Disaster Capitalism

In her book ‘The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism’ (2007), Naomi Klein examined how governments or regimes could exploit national crises in order to establish controversial and questionable policies. They are able to do this ‘while citizens are so distracted (emotionally and physically) that they are unable to fully engage, develop an adequate response, and resist effectively’. 

Following the humanitarian crisis in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, Klein saw hordes of private military contractors descend on the city to find ways to profit from the disaster. 

I started to notice the same tactics in disaster zones around the world. I used the term “shock doctrine” to describe the brutal tactic of using the public’s disorientation following a collective shock – wars, coups, terrorist attacks, market crashes or natural disasters – to push through radical pro-corporate measures, often called “shock therapy”.

Naomi Klein, op. cit.

How to Make Money in a Crisis

Brexit is a national crisis. The vote to leave the European Union in 2016 divided the country and, two years on, there are no tangible benefits in spite of huge promises of ‘sunlit uplands’. Blue passports and the crown symbol on pint glasses were easily achievable within the EU.

Instead there has been huge damage to business – fishing, farming, banking (with centres moving from London to Amsterdam), haulage, food standards (the possibility of importing chlorine-washed chicken from US), and animal welfare (a recent deal struck to import low-standard Australian beef), to mention just a few. 

Disaster capitalism thrives on never letting a good crisis get in the way of tearing up the rulebooks, and ignoring the usual checks and balances.  

Of course there were those who were quite literally banking on Brexit being a disaster, as reported in Byline Times – hedge fund managers like Crispin Odey, for instance, who made £350 million overnight by shorting the pound in anticipation of the shock result.

Read my article for Kent Bylines.

For previous Kent Byline articles, I’ve also written on Artificial Intelligence – First Reith Lecture, and Third Reith Lecture, the Covert Human Intelligence Services Act, and Freeports.

I’ve also written for Byline Times on Fighting Facism, Britain’s ‘Divide and Rule’, and The Woman with the Afro – Barbara Beese.