The year 2024 will end soon. When reviewing the time, the world has experienced tremendous changes. We cannot understand, however, the essence of these speedy evolutions, if we only look at this year. Our history has ushered in a turning point when we should grasp the changes in a span of decades.
CITIZENS IN REPUBLIC OF KOREA RAISE A TORCH IN THE MURKY ERA
The socialist camp collapsed in the end of last century. The Socialist Party of Japan was disintegrated with an introduction of a small constituency election system.
The world had expected in the late 20th century that the world would go toward disarmament following the end of the Cold War, leading to a world without nuclear weapons and to right policies to cope with the environmental crisis. In the domestic affairs people anticipated to have a two-party political system that could alternate the government responsibility. It was reported that capitalism, not socialism, would represent the human-first economic system and the mankind history would step in a new stage. They said that China, too, would be incorporated in the capitalist camp in the long run, being innocuous.
Trump has reappeared
What has happened actually? Capitalism could have behaved ‘freely’ as the barriers had gone, but it fell down due to the Lehman Shock starting from the United States, deadlocked in seriousness in which social gaps and poverty prevailed ubiquitously. ‘Freedom and democracy’ have been threatened in the United States, which has the most powerful economic and military potentials and colossal wealth accumulated till today and used to be the winner of capitalism. We witness now reappearance of Mr. Trump, who has won in the election, even stealing ‘anger of workers.’
Judging from Karl Marx’s analysis of capitalism, then-represented by England, it is the United States today that has caused chaos in many parts of the world. Mr. Trump will replace with Mr. Biden. The new president will be unable to deal with China generously as the past leaders did as the nation has steadily been growing. Antagonism between the US and China has been intensified.
Other aspects to point out are a failure on the side of the Atlantic alliance of the US and Europe in preventing Russia from intruding militarily and the US’s overt, belligerent logistics to the brutal operations of Israel. The world today is being steered to a New Cold War. Now Mr. Trump has arisen again. The United States cannot overcome domestic difficulties unless it blockades China, whoever may be her president. The nation is afflicted with an incurable disease.
Contradictions have deepened
Both of the war in Ukraine and the war on tariffs with China have brought severe consequences in the G7 countries; higher prices and severer burdens for military spendings which have provoked indignation among people, political uproar in France and Germany, emergence of rightist groups and returning to nuclear energy with an excuse of energy crisis. Contradictions have deepened in the world for these 30 years, bringing today’s phenomena. The plight cannot be easily improved.
We see at this moment a bright light in the protest movements of citizens in Republic of Korea. They have stood up against a coup d’etat staged by President. The struggle has toppled down the triple military US-ROK-Japan alliance which should attack Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, opening a path to help mitigate tension over the Korean Peninsula.
The parliament and media outlets of Japan are deplorable; they say ‘instability in ROK is disturbing, and so the triple alliance must be strengthened’.
But we have a hope; we will build up solidarity with people who fight against a war, social gaps, poverty and environmental destruction, learning from the Korean people, to open a way toward social transformation, elaborating long-term strategies. This is the sole option.
２０２４年が間もなく終わる。この１年を振り返ると世界の激動は半端ではない。だが、今年だけ回顧しても目まぐるしい事象の本質は理解できない。数十年単位の歴史的転換点に入ったようだ。
20世紀末に社会主義体制が崩壊した。小選挙区制が導入され、日本社会党が解体した。
世界は「冷戦」終了で軍縮に向かい、「核なき世界」や環境危機対策が期待された。国内では、政権交代可能な二大政党制が出現するかに見えた。社会主義ではなく資本主義が人間本来の経済システムで、人類史は新たな段階を迎えたように言われた。中国も時がたてば資本主義に包摂され、無害になると言われた。
トランプの再登場
ところがどうだろう。障壁が消えて「自由」に振る舞った資本主義は、米国震源のリーマン・ショックでつまずき、格差と貧困が重大問題として浮上した。世界最強の経済力・軍事力で巨額の富を蓄積し得た資本主義の盟主・米国で「自由と民主主義」が危うくなった。「労働者の怒り」をも簒さんだつ奪したトランプの再登場だ。
イギリスを基に資本主義を解明したマルクスに倣えば、米国こそ世界の激動の根源を探る対象だ。トランプはバイデンと交代するが、伸長した中国にかつてのように鷹揚に対応する余裕はなく、米中対立は強まった。
また、プーチンの侵略を防げなかった米欧の失敗、イスラエルの蛮行へのなりふり構わぬ軍事支援等々、「新冷戦時代」と言われる世界となった。そして、トランプの再登場だ。米国は誰が大統領であろうと中国封じ込めをしない限り国内の矛盾を糊塗できない業病に陥っている。
矛盾の深化の結果
ウクライナ戦争も、中国との関税戦争も、主要国の物価騰貴と軍事費負担増への怒りを増幅し、独・仏の政治混乱、極右翼勢力の抬頭、エネルギー危機を口実にした原発回帰をもたらした。この三十余年の全世界の矛盾の深刻化の結果としての今日の事態であって、容易に改善できるとは思えない。
唯一の光明は大統領のクーデターへの韓国民衆の決起だ。この間の米韓日の対「北」軍事同盟強化路線を頓挫させ、朝鮮半島緊張を緩和する道を切り開いた。
日本の国会もメディアも「韓国の政情不安は心配だから日米韓の連携を強化すべし」との論調が殆どで情けない。だが、韓国民衆に習い、戦争、格差・貧困、環境破壊と対峙する人々の連帯を興し、社会変革の長期展望を練るほかはない。
英語版↓
No. 1384 Looking Back the Year 2024
The year 2024 will end soon. When reviewing the time, the world has experienced tremendous changes. We cannot understand, however, the essence of these speedy evolutions, if we only look at this year. Our history has ushered in a turning point when we should grasp the changes in a span of decades.
CITIZENS IN REPUBLIC OF KOREA RAISE A TORCH IN THE MURKY ERA
The socialist camp collapsed in the end of last century. The Socialist Party of Japan was disintegrated with an introduction of a small constituency election system.
The world had expected in the late 20th century that the world would go toward disarmament following the end of the Cold War, leading to a world without nuclear weapons and to right policies to cope with the environmental crisis. In the domestic affairs people anticipated to have a two-party political system that could alternate the government responsibility. It was reported that capitalism, not socialism, would represent the human-first economic system and the mankind history would step in a new stage. They said that China, too, would be incorporated in the capitalist camp in the long run, being innocuous.
Trump has reappeared
What has happened actually? Capitalism could have behaved ‘freely’ as the barriers had gone, but it fell down due to the Lehman Shock starting from the United States, deadlocked in seriousness in which social gaps and poverty prevailed ubiquitously. ‘Freedom and democracy’ have been threatened in the United States, which has the most powerful economic and military potentials and colossal wealth accumulated till today and used to be the winner of capitalism. We witness now reappearance of Mr. Trump, who has won in the election, even stealing ‘anger of workers.’
Judging from Karl Marx’s analysis of capitalism, then-represented by England, it is the United States today that has caused chaos in many parts of the world. Mr. Trump will replace with Mr. Biden. The new president will be unable to deal with China generously as the past leaders did as the nation has steadily been growing. Antagonism between the US and China has been intensified.
Other aspects to point out are a failure on the side of the Atlantic alliance of the US and Europe in preventing Russia from intruding militarily and the US’s overt, belligerent logistics to the brutal operations of Israel. The world today is being steered to a New Cold War. Now Mr. Trump has arisen again. The United States cannot overcome domestic difficulties unless it blockades China, whoever may be her president. The nation is afflicted with an incurable disease.
Contradictions have deepened
Both of the war in Ukraine and the war on tariffs with China have brought severe consequences in the G7 countries; higher prices and severer burdens for military spendings which have provoked indignation among people, political uproar in France and Germany, emergence of rightist groups and returning to nuclear energy with an excuse of energy crisis. Contradictions have deepened in the world for these 30 years, bringing today’s phenomena. The plight cannot be easily improved.
We see at this moment a bright light in the protest movements of citizens in Republic of Korea. They have stood up against a coup d’etat staged by President. The struggle has toppled down the triple military US-ROK-Japan alliance which should attack Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, opening a path to help mitigate tension over the Korean Peninsula.
The parliament and media outlets of Japan are deplorable; they say ‘instability in ROK is disturbing, and so the triple alliance must be strengthened’.
But we have a hope; we will build up solidarity with people who fight against a war, social gaps, poverty and environmental destruction, learning from the Korean people, to open a way toward social transformation, elaborating long-term strategies. This is the sole option.
December 25, 2024