1. In the previous article, I stated that a large section of the political left has found it very difficult to work with social movements and develop ties with the new social forces in recent decades. This has been due to several factors.
“In fact, early in our history, the U.S. had to deploy ‘gunboat diplomacy,’ or military intervention, to protect private American commercial interests. ISDS [Investor-State Dispute Settlement] is a more peaceful, better way to resolve trade conflicts between countries.” - US White House
October 14, 2016 — Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal — Official lack of foresight knows few bounds, and trade appears to be no exception. In the above quote the US government, the White House site to boot, compares ISDS to a new, better form of gunboat diplomacy. They expect this to be an argument in favour of the arbitration system. Besides the communication blunder this entails, it does show an underlying structure to our global economic system. It shows the force necessary to maintain economic hegemony and how economic policy is still made irrespective of those concerned by it.
“The greatest trick the devil e
1. I have said that in order to wage an effective struggle against neoliberalism we must articulate all those who are suffering its consequences, and that to achieve this objective we must start with the left itself, which in our countries tends to be very dispersed.
