Is Globalization a Positive Development for the World Community?

The springboard for the article is Issue #14 of "Taking Sides: Global Issues," where Thomas Friedman supports globalization and Christian Weller, Robert Scott and Adam Hersh argue against it.

Friedman's approach is to attempt to define globalization against the framework of its "global system" predecessor: the post-cold war era. He points out the defining characteristics of globalization and highlights the similarities and differences between globalization and the post-cold war world system. Friedman's primary positive support for globalization lies in his assertion that this new world system empowers the individual.

Weller, Scott and Hersh, on the other hand, refute the notion that globalization brings about positive development worldwide with the outlining of "The Unremarkable Record of Liberalized Trade." They criticize globalization, pointing out the ever-growing disparity between the rich and the poor, and arguing that unregulated capital and trade flows contribute to rising inequality and impede progress in poverty reduction. (Harf and Lombardi 251-264)

Though the debate over globalization and its impact on the world community has been present for at least 20 years, rapid changes in technology, commerce, and so on has complicated the issue and magnified its relevance to the business community as well as the individual. The articles in Taking Sides were written in 1999 and 2001. So much has happened to shape the global landscape, yet the issues remain the same.

The Update

Two things became evident in the research phase of this writing. First, there is no universal definition for globalization. Proponents and critics alike are predisposed to generalizing the particular issue or topic they are examining under the greater "globalization" umbrella. Because of this, the debate as covered in this reflection, (as it was in Taking Sides) will focus on one aspect for the positive side and one for the negative.