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posted by Fnord666 on Monday May 18 2020, @10:08AM   Printer-friendly

COVID-19 Has Blown Away the Myth About 'First' and 'Third' World Competence:

One of the planet's – and Africa's – deepest prejudices is being demolished by the way countries handle COVID-19.

For as long as any of us remember, everyone "knew" that "First World" countries – in effect, Western Europe and North America – were much better at providing their citizens with a good life than the poor and incapable states of the "Third World". "First World" has become shorthand for competence, sophistication and the highest political and economic standards.

[...] So we should have expected the state-of-the-art health systems of the "First World", spurred on by their aware and empowered citizens, to handle COVID-19 with relative ease, leaving the rest of the planet to endure the horror of buckling health systems and mass graves.

We have seen precisely the opposite.

[...] [Britain and the US] have ignored the threat. When they were forced to act, they sent mixed signals to citizens which encouraged many to act in ways which spread the infection. Neither did anything like the testing needed to control the virus. Both failed to equip their hospitals and health workers with the equipment they needed, triggering many avoidable deaths.

The failure was political. The US is the only rich country with no national health system. An attempt by former president Barack Obama to extend affordable care was watered down by right-wing resistance, then further gutted by the current president and his party. Britain's much-loved National Health Service has been weakened by spending cuts. Both governments failed to fight the virus in time because they had other priorities.

And yet, in Britain, the government's popularity ratings are sky high and it is expected to win the next election comfortably. The US president is behind in the polls but the contest is close enough to make his re-election a real possibility. Can there be anything more typically "Third World" than citizens supporting a government whose actions cost thousands of lives?


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by dry on Tuesday May 19 2020, @06:18AM

    by dry (223) on Tuesday May 19 2020, @06:18AM (#996198) Journal

    Here in Canada, actually Ontario, we have Doug Ford, was he hated, for many of the same reasons as Trump. While he started out dismissing the pandemic, telling people not to worry and go party, he quickly turned around and even the extreme left has praised his leadership during the crisis. This includes following scientific advice, calling the protesters out as hooligans and so on. I'm sure once this is over he'll go back to his old self but who knows. Right now his popularity has gone from the low 20's IIRC to the high 80's.
    If he can do it, so could Trump. The key is allowing the experts to lead while giving them support and handling the economic issues. Here in BC, it is the head of health, a civil servant, who gives the daily updates, with the Minister of Health doing introductions and little else and the Premier only showing up occasionally to deal with economic matters. I believe it is similar in all Provinces and all our governments have had a huge uptick in popularity. Of course that is likely to vanish once this is over.
    Meanwhile Trump has been more of a hindrance then a help, doesn't know when to step back and support the experts, steadily wishy washy and seems intend on doing everything opposite what a good leader should do. The weird thing is how his cult worships everything he says, even when he says the opposite 5 minutes later. It's scary that people can be so deranged. Holding your nose and voting for the lesser evil is one thing, worshiping the evil because he's our evil is another.

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