Writer
William Briggs
Dr William Briggs is a political economist. His special areas of interest lie in political theory and international political economy. He has been, variously, a teacher, journalist and political activist.
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Growing the anti-war movement
Is war inevitable? The short answer, for any peace activist or anyone wanting to inhabit a world that can sustain life must be no! Is war an imminent possibility, then the short answer is, regardless of the hopes, wishes and desires of the people, an unfortunate yes. Continue reading »
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US economic policy and a great march backwards
There is a spectre haunting the world. It is the spectre of economic crisis. How the world responds will shape all of our futures. To borrow from Carl Clausewitz; war is the continuation of politics by other means. The famous military theorist might have added that economics is politics which is war by other means. Continue reading »
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ASPI’s call for a militia – a step to military madness
The Australian economy is increasingly becoming a war economy. The PM talks of the economic benefits of weapons manufacture, and of how the military and a growing military-industrial-complex is almost a job creation scheme. The media works diligently to build and sustain a sense of fear. But even so, the warmongers of the Australian Strategic Continue reading »
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Hiroshima, Nagasaki and the Korean War – lest we forget
The atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The ‘end’ of the Korean War. Two anniversaries that almost intersect. At the end of WWII, a new order was imposed on the world. Today, as those anniversaries are marked, there is little to celebrate. Continue reading »
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Propaganda, the drive to war, and the battle for the mind
A battle of ideas is being fought in Australia. And the front line is the drive to war and the demonisation of China. There is a battle but it is a one-sided affair. Continue reading »
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The US drive to war with China and the battle of ideas
Somewhere, somehow, China became the number one enemy of the world, or at least to the world that is run by the USA. For many the ‘reason’ has been the challenge that China poses to US economic hegemony, but might not America’s fear of China be based on ideological causes; a battle of ideas? Continue reading »
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G7 resorts to China bashing to distract from economic woes
Just months before the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997, an old Hongkonger was interviewed. He was squatting next to a bundle of goods that he was hawking in the street. When asked about how he felt about the Chinese taking control again, he paused, drew on his cigarette and said, ‘maybe they Continue reading »
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How Biden is weaponising the media
In December, The New York Times ran a headline reminding the world that publishing is not a crime. The paper urged President Biden to move to have the charges against Julian Assange dropped. The response was silence. Continue reading »
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The threat of war and the role of the propaganda machine
The relentless drive to war against China goes on. There is no longer any pretence that China is in the US sights and so Australia is prepared to spend whatever it takes to prove its fealty to Washington. No military outlay is too much, no threat to our economic future too risky for the Australian Continue reading »
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When a war economy became an industry policy
Anthony Albanese’s photo opportunity with president Biden and prime minister Sunak in San Diego must rank as one of the more grotesque and expensive the world has seen. The submarine deal, glowingly described as his ‘moon shot’ with its $368 billion price-tag is an act of pillage of public money. It might allow him to Continue reading »
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Ukraine and Western media: The death of free thought
Wars are started by political forces. They are promoted by propagandists, fought by soldiers and it is always the ordinary people that suffer. Wars are almost never about principle and almost always about profit in one form or another. The war in Ukraine, like all other wars has been sold to us as a struggle Continue reading »
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Ukraine, the war and a Chinese hope for settlement
The anniversary of the war in Ukraine was accompanied by high level visits to both Moscow and Kviv. Continue reading »
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Child poverty, $3.5 billion for tanks, and a government that does not care
The child’s face in the Smith Family ad sums up all that is wrong with Australia. In this rich, first world nation, the Smith Family call us to sponsor a child so that she might go to school. A basic human right is being denied and in that denial our state and government stands condemned. Continue reading »
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The US drive to war against China just got worse
General Mike Minahan, head of the United States Air Force’s Air Mobility Command has sent a message to the world. It is blunt, threatening and sinister. ‘My gut tells me we will fight in 2025.’ The General sent his message as a memorandum to the leadership of the 110,000 strong USAF, with the unambiguous title, Continue reading »
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Learning to hate China – how well have we learned the lessons
Toward the end of 2019, an article titled Lessons in how to hate China was published in Pearls and Irritations. Those lessons have been learned and learned well. Three years is a short time but the collective memory is also short. China is now the accepted enemy and the likelihood of war is spoken of Continue reading »
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A cold war that just keeps on keeping on
It is now 30 years since the USSR ceased to be. The end of the Cold War was to herald an era of peace, harmony and the ‘end of history.’ Instead, we have wars, inequality, economic crisis, climate catastrophe and pandemic. Continue reading »
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Government chooses ‘jobs and growth’ over peace with defence spending
Militarisation has become a means of promoting economic welfare, and the ‘defence industry hub’ in Geelong is just the latest such project. Continue reading »
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Curing the climate: with ‘can-do’ capitalism, what possibly can go wrong?
Just 100 corporations account for 70 per cent of global carbon emissions. Time their contribution to the climate crisis was given greater prominence. Continue reading »
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Afghanistan, ‘anarchy’ and confecting a China threat
Readers of The Age and Sydney Morning Herald were recently treated to a lesson in international relations theory. Continue reading »
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Biden’s summit for democracy: China-bashing and the economics of human rights
The US President has announced that he will be issuing invitations to world leaders to talk about democracy, authoritarianism, and human rights, at a Summit to be held in early December. The Summit for Democracy, as the US State Department has titled the gathering, is aimed at shoring up fading support for the USA and Continue reading »
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The China push for a cleaner and cooler planet
Not a day passes without our media damning China for some imagined infamy or other. So many stories, so many column inches, and nothing positive to be found. At the same time, our television screens are full of other images; real images of a disaster that is enveloping us all. Continue reading »
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The Cuban protest and the sixty year illegal US blockade
The US and its allies talk loudly about maintaining a rules based order but in a recent UN General Assembly deliberation there was a vote of 184 to 2 (US and Israel) demanding an end to the illegal 60 year economic boycott of Cuba. The US will ignore the UN vote.The US cherry picks the Continue reading »
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The G7, NATO and the demonisation of China
The G7 and NATO summits have made it abundantly clear that the global economic and military focus will remain on China. The demonisation of China has taken a serious step forward as Biden’s mantra-like statement that ‘America is back’ begins to sound even more ominous. Continue reading »
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Militarism the winner in Biden’s budget
The Biden budget of $6 trillion dollars is being sold as a turn to liberal reform, but the media has largely neglected one significant fact. The budget allows for $1.52 trillion that is ‘discretionary’ spending. Half of that figure will be devoted to the military. It is a record figure. The US has an economy Continue reading »
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Taiwan: the trigger point for America’s next war
It is becoming a case of when, not if, there will be a war between the US and China. Nobody wants war and yet the public is being persuaded that it might happen, and if it does, it will be a necessary evil to counter a threat. Continue reading »
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Not sleepwalking but marching with eyes wide open to war with China
A lie told often enough can become accepted, but it can never be the truth. China has been declared a threat to all that we hold dear, but it is just not so. China, for all its faults, is not a threat and nor is it practising genocide! Continue reading »
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CIA, the USA and a poor night’s sleep for the world
Joe Biden’s appointment of William Burns as CIA director shows how the US, of whatever stripe, views the world. It sees things in absolute black and white. Peace and security can only be assured if ‘we’ remain dominant. Continue reading »
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China ‘bullies’; US engages in ‘robust diplomacy’
As 2020 becomes 2021, one thing remains certain. The Australia-US alliance will continue to threaten the peace of the region and Australia’s economic security. Australia seems prepared to gamble on the US maintaining its supremacy. Continue reading »
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Australia, China and the weaponising of trade
The conflict between Australia and China worsens with each passing day. The latest piece of news, China’s ‘indefinite’ pause in coal imports from Australia shows just how dangerous is the game that Australia is playing. Continue reading »
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The Biden Presidency and China: past, present, and future danger
The global sigh of relief that marked the end of the Trump era is hardly surprising. But Biden’s ascendancy warrants scrutiny, especially when we look at US-Sino relations and the potential for regional and global conflict. Continue reading »
