Darwin, Trump and López Obrador

Donald Trump has said he will reopen the economy immediately, even if it causes more people in the United States to become gravely ill, or even die, from the coronavirus. Trump’s announcement resurrects the idea of social Darwinism that has prevailed among a number of scientists and leaders of other countries. This theory embraces the idea of natural selection, which has social applications in human communities, and which is based on the idea of the survival of the fittest.

In Mexico, there has been almost no implementation of mass testing to detect the virus. As a result, an increasing number of residents are being infected. Of these, only the strongest are surviving. Those with chronic degenerative diseases and certainly those who are the weakest, such as the elderly, are not.

It is not possible to lift the quarantine in two weeks, 30 days, or three months, without starting mass testing to detect the COVID-19 virus. Without testing, when a return to normal life is permitted, the contagion will return.

Both Trump and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador are burning to return to normal and revive the economy.

In the U.S., they are conducting thousands of tests every day. Here in Mexico, we are among the countries in the world that have conducted the least amount of testing.

This is just one perspective on the problem. Both presidents want to reopen the economy by ending the requirement to shelter in place and returning workers to their places of work, which would increase the presidents’ popularity and thereby ensure their reelection.

López Obrador, like Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, Evo Morales in Bolivia and Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua, is pinning his hopes on ending the requirement to shelter at home. By doing so, he hopes to remain president.

Let’s not forget that López Obrador is cynically capitalizing on the COVID-19 tragedy. His statement that “the pandemic fits us like a glove” means that he will be able to have a larger budget to fund his social programs, which are nothing more than a way to win supporters, good will and, clearly, votes.

The theory of social evolution based on the concept of the survival of the fittest is applied in managing human society. It emphasizes competition based on ethnicity, nationality, class, religion, liberal or conservative political views, etc. Society competes for natural resources and positions of privilege, and even for state support in the form of handouts and public funds.

Social Darwinism is based on the writings of Charles Darwin, who promoted the theory of evolution and natural selection. These interpretations of Darwin’s theory were initially put forward by Herbert Spencer and later used for political purposes.

The theory of social Darwinism was a very influential core component of the expansionist program of the imperialist countries around the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century.

The president of the United States has expressed his frustration over the recession caused by COVID-19, which has left more than 30 million of his countrymen unemployed and has certainly hurt his plans for a second term.

Here in Mexico, if some dreamer thinks that López Obrador is not looking for a way to stay on past 2024 as president of the Republic, this is a mistake which will only become clear over time. In the meantime, the country is living through the biggest economic, health and public security crisis in its history. However, the idea in the end is that only the fittest will survive, those who adapt themselves to the new social, political and economic order in Mexico that will remain after the virus, crime and recession have done their part.