‘Despite the views of many optimists, there are clearly losers as well as winners from the process of globalization.’ Evaluate this statement.

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'Despite the views of many optimists, there are clearly losers as well as winners from the process of globalization.' Evaluate this statement.

The statement at the head of the page assumes that Globalization creates both winners and losers. This is a view shared by many, but not all, theorists and commentators. There are many trends of thought regarding exactly who the winners and losers may be as well as what may be considered a prize or a punishment (e.g. some may sight the availability of McDonalds fast food throughout France an enrichment and some may see it as an unwelcome and unsavoury invasion.) Comparison between these opinions paints an interesting picture of what Globalization is, what certain parties want it to be seen as and what kind of world it could create. Anthony Giddens says "Globalization, some argue, creates a world of winners and losers, a few on the fast track to prosperity, the majority condemned to a life of misery and despair." This is a view shared by many theorists, however positive Globalists (perhaps naively) claim Globalization will lead to winnings for all and extreme pessimists exist who see 'Globalization' as the path to mass ruin and exploitation and as a vague buzzword umbrella from under which Governments may defend unjast or unpopular policies.

The other query I would raise when initially evaluating the statement is what exactly we mean by a 'process of Globalization' and does it mean the same thing to different people? The statement assumes there I a defined and universally accepted reading of the term and yet there are many differing views as to what 'Globalization' entails. 'Globalization' is a process said to affect several different aspects of the social world, mainly economics both global and local, global and local politics and global and local culture.

There are various definitions of what 'Globalization' is, and the effect it has on the world. Globalists believe Globalization is a real and evident process. They argue that examples of a significant shift in the geography of social relations can be seen in terms of economics, culture and politics. For example the recent effects that the US economy's down turn had on the share prices of British companies who trade and deal largely within US markets. We can see that international trade and investment has increased in recent years with many companies (notable many of those within the FT500) having bases and influence in many different countries e.g. Rupert Murdoch's global media empire, News Corporation, which operates within nine different media on six different continents. Culturally we can see everyday examples of what Globalists would call Globalization. In Britain we eat McDonalds and Sushi, wear Issey Miyake perfume, watch Manga films and play Sony Playstation games. Politically nation states do not hold ultimate power over all policies and all behaviour as a whole. National governments have joined to create larger international organizations e.g. United Nations or G8 (USA, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Italy and Canada, with the recent addition of Russia). Globalization, and the Northern Territories embracing of it, allows the dogged pursuit of free and open trade, where nation boundaries do not stand in the pathway of Capitalism but where, through freer and less rigidly controlled capital and goods traffic, unwanted trades such as illegal drugs are also allowed to prosper freely.
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Traditionalists would argue that the term 'Globalization' itself is merely a buzzword to describe a process that has occurred throughout history. In particular, they argue, the passage of goods and capital across national boundaries has happened for centuries, bringing with it the spread of different cultures and knowledge. Examples of this can be found e.g. Tobacco, paper, religion and medical beliefs and techniques. In the 19th century open trading and liberal economics relations were the norm and 'Globalization' can be seen as an expansion of those ideals. Traditionalists are also ready to point out that not all economic ...

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