Coronavirus + Globalisation = Famine

(Repeating some of the stuff here that I wrote in my last post, which was a bit of a rant).


Largely thanks to the globalised, horrifyingly exploitative/unequal world that we now have as a result of capitalism, these economic shutdowns in response to Covid have massively increased the number of people at risk of acute hunger in the global south.

Watch this: Vandana Shiva On the Real Cause of World Hunger.

Covid has made clearer than ever that we need to demand a radically different world. We need to end imperialism. We need to cooperate, not exploit. We need fair distribution of resources. We need to re-localise. We need people power, not corporate power.

But sadly it looks like we’re headed in the opposite direction...

As a result of the lockdowns, billionaires are currently getting richer, whilst small, local businesses are going bust/being put into more debt - great for big business and bankers.

Read this: Why The Crisis May Make Powerful Corporations Even More Powerful.

I previously thought that most elites would be anti-lockdown, because it would be bad for the economy. But actually, it looks like it’s the opposite. Without appropriate and sufficient government action, this is and will continue to be a boon for many of them.

Yet more monopolisation, exploitation, inequality on the way. And thanks to social distancing, it’s harder than ever for people to organize and resist it.

.....

How are the powers that be exploiting the crisis? I'm going to keep a list here:

Under Cover of Mass Death, Andrew Cuomo Calls in the Billionaires to Build a High-Tech Dystopia.

Proptech is leading to new forms of housing injustice in ways that increase the power of landlords and further disempower tenants and those seeking shelter.

TFL

Controversial tech company pitches facial recognition to track COVID-19