Bookstore

Up the Down Escalator is an attack on the chronic pessimism which infects how we think about so many aspects of our lives: the disintegration of the family; the destruction of our environment and the politics of spin; the dumbing down of culture; disregard for tradition and an economy beyond our control.

This chronic pessimism appeals to the nostalgic right but also to the radical left, whose critiques of globalisation and new technology share many common themes.

Leadbeater argues that this pessimism is dangerously overstated. We are talking ourselves into a state of helplessness. There are good grounds for modest optimism about the state of the world.

We are living longer. Education is reaching more people. More people than ever can read, write, draw, design and communicate. The people in power are more likely to be questioned and held to account. We have more choice about how to live our lives. Disastrous utopian political projects are less feasible now than in the 20th century. Innovation could allow us to enjoy economic growth without environmental despoliation. Globalisation is not responsible for global poverty and inequality. On the contrary, Leadbeater argues, the problem is that globalisation has not gone far enough.

Up the Down Escalator will be controversial. It attacks the high priests of pessimism from the left and the right, from the Daily Mail to Naomi Klein.

Leadbeater argues that the pessimists of both the left and right see globalisation and new technology as forces of degeneration, pulling society apart and imperilling its health. When pessimism is merely melancholic nostalgia, it may be harmless, but when it is combined with populist politics it can turn violent and ugly. He argues that this was witnessed recently with the success of politicians on the far right, such as Jean Marie Le Pen in France, and the rise of the anti-globalisation movement on the left. The reactionary and radical pessimists, though very different in their values and political style, share a great deal in their analysis of the dangers of globalisation, individualism and the market.

This unlikely alliance of pessimists is now the single most potent force in modern politics. Opposing this Pessimist's Alliance is now the most important task of democratic politics, especially for the centre left.