Expert Perspective

　　

At the height of the euro crisis, former Italian prime minister Mario Monti liked to say that part of the problem was that "for Germans, economics is still part of moral philosophy." What he meant was that the German instinct is to blame others, not to solve problems—he then reminded people that "sin" and "debt" are the same word in German. But the real finishing touch of this punchline is that the Germans are right-economics is (or should be) part of moral philosophy.

    Successful politicians have to do more than just bring about economic growth. They also need to provide voters with a morally reasonable economic vision in which virtue will be rewarded and sin will be punished. Since the financial crisis broke out 10 years ago, mainstream Western politicians have lost this vital ability. The view that the current economic system is unfair has contributed to the rise of right-wing and left-wing populism in Western countries.

    As Monty’s words suggest, the idea that economics needs to be rooted in a moral system is not new. Adam Smith, the most important economic thinker in history, was a professor of moral philosophy at Glasgow University. His famous view-that individuals who work for their own interests will contribute to the overall benefit-are supported by his "ethical sentiment theory."

      Followers of Karl Marx took to the streets to revolutionize because they believed that communism was morally superior to capitalism—not because they were inspired by Marxist economics. Friedrich Hayek, the winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, is a passionate anti-Marxist. He is also a moral philosopher, and his "The Road to Serfdom" (The Road to Serfdom), from a moral perspective, refutes the state's system of controlling the economy.

    Before the big shock in 2008, Western centrist politicians came up with a set of morally self-justified economic concepts, which allowed them to win elections. Adhering to a free market economy is to reward efforts and success, and to allow more people to have opportunities. Globalization (the creation of a global market system) is called an ethical project by defenders because it involves eliminating inequality and poverty in all parts of the world.

      However, after the financial crisis, “globalists” (to borrow Trump’s term) began to lose moral grounds. The fact that banks have been rescued and people’s living standards have stagnated has offended many voters’ understanding of natural justice. When no one at the top of a failed system is thrown into jail, politicians like Donald Trump, who declared that “the system is being manipulated,” have the appeal.

    Right now, most Americans seem to agree with the view that Trump's tax reform mainly cares for the rich. If this interpretation takes hold, voters may bid farewell to Trump’s right-wing populism and switch to the left-wing populism of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. The campaigns of Sanders and Warren also took advantage of the feeling that the US economic system was being manipulated. They are particularly concerned about intergenerational injustice-which makes many young voters bear the burden of student loans and their jobs are unstable.

    These views resonate not only in the United States, but also prevail in Western countries. In the UK, the Brexitists such as the British Independent Party (UKIP) led by Nigel Farage have carried the banner of right-wing populism, while the left-wing populist Jeremy Corbyn (Jeremy Corbyn) Take control of the Labour Party (Labour). In France, the right-wing populist Marine Le Pen and the left-wing populist Jean-Luc Mélenchon (Jean-Luc Mélenchon) together received more than 40% in the first round of the presidential election this year. Votes. Together with other fringe parties, about 50% of voters in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States are now clearly seduced by populist anti-system politicians.

    However, in Germany, despite the radicalization of the refugee crisis, the right-wing and left-wing populist representatives still received far less than 25% of the votes. To some extent, this can be attributed to the success of the German economy. But this is also because German Chancellor Angela Merkel realized when dealing with the euro crisis that she had to take into account the feelings of ordinary voters. At that time, many economists in the United States and southern Europe believed that the euro crisis could only be resolved by formal and large-scale cancellation of Greek debt. They also pointed out that German bankers were more responsible for the crisis than Greek retirees. But Merkel knows that many people in Germany believe that hard-working Germans should not be asked to write down the debts of extravagant Greeks. This view is too strong to be confronted. She can only make progress in resolving the euro crisis if she respects the basic concepts of effort and return.

    A whole generation of Western politicians grew up under the influence of Clinton's slogan "Idiot, the key lies in the economy." But in today's politics, "economy" is not only about growth. It is also about justice.