Screenshot from “Honest Government Ad: Economic Recovery”. Photo: The Juice Media

Honest Government Ad: Economic Recovery in Australia

4 June 2020 (The Juice Media) – Hello, I’m from the Australian government. As we head into the worst economic recession in living history, what the nation needs now is leadership, evidence-based policies, and bold vision. And fucked if we have those. So instead, we’ve cooked up something else. That’s right, while you’ve been in […]

Enhanced infrared image of Tropical Cyclone Amphan nearing landfall in far eastern India at 0200Z (7:30 am EDT) Wednesday, 20 May 2020. Graphic: CIMSS / SSEC / UW-Madison

Kolkata devastated as Cyclone Amphan kills scores in India and Bangladesh – “We are facing three crises: the coronavirus, the thousands of migrants who are returning home, and now the cyclone”

By Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Shaikh Azizur Rahman 21 May 2020 KOLKATA (The Guardian) – The Indian city of Kolkata has been left devastated by the worst cyclone it has seen in 100 years, which swept through India and Bangladesh on Wednesday and killed at least 84 people. Kolkata, home to almost 15 million people, bore […]

Microwave satellite image of Cyclone Amphan's inner core on 19 May 2020, showing the exposed eyewall on the storm's eastern side. This is indicative of a weaker storm. Graphic: U-Wisconsin / CIMSS

Cyclone Amphan, most powerful storm on record in Bay of Bengal, poses extreme storm surge danger for eastern India, Bangladesh – Evacuations slowed by virus

By Andrew Freedman and Joanna Slater 19 May 2020 (The Washington Post) – Category 3 Tropical Cyclone Amphan is barreling northward toward the mouth of the Bay of Bengal on Tuesday and is forecast to make landfall in West Bengal, India, just south of Kolkata, on Wednesday. The storm is prompting officials in the states […]

Monthly job gains or losses in the U.S., from 1939 to 30 April 2020. Data: U.S. Labor Department. Graphic: The Washington Post

U.S. unemployment rate soars to 14.7 percent, the worst since the Great Depression – “This is a catastrophe. When things go over a cliff, they usually they don’t recover quickly.”

By Heather Long 8 May 2020 (The Washington Post) – The U.S. unemployment rate jumped to 14.7 percent in April, the highest level since the Great Depression, as most businesses shut down or severely curtailed operations to fight the deadly coronavirus. The jobless rate was pushed higher because 20.5 million people lost their jobs last […]

U.S. Federal deficit as percent of GDP, 2010-2019 and projected to 2025. Total U.S. debt is projected to equal the size of the entire economy in 2020. Graphic: CRFB

U.S. debt to exceed the size of the economy in 2020 – Budget deficits will total more than $3.8 trillion – “At some point, such high and rising deficits and debt levels will prove unsustainable, and corrective action will be needed”

13 April 2020 (CRFP) – The United States entered the current public health and economic crisis facing high levels of debt and trillion-dollar deficits. Due to the effects of the crisis and legislation enacted to combat it, debt and deficits will now grow much higher, to never-before-seen levels both in dollars and as a share of Gross Domestic […]

Global real GDP level projected to 2021. The cumulative output loss is expected to reach $9 trillion. Graphic: IMF

IMF: Global economy will suffer worst year since Great Depression – “This is a crisis like no other”

By Paul Wiseman and Martin Crutsinger 14 April 2020 WASHINGTON (AP) – Beaten down by the coronavirus outbreak, the world economy in 2020 will suffer its worst year since the Great Depression of the 1930s, the International Monetary Fund says in its latest forecast. The IMF said Tuesday that it expects the global economy to […]

Weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance, 1967 - 28 March 2020. More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week — a record — as political and public health leaders put the economy in a deep freeze, keeping people at home and trying to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus. In two weeks, nearly all the jobs created in the past five years have been erased. Data: Labor Department / FRED. Graphic: The Washington Post

More than 10 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits in March 2020 – 20 million Americans predicted to be out of work by July in “best case” scenario – “We’ve never seen anything like this”

By Heather Long 2 April 2020 (The Washington Post) – More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week — a record — as political and public health leaders put the economy in a deep freeze, keeping people at home and trying to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus. The past two […]

Locusts swarm in East Africa, 13 February 2020. Video: Channel 4 News / YouTube

East Africa faces dual shock from coronavirus and locust swarms – “My entire life in the world, I haven’t seen something like this before”

By Elliot Smith 23 March 2020 (CNBC) – Already being ravaged by the worst infestation of desert locusts in 70 years, East African economies are now staring down the barrel of the coronavirus pandemic. The region was the standout performer for economic growth in the subcontinent prior to the locust outbreak, which threatens the food security […]

Aerial view of the eastern expressway in Mumbai after Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a nationwide lockdown on 24 March 2020 in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Photo: Atul Loke / The New York Times

More than 1 billion people in “total lockdown” in India after coronavirus cases spike – “To save India, to save its every citizen, you, your family, every street, every neighborhood is being put under lockdown”

25 March 2020 (BBC News) – India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has imposed a nationwide lockdown in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The restrictions came into force at midnight local time (18:30 GMT) and will be enforced for 21 days. “There will be a total ban on venturing out of your […]

A woman and a man stand in a cemetery in Colombia. Three people have died and there are 277 cases in Colombia on 23 March 2020, as the local authorities impose restrictions. Death squads in Colombia are taking advantage of coronavirus lockdowns to murder rural activists, local NGOs have warned. Photo: Luis Robayo / AFP / Getty Images

Colombian death squads exploiting coronavirus lockdown to kill activists – “We are being killed, like always”

By Joe Parkin Daniels 23 March 2020 BOGOTÁ (The Guardian) – Death squads in Colombia are taking advantage of coronavirus lockdowns to murder rural activists, local NGOs have warned. When cities across the country introduced local quarantine measures last week, three social leaders were killed, and as the country prepares to impose a national lockdown […]

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