Part of the World Socialist Movement
February 27, 2023
Once again the world shudders at the news of another ‘natural’ disaster, as the death toll climbs from the Turkish-Syrian earthquake. It is again apparent that even a ‘natural’ disaster can be mitigated. Similar misfortunes are invariably presented in the media as unavoidable and to a certain degree, this is true. But it ignores the …
Read more “Material World – Disasters, natural and unnatural”
January 27, 2023
We are all getting older and we will be older for longer. People living longer sounds good. But not for capitalism. Improvements in healthcare have brought extended longevity and longer lifespans mean there are more older people. The population aged 65 and older is growing faster than all other age groups, especially as the global …
Read more “Material World – Too old to work, too young to die”
December 31, 2022
Come, you masters of war You that build the big guns You that build the death planes You that build all the bombs You that hide behind walls You that hide behind desks I just want you to know I can see through your masks (Masters of War, Bob Dylan) For a capitalist, Winston Churchill’s …
November 24, 2022
COP27 in Egypt is done and dusted, promises doomed to be disappointments much to the dismay of the eternal optimists in the ecology movement. However, there are deeper problems for those who seek a new sustainable future of renewable energy. Many have yet to come to understand that for new technologies to act as substitutes …
Read more “Material World – Pillaged and plundered for green capitalism”
October 26, 2022
Vaccine shortages in poorer countries have revealed the callous nature of the capitalist profit system and its inability to protect the lives of vulnerable people and avert unnecessary preventable deaths and suffering from health inequality. Shortages of vaccines are endemic to capitalism. One would have thought the mistakes made during the Covid-19 pandemic would have …
September 27, 2022
When there is little benefit to states, particular treaties that promote the interests of humanity as a whole can usually be concluded. Such would be the Antarctica Treaty, the Outer Space Treaty, or the Montreal Protocol to protect the ozone. If, however, there exists a potential for profit, good intentions will be tossed aside. For …
August 27, 2022
Once described as the ‘Pearl of the Caribbean’ and known as being the world’s first black ex-slave republic, Haiti is now the poorest country in the western hemisphere. According to the World Bank , in 2020 Haiti had a GDP per capita of US$2,925, the lowest in the Latin American and Caribbean region, less than …
July 26, 2022
Sri Lanka long had a stable economy but the Material World column in March (tinyurl.com/5n7prxbb ) drew attention to the economic chaos taking place there. Since March the situation has spiralled even more out of control. Sri Lanka’s rupee has lost more than 80 percent of its value and is still falling. Its foreign exchange …
Read more “Material World: Sri Lanka – the limits of workers’ forbearance”
June 27, 2022
Much of our planet is suffering from heatwaves and droughts with record-breaking temperatures and the experts say it is not isolated incidents but a harbinger of weather events that will become increasingly common in the future as global warming increases. Namrata Chowdhary of the environment activist group, 350.org, stressed that ‘the truth behind these heatwaves …
May 25, 2022
North Africa was called the granary of the world during the time of the Roman Empire and it may surprise many that the richest person in recorded history was allegedly not a Rothschild, Rockefeller or even Elon Musk but an African ruler from the 14th Century, Mansa Musa, who possessed wealth of around $400 billion …
Read more “Material World – Africa: from bread-lines to bread-basket?”