Reference no: EM132351559

Global Interdependence

This chapter of the book goes deeper into the concept of globalization and how globalization has increased interdependence within countries. As I was reading this chapter I noticed a repetitive word, interdependence. It discusses the idea that countries are now interconnected on all levels - economical, environmental, political, cultural etc. The economy of the third world depends largely on the developed world and vice versa. This chapter argues that the free and easy access to information through the use and development of technology is one of the biggest reasons why now a community in rural Africa has access to the same information and at the same time than people living in Manhattan.

A really interesting concept introduced in this chapter is ‘migration of dreams'. The idea that technology has introduced new and unrealistic goals, wants and desires in people's mind. Now people that lived in communities that had a single water well are demanding water faucets in their houses and internal plumbing. When we look at it from a different angle we could argue that this is one of the reasons why expectations and demands in developing countries have risen during our modernization age. As the chapter explains, violence and protests against the governments in third world countries have also risen in a great part because of this idea of ‘migration of dreams'.

The development of transportation methods has increased and eased the mobility of people. With people also come ideas, cultures, beliefs, diseases, languages and many more. The mobilization of cultures creates a more informed and diverse world. The chapter argues that among the world's cultures there are some that are more dominant and influential that others. According to Benjamin Barber, a political theorist, popular culture and consumerism brought and intensified in the United States is taking over the world. I can't see this as something positive.
These two concepts and ideas: mobility of cultures and access to information bring to my mind another concern. With people all over the world having access to the same information and as the world becomes more diverse there are constant changes of perspectives going on. Because of our human nature we are constantly seeking to improve our way of life, but because of global differences what might be a good life in the developed world could be considered an excellent and impossible life to attain in developing countries. Therefore perspectives on life and living standards are constantly evolving.

The idea of global terrorism is daunting. It was brought to my attention by this reading that terrorism can exist at many levels. With the development of nukes and weapons of mass destruction terrorism is something that has the potential of altering global polarity. With global terrorism there is another concept that was also new to me. Global cooperation for the greater good. Not only at the military or defense level but also at the legal and institutional level. Cooperation among countries is now a day more common and has become a need, especially with the rising threats.

Questions

Is global interdependence positive or negative?

Are we creating a new global culture?

Are we going through cultural colonialism? And if we are, why is it happening?