Class and Corona Culture: The More Things Change…

In many ways the rearrangement of life in the wake of the global impact of the Cornoavirus has created a brave new world. And in other ways, the arrangement has reinforced the cowardly old one.

Class differences in the time of a global quarantine have in some ways rigidified. There is a small minority of a rich class which passes this temporary isolation in comfort, having quickly evacuated the contagion of the city centers for sometimes palatial estates in the countryside. There is a middle class, sheltered in place, many of whom are able to continue to work and earn online, though often at a diminished capacity. And finally there is a working class, not able to afford the comfort of sheltering, who must perpetually risk their lives in order to earn their daily bread.

Here in Europe and particularly in France these distinctions are as profound as elsewhere with perhaps a million people fleeing the high contagion center of Paris for their country homes, with new middle class family subscribers flocking to the just opened Disney+ streaming service while cheering on medical workers each night at 8 from their balconies. Finally, there are not only working class nurses but also that most unsung group of workers, cashiers, 90 percent of whom are women and many of whom are minorities, at work each day while coming home to crowded apartments in the Parisian suburbs where the police are using the excuse of not having proper quarantine papers to assault these women’s children https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/world/europe/coronavirus-paris-suburbs.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage .

The post Class and Corona Culture: The More Things Change… appeared first on Citizen Truth.

‘Silent Spring Is Already Here’: Global Study Shows Nearly 25% Drop in Insect Population Over 30 Years

“We keep getting clear signs that the way we live and the actions we take are having severe consequences.” (By: Jessica Corbett, Common Dreams) The largest ever assessment of long-term insect abundance found that there has been a nearly 25% decrease of land-dwelling bugs like ants, butterflies, and grasshoppers over the past 30 years—a revelation [...]

The post ‘Silent Spring Is Already Here’: Global Study Shows Nearly 25% Drop in Insect Population Over 30 Years appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Animal Activism Becomes More Imperative in Age of Coronavirus

Raising awareness about the risks of continuing “agribusiness as usual” has become more important than ever. A typical weekend for 26-year-old Juvel Ingal is perhaps atypical for most. On Saturdays, she spends her time at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica or the Hollywood Walk of Fame, showing factory farm footage to the public. [...]

The post Animal Activism Becomes More Imperative in Age of Coronavirus appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Instead of Providing Masks or Allowing Unions, Whole Foods Unveils New “Hero” Uniform

As corporations like Amazon and Whole Foods spend fortunes on advertising campaigns thanking their workforce for “heroic” service, they refuse to provide even basic protective gear or sick pay and ruthlessly crush any internal dissent. (By: Alan MacLeod, Mintpress News) In the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, premium supermarket chain Whole Foods has redesigned its [...]

The post Instead of Providing Masks or Allowing Unions, Whole Foods Unveils New “Hero” Uniform appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Supreme Court Upholds Clean Water Act in Groundwater Case

“This decision is a huge victory for clean water. The Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration’s effort to blow a big hole in the Clean Water Act’s protections for rivers, lakes, and oceans.” In a victory for environmental groups, the Supreme Court issued a 6-3 ruling on Thursday pertaining to the Clean Water Act. [...]

The post Supreme Court Upholds Clean Water Act in Groundwater Case appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Turkey’s Erdogan Tangled In His Own Web Of Deceit

Turkey’s foreign policy centered around Recep Erdogan’s ambitions has been devised as a giant web weaved all across Middle East, Northern Africa and Europe. Now the Turkish leader may fall prey to his own schemes. “Zero problems with neighbors” – this was the catchy motto selected by then Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan for his [...]

The post Turkey’s Erdogan Tangled In His Own Web Of Deceit appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Capitalism Can’t Be Repaired—Coronavirus Shows Its Huge Weaknesses

“Profit-driven capitalism proved extremely inefficient in its response to the virus.” Consider this absurdity: The U.S. government’s policy in the face of the current capitalist crash is to “return the economy to the pre-coronavirus normal.” What? In that “normal” system, private capitalists maximized profits by not producing the tests, masks, ventilators, beds, etc., needed when coronavirus hit. [...]

The post Capitalism Can’t Be Repaired—Coronavirus Shows Its Huge Weaknesses appeared first on Citizen Truth.

‘No Warming, No War’: Report Details How US Militarism and Climate Crisis Are Deeply Interwoven

“In the face of both COVID-19 and the climate crisis, we urgently need to shift from a culture of war to a culture of care.” (By: Jessica Corbett, Common Dreams) A new report examining the federal budget illuminates the deep connections between the climate emergency and the U.S. military, arguing that the shift to a [...]

The post ‘No Warming, No War’: Report Details How US Militarism and Climate Crisis Are Deeply Interwoven appeared first on Citizen Truth.

Special Coronavirus Town Hall for Kids & Parents To Be Hosted By CNN & Sesame Street

CNN is partnering with “Sesame Street” for a special town hall this Saturday at 9 a.m. ET to focus on educating kids and parents about coronavirus. The 90-minute program is entitled “The ABC’s of Covid 19: A CNN/Sesame Street Town Hall for Kids and Parents” and will tackle issues about “the new normal” we’re living [...]

The post Special Coronavirus Town Hall for Kids & Parents To Be Hosted By CNN & Sesame Street appeared first on Citizen Truth.

First American Pets Diagnosed with COVID-19: Is There a Reason to Worry?

“We don’t want people to panic. We don’t want people to be afraid of pets. There’s no evidence that pets are playing a role in spreading this disease to people.” Until this week, humans have been the main focus of the coronavirus pandemic, but there may be a reason to consider our furry friends. On [...]

The post First American Pets Diagnosed with COVID-19: Is There a Reason to Worry? appeared first on Citizen Truth.

All The World’s A Stage…

William Shakespeare called our world a stage because just as actors make their entry and exits onto a stage, so we all enter into this world, move through different stages in life on this earth, and finally make an exit. Without a curtain call.
On Earth Day 2020, I see the coronavirus drama as a dress rehearsal for another, much larger planetary threat.

The post All The World’s A Stage… appeared first on Citizen Truth.