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globalization

Page history last edited by Sheridan Hay 15 years, 9 months ago

Globalization:  The Second Challenge

 

Monday, May 25 

Start with reading the introduction to Chapter 10 of the textbook (page 324) and read Focusing on the Issues:  Where is My Society? (page 325) and answer questions 1 and 3, page 325. 

 

This is a particularly interesting topic given discussions in the media recently about what it means to be Canadian and the question of whether those people holding Canadian passports but living abroad are "fully" Canadian.  Is the idea of citizenship to one country an obsolete idea?  What role does it have when we have familial and cultural ties to other places, such as the Tamelese Canadians who held demonstrations in recent weeks to raise awareness of the events taking place in Sri Lanka.  So, let us begin...

 

I should warn you that I might be making links to other resources (likely visual) and possibly making a few other changes over the next few days.  However, if you have already completed the assignment, do not worry about it (and don't wait for changes).

 

Part One:  How Anthropologists Interpret Globalization

Read pages 326 to 336.

Assignment One:  Answer the Case Study questions on either page 331 or 335.  Post those answers in the comment section below.

Assignment Two:  Answer Pause and Reflect questions 1 to 5, page 336.  

 

NEW! Assignment Three:  The Price of Oil and Globalization. 

On the Monday show of the CBC program The Current, there was an interview with Jeff Rubin on the impact of oil prices on globalization.  What is discussed on the program provides a good example of how the different social sciences explore, understand, and reflect on the social challenges (and crises) that affect us.  I would like you to read the following clipping from The Current's website (www.cbc.ca/thecurrent), follow the links provided, and then listen to the interview with Rubin.  In the comments section below, reflect on how you see this issue being relevant to the Challenge and Change course.  Try to use specific examples from the interview and readings in your answer.

 

Clipping from the Current website:

"Well all roads lead to oil when it's cheap ... vacations are more affordable, fruit and vegetables from around the world are on our grocery shelves and all those cheap, imported electronics stay nice and cheap.

Of course the reverse is also true. When the price of oil is high, bad things happen including recessions. And according to Jeff Rubin, that's something we're just going to have to get used to because cheap oil is a thing of the past.  Jeff Rubin is the former Chief Economist for CIBC World Markets. He's just written a book called Why Your World is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller: Oil and The End of Globalization. And Jeff Rubin was in Toronto."

 

You can listen to the interview here

 

Due:  Wednesday, May 27

 

Part Two:  Sociology, Globalization, and Inequality

Read pages 336 to 347.

Assignment One:  Answer the Case Study questions on page 341 or the group of questions found after Competing Perspectives:  On the World Bank, page 345.  Post those answers in the comment section below.

Assignment Two:  Answer Pause and Reflect questions 1 to 5, page 347 

Due:  Monday, June 1

  

Part Three:  Our Perceptions of the Community:  Psychology and Globalization

Read pages 347 to 357.

Assignment One:  Answer the Case Study questions on page 355.  Post those answers in the comment section below.

Assignment Two:  Answer Pause and Reflect questions 1 to 5, page 356.

Due:  Thursday, June 4

 

Part Four:  Concluding Activities 

a) Answer either question 11 (the website mentioned in the question can be found here) or 12 (the website is here), page 359. 

b) Answer questions 16 to 18, 360.

Due:  Thursday, June 11 

 

HSB4M1 Unit-4

Comments (7)

wikiuser0001 said

at 6:42 pm on May 25, 2009

Page 331

1. Characteristics of Costa Rica
- population 3.5 million
-GDP per capita: 3800
-Language: Spanish
-Independent Republic: 1821

2. The living standards of argicultural farmers fell when the country decided to become part of the global market. In order for transnationals to come to the country they had to lower their wages and taxes therefore reduce social programs.

3. Mark Edelman believes that globalization had a negative effect on Costa Rica. Before globalization became popular Costa Rica had great social programs and protected workers. When their market became global however all of these programs were gone and farmers were left pooer than before. To this day farmers are trying to increase their standard of living and get greater wages. Globalization supporters would say that globalization is helping Costa Rica because the main component to their economy is agricultural exports. Without a global economy their exports revenue would be much smaller.

4. Costa Rica is like any other resource-based economy because they grow only cash crops. Wester owned companies want only unprocessed/raw materials from developing countries. The greatest profit made is during the manufacturing process and therefore the poor farmers do not have to be paid for their contricution to this part. They are cheated out of money.

5. Costa Rica's Current GDP per capita: 11 100
Panama: 10 700
Nicaragua: 2800
Guatemala: 5 100

wikiuser0001 said

at 5:17 pm on May 26, 2009

The Price of Oil and Globalization
May 26 2009


The price of oil and globalization are very closely linked. It one of them moves, the other follows. Therefor with the rise in price of oil, globalization will decrease. With globalization we are able to communicate with other parts of the world and trade. When the price of oil is too expensive, importing goods from abroad will also become too expensive. "Our global economy will no longer make sense will high prices of oil." Although higher wages are pain in Canada, it will make more sense for companies to produce in Canada than pay for shipping. Instead of eating foods from different areas of the world we will be forced to rely only on local items. We will no longer be able to trade globally, ending globalization. "Gas prices mark the beginning and end of globalization."

wikiuser0001 said

at 5:34 pm on May 26, 2009

Part Three: Assignment Two

page 345
Competing Perspectives: The World Bank

1. a)The World Bank as suggested by The Council for Canadians works only in the interest of industrial countries. The W.B. forces developing countries to cut social programs, export all crops, privatize companies etc, in order to obtain a loan. Therefore the W.B. is actually lowering the standard of living by giving developing countries money which is supposed to help them.
b) James Wolfensohn is the president of the World Bank. He defends the World Bank's view on free trade by stating it will allow developing countries to increase money supply and prosper.

2. The Council of Canadians is biased against the World Bank. They see the bank only as a business that does not care for developing countries. The Council fails to acknowloedge the changes made by the bank in recent years such as free trade.
The article with James Wolfensohn is biased because he is the president of the World Bank. Ofcourse he will only support it and not question it in any way.

3. Overall I agree with the article supporting the World Bank. Although the bank may have forced the developing into lower standards of living for a loan, there has been changes. I believe that developed countries should send aid to developing countries. I also support the idea that developing countries need to reoprangize their government and get rid of all the corruption. Overall I believe it is a global responsibility to help countries in need, hence the purpose of the world bank.

wikiuser0002 said

at 12:39 pm on May 27, 2009

1. Costa Rica's population is 3.5 million.
Spanish is the official language.
Agriculture is important, 17% of GDP and 70% of exports comes from it.
Coffee, bananas, beef, sugar are the main agriculture products.

2. Costa Rica became a global market. Subsequently, to work with transnational companies Costa Rica had to lower their wages/taxes causing citizens to become poor and limiting social programs.


3. Edelman opines that globalization crippled Costa Rica badly. Prior to globalization, Costa Rica expanded social welfare programs and state intervened in economics affaris to protect workers. But from 1980s to early 1990s, social selfare programs eroded. Transnationals prefer to set up their operations in low-wage, low-tax countries because it keeps their production costs down. And because Costa Rica adjusted itself to match this interests, social programs were cut back.


4. Costa Rica is a developing country, and they grow only cash crops- they do not manufacture goods. Western nations that were industrialized looked to this developing countries like Costa Rica for raw resources and they then manufactured these into goods and sold them for massive profits. The developing countries did not share these affluential profits. Also the Western nations preferred to buy from countries with low tax and low wages, because that means the Western nations wouldn't have to dole out as much money, hence making more. In these, ways Costa Rica and other developing countries have been exploited by the Western nations, wastefully providing precious resources and letting them profit from it while the developing countries loitered in poverty.







wikiuser0002 said

at 1:51 pm on May 27, 2009

Assignment 2

1. Transnationalism means that organizations advocate for globalization. They can be charitable groups like Free the Children, or business, like Nike. They strive have their operation as wide spread as possible.

On the other hand, deterritorialization means that nations’ cultures are being pushed out and superseded by Western cultures.

2. Financialization is the increase of trade and money between countries, which means globalization is present. And as with the Costa Rico example, this can result in disproportionate distribution in money. Western countries can exploit developing countries with natural resources.

4. They say that the world as a whole must shift their values, meaning that common good must precede profit in order to address and solve these rampant inequities. I think, though I agree completely with the proposal, it is a very doubtful that it will work. By nature, human being’s first interest concerns themselves only, not others. It requires a lot of conscious effort and perseverance to even attenuate this affinity, let alone shift the value. On top of that it’s really difficult to make this change occur on a large scale, and often, individuals who try to change can be demoralized into reconsideration because nobody else around seems to follow the principle of favoring common good over individual gain.



wikiuser0002 said

at 1:51 pm on May 27, 2009

5. The most tangible and feasible approach to mitigating the negative effects of globalization for individuals would be to boycott the products of manufacturers that exploit the developing countries’ resources. This approach would only be effective though, if the participatory scale was very large. This undertaking is highly unlikely to manifest because it’s hard for everybody to be so conscientious about the suffering others at the cost of their benefit, like cheaper prices. It’s hard to see past the benefits we reap. And even when we do, it’s absolutely demoralizing to carry on the plan because the majority of other people will continue to purchase those goods.

wikiuser0001 said

at 5:40 pm on May 27, 2009

Part Three: Assignment One
page 355

1. Gwyn believes that Canadian sovereignty has been eroding since September Eleventh. An example of this is the fact that it is inevitable Canada and the US will share a currency. There will be very little "divides" left between the States and Canada. Other countries will also have difficulty identifying the seperation between Canada and the US if we share currency. To be perfectly honest I didn't know what sovereignty meant until i googled it.

2. Globalization affects the Canadian-American relationship because it promotes assimilation. American shows, music, and culture are making their way to Canada. We are already starting to lose our own individuality and become more american. Countries already have a hard time distinguishing between the states and Canada. Therefore with Canadians already accepting the American way of life it is easy for the two governments to work together.

3. September Eleventh has highlighted Canada's dependence on the United States. After the attacks the United States immediately created new "terrorism" warnings/levels and stricter boarder crossings and airport security. Canada immediately immediately followed suit. We rely on the United States to make important decisions and then just copy them. Whatever threatens the United States, now threatens us.

THIS ARTICLE IS CONFUSINGGGGGG!!!!!
BLURUUURRRRGGGGG.

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