Ideas

An idea is a novel concept. See How to explain an idea

#Neoliberal rejection of ideas

Neoliberalism rejects ideas, and the fact that people can be driven by them as opposed to aligning with markets and efficiency. In this light, Putin's invasion of Ukraine seems 'mad'. We have assumed that Putin wants the same things we do - stability and so-called 'prosperity'. The fact that a leader could be driven by something other than GDP is inconceivable, so we start questioning if Putin is acting 'rationally.' In fact, he is driven by a certain all-encompassing idea of Russia. Timothy Snyder talks about this in his podcast with Ezra Klein.