Trump administration and Mexican government collaborate to deny life-saving care to refugees with HIV
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
HIV-positive immigrants seeking asylum in the United States, who face a growing shortage of key medication in Mexico to maintain their compromised immune systems, must now also contend with a growing coronavirus epidemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/mexi-m30.html

\'No such plan\': Modi govt dismisses report it\'s considering extension of coronavirus lockdown beyond April 14
rt.com | 2020-03-30
New Delhi has denied that it has been considering an extension of the 21-day lockdown for a week, with fears mounting that a massive migrant exodus is bound to undermine the effect of the measure. | India has been in a state of a complete lockdown since March 25, after Indian PM Narendra Modi announced sweeping restrictions on movement and ordered all non-essential commerce to shut down. | Public transport came to a screeching halt, with most states banning inter-state bus routes, railway lines and, in some cases, private transport, including buses and auto-rickshaws. While the measure was aimed at emptying th…
rt.com/news/484442-india-lockdown-extension-migrants/

As the World Tackles the COVID-19 Pandemic, the U.S. Raises the Pressure on Venezuela
Vijay Prashad, Paola Estrada, Ana Maldonado, and Zoe PC | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
In a press conference on March 26, it was almost comical how little evidence the U.S. Department of Justice provided when it accused Venezuela\'s President Nicolás Maduro and several of the leaders of his government of narco-trafficking. The U.S. offered $15 million for the arrest of Maduro and $10 million for the others. Maduro, U.S.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/as-the-world-tackles-the-covid-19-pandemic-the-u-s-raises-the-pressure-on-venezuela/

Peace is the New Priority for Planet Earth after CoVid19 Crisis
DLI | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
For decades Peace activists have been clamoring that the misplaced US priority on Militarism(wasting Trillions of dollars and narrowly focusing on imagined foreign enemies and/or real terrorists spawned by US policies)will decisively harm the health of citizens and the Planet itself. Sadly, 60 years after President Eisenhower warned of the danger of the Military Industrial Complex overshadowing the health and welfare of our society, the Peace agenda is still being sidelined to near extinction, both by the political ruling elite of Pentagon-Wall Street hucksters, and the compliant mainstream media outlets.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/29/18831925.php

What\'s Wrong with Ranked Choice Voting
ADRIAN KUZMINSKI | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
An electoral reform popular with many political activists and commentators is ranked choice voting, also called cumulative or preferential voting. Instead of voting for just one candidate from a list, as we normally do, ranked choice voting allows each of us to vote for two or more candidates, ranking them respectively as first choice, second…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/whats-wrong-with-ranked-choice-voting/

China: COVID-19 hospital construction worker\'s protest blog goes viral before being deleted
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The worker described the wage theft and repressive conditions suffered by thousands of construction employees who build hospitals in Wuhan at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/chin-m30.html

The World\'s Major Military and Economic Powers Find Happiness Elusive
Lawrence Wittner | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
Long before the advent of the coronavirus pandemic left people around the world desperate for survival, a popular assumption emerged that national governments are also supposed to promote the happiness and well-being of their citizens. This idea was expressed in the U.S. Declaration of Independence, which proclaimed that governments are instituted to secure humanity\'s…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/the-worlds-major-military-and-economic-powers-find-happiness-elusive/

The coronavirus pandemic and the perspective of socialism
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
On Sunday, March 29, the World Socialist Web Site and the Socialist Equality Party held an online forum, \"The COVID-19 pandemic: Capitalism and the making of a social and economic catastrophe.\"
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/pers-m30.html

Mehring Yayıncılık publishes Turkish-language edition of The struggle against imperialism and for workers\' power in Iran
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
First published by the WSWS in February 2018, The Struggle against Imperialism and for Workers\' Power in Iran–A Reply to a Proponent of \"Iranian Islamic Socialism\" advances a socialist strategy for the working class in a country that has been the target of US imperialist aggression for decades.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/irpm-m30-m30.html

Going After Maduro
Ron Jacobs | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
The recent indictments of Nicolas Maduro and other Venezuelan government officials on drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges is a sham. It is a politically motivated and hypocritical attack on the elected government of Venezuela. Obviously, it is another front in the ongoing US low-intensity war on the majority of Venezuelans. It is cynical in that Venezuela\'s neighbor Colombia has been literally governed by drug traffickers for most of the past thirty years, if not longer. | …
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/going-after-maduro/

Trump\'s Narcoterrorism Indictment of Maduro Already Backfires
Leonardo Flores | zcomm.org | 2020-03-30
The indictments are another brick in the foundation for a pretext for either a direct U.S. military invasion or a proxy war…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/trumps-narcoterrorism-indictment-of-maduro-already-backfires/

My Dead French Grandfather Helped Me with COVID-19
Ted Rall | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
After my mother died on February 7th I gathered her valuables and photo albums drove home to New York. But there wasn\'t enough room in the car for everything I wanted to keep. There were tchotchkes like a silly white ceramic salt and pepper shaker in the shape of Arab kings. It wasn\'t my taste…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/my-dead-french-grandfather-helped-me-with-covid-19/

To Fix the Looming Supply Chain Crisis, Nationalize Amazon
Paris Marx | zcomm.org | 2020-03-30
Dealing with the coronavirus pandemic demands a novel solution: placing the e-commerce giant under public control…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/to-fix-the-looming-supply-chain-crisis-nationalize-amazon/

Coronavirus cases surge in Turkey as anger grows among workers at government response
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
Turkey\'s death toll from the coronavirus increased by 23 to 131 yesterday, as the number of confirmed cases rose 1,815 to 9,217.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/turk-m30.html

UK government sources speak of \"blood on our hands\" over coronavirus due to NHS cuts
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The Telegraph article makes clear the NHS was unable to deal with the outbreak of a pandemic because of the decade long and ongoing austerity programme designed to make the working class pay for the trillion-pound bailout of the banks in 2008.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/cygn-m30.html

Know Your Rights during COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
National Lawyers Guild | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
While the COVID-19 pandemic necessitates public health measures to reduce the impact of the virus on our communities and health care systems, we must be vigilant and resist authoritarian and violent tendencies.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/28/18831875.php

Morrisons to give foodbanks £10m during coronavirus outbreak
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-30
Supermarket chain Morrisons is to give away £10m worth of goods to foodbanks across the country during the Covid-19 pandemic.David Potts, chief executive of Morrisons, said its bakery, egg and fruit & vegetable departments will run for an extra hour every day to make, prepare and pack food required to restock the services.It will also be sending deliveries of ambient food

ACSO Requests $255M in New Funding; COVID-19 Reaches Santa Rita Without Plans in Place
IWOC Oakland | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
Just over a week into the \"shelter in place\" directive that is now statewide, COVID-19 has reached Santa Rita Jail. The County confirmed on March 26 that a nurse working in one of the jail\'s housing units has tested positive for the virus. In response, that pod as well as one other in Santa Rita were placed under quarantine on Friday, March 27. The second pod was quarantined allegedly in response to a case of pneumonia or other similar medical condition. All transportation of detainees between the jail and the federal courthouse has been suspended, according to a federal court notice. Community advocates warn tha…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/29/18831919.php

Africa\'s confirmed cases of COVID-19 approaching 5,000
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The need for an internationally coordinated response to stop the spread of the coronavirus on the African continent is urgent.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/afri-m30.html

Working Behind the Scenes in the Pandemic
Peter van Agtmael, The Nation, The Magnum Foundation | thenation.com | 2020-03-30
Peter van Agtmael, The Nation, The Magnum Foundation Working Behind the Scenes in the Pandemic…
thenation.com/article/society/coronavirus-workers-photos/

COVID-19 Proves It: We Need Medicare-for-All
Ashar Foley | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
For decades, critics of single-payer health care have raised the menace of rationed care, long waits, and \"death panels.\" Now, in our collective national effort to \"flatten the curve\"

Oakland passes coronavirus rent freeze & eviction ban
By Lynda Carson | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, on March 27, 2020, the Oakland City Council passed an emergency ordinance prohibiting landlords from evicting residential and commercial tenants. The emergency ordinance which includes a freeze on rents took effect immediately, and will last at least until May 31!
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/29/18831930.php

Deteriorating economic conditions sink global stock markets
rt.com | 2020-03-30
Stocks in Asia and Europe suffered fresh losses on Monday due to unrelenting pressure from the worsening global spread of Covid-19. The virus has already infected more than 724,000 people worldwide and caused 34,017 deaths. | Japan\'s Nikkei 225 dropped almost four percent at the opening, Hong Kong\'s Hang Sang Index slid 1.9 percent and China\'s Shanghai Composite fell about 1.4 percent. | All the European stocks also tanked in early trading, with shares in France off the most. The CAC 40 was down 2.6 percent while London\'s FTSE 100 nosedived two percent. Germany\'s DAX was lower by 1.5 percent and the pan-Europe…
rt.com/business/484447-global-stock-markets-plunge-coronavirus/

Germany sees coronavirus cases rise by 4,751 in one day as death toll nears 500
rt.com | 2020-03-30
The number of Covid-19 cases in Germany has hit 57,298, with 4,751 more people testing positive for the virus, as well as 66 new deaths, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reported on Monday. | The new data brings the total nationwide death toll from Covid-19 to 455, the RKI said. | Doctors have recorded 4,751 more cases over the past 24 hours, which is a slight increase from the 3,965 new cases reported on Sunday. | Germany still has a lower death rate from the coronavirus compared to Italy and France, where more than 10,700 and 2,600 people have died respectively. | The government had banned all public gatherin…
rt.com/news/484443-germany-sees-coronavirus-cases-rise/

California governor signs a deceptive statewide COVID-19 tenant eviction ban
Lynda Carson | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
Presently many people throughout California are under orders to shelter-in-place, and must remain at least 6 feet in distance (social distancing) from others because of the coronavirus, and COVID-19. As a result they may have lost their jobs, their income, and can not pay their rent. Do not be fooled by the governors deceptive COVID-19 so-called ban on evictions!
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/29/18831927.php

Out From Under \'the Economy\'
Sheetal Chhabria, Aparna Gopalan | thenation.com | 2020-03-30
Out From Under \'the Economy\'…
thenation.com/article/economy/coronavirus-economics-markets/

The Coronavirus Will Test Whether We\'ve Learned Anything From 9/11
Elie Mystal | thenation.com | 2020-03-30
The Coronavirus Will Test Whether We\'ve Learned Anything From 9/11…
thenation.com/article/society/coronavirus-civil-liberties/

Beijing boasts 93% recovery rate & NO new cases in Hubei for sixth day after saying local Covid-19 spread \'STOPPED\'
rt.com | 2020-03-30
No new cases of Covid-19 have been recorded in China\'s central Hubei Province and its capital Wuhan, where the outbreak originally began, the National Health Commission (NHC) told reporters during a press briefing on Monday. | Overall, 81,470 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in mainland China since the beginning of the outbreak, and 75,770 of them have subsequently recovered and were discharged from the hospitals, a health official said. This makes the recovery rate in the country close to 93 percent. | Chinese doctors have recorded 31 new cases and four deaths in the past 24 hours, with all but…
rt.com/news/484450-china-covid19-recovery-rate/

City at centre of China\'s virus outbreak gradually revives
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-30
Shopkeepers in the city at the centre of the virus outbreak in China were reopening on Monday but customers were scarce after authorities lifted more of the anti-virus controls that kept tens of millions of people at home for two months.\"I\'m so excited, I want to cry,\" said a woman in the Chuhe Hanjie pedestrian shopping area.She said she was a teacher in the eastern city of Nanjing visiting her family in Wuhan when the government locked down the city in late January to stem the spread of the coronavirus.Some 70% to 80% of shops on the retail street were open but many imposed limits on how many people could enter…
thecanary.co/global/world-news/2020/03/30/city-at-centre-of-chinas-virus-outbreak-gradually-revives/

Instacart workers in US begin nationwide walkout as Whole Foods workers plan sickout Tuesday
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
Instacart workers vowed not to return to work until the company provides basic protections and improves compensation during the coronavirus pandemic, while Whole Foods workers plan a sickout tomorrow.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/inst-m30.html

Dying Planet and a Virus Unleashed
Arshad Khan, Meena Miriam Yust | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
If the coronavirus is life-threatening, and the whole of the USA is in lockdown, the speed of its arrival and impact should at least remind us of the fragility of life

Navajo Nation reports two deaths and 92 cases of coronavirus
Brenda Norrell | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
Navajo coronavirus cases increased to 92 cases, with two confirmed deaths. There were 21 new cases of the virus in the past 24 hours for Dine\' living in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/28/18831887.php

Covid-19 stretches NYC ambulances more than 9/11, exhausted FDNY lieutenant tells RT
rt.com | 2020-03-30
First responders in coronavirus-stricken New York have to deal with record-breaking numbers of calls, a shortage of equipment and a constant fear of getting the virus and bringing it home to their loved ones. | The Covid-19 epidemic in America\'s largest city has stretched the resources of its ambulances service worse than on the day of the country\'s worst terrorist attack in 2001, Anthony Almojera, a Fire Department lieutenant and supervisor, told RT. | \"In the last few days we\'ve done over 44,000 calls. Just to give you some perspective, we normally do only about 4,000 calls a day,\" he explained. \"9/11, which…
rt.com/usa/484446-new-york-ambulances-coronavirus/

Twitter REMOVES posts by Brazil\'s Bolsonaro in crackdown on information that \'may increase risk\' of Covid-19 spread
rt.com | 2020-03-30
In an unprecedented move, Twitter has yanked two posts by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, in which he took aim at coronavirus lockdowns as part of his controversial campaign to avoid a shutdown of the economy. | Bolsonaro has become the first ever head of state to have his tweets censored by the platform under recently-updated guidelines, requiring users to remove content that defies \"global or local health authorities recommendations\" aimed at halting the spread of the deadly disease that has already taken hold in the Latin American country. | I could be mistaken but I\'m pretty sure these two tweets from…
rt.com/news/484441-bolsonaro-coronavirus-twitter-ban/

Minister in one of Germany\'s wealthiest states commits suicide \'over coronavirus worries\'
rt.com | 2020-03-30
The finance minister in the German state of Hesse, Thomas Schaefer, has taken his own life. His colleagues said he was pushed over the edge by an inability to cope with the harsh economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic. | Schaefer\'s body was discovered near the speed railway track line in the town of Hochheim am Main on Saturday. Prosecutors said that the cause of his death was most likely suicide. | \"We are in shock; we are in disbelief and above all we are immensely sad,\" Volker Bouffier, head of the Hesse regional government, said of the passing of his close associate and fellow member of Angela Merkel\'…
rt.com/news/484437-germany-hesse-minister-suicide-coronavirus/

Global number of Covid-19 cases smashes past 700,000
rt.com | 2020-03-30
The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases around the world has soared past the 700,000 milestone, according to tallies carried out by Johns Hopkins University and the AFP news agency. | The total number of cases worldwide now stands at over 724,000, as several regional outbreaks have led to major spikes in the numbers, most notably in the United States. | Authorities in the US are now reporting upwards of 143,000 cases, followed by Italy with 97,600 and China, the original epicentre of the pandemic, with 82,000 cases. | As of early Monday, the total number of deaths from the disease now stands at 34,026. More tha…
rt.com/news/484454-worldwide-coronavirus-cases-700000/

Canada\'s doctors issue dire warnings over lack of preparedness for surge of COVID-19 patients
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
Were 30 percent of Ontario\'s 14 million residents to become infected with the coronavirus, with 5 percent of these requiring intensive care treatment, each of the province\'s intensive care doctors would have the impossible task of treating 500 patients per day.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/came-m30.html

Leading epidemiologist says Detroit is facing a coronavirus \"tsunami\"
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The coronavirus pandemic is exploding in Detroit and surrounding communities as Michigan overtook Washington as the state with the fourth most confirmed cases of the infection.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/lead-m30.html

The New World of Coronavirus
Cesar Chelala | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
The tragedy of September 11, 2001, and the coronavirus pandemic have one thing in common: both caused a seismic change in the world. And that change, in general, is for the worse. The present pandemic has, and will have, negative effects on how people work, live, and use their free time. This huge public health…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/30/the-new-world-of-coronavirus/

EasyJet grounds entire fleet as Covid-19 hammers global travel industry
rt.com | 2020-03-30
UK budget carrier EasyJet said on Monday that it has parked its entire fleet after completing repatriation flights. The coronavirus health crisis is bringing the global travel industry to a halt. | According to the company, it has worked out an agreement with cabin crew, who will get 80 percent of their pay under a government program. EasyJet said it is looking for ways to increase its access to cash, adding that the company has a strong balance sheet and no maturities until 2022. | \"We are in ongoing discussions with liquidity providers who recognize our strength of balance sheet and business model,\" said Eur…
rt.com/business/484448-easyjet-grounded-fleet-coronavirus/

The Virus is Our Teacher
Robert Koehler | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-30
Last Sunday at 11 a.m. I went for a walk. Even if it\'s nothing special, a walk isn\'t a normal thing to do these days. But this brief walk

India\'s calamitous lockdown, punishes poor while undermining efforts to halt spread of coronavirus
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The Modi government\'s ill-prepared, three-week lockdown has resulted in chaos, including large disorganized movements of desperate poor people, thereby providing conditions conducive to the rapid spread of COVID-19.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/inco-m30.html

The Corona Virus and the Limits of the Market
Jonathan Michael Feldman | zcomm.org | 2020-03-30
Convert Defense and Other Industries to Fight New Security Threats…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/the-corona-virus-and-the-limits-of-the-market/

The \"How Will You Pay For It?\" Question Is Tossed in the Trash
Stephanie Kelton | zcomm.org | 2020-03-30
Because the coronavirus is a threat to all of us

Hungary\'s Orbán government seizes on coronavirus pandemic to establish dictatorship
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
Following the declaration of a state of emergency on March 11, the country\'s parliament is to be effectively abolished with the introduction of an \"Emergency Ordinance Act.\"
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/hung-m30.html

As COVID-19 Reaches Santa Rita Jail, Decarceration Becomes More Urgent
Ella Baker Center | indybay.org | 2020-03-30
Oakland, CA

Tokyo could announce new Olympics date this week, organizers say
rt.com | 2020-03-30
A decision on a new date for Japan\'s Olympics could come as early as this week, the president of the Tokyo organizing committee Yoshiro Mori said on Monday. The Games had been postponed because of a coronavirus pandemic. | Last week\'s decision was a huge blow to Japan, which invested $13 billion in the run-up to the Games. However, financial markets were initially cheered by the decision, with some investors having anticipated cancellation, Reuters said. | \"We need to swiftly decide on the new date,\" Mori said at the start of a committee meeting, its first since the move to delay the Games. Mori added that he…
rt.com/newsline/484452-tokyo-new-olympics-date/

China must stimulate the economy sustainably after coronavirus
Yao Zhe & Wu Yixiu | zcomm.org | 2020-03-30
Government spending should incentivize consumption of public goods and services, not big infrastructure and heavy industry…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/china-must-stimulate-the-economy-sustainably-after-coronavirus/

EU divisions erupt as anger mounts among workers over COVID-19 response
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
Open conflicts are emerging between the EU powers after the collapse of Thursday\'s COVID-19 summit in Brussels, as top officials warn of a disintegration of the EU.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/euro-m30.html

Four deaths over the weekend raise COVID-19 death toll among US autoworkers to nine
wsws.org | 2020-03-30
The primary and immediate responsibility for these deaths lies with the Detroit automakers and their lackeys in the United Auto Workers, which conspired to keep workers on the line as long as possible during the pandemic, without even minimal sanitation and safety measures…
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/30/ford-m30.html