The U.S. capitalists have seen a
silver lining in this dark cloud they named the Great Recession from the very
beginning. The crisis for them means a struggle for economic survival against
the competition. The silver lining is knowing that the working class is bearing
most of the pain.
On April 12, the U.S. Senate voted
to end the debate on a bill that would extend unemployment funding through the
end of April. While millions of working-class people clamor for unemployment
compensation, Democrats and Republicans are busy blaming each other for
blocking the bill.
In the week of March 20, more than
5.8 million people were collecting extended federal unemployment benefits. One
advocacy group estimates that about 200,000 people lost their compensation in
the first week of April.
The
leaders of the biggest weapons contractor on the planet continue squabbling
over a $9 billion outlay (about three
weeks’ funding for the wars
in Iraq and Afghanistan), as the working class faces even more cutbacks and
layoffs.
