DONE!.. :(
ohh. crap.. between the mosquitos and the looming deadline (yeh... it was fucking LOOMING.. I know what that word MEANS now..) I came up with utter crap,,
well... I'm hoping they had extended the deadline because they hadn't got enough participants... so.. well.. I hope they accept crap..
well.. here it is...
The Winds of Change.
The Inevitability Of Globalization.
In the west lied a nation. A great nation. For over a 100 years it had dominated the world. Its economy was the engine that drove the world’s markets. Its culture aped by hundreds of other nations. Its movie stars and little Pop-princesses were idolized by children all around the world. No other country matched its military strength, or its political influence. The United Federation of States was the most powerful nation on the planet.
Life in the UFS was perfect. The Government took care of its people and had a great social security system in place. Organizations paid their employees well, so that they lived comfortably and lacked very little. Laws ensured that people were treated fairly when they worked. Their workplaces were safe and comfortable. The people of the UFS were envied by the world. The people were happy, the companies were happy and the Government was happy and everything seemed fine.
Unnoticed, the winds of change began to blow. They blew through the UF of S. They blew through the west, across the oceans, to the east.
Half-way across the world laid two nations. Ancient were the lands of Tigeres and Drago. But they were poor, and overpopulated. No one paid them any mind. Their economies were overburdened and badly managed. Like large animals they lay, almost dormant. But they did not sleep. Slowly and quietly they began shedding their old draconian policies like a snake sheds its skin. They had tried to protect themselves from the world, but that had been disastrous. The time for hiding was over. Slowly at first, then more aggressively they began liberalizing their economies. Their gates began opening to the world.
They turned their weaknesses into their strengths. Their large populations and lower standard of living allowed them to provide cheap labour, both skilled and unskilled. Their laws were not as rigid as the western nations, and neither were their safety standards. That meant very little expenditure on employee welfare for companies. All these they used, to woo companies from around the world. And the companies came happily. After all, profit is a company’s only true motive.
At first, the UF of S was pleased by these developments. Opening of economies meant new markets for its products and more money for its companies. It even went so far as to encourage the liberalization of these countries.
In hindsight, they should have seen it coming.
At first nobody noticed. But things had started to go wrong. Some of its largest organizations were quietly getting rid of chunks of their workforce. Slowly but surely, they were closing down many of their departments. Services which employed hundreds of thousands of people were being outsourced. Soft-products like IT began moving to cheaper, more ‘lax’ countries in droves. Labour intensive industries such as manufacturing also began to move. Here they could double the work-hours and halve the pay. Safety standards were much more relaxed, and taxes took a lot less off their profits. Corruption was rife, and a little bribing went a long way.
The rising unemployment set off alarms. People protested in the streets. They blamed the companies for putting profit before their nation. The People demanded that something be done by the Government to put an end to this. The government valiantly tried to introduce new legislature to discourage companies from shifting base. But it was too little to late.
To compete with those companies that had moved to cheaper nations, companies in the UF of S had to bring down costs. This they did by reducing salaries. Now, not only did the UF of S have to face an employment crisis, but its people couldn’t afford their lifestyles any longer. Their debt began to rise, adding to an already debt-ridden economy.
Meanwhile the people of Tigeres and Drago were celebrating. For decades their economies suffered from rigid economical policies. Competition was discouraged and inefficient industries were protected. Employment opportunities were few, and exploitation was a way of life. Employee rights were almost unheard off. They did have trade-unions, but those often did more harm than good.
The opening up of their economies increased employment opportunities ten-fold. Now they had better jobs, better products and better pay-packages. The way they lived their lives improved.
However, not everyone was happy. Small businesses that had flourished under the protectionist policies were delivered a hard blow. The Large Foreign Companies had begun to flood the market with massive advertising campaigns and huge distribution networks. They were being crushed
But that was not all. The government, in its zeal for improving the nation’s infrastructure had privatized many sectors. Many people considered this hasty and badly planned. The companies now in charge of the nation’s infrastructural services were very efficient. However, like any good company, they were driven by profits. Electricity and phone costs began to rise. Bills for these basic services increased. Farmers and small businesses began to come under pressure. The increasing costs and global competition made life very difficult.
This scenario is perhaps an exaggerated view of what is currently happening in the world today. The problems however are the same. There are some nations which have to attract companies back to them. On the other hand, there are those which have to deal with the problems of rapid capitalism.
After considerable thought, I have realized that there is no clear solution. What has happened was inevitable. Companies will always seek opportunities to increase profits. They only way for countries to attract companies in the long run, is to lower the overall standard of living. This means reducing safety standards, welfare and other employee benefits. Social security policies might have to be changed. Tax benefits are also attractive. Most nations will find such changes regressive, but hard times require hard measures. When competing on the Global playing field, the nation with the lowest costs wins. Patriotism is becoming less and less important as globalization blurs borders. The sad truth is that ‘Money’ always wins.
As for the developing nations like Tigeres and Drago, rapid capitalism can prove disastrous. Pprivatizing infrastructure leads to a loss of government control over a nation’s infrastructure. This transfers too much power to the companies responsible. For example: In India, post-liberalization of the economy, many Public Sector Undertakings(PSUs), mainly those responsible for providing power, fuel and telecommunications have been privatized. In the process some companies have taken over more than one type of infrastructural service. This seems to have created an unhealthy concentration of power, both politically and economically.
Services such as these are the lifeblood of a nation, and while companies may be more efficient in providing these services, they are driven by profit and not welfare. This can pose a threat to the weaker sections of society, which were so far protected by the Government.
Instead of complete privatization, part ownership by the government might be a good idea. This would ensure that the companies don’t forget the welfare aspect. It would also give the government some control, but not enough to let politics interfere.
Another problem occurs when large globally operating organizations directly compete with smaller local organizations. These small companies have only a fraction of the capital that the large global companies have. However, any protectionist measures by the Government would be a step backwards. Small incentives like lower interest rates might be given. Some amount of taxation of the larger companies might help the smaller ones compete. Care must be taken however to ensure that the competition is fair, and that neither side has an unfair advantage.
At the end however, one must keep in mind that all this is an inevitable result of globalization. And globalization is not a new phenomenon. It began when the first man traded with his neighbor. Slowly, our countries borders will begin to mean even less. Our economies will be even more dependent on each other, and will soon be as one. Hopefully so shall we.
well... I'm hoping they had extended the deadline because they hadn't got enough participants... so.. well.. I hope they accept crap..
well.. here it is...
The Winds of Change.
The Inevitability Of Globalization.
In the west lied a nation. A great nation. For over a 100 years it had dominated the world. Its economy was the engine that drove the world’s markets. Its culture aped by hundreds of other nations. Its movie stars and little Pop-princesses were idolized by children all around the world. No other country matched its military strength, or its political influence. The United Federation of States was the most powerful nation on the planet.
Life in the UFS was perfect. The Government took care of its people and had a great social security system in place. Organizations paid their employees well, so that they lived comfortably and lacked very little. Laws ensured that people were treated fairly when they worked. Their workplaces were safe and comfortable. The people of the UFS were envied by the world. The people were happy, the companies were happy and the Government was happy and everything seemed fine.
Unnoticed, the winds of change began to blow. They blew through the UF of S. They blew through the west, across the oceans, to the east.
Half-way across the world laid two nations. Ancient were the lands of Tigeres and Drago. But they were poor, and overpopulated. No one paid them any mind. Their economies were overburdened and badly managed. Like large animals they lay, almost dormant. But they did not sleep. Slowly and quietly they began shedding their old draconian policies like a snake sheds its skin. They had tried to protect themselves from the world, but that had been disastrous. The time for hiding was over. Slowly at first, then more aggressively they began liberalizing their economies. Their gates began opening to the world.
They turned their weaknesses into their strengths. Their large populations and lower standard of living allowed them to provide cheap labour, both skilled and unskilled. Their laws were not as rigid as the western nations, and neither were their safety standards. That meant very little expenditure on employee welfare for companies. All these they used, to woo companies from around the world. And the companies came happily. After all, profit is a company’s only true motive.
At first, the UF of S was pleased by these developments. Opening of economies meant new markets for its products and more money for its companies. It even went so far as to encourage the liberalization of these countries.
In hindsight, they should have seen it coming.
At first nobody noticed. But things had started to go wrong. Some of its largest organizations were quietly getting rid of chunks of their workforce. Slowly but surely, they were closing down many of their departments. Services which employed hundreds of thousands of people were being outsourced. Soft-products like IT began moving to cheaper, more ‘lax’ countries in droves. Labour intensive industries such as manufacturing also began to move. Here they could double the work-hours and halve the pay. Safety standards were much more relaxed, and taxes took a lot less off their profits. Corruption was rife, and a little bribing went a long way.
The rising unemployment set off alarms. People protested in the streets. They blamed the companies for putting profit before their nation. The People demanded that something be done by the Government to put an end to this. The government valiantly tried to introduce new legislature to discourage companies from shifting base. But it was too little to late.
To compete with those companies that had moved to cheaper nations, companies in the UF of S had to bring down costs. This they did by reducing salaries. Now, not only did the UF of S have to face an employment crisis, but its people couldn’t afford their lifestyles any longer. Their debt began to rise, adding to an already debt-ridden economy.
Meanwhile the people of Tigeres and Drago were celebrating. For decades their economies suffered from rigid economical policies. Competition was discouraged and inefficient industries were protected. Employment opportunities were few, and exploitation was a way of life. Employee rights were almost unheard off. They did have trade-unions, but those often did more harm than good.
The opening up of their economies increased employment opportunities ten-fold. Now they had better jobs, better products and better pay-packages. The way they lived their lives improved.
However, not everyone was happy. Small businesses that had flourished under the protectionist policies were delivered a hard blow. The Large Foreign Companies had begun to flood the market with massive advertising campaigns and huge distribution networks. They were being crushed
But that was not all. The government, in its zeal for improving the nation’s infrastructure had privatized many sectors. Many people considered this hasty and badly planned. The companies now in charge of the nation’s infrastructural services were very efficient. However, like any good company, they were driven by profits. Electricity and phone costs began to rise. Bills for these basic services increased. Farmers and small businesses began to come under pressure. The increasing costs and global competition made life very difficult.
This scenario is perhaps an exaggerated view of what is currently happening in the world today. The problems however are the same. There are some nations which have to attract companies back to them. On the other hand, there are those which have to deal with the problems of rapid capitalism.
After considerable thought, I have realized that there is no clear solution. What has happened was inevitable. Companies will always seek opportunities to increase profits. They only way for countries to attract companies in the long run, is to lower the overall standard of living. This means reducing safety standards, welfare and other employee benefits. Social security policies might have to be changed. Tax benefits are also attractive. Most nations will find such changes regressive, but hard times require hard measures. When competing on the Global playing field, the nation with the lowest costs wins. Patriotism is becoming less and less important as globalization blurs borders. The sad truth is that ‘Money’ always wins.
As for the developing nations like Tigeres and Drago, rapid capitalism can prove disastrous. Pprivatizing infrastructure leads to a loss of government control over a nation’s infrastructure. This transfers too much power to the companies responsible. For example: In India, post-liberalization of the economy, many Public Sector Undertakings(PSUs), mainly those responsible for providing power, fuel and telecommunications have been privatized. In the process some companies have taken over more than one type of infrastructural service. This seems to have created an unhealthy concentration of power, both politically and economically.
Services such as these are the lifeblood of a nation, and while companies may be more efficient in providing these services, they are driven by profit and not welfare. This can pose a threat to the weaker sections of society, which were so far protected by the Government.
Instead of complete privatization, part ownership by the government might be a good idea. This would ensure that the companies don’t forget the welfare aspect. It would also give the government some control, but not enough to let politics interfere.
Another problem occurs when large globally operating organizations directly compete with smaller local organizations. These small companies have only a fraction of the capital that the large global companies have. However, any protectionist measures by the Government would be a step backwards. Small incentives like lower interest rates might be given. Some amount of taxation of the larger companies might help the smaller ones compete. Care must be taken however to ensure that the competition is fair, and that neither side has an unfair advantage.
At the end however, one must keep in mind that all this is an inevitable result of globalization. And globalization is not a new phenomenon. It began when the first man traded with his neighbor. Slowly, our countries borders will begin to mean even less. Our economies will be even more dependent on each other, and will soon be as one. Hopefully so shall we.
posted by Corny name @ 2:21 AM
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