Jacqueline Rose, drawing lessons from “The Plague”; Tiff-Annie Kenny on social and political determinants of viral risk; Richard Poplak & Diana Neille on politics and the business of disinformation; Michael Edwards on the role for NGOs in the transformation of society; and more, including two critical reflections on the promises of a Green New Deal.
Pointing the finger: ‘The Plague’
On plagues and politics: stirring guidance for these times
by Jacqueline Rose, London Review of Books, May 7, 2020
Read here.
The coronavirus doesn’t exist in isolation; it feeds on other diseases and crises
by Tiff-Annie Kenny, The Conversation, May 25, 2020
The construct of ‘syndemic’ is an indispensable corrective to the single-disease model that dominates the response of the global health machine, especially in the global south, but also in the countless chronically-underprivileged enclaves of the global north.
Read here.
Austerity is the killer
Ten years ago the Marmot review warned that policies of public austerity after the 2008 financial crash would lead to a chasm in life expectancy between rich and poor. And that’s exactly what happened.
by Michael Marmot, Le Monde diplomatique-English edition, June 2020
Read here.
UK coexists with coronavirus
Unequal pre-viral social and economic conditions affected how people spent their lockdown and could continue into a future in which we have to learn to live with Covid-19.
by Rowland Atkinson, Le Monde diplomatique-English edition, June 2020
Read here.
Ten reasons why immunity passports are a bad idea
Restricting movement on the basis of biology threatens freedom, fairness and public health.
by Natalie Kofler & Françoise Baylis, Nature, May 21, 2020
Read here.
The American virus
by Eliot Weinberger, London Review of Books, issue dated June 4, 2020
Read here.
What kind of country do we want?
by Marilynne Robinson, The New York Review of Books, issue dated June 11, 2020
Read here.
From Brexit to Donald Trump to COVID-19: how the influence industry has replaced politics
by Richard Poplak & Diana Neille, The Globe and Mail, May 21, 2020
A timely warning from the directors of Influence, a documentary about the business of disinformation, streaming as part of this year’s Hot Docs Film Festival.
Read here.
Behind Trump’s push to blame China
The Trump administration’s global campaign against China harks to false WMD claims made before US invasion of Iraq
by Daniel Sneider, Asia Times, May 26, 2020
Read here.
For-profit nursing homes have had far worse COVID-19 outcomes than public facilities—and three of the largest paid out $1.5 billion to shareholders
By Marco Chown Oved, Kenyon Wallace & Brendan Kennedy, The Star, May 16, 2020
Read here.
Over 90% of corporate directors at Canada’s biggest for-profit nursing homes have no medical qualifications
Canada’s biggest for-profit nursing homes are run by real estate developers
Press Progress, May 25, 2020
Read here.
Inquiry into coronavirus nursing home deaths needs to include discussion of workers and race
by Tania Das Gupta, The Conversation, May 25, 2020
Read here.
The new normal? Canadians say they don’t want it to look much like the old one
by Susan Delacourt, The Star, May 23, 2020
Read here.
Palestine: the third way forward
The Palestinians are not powerless. There is much they can do to stop Israeli expansionism.
by Marwan Bishara, Al Jazeera, May 19, 2020
Read here.
Canadians of conscience should not be smeared as ‘anti-Semites’ for boycotting apartheid Israel
by David Kattenburg, Rabble.ca, May 21, 2020
Read here.
Is there a role for NGOs in the transformation of society?
A critical retrospective on the conclusions of over 30 essays published on openDemocracy/Transformation during the past five 5 years
by Michael Edwards, openDemocracy, May 21, 2020
Read here.
Finally, a few essays reflecting on the aspirations and promises of a Green New Deal, including a two-part article that examines proposals advanced by progressive forces in the Global North in the context of their potential impact on people in the Global South:
The Great Green Hope
A review and discussion of: On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal, by Naomi Klein, Simon and Schuster; This Land Is Our Land: The Struggle for a New Commonwealth, by Jedediah Purdy, Princeton University Press; and, A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal, by Kate Aronoff, Alyssa Battistoni, Daniel Aldana Cohen & Thea Riofrancos, with a foreword by Naomi Klein, Verso.
by Eric Klinenberg, The New York Review of Books, issue dated April 23, 2020
Read here.
No harm here is still harm there: The Green New Deal and the Global South (Part One)
Without accounting for globalised production, a Green New Deal in the Global North will merely spur the imperialist quest for cheaper resources and labour to satisfy “eco-friendly” consumption.
by Vijay Kolinjivadi & Ashish Kothari, Jamhoor, May 20, 2020
Read here.
No Harm Here is Still Harm There: The Green New Deal and the Global South (Part Two)
A Green New Deal that fails to challenge the hegemony of growth-led development perpetuates the exploitation of the Global South and will be unable to prevent global ecological social collapse
by Vijay Kolinjivadi & Ashish Kothari, Jamhoor, May 21, 2020
Read here.