US is infected with ‘pandemic capitalism’ as markets incentivise suffering

A distinct strain of pandemic capitalism is present in the United States as stock prices soar and the government and markets prioritise profits over people

Women, the working poor and minorities have taken the brunt of the suffering while drug companies, tech firms and friends of the government lined their pockets

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A shopper picks up a package of toilet paper at a store in Burbank, California, on November 19. Paper towels and other cleaning supplies are flying off retail shelves amid a new wave of panic buying as the United States faces the most recent surge in coronavirus infections. Photo: AFP

Josef Gregory Mahoney is professor of politics and international relations at East China Normal University and a senior research fellow with the Institute for the Development of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics at Southeast University, and the Hainan CGE Peace Development Foundation.

Published: 10:00pm, 30 Nov 2020Updated: 10:21pm, 30 Nov 2020

More than 250,000 Americans are dead and cases are rising uncontrollably. An effective vaccine strategy is months away. A recalcitrant president refuses to concede or lead. Even so, US markets are surging with the Dow topping 30,000 for the first time in history.

As argued by Marxists and Naomi Klein, capitalism has long exploited crises and even encouraged them to discipline labour and advance elite interests. Indeed, Klein’s term “disaster capitalism” from her prescient book The Shock Doctrine, published just before 2008’s global financial crisis, has returned this year with a vengeance exceeded only by the virus itself. Within this disaster, a distinct “pandemic capitalism” is clear.

When the outbreak first hit the US, millions lost their jobs. Official unemployment rates peaked near 15 per cent in April, but real unemployment rates exceeded 20 per cent with the biggest contraction since the Great Depression. Along the way, 14.6 million also lost health insurance.

As containment efforts failed, the economy reopened anyway. Few were re-employed, though, and long-term unemployment figures have increased significantly. As the virus accelerates, unemployment is rising again at a time of year the opposite is usually true and when benefits are exhausted.