The following statement by the International Marxist Tendency explains how capitalism has utterly failed to deal with the coronavirus crisis, and is putting the lives of millions of people at risk. In such a situation, half measures and tinkering with the system are futile. Only drastic measures will suffice to avert the impending disaster.
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Events on a world scale are moving at breakneck speed. The new coronavirus (COVID-19) has set in motion a chain reaction, which is upending any semblance of stability in one country after another. All of the contradictions of the capitalist system are coming crashing to the surface.
2019 was marked by many tragedies but few could have compared with the measles epidemic that swept Samoa. It killed 83 people (as of the end of December 2019) , nearly all of whom were children aged under four, and it infected 5,520 people in total. To put this in context, Samoa only has a total population of approximately 200,900 people. What makes this measles epidemic such a d tragedy is not only the numbers of babies and toddlers killeor infected but the grim reality that the epidemic could have been avoided.
The latest outbreak of coronavirus has caused the biggest wave of stock market losses since 2008, wiping $5tn off share values worldwide. Markets are worried that the virus will have a serious impact on an already weak world economy. These fears are not unfounded.
The new coronavirus epidemic is having important implications for the class struggle, which we covered yesterday in an article about the outbreak in Italy. In this article we will deal with the effect the outbreak is going to have on the world economy.
“The idea that all Britain’s Labour party needs to do to win is offer true socialism has been tested to destruction.” (Financial Times)
News of the British election result was greeted by jubilation on the stock markets of the world. The pound sterling soared, and Donald J Trump tweeted: “Congratulations to Boris Johnson on his great WIN!”
But all history shows that a rise in the stock market does not necessarily signify anything positive for the working class. Rather, the opposite is the truth. And what pleases the present occupant of the White House will not necessarily be to the liking of the working people of Britain.
All the reactionaries are crowing. Donald Trump expressed particular delight at the result. “Congratulations to Boris Johnson on his great WIN!” the US President wrote on Twitter. “Johnson secures crushing UK election victory,” exuded the Financial Times, as the pound rose on foreign exchange markets.
The international climate strike movement has created waves across the world. Over the past year, during the course of several global days of action, millions of young people from over 100 countries have walked out of school in order to join the ‘Fridays for Future’ protests, demanding immediate action against the climate crisis.
Ihumātao is a place that most people had not heard of until recently due to the escalation in protests on this land. At present there are approximately 1,500 people on the site, which has been cordoned off by the police.
Why is this protest being undertaken?
Just before dawn on 30 April, the Venezuelan opposition launched yet another attempt at a military coup. By the end of the day, the botched coup attempt seemed to have failed, with one of its leaders seeking refuge in the Spanish embassy, 25 of the soldiers involved requesting asylum at the Brazilian embassy and Juan Guaidó in hiding or on the run.
