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End of Globalization?

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  1. #1

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    Question End of Globalization?

    Will globalization pass the stress test of COVID-19? Will it strengthen nationalist forces that have long called for reinforced borders? The Agenda examines globalization in a post-pandemic world with Daniel Drezner, professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University; Janice Stein, Belzberg Professor of Conflict Management in the Department of Political Science at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto; and Sean Speer, public policy professor at the Munk School.



    What do you think the fallout of this crisis will be? From corporate, national, and individual standpoints?

    Will supply chains drastically or gradually shift to other countries and/or will we see a push towards to a "made in [our country]" trend?

    Will governments sure up vital elements of the supply of 'essential' goods and try to eliminate the production gaps we're seeing now?

    Will all this isolation change the minds of consumers who are desperate to line up for the latest iPhone and help some to see the error of our contemporary disposable techno-culture?

    Will people remember the value those working tirelessly in 'menial' (now essential) jobs are providing and recognize other 'white collar' jobs that we could really do without?

    Will we see changes in how and where we travel?

  2. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cornmeal:



    What do you think the fallout of this crisis will be? From corporate, national, and individual standpoints?

    Will supply chains drastically or gradually shift to other countries and/or will we see a push towards to a "made in [our country]" trend?

    Will governments sure up vital elements of the supply of 'essential' goods and try to eliminate the production gaps we're seeing now?

    Will all this isolation change the minds of consumers who are desperate to line up for the latest iPhone and help some to see the error of our contemporary disposable techno-culture?

    Will people remember the value those working tirelessly in 'menial' (now essential) jobs are providing and recognize other 'white collar' jobs that we could really do without?

    Will we see changes in how and where we travel?
    One thing is to not buy politicians' empty promise about those jobs all coming back and you can now enjoy the good old days. Bald faced lies. Supply chain will be reorganized but jobs won't go back to America. Trump always love to say to bring jobs from China back to US of A, but sorry, that won't happen. It will just go elsewhere but not the US. All a matter of production cost. The hourly wage of the average US worker is still too high to make many consumer goods. Reality I am afraid is quite different to fantasies promised by populist politicians.

  3. #3

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    Whatever happens, pretty sure I will be paying more in taxes...

    Cornmeal, hongkong7 and Jackie1 like this.

  4. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by Coolboy:
    One thing is to not buy politicians' empty promise about those jobs all coming back and you can now enjoy the good old days. Bald faced lies. Supply chain will be reorganized but jobs won't go back to America. Trump always love to say to bring jobs from China back to US of A, but sorry, that won't happen. It will just go elsewhere but not the US. All a matter of production cost. The hourly wage of the average US worker is still too high to make many consumer goods. Reality I am afraid is quite different to fantasies promised by populist politicians.
    I'm not really talking about this type of political rhetoric being realized but what actually might happen. I remember (vaguely) that the amount the consumer saves on an iPhone via overseas production was only 15-20%.

    There are currently lots of examples of local businesses back home retooling their production lines to help fight the virus like distillers making sanitizer and 3-D printing technology being used for face shields and valves etc.

    I think it increases awareness, and appreciation, of homegrown entrepreneurs who actually make things and while it won't bring monumental changes it could be the start of trends that may, in time, develop into issues that influence politics and bring about further change later on.
    hongkong7, Jackie1 and JAherbert like this.

  5. #5

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    Quote Originally Posted by MABinPengChau:
    Whatever happens, pretty sure I will be paying more in taxes...
    And for airline tickets with even poorer service (if one can imagine such a decline possible).

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  8. #8

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    I don't think this should end globalisation - except where globalisation means buy all the things from one country that has developed a knack for producing cheap crap. I think it should change what is meant by business without borders.

    The outcome I would like to see is an end to the rampant capitalist programme of wealth accumulation for the few at the expense of the many. Instead of dragging down our own poor to the level of the poor in developing economies, countries should reverse the tide to raising those below the poverty line up in both their own and developing nations. The inequality of wealth holdings is helping to fuel this pandemic, and it is likely that, unless governments develop the moral backbone required to change, it is the poor who will pay for it in both lives lost and reduced income when it is over.

    I hope it means an end to the charity of the billionaires when they feel like being generous, and the start of taxation regimes that require them to participate in society not at their whim, but at a time and rate that democratic societies demand.


  9. #9

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    not just globalization manufacturers have been adopting Just In Time, etc. to avoid local inventory costs, but when the transport systems freeze, so does production. If companies are sourcing parts from overseas and that country is locked down, that part of the business is halted, and in the US I read that the Liberty Mutual Insurance business interruption policy excludes interruption caused by bacteria or viruses

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  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by kimwy66:
    I don't think this should end globalisation - except where globalisation means buy all the things from one country that has developed a knack for producing cheap crap.
    not only cheap crap, there are big international firms buy shirts and hi-end clothing made by very low paid workers outside China, including India, Bangladesh, some in appalling conditions. companies to ensure huge profits to satisfy shareholders demand for ever-increasing profits.

    Then you have countries that use metrics demanding continuous GDP growth that ignore the environmental cost that their people suffer to maintain that expectation for continuous growth.
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