Reading this tweet made me think about the way competitive individualism encourages the spread of conservative values.

The competitive, individualistic mindset is one that sees threats everywhere. It is the source of the belief that interdependence is weakness, that pursuing our own interests requires us to compete rather than collaborate, and that we’re all on our own - no one will have our backs if we fail.

This mindset is the source of an immense amount of loneliness and suffering. It makes us feel constantly on edge - like we should always be guarding against potential threats from our competitors. And it makes us feel deeply lonely and isolated.

It’s also the mindset that makes capitalism function.

If we saw our co-workers as potential collaborators, rather than competitors, we’d be much more likely to organise with them in unions. If we believed that interdependence was a strength, rather than a weakness, we wouldn’t see investment in care, health and education as a drain on public spending. And if we realised that isolating ourselves from each other made us sick, rather than strong, we'd spend much more time working with other people to make the world a better place.

So much neoliberal policy - from breaking up unions, to cutting public services, to privatizing pensions and social housing - was about embedding this competitive individualistic mindset. And the more embedded this mindset became, the more terrified we all became of other people. And the right preys upon this kind of fear.

That’s why trusting each other is such a radical act - and it’s why any form of organising is so threatening to the status quo.