(2020-03-26). Global stock markets down on expectations of negative US jobs data. rt.com 
Global market sentiment has declined ahead of the latest US jobless claims data that is expected to show a massive spike in unemployment claims after businesses stateside shut down in an attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus. | Some experts suggest record unemployment numbers in the US, with Citi as the most bearish, projecting roughly four million claims. | The pan-European Stoxx 600 dropped 1.5 percent in early trade on Thursday, with basic resources tumbling 2.7 percent to lead losses as all sectors and major bourses plunged into negative territory. | Britain's FTSE 100 index shed almost three percent a…
(2020-03-26). US braces for SHOCKING unemployment numbers as jobless claims could reach 4 MILLION. rt.com 
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits is set to climb to historic highs after claims in Canada crushed the previous weekly record as Covid-19 brings businesses to a standstill. | New unemployment data is expected to reflect how hard the US economy has been hit by the Covid-19 outbreak. The minimum number of initial claims amounts to 250,000, according to a Reuters poll, while economists predict that the number of filings for last week could range from one to four million. | That would make the number of jobless claims higher than during the 2009 financial crisis or the 1982 recession. | Also…
(2020-03-26). Senate passes $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill bogged down by days of partisan wrangling. rt.com 
US senators have passed a much-delayed $2 trillion stimulus bill, aimed at bolstering the economy while the country is rattled by coronavirus lockdowns. The mammoth package was approved after days of bitter partisan fighting. | Senators moved to vote on the bill late Wednesday night after the last hurdle preventing its passage — an amendment put forward by four Republican senators to curb the legislation's generous unemployment provisions — was eliminated, failing to gain the necessary 60 yeas. | Despite the days of political tug-of-war over the legislation, it was passed unanimously in the end, 96-0…
(2020-03-26). Thomas Piketty: Confronting Our Long History of Massive Inequality. thenation.com Thomas Piketty: Confronting Our Long History of Massive Inequality…
(2020-03-26). Where We're Looking in Times of Crisis. zcomm.org There are plenty of places you can direct your energies to support people taking an economic hit during the pandemic…
(2020-03-26). Pop star Britney Spears social media posts go viral after telling public to "re-distribute wealth" and "strike" wsws.org The Instagram post has been shared millions of times in a widespread reaction to the coronavirus pandemic and efforts by the ruling elite to dump the crisis on the back of the working class.
(2020-03-26). The wealth of Australia's richest 250 soars to $377 billion. wsws.org According to the Murdoch media magazine, the number of billionaires has more than trebled in two years, from 33 to 117.
(2020-03-26). Live Stream: Relieving Social Isolation Among Seniors. indybay.org Online live stream event of panel speakers…
(2020-03-26). Live Stream: Solutions to the COVID-19 Crisis and Beyond. indybay.org Online event via live stream…
(2020-03-26). Climbing the Deadly Curves of COVID-19 and Capitalism. counterpunch.org Millions in the United States have been rendered especially vulnerable to the coronavirus's exponential growth by steep declines in workers' rights, the lack of economic security for low-income and marginalized communities, and, of course, the absence of a universal health-care system. These failures have resulted from the pursuit of exponential growth in private wealth for the affluent minority through exploitation of the majority.
(2020-03-26). US weekly jobless claims surge to a record 3.28 mln as coronavirus spurs mass layoffs. yenisafak.com The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits shot to record of more than 3 million last week as strict measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic ground the country to a sudden halt, unleashing a wave of layoffs that likely brought an end to the longest employment boom in U.S. history.Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose to 3.28 million in the latest week from a revised 282,000 the previous week, eclipsing the previous record of 695,000 set in 1982, the U.S. Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims would rise to 1 million, but estimates had…
(2020-03-25). To Confront Coronavirus, We Need an Emergency Wealth Tax. truthout.org It's very hard to predict how long the coronavirus is going to be with us and how much money is going to be needed to defeat it. | The number of confirmed cases in Italy, Spain, the U.K., the United States and Iran are all on the same exponential growth trajectory; they have just started their first infections on different dates. | The easiest way to describe how steeply cases are accelerating is to say that, generally speaking, each country at least doubles its number of cases every four days. | In the early day…
(2020-03-25). Sanders Threatens to Demand Stronger Conditions on $500 Billion 'Corporate Welfare Fund' If GOP Moves to Reduce Benefits for Laid Off Workers. commondreams.org "It would be an outrage to prevent working-class Americans to receive the emergency unemployment assistance included in this legislation." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/sanders_gop_package.jpg …
(2020-03-25). Unprecedented Surge in US Unemployment Claims Cause State Government Servers to Crash. commondreams.org Deal reached in the Senate, says Chuck Schumer, contains "unemployment insurance on steroids" to help with the crisis. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/unemployment.jpg …
(2020-03-24). Britain: Mass deaths, mass poverty, mass repression. greenleft.org.au 
(2020-03-23). Death of the "Usual": Economic Evolution and the Emergence of the New. dissidentvoice.org Humanity is faced with a series of self-made, interrelated crises, from the environmental catastrophe to poverty, inequality, the absence of peace and an unprecedented level of displaced persons, among other pressing issues. All have been brought about by the negative behaviour of mankind, by the pervasive modes of living, the corrosive values and ideologies that …
(2020-03-23). Reaching 'beyond the possible' in Hawaii to meet sustainability goals. news.un.org The people and government of the US state of Hawaii will reach "beyond the possible" to make the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) a reality; The SDGs are a set of targets agreed by countries around the world to reduce poverty, protect the planet and ensure peace and prosperity for all, by 2030. Hawaii introduced its own initiative, Sustainable Hawaii, in 2016 in support of the SDGs.
(2020-03-19). Joseph Stiglitz: Trump's "Trickle-Down" Economic Plans Are Not Enough to Meet Coronavirus Challenge. democracynow.org 
The coronavirus relief package signed by President Trump Wednesday provides unemployment benefits and free coronavirus testing to millions of Americans suddenly out of a job, but guarantees paid sick leave to less than 20% of American workers. Earlier this month, Trump signed into law an $8 billion coronavirus response package and has laid out the first details of a third, $1 trillion economic package and invoked the Korean War-era Defense Production Act to allow the government to direct industrial production. For more on those bailouts and who benefits, we speak with Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize-winning economis…
(2020-03-19). "Coronavirus Capitalism": Naomi Klein's Case for Transformative Change Amid Coronavirus Pandemic. democracynow.org 
Author, activist and journalist Naomi Klein says the coronavirus crisis, like earlier ones, could be a catalyst to shower aid on the wealthiest interests in society, including those most responsible for our current vulnerabilities, while offering next to nothing to most workers and small businesses. In 2007, Klein wrote "The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism." Now she argues President Trump's plan is a pandemic shock doctrine. In a new video for The Intercept, where she is a senior correspondent, Klein argues it's vital for people to fight for the kind of transformative change that can not only curb…