“Late modernity is a capitalist modernity, which, as a permanent process of rationalisation and secularisation, constantly gives rise to what Georg Lukács called ‘transcendental homelessness’. Modern humans have lost any spiritual sense of meaning. For Lukács, reading novels was one way of dealing with this problem. One can immerse oneself in literature and imagine a different world. Today, the growing numbers of esoteric communities and other forms of spiritual sense-making indicate there is considerable demand for transcendence.
The rise of libertarian authoritarianism is also a consequence of the weakness of the left and social movements. It has often lost its anti-establishment appeal. Many people no longer see the left as sufficiently critical of the state and the media. It is no longer seen as a legitimate representative of a collective criticism of power and a productive counter-knowledge. Social movements such as feminism and the anti-nuclear movement have repeatedly rationalised criticism of power; libertarian authoritarians selectively align themselves with the conspiracy-theory knowledge that only serves to maintain their general suspicion of the (now: left-liberal) elites.
Late-modern societies have entered an era of polycrisis, when all efforts by the political elites to contain the various crises lead to a permanent state of emergency – in which only fictions of normality are maintained. However, because liberalism prevents any real transformation of capitalism or any enlightened thinking about alternatives, it is becoming increasingly paternalistic, and intervening more deeply in individuals’ lives, such as in the fight against climate change. [my emphasis N. M.] The austerity policies of the last 25 years also play a part. Citizens were repeatedly told that there was no money, but in crisis situations (such as the financial crisis) there was always enough money. This has produced a deep alienation among citizens, fuelling the rise of libertarian authoritarianism and new forms of ungovernability.”
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