1. Korten
1.1. Globalisation is the removal of trade barriers for the benefit of corporations
1.1.1. Critical of deregulation, privatization, global consolidation of corporate power - has been facilitated by bretton woods institutions
1.1.2. Rejects money as the focus of economic life - money has been disconnected from value
1.1.3. Sees growth of a new corporate colionalism
1.1.4. Rejects long term sustainable growth
1.2. Alternative: small scale family run businesses
1.2.1. 1. exclude corporations from political participation
1.2.2. 2. increased state & international control of corporations and finance
1.2.2.1. 50% tax on advertising
1.2.3. 3. render financial speculation unprofitable
1.2.4. 4. creating local economies that rely on local resources not international trade
1.3. http://nooventures.edublogs.org/2007-11-04-when-corporations-rule-the-world-by-david-korten/
1.4. Shock doctrine
1.4.1. crises create an opportunity for rapid economic and social change
2. Hardt and Negri
2.1. Globalization is not a simple process of dergulating markets. Regulations proliferate and interlock to create a world order
2.1.1. Increasing importance of immaterial intellectual labour
2.1.2. Flows of information, people and wealth are too unruly to be ruled from metropolitan centres. Capital does not flow from the periphery to the centre.
2.1.2.1. Empire is the gestalt of these flows and hierarchies
2.1.2.2. This form decatives the revolutionary capacity of globalization
2.1.2.2.1. There is less and less credibility to arguments about delinking from the world economy to regain power
2.1.2.3. Conflicts between nations have become outdated
2.2. The old form of imperialism by sovereign states no longer exists. the world is ruled by a post modern form of imperialism, a construct created around ruling powers - ideas build on foucault's ideas of biopolitics and subjectivity, and deleuze
2.2.1. "a decentred and deterritorialising apparatus of rule that progressively incorporates the entire global realm within its open, expanding frontiers"
2.2.1.1. national and supranational organisms united under a single logic of rule. This new global form of sovereignty is what we call Empire
2.2.2. Biopolitics informs the new paradigm of power
2.2.3. The US occupies a privileged position in empire, but this arises from its differences rather than its similarities to old forms
2.3. A diffuse anonymous network of all englobing power
2.4. Friedman: globalization is good because it brings democracy in its wake because of the desire for consumer goods. also argues that globalization is powered from below. also believes that globalisation needs force to back it up (lexus and the olive tree)
2.5. Critique
2.5.1. 1. what about military power? this is clearly still a state function
2.5.2. 2. erroneously regard manufacturing as outdated, and ignore the working class
2.5.3. 3. struggles against imperialism still have a big impact
2.6. EMPIRE
2.6.1. a system of sovereignty, a networked global sovereignty - NGOs, UN etc
2.6.1.1. we're disciplined by markets
2.6.2. Formal and real substitution of labour
2.6.2.1. Formal: working in factories, being disciplined
2.6.2.2. Real: people see themselves as workers who inevitably will work, see it as right
2.7. MULTITUDE - the form of agency
2.7.1. biopolitical production - the creation of value is increasingly focused on intellectual work. emotions and ideas. like on facebook. similarly to klein - brands become key
2.7.2. the multitude is not the people, but many people acting in networked concer
2.7.2.1. a common body of knowledge and ideas , built through the capitalist networks that oppress it, that serves as a platform for democratic resistance to empire
2.7.2.1.1. but they are not prescriptive. they just provide a platform
2.7.2.2. the multitude's potential emerges from its heterogenity
2.8. Sources of theory
2.8.1. 1. Marxism
2.8.2. 2. post structuralists - deleuze and foucault (especially biopower)
2.8.3. 3. republican political theory - spinoza and machiavelli
3. LETS, microcredit, monetary reform
3.1. LETS
3.1.1. a localised time based economy
3.1.1.1. 1. prevents hoarding of time dollars
3.1.1.2. 2. localises economy
3.1.1.2.1. but doesn't this only work on a small scale? it hasn't had much growth or impact on the world like wikipedia has
3.1.1.3. 3. boosts economy in a keynesian way, by pumping more money into the economy, without causing inflation
3.2. microcredit
3.3. monetary reform
4. Feminist economics
4.1. Economics is gendered b/c it ignores the bias in society as it does not recognise difference between men's wage labour and women's work in the home/farm which is invisible b/c no money
4.2. Klein: outsourcing lowers wages and conditions which means more women working. women are more in the formal economy which leads to greater exploitation
4.3. Methodology: economics claims to be positivist but actually its based on assumptions. They agree with austrian economics
4.4. Problem of essentialising: saying that there are inherently male and female characteristics and this is what makes labour how it is
4.5. Economists are blind to discrimination. They claim that women just do more part time work
4.6. critique
4.6.1. 1. there is a danger of reimporting the sexist division of labour
5. Free trade, fair trade, embedded markets
5.1. Free trade
5.1.1. Comparative advantage (Ricardo)
5.1.2. Critique
5.1.2.1. 1. monopsomy - a small group of powerful buyers push the prices down dramatically, harming producers
5.2. Fair trade
5.2.1. Fairtrade is an organisation that pays farmers above market rates for their product
5.2.1.1. 1. more ethical. gives more money to farmers
5.2.1.2. 2. promotes cooperatives
5.2.2. Criticism of programme
5.2.2.1. 1. distorts price signals
5.2.2.2. 2. disadvantages farmers not on fair trade scheme
5.2.2.2.1. overproduction of goods
5.2.2.2.2. diverts aid
5.2.2.3. 3. Not enough money reaches the third world
5.2.2.4. 4. Inefficient marketing system
5.2.3. General criticism
5.2.3.1. 1. not radical enough. remains within the capitalist framework
5.2.3.2. 2. deals exclusively with commodities. an economy that is based entirely on raw materials will not be a very healthy one
5.3. Embedded markets
6. Green localism (Lucas)
6.1. Criticisms
6.1.1. Globalization causes economic damage by not considering the environmental cost of moving things long distances. We should make production local
6.1.2. Challenges the idea of growth being good, because growth is unsustainable because there are limited resources. Growth consumes any efficiency gains made through technology
6.1.2.1. But growth boosts incomes and makes people richer, its needed to reach a certain level
6.1.2.2. Growth does not necessarily mean the consumption of finite resources. we can have growth based on improvement
6.1.3. Alternative
6.1.3.1. Localised production
6.1.3.2. Renewable decentralised community power sources
6.1.4. Against nuclear power: pro distributed renewable power
6.1.4.1. Nuclear power is too expensive
6.1.4.1.1. France has 80% nuclear power production - cheapest energy rates
6.1.4.2. Too slow to build - 14 years to build, 17.5 years to come online
6.1.4.2.1. Can switch an economy in just a couple of decades - see france
6.1.4.3. Non-renewable
6.1.4.3.1. We have enough uranium to last for a very long time. and we will become more efficient
6.1.4.4. Reliability
6.1.4.4.1. nuclear power is the most reliable. natural gas has volatile prices. sun and wind are naturally unreliable\
6.1.4.5. unsafe: see fukushima, three mile island, chernobyl
6.1.4.6. monopolistic - because of the massive amount of resources required to run it, it cannot be done locally
6.1.4.6.1. all power is. community based power schemes are not feasible for industry and manufacturing
6.1.5. Free trade
6.1.5.1. Wasteful because it doesn't consider the environment when calculating costs
6.1.5.2. Harms infant local industry not allowing it to grow
6.1.5.3. Unfair because western nations don't apply these same free trade measures to themselves - subsidies for EU farmers
6.1.5.4. Comparative advantage results in a monoculture where everyone is producing the same thing, economy is not diversified
6.1.5.4.1. Comparative advantage - each country does what they are most efficient at
6.1.5.5. Corporate power regulary transcends sovereignty - corporations are given sovereign immunity, and allows to sue local governments
7. Klein
7.1. shock doctrine - crises bring about rapid economic and social change
7.2. no logo
7.2.1. corporations outsource all their labour, so now all profits are derived from branding - we're selling culture
7.2.1.1. 1. no space
7.2.1.1.1. space in civil society is declining
7.2.1.2. 2. no choice
7.2.1.2.1. corporate power is creating monopolies that allow them to dominate the market and restrict choice
7.2.1.3. 3. no jobs
7.2.1.3.1. corporate power is allowing them to make demands of countries that degrade working conditions and the economic environment. EPZs in china and the philippines. WAGES and ENVIRONMENTAL protection are brought down
8. Marxist approaches to globalization
8.1. The problems of globalization are systemic
8.1.1. Everything marx says relies intrinsically on contradiction
8.1.1.1. Capitalism is both constructive (innovation) and destructive (creates the working class, ownership of the means of production)
8.1.1.1.1. Exploitation is necessary to create profit to invest further
8.1.1.1.2. innovative technlology is good, but also needs to be overthrown because it is oppressive
8.1.1.2. Rosa Luxembourg - for capitalism to overcome its contradictions it must always have an outside
9. Stiglitz & Soros
9.1. Stiglitz
9.1.1. Globalisation is NOT bad, but the way its been done by the IMF is overly prescriptive and follows neoliberal ideology too closely without concern for individual aspects of countries/broader social context. It confuses means (policies) with ends (prosperity). Too much faith in markets. They ignore the power of systemic change
9.1.2. Invisible hand only works where there is perfect information, which there never is, especially not in developing nations - also requires strong property rights
9.1.3. Makes countries liberalise their capital markets (allows hot money in/speculation), imposes distracting conditions, privatizing state companies, trade liberalization (no regulation or safety net), building unnecessary reserves
9.1.4. The imf can do what it wants because it has so much power to determine who does and doesn't get loans, countries can't even criticise
9.1.5. Inequality has risen b/c of these policies
9.1.6. Most successful countries in east asia used trade barriers to protect infant industries until competitive, ensured capital for job creation and took on entrepreneurial role
9.1.7. The main problem is one of pacing. The free market is good in the long run, but when done too quickly it allows corruption to dominate and doesn't allow the country to adapt because it is vulnerable to competition. Corrupt foreign influence; dutch disease
9.1.8. Double standards. US does not lower its own trade barriers, keeps protectionist policies. Didn't liberalize capital markets until late in development, 70s.
9.2. Soros
9.2.1. Reflexivity: the biases of individuals enter into market transactions, changing their views of the fundamental
9.2.1.1. 1. best observed where investor bias grows and spreads throughout the arena
9.2.1.2. 2. appears intermittently
9.2.1.3. 3. investors observation and participation in the market alters valuations and fundamentals
9.2.2. Free market system: undermines healthy competition in developing nations
9.2.2.1. Markets need government correction to prevent against the excess of self interest
10. Ecosocialism
10.1. Critique
10.1.1. Whats actually different from marxism? marxism describes a system in which one class holds the means of production and the other have to sell their labour.
10.1.2. Marxism already encompasses the sustainability of the environment when it safeguards human welfare - since the environment is necessary for welfare
10.2. Alternative: living in harmony with nature. redefines goal of socialism in ecological and democratic framework
10.2.1. Collectivization of the means of production
10.2.2. Move from quantative to qualatative economic criteria, creative non-monetary tasks are key values
10.2.3. Revolutionary transformation of social and political structures: Collective policy makig at all levels for exercise of communal freedom and responsibility, rather than reliance on market forces
10.2.3.1. 1. replace carbon fuels with renewables
10.2.3.2. 2. replacing private cars and trucks with public transport to reduce energy requirements
10.2.3.3. 3. sustainable and recyclable production of goods
10.2.3.4. 4. food: local food sovereignty, ending polluting agri-business. working to renew soil fertility
10.3. Capitalism is socially and ecologically destructive
10.3.1. Growth is bad
10.3.1.1. 1. threatens the environment because it consumes its raw materials
10.3.1.2. 2. trapped and forced to expand infinitely to sustain system
10.3.1.3. 3. firms must invest
10.3.1.4. 4. wants have to be manufactured
10.3.1.5. 5. firms have to keep expanding
10.3.1.6. 6. focused entirely on short term profiteering
10.3.2. We focus on exchange value rather than use value when producing
10.3.3. Problem of class system
11. Common pool property (Ostrum/Benkler)
11.1. Tragedy of the commons. Hardin's 1968 argument - because individuals seek to rationally maximise self interest, nobody will try to maintain the property of the future because they cannot profit from their investment. Everybody will try to get as much as possible out of the resource in the short term, making it useless for everyone in the long term. the answer to this is property rights
11.1.1. Garrett's argument is wrong because it only refers to an unmanaged commons, but all commons can be collectively regulated
11.2. Commons
11.2.1. Commons were what existed before enclosure/primitve accumulation. Land and resources held in common by all people.
11.2.2. Information commons: information is not a scarce resource, but it is often made artificially scarce
11.3. Yochai Benkler: describes commons-based peer production as alternative to capitalist production. Wikipedia is an example of this where tasks can be made modular (each task can be done in isolation and granular (each task can be done in a short amount of time
11.4. Ostrum
11.4.1. Ostrum: common property resource - a collectively managed non-excludable rivalrous resource
11.4.1.1. researched hundreds of case studies showing the effective long term management of resources without state or firm (private property)
11.4.1.1.1. not utopian. doesn't overcome everything, there will still be power structures when property is divided up
11.4.2. Relation to neoliberal theory
11.4.2.1. based on public choice theory - hayek
11.4.2.2. does not reject the market or private property - commons resources are shared private property.
11.4.2.3. shares criticism of central regulation. sees bottom up regulation as the most sensible form of economicsd
11.4.3. Critique
11.4.3.1. It can certainly work on a small scale, but can it work on a large scale?