Extract from article originally published on Al-Jazeera, 18 March 2020 – accessible here
Author: Lorenzo Marsili
In recent years, it has repeatedly been argued that the Western world is not capable of changing its ways and responding efficiently to threats. As neoliberal dogma pushed for a shrinking role for public intervention, western democracies indeed appeared belittled by the free market and trampled over by a web of corporate interests and financial flows.
But the coronavirus pandemic, and the way Europe responded to it, raised hopes that change is possible.