Globalism

[ik911]

Globalism (not globalization, although one might have something to do with the other and vice versa. I don't know...)

What exactly is Globalism, and what to think about it?

Your contributions to this thread would help me greatly (for an essay, next month. Never wrote an essay, either. )

I haven't had time to look it up on GB/SYM, so links to threads are appreciated too.

Thanks in advance.

(BTW, most helpfull member in this thread will automatically be nominated for next year's SYM Most Helpfull Member Award , and you'll recieve a candybar by mail. )

[jopperm2]

Here you go Fas, I know this is your AOE.. I'm thinking about a reply.. I promise I'll post something soon. For now, this can serve as a bump. Good luck with the essay.

[CM]

I havent been on for a day or two so i apologise for missing this. Now by Globalism what do you mean? The over-arching influence that western culture has today? The Internet/media revolution? The economic aspect (which would be globalization)?

Globalism to me basically means stronger inter-linkages between individuals (not groups nor countries) from different societies and cultures. The fact that i can chat with my friends in Switzerland and Nepal is a fact of globalism. Another fact of globalism is the large amount of information exchange at a cultural and societal level. People now know about how say the people in Nepal live or why Aceh is a hell hole.

Globalization is the economic aspect of making the world smaller. Globalism is the social and cultural aspect. The phrase International Community is the political sister of Globalization and Globalism.

But what are you gonna define? What exactly are your parameters and scope of discussion?

[arno_v]

I am forced to write the same essay, I mean an essay with the same subject. The only thing the teacher toled us was to write an essay about globalism... That's it, so we can discus every aspect.

[ik911]

It's for a class that litterally translates to something like 'societics' (maatschappijleer in dutch). A better translation would be politics, but I'm not entirely sure, because the teacher is a strange character, but what he does, he does extremely good, so I respect the fellow. (If I wouldn't I would just pluck something off the internet, and not even bother to think about it.)

So, I'm particularly interested in the political side of Globalism. He mentioned 'safety', 'environment', 'economical' and another thing (arno_v, you have the same teacher right? did he mention that to you? I forgot the last one [or were it 2??])

I'm also interested in the pros and cons. The way you present it, it sounds like a pretty good deal; 'Globalism to me basically means stronger inter-linkages between individuals '.

Gotta go now.

EDIT: suddenly needed to go AFK. I see arno_v posted just before me.

[Cuchulain82]

What exactly is Globalism, and what to think about it?

This is a really big question. I recently graduated University and was an International Studies major and I still don't really know where to begin. Part of the problem is that the terms Globalism, Globalization, and Global all mean different things to different people (as CM so rightly indicated).

I'm particularly interested in the political side of Globalism

That is a solid place to start thinking about Globalism. There are a few characteristics that people have noticed about Globalization (ie- the Economic aspect). One is that efficiency is generally increased because there is a much greater volume of competition. By this I mean that because you can buy from more people, the things you buy are generally cheaper/of higher quality (usually or the other, rarely both). However, this is thought to lead to a concentration of wealth in the hands of the most efficient producers, meaning that because a few companies have the greatest advantages, wealth is concentrated in the hands of those few companies.

In terms of culture, globalism was really popular in the early 1990's. The thought in the international community was that with the end of the cold war a new, very liberal era of internationalism would follow. The world would go from a bi-polar system (USSR vs. USA) to a multi-polar system (the USA, Euroean nations, China, Japan, etc.). However, this didn't really happen (or at least hasn't happened yet). The world isn't all that much more cooperative than it was in the 1980's, and it is arguably less cooperative than even the early 1990's. There are alot of factors in this, almost too many to count- i.e. Sept 11; the rise of religious fanaticism globally; greater income gap between individuals and nations; the rise of nationalism; I'm sure there are many, many more that people can think of...

If I were writing this essay I would pick a question and try to answer it. Since I like political theory, I would write about changes in the global system, maybe since the end of the Cold War, or even since 9/11. You could look at North-South disparities (North-South new terms for the nations that used to be referred to as 1st and 3rd world countries).

This reply is getting long. If you want PM me- I wrote about this stuff for literally 4 years. My thesis was about political theory. Also, CM has hinted about the UN in a few threads, so I'll bet he(she?) is a good source too.

One last thing- one of the best sources for general globalism/globalization stuff it "The Lexus and the Olive Tree" by Thomas J. Friedman. People love and hate this book, and I will probably catch some flack for suggesting it. However, it remains one of the easiest and clearist books about Globalism ever published. The first half of the book is all brilliant analysis, and the second half is proposed answers. Read the first half because it is loaded with great insights.

I hope this helps! Good luck! Don't hesitate to ask for more help.

[CM]

Another person you may wanna consult is High Lord Dave (HLD) he aint around but i think pming may work.

Basically as you two are gonna be doing the same paper it would be wise to make sure you don't cover the exact same points. Globalism, Globalization and the International Community can be seen from 5 tp 7 angles.

1. Security - Terrorism, nuclear disarmament etc etec
2. Economic
3. Social
4. Human rights
5. Technology/media
6. Role of International community (very different from the above - can the IC do stuff because if they feel like it, like help with the Tsunami, rebuild stuff etc)
7. Individual aspect - internet, cell phones "connecting people"

Tell me which one you want to talk about. Each subject alone is a PHD paper if not more than just one. I can't write about each one, but let me know what interests you and i will give you bullet points you can write about.

How long is the paper? 10 pages? 20 pages? 30 pages?

[ik911]

Originally Posted by CM

How long is the paper? 10 pages? 20 pages? 30 pages?

Well, at least 1 page. As I said, that teacher isn't a prick.
I believe he mentioned we should include something about the first four points (Security, Economic, Social and Human rights) plus Environment.

I've done a little research on Globalism and this are some connections:
Environment -> treaties and agreements like the Kyoto-treaty.
Economy -> laissez-faire; free market
Security -> nuclear disarmament

Seems a bit paradoxal: laissez-faire market, while having a tight grip on nuclear and environmental issues.

[Aegis]

Originally Posted by ik911

Well, at least 1 page. As I said, that teacher isn't a prick.
I believe he mentioned we should include something about the first four points (Security, Economic, Social and Human rights) plus Environment.

I've done a little research on Globalism and this are some connections:
Environment -> treaties and agreements like the Kyoto-treaty.
Economy -> laissez-faire; free market
Security -> nuclear disarmament

Seems a bit paradoxal: laissez-faire market, while having a tight grip on nuclear and environmental issues.

That's the capitalist ideal there. A free reign economy, than the powers that be creating a system of stops and checks to ensure that free market cannot be touched.

And one page, bah. Here I thought it was something serious, like the similar 10 page one I'm currently writing (Globalism and the Decline of Humanism. God I love cynicism )

[ik911]

Originally Posted by Aegis

That's the capitalist ideal there. A free reign economy, than the powers that be creating a system of stops and checks to ensure that free market cannot be touched.

And one page, bah. Here I thought it was something serious, like the similar 10 page one I'm currently writing (Globalism and the Decline of Humanism. God I love cynicism )

Well, to get 10 pages into 1 page is pretty serious business!

[CM]

Originally Posted by Aegis

(Globalism and the Decline of Humanism. God I love cynicism )

Actually not really. People have been saying the same for 10 years. It is rather a very common held belief and extremely inaccurate.

If its one page just do a damn google

[Magrus]

Originally Posted by CM

Actually not really. People have been saying the same for 10 years. It is rather a very common held belief and extremely inaccurate.

If its one page just do a damn google

You know, back in the day, I mean like 10 years ago we used those things, whatcha call 'em. Oh books. You ran to the library and poured through books and ranted frustrations at old librarians because the book you need was out and your paper was due TOMORROW.

Grab a dictionary, encyclopedia and look up globalism. That'll give you at least a paragraph or two if your creative. Find an article from a newspaper or magazine.
Interpret the article and write your interpretations and responses to the issues it discusses. That'll fill your page. Impress your teacher, write down where you got your information from too. He might give you a cookie.

[jopperm2]

I remember pouring through paper copies of the Reader's Guide to Periodicals, just to find the articles I was going to use.

[Magrus]

Originally Posted by jopperm2

I remember pouring through paper copies of the Reader's Guide to Periodicals, just to find the articles I was going to use.

I hated doing that. I remember when my school first started having kids use computers for research instead of books though. A lot of them had no clue what to do, including myself. We'd never had a computer to use in our life. Well, one kid was so sick of doing research on the computer he saved us all the trouble. He skipped lunch and magnetized the whole lot of computers in the library. Our teachers were so pissed they doubled the assignment until we told them who did it.

Nothing compared to what some kids did the next year to avoid midterms for before our christmas break though. Slashed EVERY tire on EVERY bus in the district.

[jopperm2]

Sounds like my kinda crowd. We put thermite to the engine block of a teacher's car.