Globalization, What Your Textbooks Don’t Tell You

If you’ve ever taken a business class, you’ve probably studied globalization and how terrific it is for the world to become linked internationally through commerce. You probably also had two bullet points, if that, about what it does to developing nations. Your book then proceeded to talk about the great globalization, leaving the cries for help from those developing countries limited to those two bullet points:

- Globalization exploits workers in developing nations.

-Globalization lowers wages in developing nations.

I believe firmly in the benefits that come with the unification of the world, but at the same time I am appalled at how so many nations seem to be getting squashed by the movement. What if American business textbooks gave an entire chapter to developing nations to talk about what globalization has done to them?  Business would stop.

If I gave you every example of how globalization has destroyed some developing nations, it would be an insufferable, and probably annoying, rant. Here’s one situation explained, and a few others that I might expand upon later. Take my word for it, every story is the same.

Jamaica, the happy-go-lucky nation of free love and reggae. If you’ve ever left the tourist area of other richvacationing folk, the images you saw are probably still in your head. Do you remember the empty and out of commission school buildings, dilapidated and in the middle of nowhere? Do you remember the horrendous infrastructure? Did you see any hospitals? Probably not. The nation is in a shit hole of a condition.

American market influence expanding internationally to Jamaica has created major problems for the nation. Jamaica’s main export would be agricultural products, their comparative advantage. Unfortunately, the United States have stuck their farming produce in the Jamaican marketplace; now, if you want to buy a potato in Jamaica, you would actually save money buying the potato exported from America. The money goes back to the glorious U S of A and Jamaican farming, the industry that is supposed to be their specialty, continues to decline.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iz7PbU1_O9M —-Iraq was supposed to be helped by global trade, too. This commercial might actually make you laugh. 

Other examples of victims in the globalizing movement are Sierra Leone, Guinea, Cuba, Somalia, Honduraus, the Middle East, and so many more. Pick up some books and read about what’s happening to the countries that are ignored in this great age of globalization.

My big point here is this: Globalization is only good for some nations. For others, it means destruction. Unfortunately, those nations are hardly exposed by our business textbooks, who are obviously biased as pro-business writers.

Rant, over.

“My dog was killed…to remind me to keep quiet.”

I find that the real reason problems go unnoticed is simply because people choose not to notice them. This could be either a reaction of denial or laziness. Sex trafficking is a good example; the act itself ruins lives of innocent girls and our society should have no place for it. Why does it happen? Why is COLUMBUS OHIO a major site for kidnapping and sex slavery? It’s our state capitol! The state capitol can’t control sex slavery? My explanation: not enough people are aware of it, so it smoothly goes under the radar (laziness, the problem is happening right under our noses). Here’s a summary of it to get you filled in, maybe even involved in the anti-trafficking movement.

A girl is out walking her dog and gets kidnapped at the age of 15 by older, physically empowering men. The men kill her dog right in front of her so she understands they mean business. She is bound and held at gunpoint. She is beaten repeatedly as the men take turns raping her. One ruthlessly violates her while the other takes pictures. When the act(s) is (are) over the rapists threaten to send the pictures to the girl’s parents if she does not “earn them back.”  She finds herself thrown into an underground network of men who ship her from city to city where the same brutal sex is forced upon her in hotels. Her “manager” makes a hefty profit from this. All of this happens under the radar as the girl disappears from society.

Another girl is kidnapped and injected with heroin. If you don’t know anything about the drug, it is like your best sexual orgasm (times 10) that lasts for HOURS. Rather you want to try the drug or not, if your body is exposed to that kind of pleasure it will become dependant. In other words, an innocent 15 year old girl can become a heroin addict with one injection. Imagine going through that kind of pleasure once and coming completely dependant on it. What would you do to have it again? Sleep with someone? Repeatedly? For years?

Another account: A 14 year old girl living in India falls in love with a handsome, 19 year old American boy. The American promises to take her back to the United States, where she has always wanted to visit. He introduces her to a man from Toledo, Ohio who promises to arrange for her transport, lodging, and new life in America. Upon her arrival, she is beaten and forced into prostitution at a chain of truck stops across Indiana.

There are disturbing yet effective techniques of kidnappers to rob a child from her parents and keep her as a sex slave until he gets caught. Some are so effective that the girl will actually become ATTACHED to the person that kidnapped her. There are plenty of accounts of this happening for support. Leave a comment if you want me to send them your way.

The most popular victims have historically been the defenseless members of our community: Immigrants, who are vulnerable to begin with, that do not speak English have no means of communicating their situation effectively; Small children who are too physically or emotionally weak are also easy targets to snatch away on vacation, in a location where no one will notice them missing.

Now, hopefully you’re a little bit disturbed (It may also interest you to know that the above tales are actual accounts of child abduction from 10TV). The next step is to realize that this is happening in COLUMBUS OHIO, our homestate capitol as well as Toledo, another popular hometown. THIS HAPPENS! As of 2008, there were NO human trafficking laws in the state of Ohio, making it a likely site for the crime to go unnoticed and therefore a likely site for the crime itself. As of 2009, not one professional I contacted (including police officers) know if there is a state law involving human trafficking. After extensive search, I found the distrubing truth that THERE IS NO STATE LAW IN OHIO THAT ADDRESSES HUMAN TRAFFICKING. Currently, 40 states have such mandates. The problem is vastly ignored in the state of Ohio. The only preventative measures I, your Joe Citizen, have seen is a 8.5×11 computer paper with the signs of kidnapping on it at the BMV.

If you’ve read this article, I hope to have your awareness now. Stop Human Trafficking.

Watch this if you’re interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr4xnWa1R2M Caution: NOT for the faint of heart.

Politics, at Miami?

Hey guys and girls, Andy here. I’m a student at the Miami University of Ohio. Some of your curiosities may have been sparked by the promotion in the Miami Student, while others might not even go to Miami of Ohio.

If you do know anything about the school, you must surely be familiar with the concept of the Miami Bubble, which essentially entails a nearly homogeneous community of wealthy, white college students who tend to be sheltered from political ideologies. I am not saying that everyone is like this, but I will stand behind the claim that many students are not politically informed (which is fine, everyone is entitled to their opinion); honest to (insert your deity here), a girl’s pick-up line to me at a party once was “So, what do you think of, like, politics and stuff?”

Like, politics and stuff? How about an informed, intelligent, and well-thought out opinion?

I do realize many of us are content with being young college students living the care-free life outside of the political loop. However, I also realize that there are many of you out there that do stay up to date with current affairs, some of you might even have an opinion of your own, others might want to share and discuss.

My main areas of focus will be, in short, things that do not sit well with me in today’s policy, rather written or unwritten. I also have an interest in world affairs. This blog will bring you MY opinion but also an invitation to publish your own on the matter at hand through leaving a comment. I’ll be writing things about health care, current warfare, Africa (the OOPS! of globalization), and whatever else might be an interesting buzz out there.

All comments that have their facts straight and are respectful in nature will be displayed on this blog. Hopefully some good discussion can happen!

Andy, out.

PS, take this poll. Leave a comment if you’d like.