The Killer's Henchman: Capitalism and the Covid-19 Disaster (Baraka Nonfiction)

Summer 2021, the WHO announced that pandemic would end “when the world chooses to end it.” Though all necessary public health measures were available, it didn’t end. Those measures, used in China, New Zealand, Vietnam, and a few others, were ignored elsewhere. The virus ran riot as half measures were used when hospitals were unable to handle strain. The vaccine turned out to be more mirage than oasis. Poor- and middle-income countries meanwhile experienced a global vaccine apartheid, waiting for crumbs to fall from the rich countries’ table, as new, possibly more virulent variants, threatened to emerge. Stephen Gowans investigates why, when all the tools to avert a catastrophe were available, the world failed to prevent the Covid-19 disaster. Examining the business opportunities and pressures that helped shape the world's failed response, he concludes that the novel coronavirus, a killer, had a helper in bringing about the calamity: capitalism, the killer’s henchman. He shows how capitalism, its incentives, and its power to dominate the political process impeded the protection of public health. "The pandemic will end "when the world chooses to end it," said the WHO in summer 2021. But it didn't end, even though all necessary public health measures were available. China, New Zealand, Vietnam and a few other countries used them, but most others ignored them. The virus ran riot. Half measures were used only when hospitals were staggering under the strain. The vaccine turned out to be more mirage than oasis. Poor and middle-income countries experienced global vaccine apartheid. The United States under Trump and Biden did everything not to "spook the markets," while registering upwards of 2500 deaths per million. China, on the other hand, minimized economic disruption and had only 3.2 deaths per million due to Covid-19. Gowans investigates why, with the exception of China, the world failed to prevent the Covid-19 disaster. He concludes that the novel coronavirus had a henchman - capitalism. He shows how capitalism's multiple incentives and the way capitalists dominate the political process, crippled public health and caused masses of unnecessary deaths."-Cover Preface Chapter 1. THE KILLER Chapter 2. THE RESPONSE Chapter 3. THE CAPITALISTS’ STATE Chapter 4. THE CAPITALISTS’NANNY STATE Chapter 5. CAPITALIST PHARMACY Chapter 6. THE BILLIONAIRE Chapter 7. THE HENCHMAN Bibliography Notes Preface 1. The Killer 2. The Response 3. The Capitalists State 4. The Capitalists ́Nanny State 5. Capitalist Pharmacy 6. The Billionaire 7. The Henchman Index Investigates why, when all the tools to avert a catastrophe were available, the world failed to prevent the Covid-19 disaster. Examining the business opportunities and pressures that helped shape the world’s failed response, Stephen Gowans concludes that the novel coronavirus had a helper in bringing about the calamity: capitalism.