GLOBALIZATION: THE ESSENTIALSGeorge Ritzer This balanced introduction draws on academic and popular...

15
A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication GLOBALIZATION THE ESSENTIALS GEORGE RITZER

Transcript of GLOBALIZATION: THE ESSENTIALSGeorge Ritzer This balanced introduction draws on academic and popular...

  • A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication

    GLOBALIZATION THE ESSENTIALSGEORGE RITZER

  • Globalization

  • GlobalizationA Basic Text

    George Ritzer

    This balanced introduction draws on academic and popular sources to examine the major issues and events in the history of globalization.

    Globalization: A Basic Text is a substantial introductory textbook, designed to work either on its own or alongside Readings in Globalization. The books are cross-referenced and are both structured around the core concepts of globalization.

    2009 • 608 pages • 978-1-4051-3271-8 • paperbackwww.wiley.com/go/globalization

    Readings in GlobalizationKey Readings and Major Debates

    Edited by George Ritzer and Zeynep Atalay

    This unique and engaging anthology introduces students to the major concepts of globalization within the context of the key debates and disputes.

    Readings in Globalization illustrates that major debates in the fi eld are not only useful to examine for their own merit but can extend our knowledge of globalization. The volume explores both the political economy of globalization and the relationship of culture to globalization.

    The volume is designed so it may be used independently, or alongside George Ritzer’s Globalization: A Basic Text for a complete student resource.

    2010 • 560 pages • 978-1-4051-3273-2 • paperback

    Order together and save! Quote ISBN 978-1-4443-2371-9

  • A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication

    GLOBALIZATION THE ESSENTIALSGEORGE RITZER

  • This edition fi rst published 2011© 2011 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

    Edition history: portions of this text appeared in Globalization: A Basic Text (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010)

    Wiley-Blackwell is an imprint of John Wiley & Sons, formed by the merger of Wiley’s global Scientifi c, Technical and Medical business with Blackwell Publishing.

    Registered Offi ceJohn Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom

    Editorial Offi ces350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UKThe Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK

    For details of our global editorial offi ces, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell.

    The right of George Ritzer to be identifi ed as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher.

    Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books.

    Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

    Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataRitzer, George. Globalization : the essentials / George Ritzer. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-470-65560-3 (hardcover : alk. paper) – ISBN 978-0-470-65561-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Globalization. I. Title. JZ1318.R5835 2011 303.48'2–dc22 2010042203

    A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

    This book is published in the following electronic formats: ePDFs 978-1-4443-9356-9; ePub 978-1-4443-9357-6

    Set in 10.5/13pt Minion by Toppan Best-set Premedia Limited

    1 2011

    www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell

  • CONTENTS

    Preface xi

    1 Globalization 1Conceptualization, Origins, and History

    Conceptualizing Globalization 3From “Solids” to “Liquids” 3

    “Flows” 7

    “Heavy” and “Light” 8

    “Heavy” Structures that Expedite “Flows” 10

    “Heavy” Structures as Barriers to “Flows” 12

    Subtler Structural Barriers 16

    Origins and History of Globalization 17Hardwired 17

    Cycles 18

    Epochs 18

    Events 18

    Broader, More Recent Changes 20

    Chapter Summary 22

    2 Theorizing Globalization 28

    Imperialism 29Colonialism 31Development 32Americanization 34

    Anti-Americanism as a Global Process 36

    Neo-Liberalism 37Neo-Liberalism: Basic Ideas 40

    The Neo-Liberal State 41

    Critiquing Neo-Liberalism: Karl Polanyi 42

    Contemporary Criticisms of Neo-Liberalism 44

    Neo-Marxian Theories 45Transnational Capitalism 45

    Empire 47

    Chapter Summary 49

    3 Structuring the Global Economy 55

    Before Bretton Woods 56A Prior Epoch of Globalization 56

  • Contentsvi

    Economic Development during and after WW II 57

    Bretton Woods and the Bretton Woods System 58General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 60

    World Trade Organization (WTO) 61

    International Monetary Fund (IMF) 61

    World Bank 64

    The End of Bretton Woods 66Changes in, and Critiques of, Bretton-Woods-Era Organizations 67Other Important Economic Organizations 72The Multinational Corporation (MNC) 72The Myth of Economic Globalization? 75Chapter Summary 76

    4 Global Economic Flows 81

    Trade 82Trade Surpluses and Defi cits 82

    Global Trade: Economic Chains and Networks 82

    Global Value Chains: China and the US 84

    Scrap metal 84

    Waste paper 85

    T-shirts 86

    iPhones 87

    Increasing Competition for Commodities 88The Economic Impact of the Flow of Oil 89

    Oil Wealth 90

    Race to the Bottom and Upgrading 91Upgrading in the Less Developed World? 92

    Outsourcing 93Financial Globalization 95

    The Great Recession 95

    Consumption 98Consumer Objects and Services 100

    Consumers 100

    Consumption Processes 101

    Consumption Sites 101

    Global Resistance 101

    Chapter Summary 102

    5 Global Political Structures and Processes 106

    On Political Flows 107The Nation-State 108

    Threats to the Nation-State 109

    Global fl ows 109

  • viiContents

    International human rights 110

    “Shadows of war” 111

    In Defense of the Nation-State 111“Imagined Community” 112Changes in Global Nation-State Relations 114United Nations (UN) 117

    United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 118

    United Nations Educational, Scientifi c, and Cultural

    Organization (UNESCO) 118

    International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) 118

    Global Governance 119Civil Society 121

    International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) 124

    Chapter Summary 128

    6 High-Tech Global Flows and Structures 133Technology, Media, and the Internet

    Technology 134Medical Technologies 135

    Space-Based Technologies 136

    Leapfrogging 136

    India’s “One Lakh Car” (or NANO) 138

    Problematic Technological Flows 139

    Media 139Media Imperialism 139

    “Media Were American” 140

    New Global Media 141

    Indymedia 142

    Thinking about the Global Media 143

    The Internet 145Online Social Networking 146

    Spam 147

    Computer Viruses 147

    The Internet in China 148

    Chapter Summary 149

    7 Global Culture and Cultural Flows 153

    Cultural Differentialism 155Civilizations 155

    Cultural Hybridization 159Muslim Girl Scouts 160

    Appadurai’s “Landscapes” 161

    Cultural Convergence 163

  • Contentsviii

    Cultural Imperialism 163

    Indian sari weavers 164

    Deterritorialization 165

    World Culture 165

    McDonaldization 167

    McDonaldization, expansionism, and globalization 169

    Beyond fast food 170

    The Globalization of Nothing 171

    Cricket: local, glocal, or grobal? 173

    Chapter Summary 174

    8 Global Flows of Migrants 178

    Migrants 179Migration 180

    Flows of Migrants to and from the US 183

    Illegal Mexican migrants to the US 183

    Migrants through Mexico and to the US 185

    Increased law enforcement 185

    Flow of Migrants Elsewhere in the World 187

    Illegal immigrants in Europe 187

    Great Britain 187

    Switzerland 188

    Greece 189

    Illegal immigrants in Asia 190

    The Case Against the Backlash to Illegal Immigration 191

    Remittances 194

    Diaspora 197

    Chapter Summary 199

    9 Global Environmental Flows 204

    Differences Among Nation-States 207Collapse 207The Leading Environmental Problems 208

    Destruction of Natural Habitats 208

    Decline of Fish 208

    Decline in Fresh Water 209

    The paradox of bottled water 211

    Toxic Chemicals 212

    Greenhouse Gases and Global Warming 212

    Rising seas 213

    Global warming and health 214

    Population Growth 215

    The Global Flow of Dangerous Debris 215

  • ixContents

    Global Responses 216Sustainable Development 216

    Dealing with Climate Change 218

    Carbon Tax 219

    Carbon Neutral 220

    Alternate Fuels and Power Sources 220

    Hybrid technology 220

    Ethanol 221

    Solar power 222

    A Technological Fix? 222

    Economic Issues 224

    Opposing Environmentalism 224

    Chapter Summary 225

    10 Negative Global Flows and Processes 230Dangerous Imports, Diseases, Crime, Terrorism, War

    Dangerous Imports 232Borderless Diseases 233

    HIV/AIDS 234

    Avian Flu 235

    SARS 236

    Ebola Virus 236

    Tropical Diseases in Europe 237

    Crime 237Terrorism 242War 247

    Global Military Structures 249

    Technology 249

    Information War 250

    Cyber-War 252

    The Impact of Negative Global Flows on Individuals 253Chapter Summary 254

    11 Inequality 260

    Global Inequality 261“The Bottom Billion” 261

    Migration 262

    E-Waste and Inequality 263

    Global Digital Divide 263

    Race and Ethnicity and Gender 264Race and Ethnicity 264

    Gender 270

    Gender and the economy 271

  • Contentsx

    Global care chains 275

    Traffi cking in the sex industry 276

    Mail-order brides 277

    Responding to and resisting global minority status: the case of women 277

    Rural–Urban and Inequality 278Rural 278

    Urban 281

    Cities: the main locus of global problems 283

    Chapter Summary 284

    12 Dealing with, Resisting, and the Future of, Globalization 291

    Dealing with Globalization 292Dealing with the Global Economy 292

    Protectionism 293

    Fair trade 295

    Helping the “bottom billion” 298

    Dealing with Political Globalization 299

    Accountability 299

    Transparency 299

    Transparency International (TI) 300

    Resisting Globalization 301Local Resistance 304

    A Social Movement? 305

    More Formal Social Movements 306

    World Social Forum and Cyberactivism 306

    Is the Resistance to Globalization Signifi cant? 308

    The Futures of Globalization 309A “Mad Max” Scenario 311

    Chapter Summary 312

    Glossary 317Index 322

  • PREFACE

    Globalization: The Essentials is an abbreviated version of Globalization: A Basic Text (2010). While the latter is designed as a full - scale textbook for a course on global-ization, this volume is considerably shorter. It can still be used as a text in such a course, but its comparative brevity enables the instructor to assign other books, as well. In addition, it can be used as a supplementary book in a variety of other courses in sociology and the social sciences. As the title suggests, this volume retains the essential elements of the original text. Four chapters, the Appendix and various other portions of the text have been deleted from Globalization: A Basic Text to create this volume. That material is, of course, important, but hard decisions had to be made about what to cut and not to cut. It is my belief that this shorter text continues to deliver what is most important to a fundamental understanding of this most important process of our day and in the foreseeable future.

  • CHAPTER

    1 GlobalizationConceptualization, Origins, and History

    Conceptualizing Globalization ■ From “ Solids ” to “ Liquids ” ■ “ Flows ” ■ “ Heavy ” and “ Light ” ■ “ Heavy ” Structures that Expedite “ Flows ” ■ “ Heavy ” Structures as Barriers to “ Flows ” ■ Subtler Structural Barriers

    Origins and History of Globalization ■ Hardwired ■ Cycles ■ Epochs ■ Events ■ Broader, More Recent Changes

    Chapter Summary

    Globalization: The Essentials, by George Ritzer© 2011 John Wiley & Sons Ltd