Article by Luis Carapinha, member of the International Department
Much more arrogant than exulting, the Prime-Minister announced April last, at the closure of the G20 London Summit – summoned, owing to the capitalism world crisis -, that a new international order had been created.
Putting aside Gordon Brown’s improbable credibility and looking at the recipe file, produced in London – from the gigantic “ financier stimulus” packages unto the absurd compromise of the markets reform and regulation, passing by the protectionism’ pious rejection and the empty promise of help for the poor countries, not forgetting the inflammable determination in ensuring a “ low carbon” economic recovery – and what one assists to, is the obstinate USA’s and the other G7 powers ‘attempt to revive an anachronic and unjust world order. The motto is: to change all so that all remains the same. The hegemony sustenance calls upon a new functional paradigm, which key-words are more concentration, inequality and exploitation.
However, five months after, the capital and the current economic world order ‘s incapability in producing an answer before the self-generated crisis’ devastating effects, becomes clearer.
Notwithstanding the public resources’ mass injection within the private accumulation whole, the so applauded markets’ partial recuperation – pretending to ignore new severe falls – and the fragile and fragmentary macroeconomic stabilization signs have no connection within the social level, denying the perspective of both a sustainable recuperation of the economies and the world economic climate.
No wonder, in the new G20 Summit’s eve, this week, in Pittsburgh, USA, the warnings to navigation multiplied, in all directions.
Within the USA, the EU and Japan, and all over the world in general, unemployment will keep on increasing in 2010. In Uncle Sam’s country, the unemployment rate might never return to levels under the 4.4% officially registered in 2007 ( in Bloomberg, 14.09.09). The American way of life unsustainable dream – which was always only for some – is currently converted into a real nightmare for a greater and greater number of workers and excluded. The overcoming of the deep recession within the greatest and also, the most parasitical world economy, is expected to be the slowest and prolonged since 1945 ( idem, idem).
A year after the Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy wave of shock, the International Payment Bank itself ( the “major central bank “) is not secure on the financier system’s recovery…
The capitalism deep crisis, unfolds the profound unbalances and distortions of the imperialist globalization.With the world trade suffering the greatest contraction in many decades, the commercial barriers’ virus irrupted in the last days, infecting the trade between the USA and China. In cause is Obama’s decision on aggravating the customs’ duties on Chinese imported tires. Both countries, linked by asymmetric inter-dependent relations, avoid to use the “ commercial war” term, but China – which on 2009, 1st semester, has become the greatest world exporter, beyond Germany and is near in achieving the 8% growth goal – has sent a formal complaint against Washington’s abusive practices. The International Herald Tribune ( on 14.09.09) observed that the growing acrimony between the USA and China has implications that go beyond the commercial sphere.
While a new protectionist wave threats to bury the free trade and competition whiff, permanently paraded by imperialism but which, in its essence, was never more than the great monopolies’ prerogative, Gates points out the danger of China’s reinforced defensive capabilities, which, as he says, threaten the “USA’s power” throughout the Pacific ( in AFP, 17.09.09).
The great instability, insecurity and uncertainty framework does not decrease throughout the world, on the contrary. A rupture is necessary to end the whirling of the current political and economic system, its bubbles and structural crisis.