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The author's starting point in this article is a presupposition that the laissez faire tradition in economy and politics is legitimate. Still, the globalization processes point out the weaknesses of that presupposition. The author shows that the politicians (and theorists) of the most powerful countries have joined the antiglobalization camp. They no longer hold to the spirit of unity and humanity, and they spread capitalism with unpopular means: political and military might. In that sense the author points out to evidence that leads to a conclusion that the chances for a liberal political and economic philosophy are very weak. In fact, it is only an ideal. That is the sad result of the globalization process to date after the promise of Fukuyama's 'End of History'. Still, the author believes that not everything is lost. Adapted from the source document.

The author's starting point in this article is a presupposition that the laissez faire tradition in economy and politics is legitimate. Still, the globalization processes point out the weaknesses of that presupposition. The author shows that the politicians (and theorists) of the most powerful countries have joined the antiglobalization camp. They no longer hold to the spirit of unity and humanity, and they spread capitalism with unpopular means: political and military might. In that sense the author points out to evidence that leads to a conclusion that the chances for a liberal political and economic philosophy are very weak. In fact, it is only an ideal. That is the sad result of the globalization process to date after the promise of Fukuyama's 'End of History'. Still, the author believes that not everything is lost. Adapted from the source document.

The author reinterprets the conflict between communitarians & liberals as a disagreement about the desirable scope of influence of the state in the new Eastern European democracies. Communitarianism, which emphasizes unity, is a democratic substitute for collectivism, which has had a long tradition in Eastern Europe. Recent developments in Eastern Europe show that there are no preconditions for democratic communality, which means that communitarian concepts contain an element of danger. The author thinks that the best alternative to the collectivist & communitarian danger in Eastern Europe is the classical utilitarian, ie, economic liberalism. Classical liberalism is the best venue for ensuring economic progress & with it, democracy. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes the long-, medium-, & short-term prospects of liberalism in Croatia. The long-term prospects are determined by the global future of liberalism; however, agreement among liberal theoreticians as to what that future might look like has not yet been reached. It might be said that the clout of liberals in relation to the other two major political groups -- conservatives & social democrats -- depends on the type of mixture of the value of freedom, equality, & solidarity in Croatian political culture. The medium-term prospects are determined on the basis of the analysis of the social structure of Croatian society, which displays a powerlessness of educated & economically independent social strata as the traditional addressees of liberal politics. The author thinks that major short-term changes in the Croatian political scenery are unrealistic. 2 Figures, 10 References. Adapted from the source document.