02 Worksheet 2

11. The degeneration of Liberal Democracy

 The United States is a Lockean democracy, which means that its political system is based on the
late-seventeenth-century English theorist John Locke. However, in recent years, Washington- or
Westminster-style democracies, with their emphasis on rights and formal elections, have
devolved into sluggish and divisive political systems. The influence of corporate money in
politics is not the only hot topic. There's also the urban problem, a widening class division
aggravated by free trade and capital mobility, a racial crisis disguised as a law-and-order issue, a
"culture civil war" between fundamentalists and liberals, and the military's expanding authority.
Technocratic rationality and market rationality weakened the ideal of subsidiarity in the name of
European integration by funneling effective political and economic decision-making authority
upwards to techno-corporate organizations. As George Ross pointed out, the process of
constructing the European economic and political system was "intentionally elitist" from the
start.

12. The rise of The Movement

 Seattle was a disaster waiting to happen, but most of the elites who benefited from
globalization were unaware of the depth of the contempt and rage they had instilled. The storm
of public outrage went to Washington at the World Bank-IMF spring conference in April 2000. In
late April 2001, tens of thousands of people surrounded the Summit of the Americas in Quebec
City. Prior to 9/11, pro-globalization forces attempted to turn the tide by broadening the scope
of terrorist activity to include civil disobedience methods used by anti-corporation globalization
activists. Neoliberalism loves to shroud itself in the language of efficiency and the ethics of doing
the best for the most people, but it is truly about advancing corporate dominance.
 As previously stated, the overcapacity issue resulted in a loss of profitability by the late 1990s,
spurring a wave of mergers. The watchdogs and the watched abandoned the charade of checks
and balances in order to create the appearance of prosperity. Argentina has served as the Latin-
style poster child for globalization. It reduced trade restrictions quicker than most other Latin
American countries. Following the Asian financial crisis, Larry Summers lauded Argentina's
privatization of its banking industry as an example for the developing world.

13. Liberal democracy loses

 So far, there have been no obvious winners in the so-called war on terror by mid-2002. The
Taliban was one of them. The liberal democracy in the United States was also a significant loser.
Laws curtailing the rights to privacy and free movement are being enacted at a rate that would
make Joe McCarthy green with envy. Instead of progressing forward, America's limited
democracy was regressing in its inspiration from Locke in the late seventeenth century to
Hobbes in the early 16 century. Only recently have the opposition Democrats begun to speak
out against the erosion of civil freedoms, and only timidly.
14. Porto Alegre and the future

 Global capitalism has gone from triumph to disaster in just over a decade. Although September
11th represented a minor turnaround in this lengthy crisis, the fissures in the global capitalist
system cannot be overlooked for long. Legitimacy crises are a necessary prelude to change,
since when legitimacy or consensus is lost, it may only be a matter of time before the
institutions themselves fall apart. The World Social Forum (WSF) was held in Porto Alegre in
2001 and again in 2002. It has come to represent the ethos of the emerging anti-corporate-
driven globalization movement.
 50,000 individuals visited this seaside city between January 30 and February 4, 2002. This was
roughly five times the amount of people that came in 2001. Porto Alegre was just one stage in a
bigger process of determining options. It was a microcosm of millions of smaller but equally
major businesses happening all across the world. Globalization has not only failed to deliver on
its promises, but has also alienated many people. As in the 1930s, the alternative is for
terrorists, demagogues, and promoters of irrationality and nihilism to fill the hole.

02 worksheet 3

1. The State in a World of Economic Interdependence

 Globalization is generally associated with the growing momentum of global free-market

capitalism in the late twentieth century. Friedman contends that nations have lost a key
component of economic sovereignty and that neoliberalism is unassailable. He contends that
the "Electronic Herd's" new sovereigns reward and punish governments in the same manner
that they purchase and sell individual company shares. Korean firms have rejected American
notions such as focusing solely on what they do well and trading for the rest. They have focused
on establishing world-class capabilities where none previously existed.
 The most successful Korean corporations are either those formed with government funding,
such as POSCO, or those that are enormous family-dominated conglomerates, such as Samsung.
The growing public knowledge of global economic interconnectedness and the moral weight it
carries has not had a substantial influence on mass consumer behavior in the world's wealthiest
countries. Neither have potential avenues to developing globally enforceable standards
garnered much traction. Instead, the rules that decent governments respect to safeguard their
citizens are likely to remain elusive in the global market for the foreseeable future.

2. Economic and Political Integration: The Case of the European Union

 The European Union (EU) contains 27 member countries (Croatia became the 28th in July 2013),
a common currency and monetary system (shared by 17 member countries), and a
supranational European Parliament. In subsequent treaty modifications, the EU has expanded
into foreign and security affairs and, with the signing of the Maastricht Treaty in 1992, codified a
common citizenship that grants residents of member states the ability to live, work, vote, and
 even run for office. With two important institutions, Europe has experienced a tremendous
increase in continental jurisprudence during the last half-century. Since 1952, the European
Court of Justice (ECJ) has served as the primary dispute resolution authority for the EU and its
predecessors. Its judgments have compelled member states to create their own legislation in
order to conform to supranational norms. 
 The idea of equal compensation for equal labor has been ingrained in legislation throughout
Europe, due in part to ECJ judgements. The EU is an outstanding example of how international
collaboration has given states new tasks and responsibility. The early stages of European
integration provided member nations with an important vehicle for rehabilitating themselves
after WWII. The current European winter of discontent has increased the need for Europe to
address its democratic deficit more forcefully.