Luis Rubio
It’s surprising that some are surprised. In the last five decades the country has lost all of its bearings: it changed its strategy of economic development, maintained the system of privilege (increasingly corrupt and visible) and, on top of everything else, undermined its own credibility on incorporating a belief system that hollowed itself out from within. The electoral preferences commanded by potential candidates such as Lopez Obrador, Jaime Rodriguez, El Bronco, and other outsiders are the consequence of what, consciously, has been done –and what was decided not to do- in the last fifty years.
The ideological hegemony in a society, the essence of the work of Antonio Gramsci, is developed, nurtured and preserved through the institutions that sustain it. The old Mexican political system was exceptionally deft at that: it aligned –and submitted to it- all of the social actors and governmental instruments in order to lend viability to its philosophy of “revolutionary nationalism”, over which it sustained its hegemony through the decades. However, when the system encountered problems in the sixties, first in the economic realm and later in the political, it lost its way and, although extraordinarily positive things have been accomplished, the government has never recovered its bearings. A new hegemony never emerged.
Stable societies entail two complementary characteristics. First, they enjoy ideological hegemony because the visions emanating from the educative system, the religious prelates, media, the political and entrepreneurial discourse and from the diversity of social and intellectual entities all coincide. When the loss is suffered of coherence and congruence the system’s credibility is forfeited and support of the sociopolitical regime disappears.
The other characteristic derives from the results of governmental management that strengthens, or reduces, its credibility. It is obviously easier to sustain hegemony in a prosperous society in which all of its members benefit from and entertain a horizon of progress, than in one living from crisis to crisis. Korea possesses great ideological solidity while Venezuela finds itself on the brink of a resounding collapse.
What have we done in Mexico? In the sixties the economic sustenance of the revolutionary regime vanished. In the seventies the sources of economic stability were destroyed and laws and regulations were incorporated that undermined economic development; in the eighties and nineties a new economic strategy was adopted (which has made it possible to survive and succeed for the last twenty years) but this strategy was never thoroughly implemented in an integral way, sapping its own viability, thus its credibility. Throughout this entire process some have been favored at the cost of others, giving rise to deep-seated social resentment. At the same time, the essence of the old regime has been perpetuated, making of the system of privilege an enormous social blemish, with a growing cost: according to some estimates, corruption in the country represents 9% of the GDP, while the impact in terms of credibility and reputation (sufficient to remember celebrated moments such as #LadyProfeco or that of #LordMeLaPelas) is infinite. The sources of unease and anger in the society are obvious.
What has been paradoxical through all of these decades is how rhetorical objectives have clashed with concrete actions. The case of education is paradigmatic: although this was conceived as a legitimizing instrument of the revolutionary government, up to the seventies an ideological equilibrium was maintained that was compatible with the development of a private enterprise-based economy. From the seventies on, the tenor changed to the point that children of following generations only know how bad everything about capitalism is, this despite that all of the later reforms were envisioned to shore up private investment. Flagrant contradictions.
This all generated growing tolerance for mediocrity, while political correction has ended up becoming the mantra and absolute limit of freedom of expression. If to this we add a succession of failed governments, rejection of the political establishment is absolutely logical. In a word, what we are currently undergoing is the consequence of actions, decisions and choices over many years.
Within this context, who does support López Obrador, El Bronco and other potential “dissidents”? All those who have grown up in an era of crisis, of rhetoric that is openly fallacious and full of lies, and growing corruption, waste and impunity. Why would one believe that things are going to get better when things are not carried out that are promised and that would be necessary for this to function? I have no doubt that the employee working at a plant exporting successfully and experiencing growing productivity levels optimistically perceives a future of opportunity, but I am certain that there are millions more who are stuck in an old economy that affords no possibility at all and who know that there is no future. There are real sources of resentment.
In the logic of the mediocrity of the last fifty years, concessions such as the lack of a modern system of education capable of providing equality of opportunity for all might have seemed to be minor and not transcendent, but have undercut the country’s viability and trust in government. As Mario Puzo wrote in The Godfather, “if we let them push us around on the little things, they wanta take over everything”. Successive governments were yielding in everything. Now the question is how to steer the country forward anew.
@lrubiof