Globalization

Globalization: The World Flattens
History 300 / November 26, 2013

I. Unprecedented global growth: mobility & productivity
            A. The mobility of capital – a policy choice
                        1. The “Big Bang” and the City of London
                        2. Wall Street regulations loosened
                        3. Introducing the Euro
                        4. Presently, states imposing new controls
            B. The mobility of goods: rationalization, to a point
                        1. The World Trade Organization
                        2. The importance of containers
                        3. Real-world constraints
            C. The mobility of information
                        1. More perfect markets?
                        2. Eliminating the “middle man”
                        3. The prospects for outsourcing services
            D. An international division of labor
                        1. Specialization within trading blocs
                        2. Trends toward “post-Fordism”
                        3. The industrial-skills ladder
                        4. Long-term prospects for the primary sector
            E. The ebbing of state sovereignty?
II. Regional winners and losers
            A. Three waves of Asian tigers
                        1. Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong Singapore
                        2. Malaysia, Thailand
                        3. The giants: China and India
                        4. A counter-example: Burma
            B. Africa falls far, far behind
                        1. The “kleptocracy” phenomenon
                        2. Lack of aid, lack of capital investment
                        3. Enforcing accountability
                        4. A worst-case scenario: Zimbabwe
            C. Populism creeps back to Latin America
                        1. Chile, Mexico, Brazil: the region’s stars
                        2. Argentina, the defaulter’s paradise
                        3. Chavez and friends
III. Critiques of globalization
            A. “McWorld”: homogenization and “Frankenfood”
            B. The unchecked flows of financial capital
            C. Sweatshops and labor standards
            D. The culture of anarchical protest
IV. The 2008 financial crisis: end of an era?

	Globalization: The World Flattens History 300 / November 26, 2013 I. Unprecedented global growth: mobility & productivity A. The mobility of capital – a policy choice 1. The “Big Bang” and the City of London 2. Wall Street regulations loosened 3. Introducing the Euro 4. Presently, states imposing new controls B. The mobility of goods: rationalization, to a point 1. The World Trade Organization 2. The importance of containers 3. Real-world constraints C. The mobility of information 1. More perfect markets? 2. Eliminating the “middle man” 3. The prospects for outsourcing services D. An international division of labor 1. Specialization within trading blocs 2. Trends toward “post-Fordism” 3. The industrial-skills ladder 4. Long-term prospects for the primary sector E. The ebbing of state sovereignty? II. Regional winners and losers A. Three waves of Asian tigers 1. Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong Singapore 2. Malaysia, Thailand 3. The giants: China and India 4. A counter-example: Burma B. Africa falls far, far behind 1. The “kleptocracy” phenomenon 2. Lack of aid, lack of capital investment 3. Enforcing accountability 4. A worst-case scenario: Zimbabwe C. Populism creeps back to Latin America 1. Chile, Mexico, Brazil: the region’s stars 2. Argentina, the defaulter’s paradise 3. Chavez and friends III. Critiques of globalization A. “McWorld”: homogenization and “Frankenfood” B. The unchecked flows of financial capital C. Sweatshops and labor standards D. The culture of anarchical protest IV. The 2008 financial crisis: end of an era?
Further Reading Thomas L. Friedman, The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century (New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2005) Naomi Klein, No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies (New York: Picador, 2000)