Is neoliberalism a Liberalism, or a strange kind of bird? On Hayek and our discontents

This paper examines the theoretical ideas of Friedrich von Hayek, arguably the key progenitor of the global economic orthodoxy of the past two decades. It assesses Hayek's thought as he presents it: namely as a form of liberalism. Section I argues that Hayek's thought, if liberal, is hostile to participatory democracy. Section II then argues the more radical thesis that neoliberalism is also in truth an illiberal doctrine. Founded not in any social contract doctrine, but a form of constructivism, neoliberal thought at its base accepts the paradoxical need to "discipline subjects for freedom", however this might contravene peoples' natural, social inclinations. The argument is framed by reference to Aristophanes' great comedy, The Birds, whose off shore borderless empire ironically prefigures the dream of neoliberal social engineers, and their corporate supporters.

The development of a neo-industrial organisation methodology for describing and comparing structural and behavioural characteristics of construction supply chains

The model draws from theories of industrial economics and supply chain literature, and is an attempt to advance the construction supply chain field through the development of an industrial organisational methodology to describe construction supply chains.
Empirical studies have examined the industrial organisation of other industries, typically forming descriptions based upon vertical integration and horizontal market concentration. A review of the trends in the supply chain literature indicate there is a need to develop a model to describe the industrial organisation of the construction industry through supply chain structure. The merging of the supply chain concept with the industrial organisation model as a methodology for understanding the structural characteristics is an important contribution to construction economic theory. The paper begins to develop a language for describing the structure and behaviour of supply chains specific to the construction industry and is so doing suggests a neo-industrial organisation approach.

Constructing inclusive education in a neo-liberal context : promoting inclusion of Arab-Australian students in an Australian context

School systems are a major social change agent capable of challenging social inequalities and economic disadvantages. Yet, while schools in Australia are being confronted with increasingly culturally diverse populations as well as an increasing focus on student retention, this transformative role is increasingly being played out in a broader educational context that has been found to replicate rather than challenge patterns of social inequality. Successive governments in Australia have responded to this context with a raft of policy initiatives. This paper, based on three-year longitudinal research undertaken in the city of Melbourne, outlines this policy context and introduces the theoretical approach that underpins its innovative approach to managing cultural diversity in educational institutions. It argues for, and presents, a multidimensional model for managing cultural diversity in schools, one that provides the tools for transformative practices to be undertaken to effect positive change in school environments for the benefit of all students.

On strangers, ‘moral panics’ and the neo-liberalization of teacher education

This paper explores the convergence of neo-liberal managerialism with the neo-conservative technologies of creating ‘moral panics’ about teacher education, English language and literacy curriculum and traditional values that allegedly fail to address the issues of public safety and cultural integration in the post- September 11th world. It problematises the neo-conservative vision of managing ‘strangers’ and public risks through dominant cultural literacy. The paper counters the neo-conservative backlash with a framework that emphasizes dialogical ethics in teaching for difference and conceptualizes transcultural literacy as an alternative model of education in multicultural conditions. This model is presented both as a way of resisting the subliminal infiltration of neo-conservative thinking in teacher education today and as a way of imagining a ‘cosmopolitan’ professional.