president at the Niskanen Center and writer of The Permanent Problem, dives into how mass affluence is reshaping expectations and creating a crisis within liberal democracies. He discusses the paradox of success leading to skepticism and diminishing trust in democratic institutions. The conversation addresses societal changes, the rise of populism, and a yearning for deeper fulfillment beyond material wealth. Lindsey also critiques the perceived tensions between economic performance and social cohesion, drawing on historical insights.
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Keynes's Permanent Problem Insight
- Keynes foresaw mass affluence solving material scarcity but warned about a social nervous breakdown.
- Today's crisis is people craving meaning beyond material needs, stressing liberal democracies.
Culture Undermines Liberal Institutions
- Liberal democracy's institutions need a supportive culture to function properly.
- Mass affluence has fostered consumerism and adversary culture, undermining social bonds and institutional legitimacy.
Elite Professionalization Deepens Divide
- Political engagement shifted from mass membership to professionalized groups sidelining ordinary people.
- Societal elite-cultural divide deepens as elites have values despised by ordinary people.
