Category Archives: Commentary

Giorgio Agamben: Social Distancing

From the online site, Quodlibet … Where death waits for us is uncertain; let us look for him everywhere. The premeditation of death is the premeditation of liberty; he who has learned to die has unlearned to serve. Michel de Montaigne Since … Continue reading

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Giorgio Agamben: Reflections on the pest

From the online site, Quodlibet … The following thoughts are not about the epidemic, but about what we can understand from the reactions it causes in men. It is therefore a question of reflecting on how easily an entire society … Continue reading

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COVID-19: Translating a pandemic politically

“We know that many suffer, but the state is there,” said the italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte, after announcing a 400 million euro food voucher programme for those who have lost their source of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic … Continue reading

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Marcello Tari: A letter to friends from the desert

From lundi matin #235 (23/03/2020) … Dear friends, There are few things more comforting in life than writing letters to one’s dearest friends at a time like this. I hope that this one will find you healthy and beautiful, as … Continue reading

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Giorgio Agamben: Normalising the state of exception under the Covid-19 epidemic

What follows is an interview with Giorgio Agamben by Nicolas Truong for Le Monde (24/03/2020), where he analyses “the very serious ethical and political consequences” of the security measures applied to curb the pandemic. As Le Monde reserves full access … Continue reading

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Raoul Vaneigem: Coronavirus

We share an essay by Vaneigem(1) that was shared generously with us by notbored.org, to which we owe the translation. Challenging the danger posed by the coronavirus is surely absurd. But, on the other hand, isn’t it just as absurd … Continue reading

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Who is the enemy? The Thing

A reflection on the coronavirus, the enemy within, by Amador Fernández-Savater. (lobo suelto! 19/03/2020) My friend Jun Fujita, passing through Madrid on his return to Japan from Argentina, has been trapped by the quarantine at my house. For me, a … Continue reading

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The coronavirus as a declaration of war

An essay by Santiago López Petit … (el critic 18/03/2020; comite disperso 19/03/2020; lobo suelto 19/03/2020)

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The coronavirus: Politics in times of catastrophe (9)

In all the representations disseminated by catastrophism, in the way they are elaborated as well as in the conclusions they inspire, we see above all an astonishing accumulation of denials of reality. The most obvious is the one that refers … Continue reading

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Mapping a virus: China and beyond

The Chuang journal-blog dedicates itself to studying and analyzing chinese capitalism, or in the groups own words: Chuang will publish a journal analyzing the ongoing development of capitalism in China, its historical roots, and the revolts of those crushed beneath it. … Continue reading

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