Early neoliberalism positioned scientists as exemplars of liberal order, not communism
Evidence
The challenge of “Bernalism,” and its continuous influence during World War II, vastly influenced the orientation of neoliberalism. Epistemological battles around the scientific method reverberated as a political and ideological argument over the best form of government. The formative political activities of neoliberals during the 1930s were chiefly set against natural scientists promoting socialism and planning as the logical extrapolation of a scientific worldview and organization. They are set to show that the scientific community, far from embodying an archetypal communist society, represented, on the contrary, the incarnation of a liberal order guided by the scientific method. — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 78
Categorization
- DEFINE: Useful to define what ‘Bernalism’ referred to (scientists promoting planning/socialism as scientific extrapolation)
- QUESTION: Worth chasing how the Bernal-neoliberal epistemological battle maps onto the science wars and today’s climate/evidence politics.
- XREF: connects to: Neoliberalism pairs a scientific self-image with elite-directed ideological strategy, not democratic science — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 92; Neoliberalism crystallized partly as opposition to scientists promoting planned socialism; Early neoliberal economists rejected politicizing science while rivaling interventionists did not. — Angus Burgin, The Great Persuasion: Reinventing Free…, 130 (+1 more)
Broader Connections
- Neoliberalism pairs a scientific self-image with elite-directed ideological strategy, not democratic science
#expands(0.82) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 92 - Neoliberalism crystallized partly as opposition to scientists promoting planned socialism
#expands(0.75) - Early neoliberal economists rejected politicizing science while rivaling interventionists did not.
#expands(0.72) — Angus Burgin, The Great Persuasion, 130 - Wartime neoliberals attacked applied natural-science planning as ‘scientism’ without attacking science itself
#corroborates(0.70) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 83