The Great Uprising with Vivek Ramaswamy - WBD610

Vivek Ramaswamy is an entrepreneur and author. In this interview,
we discuss his thesis that social and political struggles are
rooted in the rise of a managerial class dominating society at
the expense of everyday citizens. We also talk about the need to
revive a binding national identity, and how the social justice
movement may be causing more harm than good.


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Public choice theory influenced a generation of conservatives
around the world in the 1970s and 80s. In essence, the theory
applied economic thinking to political behaviour. It undermined
the notion of public interest: it was a nebulous irrelevance in
relation to public policy as all individuals, including
politicians and bureaucrats, work in their own self-interest.


What resulted was the development of a managerial class that
would be incentivized to achieve specific aims through monetary
rewards. This class has grown since the 1980s to now represent,
in some people’s views, an oversized controlling force within
society. However, their decision-making is increasingly outside
of the purview and influence of ordinary citizens.


Vivek Ramaswamy believes this friction between managers and
everyday people is at the root of the current social and
political struggles within society. Exacerbating these tensions
are increasing incidents of managers being coopted by elites to
do their bidding, undermining constitutional norms. Vivek
believes that we are now at a defining moment when the defining
principles of political organisation need to be reviewed.


The ideals and principles of the United States, as laid out in
the constitution, became a unifying force around which a vibrant
national identity was developed. This, until very recently,
facilitated and supported American hegemony. But, in short order,
that binding sense of a united vision has been replaced by
factionalised ideologies that threaten the viability of the
American experiment.


The fundamental issue is that the notion of Americanism has been
allowed to wither. Vivek believes that to combat China and meet
the other great challenges of our age, America must find again a
shared national identity that eclipses current partisan
divisions. In essence, the US must retrace its steps before
venturing forward.