Manmade cruelty adds to natural disaster
from Irma and Maria — and from others sure to come, thanks to climate change — could accelerate those privatization plans. As author Naomi Klein asserted in her bestselling book “Shock Doctrine,” capitalists often use major disasters to usher in radical market reforms.
No wonder the union of PREPA workers has accused the company’s management of deliberately holding back maintenance and not deploying available crews to repair downed lines after Hurricane Irma, when, amazingly, 1 million people lost power even though that storm merely skirted the island. Buttressing that claim was a recent report that during the first three weeks of June, long before hurricane season, 65% of Puerto Rico's municipalities reported power blackouts.
Ordinary people like my sister have learned to prepare for nature’s wrath. But these manmade storms can be an even bigger danger.