ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the arguments for and against neoliberalism and considers the record of performance. Neoliberalism is a complex set of programs that at times were implemented undemocratically and at times democratically. Neoliberalism's record, however, is better than its critics suggest. Ultimately, neoliberalism's performance points to the power of markets to produce economic benefits, but their limits to overcoming the deep-seated challenges facing the region. Neoliberalism appeared in Latin America in Chile with the 1973 coup that brought General Augusto Pinochet to power. Neoliberal policies in the developed world included sharp cuts in taxes on the wealthiest in society, austerity measures to eliminate inflation, and attacks on union power. Neoliberalism as an intellectual project is both untenable in practice and naive politically. Indeed, the late 1990s witnessed the beginning of a decided turn to the left in electoral politics based on growing discontent with neoliberalism's performance.
