The Majority Report with Sam Seder

2500 - Neoliberalism's Far-Right Evolution w/ Quinn Slobodian

May 19, 2025
Quinn Slobodian, a professor of International History and author of 'Hayek's Bastards,' discusses the alarming evolution of neoliberalism and its ties to far-right ideologies. The conversation shines a light on how race science and economic theories intertwine with the political rise of figures like Trump. He also addresses the implications of these ideas on societal organization and meritocracy. The episode dives deep into the troubling marriage between neoliberalism and populism, revealing its disturbing impact on current politics.
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INSIGHT

Neoliberals' Post-Cold War Crisis

  • Neoliberals in the 1990s believed they had lost the Cold War despite the Soviet collapse.
  • They saw new enemies in progressivism within civil society and bureaucracy, igniting a cultural battle.
INSIGHT

IQ Racism as New Eugenics

  • The rise of IQ and intelligence-based racism is a new form of eugenics for the information age.
  • It gained popularity alongside the knowledge economy and Silicon Valley's rise in the 1990s.
INSIGHT

Science Used to Justify Inequality

  • The right has used science to argue against equality by claiming genetic limits on capacity.
  • IQ-based arguments became a way to justify permanent inequality as inevitable.
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