Thursday, June 10, 2004
Its been a long time
but now I'm...coming back home. You know what I am doing right now? Eating Wheat Thins. Stu Lim was kind enough to bring me three boxes from the U.S.A., since Nasbisco has deemed Australia unworthy of the ambrosia that is the thin wheat. Sadistic bastards they are
In more globalized world, I might be able to stroll across to Coles and get any American cracker I want, in any part of the world. But is that something I really want? Sure I miss Wheat Thins and wing sauce, and Natural Light. And when I go back to the States someday, you can be sure I'll be stocking up on Tim Tams before I leave.
But who does globalization really benefit? With the huge exception of the internet, the benefits to me are small. The benefit I and all my other American invaders get is the ablilty to consume recognized brands. Of course the brands that make it to Australia are the mega-brands, McDonald's, Kmart, etc. If these companies weren't in Australia, I wouldn't give two shits (I actually hadn't been to Kmart before I got here.) Exportation of America involves selling the conveinent and comprimising quality, not anything you or me could be proud of, like J.P. Licks Ice Cream or a Mom and Pop Greek Pizza joint.
This trend is not just in business, but culture. What music gets played in Australia from the U.S.? The superficial crap you hear on KISS 108 and TRL of course. What TV shows does America take from Europe? Why the lowest common denominator reality shows, American Idol, Big Brother, etc. Anything that is in the least bit cultured, that could really teach you something about another people and another part of the world, is of course deemed unmarketable.
Thats the key, its not the individual that gets to benefit from globalization, to explore the immense diversity and complexity of the world and the human race. Rather globalization finds the consumer, in a branded, pre-determined package meant not to offend or stimulate, but to be easily consumed. That's why the internet is the exception, because the individual can control the websites he/her visits to some extent.
Worldwide, who will globlaization benefit? Global Corporations, who will be able to more easlily outsource work from high income countries to lower income countries. A few, small, emerging nations who will be able to benefit from this sperading of business, as long as they can keep local stablilty.
Who won't it benefit? That's a much longer list. First of all, it may lead to a shift in the natural rate of unemployment in countries like the U.S. as firms move employment out of the country. Second, the two Giant Asian Countries; China and India, might not benefit as much as we would imagine, because they have too many damn people. If you were able to build in China population of 300 million that consumed as much as the U.S....that would leave 1 billion people left over to feed. Imagine the U.S. with another 1 billion poor people. You think they'd be down with W's tax plan? Or care about the benefits of lifting trade restrictions? They'd care about getting some fucking food. Look at India, where a booming economy still got the BJP voted out for the socialist INC, thanks almost exclusively to the poor vote. Third, Globalization isn't really globalization. It leaves out little parts of the world, like Africa. Or the Middle East (oil reserves excepted.) Why? Because there isn't enough profit in these countries. For these countries, its a Catch-22. Fail economically, and you have millions of starving people. Start to build some economic growth, and foreign companies will see you as profitable and sweep away an local businesses. As these countries have slightly more corrupt governments than most western countries, the common person does not get the benefit.
Capitalism is the credo of the day. But it needs some serious opposition. High GDP isnt everything. There is something called culture, a unique story and attitude of people, that we may lose in our eagerness to maximize profit margins and create brand equity. Will it mean the end of human beings? Doubtful. Will it make my life alot more boring? I think so. Look at the dependence, the addiction of people today, to television, to alcohol, to drugs, to pop culture. Is this culture death what we are running from? Is Globalization a spreading of the disease throughout the world?
I'm gonna go smoke a bowl and think about it.
In more globalized world, I might be able to stroll across to Coles and get any American cracker I want, in any part of the world. But is that something I really want? Sure I miss Wheat Thins and wing sauce, and Natural Light. And when I go back to the States someday, you can be sure I'll be stocking up on Tim Tams before I leave.
But who does globalization really benefit? With the huge exception of the internet, the benefits to me are small. The benefit I and all my other American invaders get is the ablilty to consume recognized brands. Of course the brands that make it to Australia are the mega-brands, McDonald's, Kmart, etc. If these companies weren't in Australia, I wouldn't give two shits (I actually hadn't been to Kmart before I got here.) Exportation of America involves selling the conveinent and comprimising quality, not anything you or me could be proud of, like J.P. Licks Ice Cream or a Mom and Pop Greek Pizza joint.
This trend is not just in business, but culture. What music gets played in Australia from the U.S.? The superficial crap you hear on KISS 108 and TRL of course. What TV shows does America take from Europe? Why the lowest common denominator reality shows, American Idol, Big Brother, etc. Anything that is in the least bit cultured, that could really teach you something about another people and another part of the world, is of course deemed unmarketable.
Thats the key, its not the individual that gets to benefit from globalization, to explore the immense diversity and complexity of the world and the human race. Rather globalization finds the consumer, in a branded, pre-determined package meant not to offend or stimulate, but to be easily consumed. That's why the internet is the exception, because the individual can control the websites he/her visits to some extent.
Worldwide, who will globlaization benefit? Global Corporations, who will be able to more easlily outsource work from high income countries to lower income countries. A few, small, emerging nations who will be able to benefit from this sperading of business, as long as they can keep local stablilty.
Who won't it benefit? That's a much longer list. First of all, it may lead to a shift in the natural rate of unemployment in countries like the U.S. as firms move employment out of the country. Second, the two Giant Asian Countries; China and India, might not benefit as much as we would imagine, because they have too many damn people. If you were able to build in China population of 300 million that consumed as much as the U.S....that would leave 1 billion people left over to feed. Imagine the U.S. with another 1 billion poor people. You think they'd be down with W's tax plan? Or care about the benefits of lifting trade restrictions? They'd care about getting some fucking food. Look at India, where a booming economy still got the BJP voted out for the socialist INC, thanks almost exclusively to the poor vote. Third, Globalization isn't really globalization. It leaves out little parts of the world, like Africa. Or the Middle East (oil reserves excepted.) Why? Because there isn't enough profit in these countries. For these countries, its a Catch-22. Fail economically, and you have millions of starving people. Start to build some economic growth, and foreign companies will see you as profitable and sweep away an local businesses. As these countries have slightly more corrupt governments than most western countries, the common person does not get the benefit.
Capitalism is the credo of the day. But it needs some serious opposition. High GDP isnt everything. There is something called culture, a unique story and attitude of people, that we may lose in our eagerness to maximize profit margins and create brand equity. Will it mean the end of human beings? Doubtful. Will it make my life alot more boring? I think so. Look at the dependence, the addiction of people today, to television, to alcohol, to drugs, to pop culture. Is this culture death what we are running from? Is Globalization a spreading of the disease throughout the world?
I'm gonna go smoke a bowl and think about it.
# posted by Marmaniac @ 3:29 AM 
