I am a resident of the US, a country deeply involved in globalization. Here in the US, everything around me that I use on a daily basis is a product of international trade. There is not a single store or business that I can walk into that does not contain products made around the world. For example, this infographic shows how globalization plays into a single cup of coffee.
I will address what is the biggest issue regarding globalization in the US today, especially under the new government who’s behavior and beliefs are detrimental to globalization. In the US, as is the case in many other countries, there are some who find this globalization to be a frightening and negative phenomenon. They say that every product made in China is a job lost in the US. And they are right to some degree, there is indeed a heavy opportunity cost that results from globalization and it is different in every situation.
There are people left without a job when their company moves to a cheaper foreign location, there are environmental travesties that are wreaked upon the planet for the sake of specie, there are egregious human rights injustices against workers and those who get in the way of ‘progress’, and there are wealthy, powerful nations (such as the US) that take advantage of developing and less developed countries. However, as a student of economics, I hold a different conclusion than those who oppose globalization. …show more content…
I see the value of specialization and efficiency that globalization brings. For example, when China can make forty tons of shoes per year and the US can make sixteen tons, it makes more sense for China to be making shoes, but especially when the US can make forty tons of silverware while China can only make sixteen tons. In this example, the US can make what it is most efficient at (silverware) and China can make what it is most efficient at (shoes) and everyone benefits from the abundance. There are eighty tons of shoes and silverware available when each country makes what they are best at, while on the contrary if the US and China try to make what they are less suitable at there will be only thirty-two tons of silverware and shoes together. This is a simplified version of why specialization (and thus globalization) is so valuable. Essentially, just basic opportunity cost calculations: economics. The answer is not to end globalization, as the old saying goes, “to throw the baby out with the bathwater,” rather we should keep the benefits of globalization and find a way to heal, solve, and attend to the problems that it causes. As noted in a recent Global Business Outlook article, “isolation would cost us dearly.” (Desmet, et. al., 2016) Globalization is a tremendously powerful engine of growth, stability, and the long-term and short-term costs of abandoning it would be devastating at home and abroad. (Desmet, et. al., 2016) Though we can never create a perfect world where no person is suffering we should weigh the opportunity costs of different courses of action and choose the most advantageous one available. Economic prosperity for all should be our goal. Economic prosperity while leading to higher level problems reduces the pull of needs lower on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs such as food, housing, and safety. According to the European Commission: “Economic stability and low inflation create the necessary conditions for sustainable long-term growth,
I will address what is the biggest issue regarding globalization in the US today, especially under the new government who’s behavior and beliefs are detrimental to globalization. In the US, as is the case in many other countries, there are some who find this globalization to be a frightening and negative phenomenon. They say that every product made in China is a job lost in the US. And they are right to some degree, there is indeed a heavy opportunity cost that results from globalization and it is different in every situation.
There are people left without a job when their company moves to a cheaper foreign location, there are environmental travesties that are wreaked upon the planet for the sake of specie, there are egregious human rights injustices against workers and those who get in the way of ‘progress’, and there are wealthy, powerful nations (such as the US) that take advantage of developing and less developed countries. However, as a student of economics, I hold a different conclusion than those who oppose globalization. …show more content…
I see the value of specialization and efficiency that globalization brings. For example, when China can make forty tons of shoes per year and the US can make sixteen tons, it makes more sense for China to be making shoes, but especially when the US can make forty tons of silverware while China can only make sixteen tons. In this example, the US can make what it is most efficient at (silverware) and China can make what it is most efficient at (shoes) and everyone benefits from the abundance. There are eighty tons of shoes and silverware available when each country makes what they are best at, while on the contrary if the US and China try to make what they are less suitable at there will be only thirty-two tons of silverware and shoes together. This is a simplified version of why specialization (and thus globalization) is so valuable. Essentially, just basic opportunity cost calculations: economics. The answer is not to end globalization, as the old saying goes, “to throw the baby out with the bathwater,” rather we should keep the benefits of globalization and find a way to heal, solve, and attend to the problems that it causes. As noted in a recent Global Business Outlook article, “isolation would cost us dearly.” (Desmet, et. al., 2016) Globalization is a tremendously powerful engine of growth, stability, and the long-term and short-term costs of abandoning it would be devastating at home and abroad. (Desmet, et. al., 2016) Though we can never create a perfect world where no person is suffering we should weigh the opportunity costs of different courses of action and choose the most advantageous one available. Economic prosperity for all should be our goal. Economic prosperity while leading to higher level problems reduces the pull of needs lower on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs such as food, housing, and safety. According to the European Commission: “Economic stability and low inflation create the necessary conditions for sustainable long-term growth,