“The world is being flattened. I didn’t start it and you can’t stop it, except at great cost to human development and your own future. But we can manage it, for better or worse.” - Thomas L. Friedman, Author of The World is Flat
Although I have not finished but merely 15 pages of this book, Global Scholars are required to finish it by the end of our sophomore year. So this term - globalization - has been very popular these days. Yet, what is the meaning of it? According to my prep course, it is "a process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. This process has effects on the environment, on culture, on political systems, on economic development and prosperity, and on human physical well-being in societies around the world."
Alright, so their definition is a little better than mine! But let me go on to inform you of my personal opinion on this matter.
Sure, there are costs and benefits to globalization. But I try to focus on the benefits. Because if we focus on the costs, then we won't be progressing. If we don't move forward through the trials that come with globalization, then controversies will elevate into war/dispute and we will struggle to overcome these difficulties. Cooperation is a must for all people to benefit. For the most part, because of technology such as internet and cell phone communication, we are able to work together and advance.
I feel that most people groups are seeing the benefits of globalization and are all for it. But there are some people who are very ethnocentric. These people are only focused on their own culture and don't have the desire to progress internationally. I, too, am ethnocentric in my Christianity. I desire for others to share in the benefits of everlasting life through Jesus Christ, saving them from death and separation from God the Father. In my perspective, I see globalization as apart of God's great plan for his people. Spreading the good news of Jesus Christ is much easier now through all of the development our world has undergone. I hope you can begin to think about how supportive you are for globalization and how you can promote it within your family/culture.
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Friedman is a thought provoking author, Jon. I haven't read that book but the theme of globalization is in other books he has written. It is truly a powerful and revolutionary change in the way everything in this world works. Though there are some drawbacks to globalization, it is nearly unstoppable, as Friedman says. It does have a lot of benefits too, like advances in communications and a faster possibility for spreading the gospel, as you mentioned. I agree that globalization is a change we should embrace and appreciate, even when it does challenge our ethnocentric perspectives :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for your input. Good to hear that you are supportive of globalization. I hope to gain a better perspective after reading Friedman's book.
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