Is Global Neoliberalism the Only Way?

Are Western values truly Universal?

That moment when you realise that, as a Westerner, you might just be on the wrong side.

If you tune into actual Chinese or Russian governmental sources (not Western interpretations) you'll notice that a guiding principle for them is the establishment of a "multi-polar" world - one where individual cultures can flourish in an environment of mutual respect. 

The term "multi-polar" occurs time and again in the speeches, statements and intellectual tracts that these governments both publish and utilise to guide policy.

They perceive themselves as standing against the ongoing march of Western neoliberalism, which they consider to be largely a vehicle for US imperialism. They don't want to become part of a borderless marketplace where commercial interest is God.

Does that sound so terrible? Not to me personally. I think it's worth discussing. But apparently Westerners aren't allowed to think about these things, and so the governments of these countries and their policies need to be smeared, marginalised and censored.

I don't actually know whether the global borderless marketplace is necessarily terrible. Maybe it’s a cool idea and maybe opposition to it is just coming from the authoritarian side of our psyche. But I am suspicious of the level of censorship currently going on around alternatives.