Calling someone a neoliberal often carries negative connotation from both more left- and right-leaning individuals alike. Yet there is nothing inherently negative about neoliberalism itself. Neoliberalism is the modern status for the majority of the republics across the developed nations. The government is involved in the market forces, and as the chapter cites, draws legitimacy from the market itself. In other words, the success of the markets is directly tied to the success of the government. There are a variety of reasons for this but often it is correlated because voters have the ability to set referendum on members of government through direct election. If they are experiencing positive economic circumstances the voter will often attribute this to the success of the government. However, the opposite is the same for when the economic trends are downward. In this case, the voters may be inclined to vote for another member of government in efforts to reinvigorate the market, and therefore improve their individual economic situation. It is understandable that there is differences in “how much” the government should be involved in the regulation of the markets, but it is difficult to support the idea that there should be no regulation of the markets, especially when the health of many of the systems of government rely on predictable and stable markets. There are even international organizations that ensure the sustainable flow of goods between nations, something that is most definitely influencing the markets, but they are seen as positives. Yet they are sure the result of neoliberal ideals.
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