Globalization
(Redirected from Globalisation)
Globalization (or globalisation) in its literal sense is a social change, an increase in connections among societies and their elements. The term is applied to many social, commercial and economic activities. Depending on the context it can mean closer contact between different parts of the world (globalization of the world), such as increasing relations among members of an industry in different parts of the world (globalization of an industry); or it may refer to the negative exploitation aspects of globalization such as evasion of legal and moral standards by moving manufacturing or mining and harvesting practices overseas. It shares a number of characteristics with internationalization and is used interchangeably, although some prefer to use globalization to emphasize the erosion of the nation or national boundaries.
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Symptoms of Globalization
Globalization has become identified with a number of trends, most of which have developed since World War II. These include greater international movement of commodities, money, information, and people; and the development of technology, organizations, legal systems, and infrastructures to allow this movement. More specifically, globalization refers to:
- An increase in international trade at a faster rate than the growth in the world economy
- Increase in international flow of capital including foreign direct investment
- Greater transborder data flow, using such technologies such as the Internet, Wikipedia, Communication satellites and telephones
- Greater international cultural exchange, for example through the export of Hollywood and Bollywood movies
- Reduction in global cultural diversity through assimilation, hybridization, Westernisation, Americanization or Sinosization of cultures
- Erosion of national sovereignty and national borders through international agreements leading to organizations like the WTO
- Greater international travel and tourism
- Greater immigration, including illegal immigration
- Development of global telecommunications infrastructure
- Development of a global financial systems
- Increase in the share of the world economy controlled by multinational corporations
- Increased role of international organizations such as WTO, WIPO, IMF that deal with international transactions
- An increase in the number of standards applied globally; e.g. copyright laws
Many of these trends are seen as positive by supporters of various forms of globalization, and in many cases globalization has been actively promoted by governments and other institutions. For example, there are economic arguments supporting globalisation, such as the theory of comparative advantage suggesting that free trade leads to a more efficient allocation of resources, with all those involved in the trade benefitting.
The first successful business model of globalization exploitation is generally accepted as being the Indonesian regime change of 1965 when the democratic government was overthrown and the military regime under General. Suharto gave US business access to new clothing factories and minning opportunities in neighboring nations of Borneo and West Papua. The Indonesian factories employed Muslim women of Java on twelve to eighteen hour, six or seven day shifts which combined with much lower wages gave a distinct commercial advantage to US clothes manufacture. Though the Ford Foundation originally begun indoctrination of the land owning elite during the 1950's, they soon found that the military Generals were both amenable and eager to give US companies access to their nations wealth in exchange for fiscal and political aid. In preparation for the regime change the US supported the Indonesian military invasions of West Papua in 1961 and East Timor in 1975; in exchange the US received in 1967 minning rights to West Papua isolated from legal limitations such as the Fourth Geneva Convention, UN resolution 1803 "Permanent sovereignty over natural resources", or environmental controls the US Freeport mine is the worlds largest open cut mine and is the worlds cheapest source of copper; gold from the mine is sent to the US on monthly shipments.
Barriers to international trade have been considerably lowered since World War II through international agreements such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Particular initiatives carried out as a result of GATT and the World Trade Organisation, for which GATT is the foundation, have included:
- Promotion of free trade
- Of goods: reduction or elimination of tariffs; construction of free trade zones with small or no tariffs
- Of capital: reduction or elimination of capital controls
- Reduction, elimination, or harmonization of subsidies for local businesses
- Intellectual Property Restrictions
Anti-globalization
Various aspects of globalization are seen as harmful by anti-globalization, public-interest activists.See also: Anti-globalization movement.
Globalization in question
There is much academic discussion about whether globalization is a real phenomenon or only a myth. Although the term is widespread, many authors argue that the characteristics of the phenomenon have already been seen at other moments in history. Also, many note that those features that make people believe we are in the process of globalization, including the increase in international trade and the greater role of multinational corporations, are not as deeply established as they may appear. Thus, many authors prefer the use of the term internationalization rather than globalization. To put it simply, the role of the state and the importance of nations are greater in internationalization, while globalization in its complete form eliminates nation states. So, these authors see that the frontiers of countries, in a broad sense, are far from being dissolved, and therefore this radical globalization process is not yet happening, and probably won't happen, considering that in world history, internationalization never turned into globalization.
See also
- Anti-globalization
- Continental trading bloc
- Cultural imperialism
- Fascism
- Free trade zone
- GATT
- G11n
- Trade bloc
- International law
- Internationalization
- Internet
- Localization
- Mundialization
- National Socialism
- No Border Network
- World democracy.
- World Intellectual Property Organization.
References
- Hirst & Thompson, Globalization in question (1991), ISBN 0-7456-2164-3
- Philippe Legrain, Open World:/ The Truth About Globalization (2002) ISBN 034911644X - A largely pro-globalization book which responds to many of the complaints of the anti-globalization movement, written by a former Special Adviser to the World Trade Organisation Director-General.
- Joseph Stiglitz, Globalization and its discontents (2002) A book largely sympathetic to the theory of globalization from the 2001 Economics Nobel Prize winner. However he is sharply critical of the global institutions, the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organisation and the World Bank, regulating the process. ISBN 014101038X
- Naomi Klein No Logo (2001). A popular book which is very much against globalization. ISBN 0006530400
Outside Links
- http://www.aworldconnected.org , links, information, and resources on globalization.
- David Ransom, The Trojan Horse: A Radical Look at Foreign Aid, pub. 1975, pp. 93-116 "1970 Ford Foundation : Building an Elite for Indonesia". Explans how Indonesia and Globalization were crafted, and its US relationship.
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