Disaster capitalism in historical perspective

Naomi Klein believes there has been a recent and wholly understudied shift in the practices of corporate capitalism. Far from considering disasters a travesty, corporate capitalists now freely embrace catastrophic situations – military coups, pre-emptive wars, climatic hazards, etc. – as opportunities to engage in radical socioeconomic and political restructuring. As an ideology, ‘disaster capitalism’ is strongly tied to broader structural developments, including militarism (as a first rather than last resort), deregulation and privatisation, the promotion of a security state, and the expansion of market fundamentalism. Disaster capitalism is, therefore, structurally linked to the demotion of democracy and the consolidation of power in the hands of a kleptocracy usually referred to as the ‘Washington Consensus’