History's fools: the pursuit of idealism and the revenge of politics

In: Oxford scholarship online

Abstract

The end of the Cold War announced a new world order. Liberal democracy prevailed, ideological conflict abated, and world politics set off for the promised land of a secular, cosmopolitan, market-friendly end of history. Or so it seemed. 30 years later, this unipolar worldview- premised on shared values, open markets, open borders and abstract social justice - lies in tatters. What happened? David Martin Jones examines the progressive ideas behind liberal Western practice since the end of the 20th century, at home and abroad. This mentality, he argues, took an excessively long view of the future and a short view of the past, abandoning politics in favour of ideas, and failing to address or understand rejection of liberal norms by non-Western 'others'.