In anticipation of the post-COVID-19 world, bold statements are being made on how we will, as a race, be wiser, even kinder; cautious, and reflective. If history is ever a lesson on anything, such statements are bound to be the fatuous utterances of a moment, soon forgotten. What is left, […]
Tag: Epidemic
Our ‘War President’ Goes To Battle
`He who seeks to defend everything, defends nothing.’ King Frederick the Great of Prussia. This is one of the most important maxims of military history. Every young officer should have it drilled into his head. Yet the confused administration of President Donald Trump has been doing just this as it […]
Trump Samples Democratic Socialism
The responses of the Trump administration and the US Congress to meet the socio-economic challenges posed by the onslaught of the coronavirus constitute a marker in American politics — how in a deeply polarised political climate, it is still possible to evolve ‘bipartisan consensus’ between the ruling elite and the […]
Viral Reactions: The Smugness Of Celebrity Self-Isolation
The rush to elevate self-isolation to Olympian heights as a way to combat the spread of COVID-19 has gotten to the celebrities. Sports figures are proudly tweeting and taking pictures from hotel rooms (Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton being a case in point). Comics are doing their shows from home. […]
The Coronavirus And Hybrid Warfare
Initially, Iranian and Chinese officials declared that the coronavirus was a biological weapon created in US military laboratories. The US media was quick to accuse those behind the statements of spreading conspiracy theories, but proponents of the theory began speculating further – was the leak random or was every action […]
Britannic Herd Immunity And Coronavirus
Epidemiologist William Hanage was more than perplexed by the plan. “When I heard about Britain’s ‘herd immunity’ coronavirus plan,” he reflected in The Guardian, “I thought it was satire.” Much public policy, foolishly considered and expertly bungled, tends to succumb to satire; having Prime Minister Boris Johnson leading the show […]
No Quarantine Has Overcome Any Disease
The Covid-19 outbreak awakens ancestral anxieties. Some of us suddenly perceive our neighbors, friends and families as threats. There is a real risk of violence in the near future. In the face of any danger, we must first remain reasonable, not rational. These are two very different ways of thinking. […]
The COVID-19 Outbreak Highlights Cultural Differences In East & West
The COVID-19 outbreak has highlighted some of key cultural differences between the East and West as each civilization’s many states struggle in their own ways to contain the virus. China and South Korea, despite being some among the worst hit by the global pandemic, have managed comparatively better than Western […]
India Revisits SAARC To Fight COVID-19. Scepticism Is In Order
The teleconference today at 5 pm IST between the leaderships of the SAARC countries is a rare event in regional cooperation. After an interlude of nearly six years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is once again networking with India’s neighbours in a SAARC setting. He had sprung a surprise in May […]
For Heaven’s Sake Sanitise! Coronavirus As A Way Of Life
“Anything we say in advance of a pandemic happening is alarmist; anything we say afterwards is inadequate.” Michael Leavitt, US Health and Human Services Secretary, March 30, 2006 A crew of gathered customers were busying themselves this Friday evening at the BWS (Beer, Wine and Spirits for the uninitiated) along […]
This Is How America And Britain Are Maximising Coronavirus Deaths
Bunkering down and preparing for the coronavirus is just the beginning. The coronavirus is not just a blip in the matrix. It’s a symptom of an entire system coming up against planetary boundaries. The coronavirus has erupted as a result of fossil-fuelled global industrial expansion, driving and driven by endless economic growth for its own sake.
Coronavirus And Pandemic Pantries
Fears of imminent apocalypse tend to be midwives to absurdity. The stockpiling fever that has gripped various populaces in response to the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has taken various forms. “Pandemic pantries” are becoming the norm, suggesting that hoarding in the crisis tends to be a precursor to petty crime. […]
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