NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
... American education, to pass on knowledge in a more effective, compelling way, intensifies every year. The National Commission on Excellence in Education stressed this need in A Nation at Risk: The world is indeed one global village. We live among determined, well-educated and strongly motivated competitors. We compete with them for international standing and markets, not only with the products but also with the ideas of our laboratories and neighborhood workshops. Knowledge, learning, information and skilled intelligence are the new raw materials of international commerce and are today spreading throughout the world as vigorously as miracle drugs, synthetic fertilizers and blue jeans did earlier Learning is the indispensable investment required for success in the information age we are entering (Copeland, 1983, pp. 6 - 7).
One issue pertinent to the discussion centers on the growing economic interdependence through increased trade between states. Dale Copeland's paper entitled Economic interdependence and war: a theory of trade expectations provided an insightful discussion on this particular issue. The theory on economic interdependence as mentioned by Copeland was presented against two competing schools of thought, the liberal and realist perspectives. Liberals state that economic interdependence lessens the occurrence of conflict; realists on the other hand contend that economic interdependence heightens the probability of conflict. Copeland does a good job in looking at these two sides and seeing that these theories have their underside. He muses that the time until World War I exposed a most conspicuous flaw for liberal theology.
He wondered why the European powers were so successful in terms of trade but that did not hinder them from going to war. On the other hand, the Realists maintained that even if the war had a high interdependence, trade levels had been the focus for the previous thirty years. This meant that even if interdependence was already an important condition for the war, it was not at all enough. Copeland synthesizes the two opposing ideas by concluding that interdependence can either be peace inducing or war inducing and this would depend largely on expectations of future trade. Copeland surmised that if trade expectations are kept high it would usher in peace among countries whereas if trade expectations are restricted, dependent states are the most likely to initiate conflict because they stand to lose in terms of access to the gains of international trade. Copeland adds Even when current trade is low or non-existent, positive expectations for future trade will produce a positive expected value for trade, and therefore an incentive for continued peace.
Another source that attempts to provide an answer about this issue is the article by James Goldgeier and Michael Mcfaul entitled A Tale of Two Worlds: Core and Periphery in the Post Cold War Era. This authors talks about the imminent prospect of states as they interrelate and articulate their interest in the international stage. The article focuses on the viability of multi polar and bipolar international system. The authors note that arguments based on the stability of a bipolar or multi polar system are ambiguous because greater attention should be given to the factor of democracy, economic interdependence and technology as variables to be considered in mitigating future conflicts or promoting long term peace among states.
The authors describe the international system as divided into two worlds the core and the periphery. They said that In the core states, the growth of shared norms concerning democracy and markets will not only make balance-of-power politics among the great powers a thing of the past but will also make nuclear weapons less important for maintaining stability than they were during the cold war. In the peripheral states, however, the absence of absolute deterrents to war as well as an absence of shared norms about democracy and markets will make old-style balance-of-power politics the norm. The effects of globalization on production are explored in Stephen Brooks The Globalization of Production and the Changing Benefits of Conquest. Brooks argues, that Global production issues can no longer be ignored. Internationalized production by multinational corporations now surpasses international trade as the most integrating force in the international economy.
Brooks adds that majority of international trade in todays global economy is actually a direct result of the globalization of production and the very nature and level of trade flows are increasingly the consequence of the locational decisions of global firms. Brooks delves into the conditions which can draw out meaningful economic rewards. He surmises that many experts have focused on how the level of popular resistance in the poor country is a big factor in getting the benefits of those conquests. He examines the different factors and changes in global production and comes to the conclusion that the benefits of the conquests are no longer measurably advantageous in these economically advanced countries. Economic arrangements play a dual role in the promotion of a free society. On the one hand, there is freedom in these arrangements which are a component of freedom that is understood so that economic freedom is an end in itself.
On the other hand, economic freedom is also an indispensable means in attaining political freedom (Boswell & Chase). Marx's mentioned that with the rise of international corporatism, there is a close relation to his ideas about the final phases of capitalism such that it is hard to deny his continuing relevance. (Tucker). Meanwhile Woods mentioned that In most accounts of capitalism and its origin, there really is no origin. Capitalism seems always to be there, somewhere, and it only needs to be released from its chains for instance, from the fetters of feudalism to be allowed to grow and mature. Meanwhile, Bowell & Chase-Dunn contends that it will be up to the alternative and social democratic forces in Europe to qualitatively and quantitatively shape the chance for a transformation of the world system. (Bowell & Chase-Dunn). In looking at these works, we can find that the unifying force for the third world has been absolute poverty.
To break its grip, these countries have sought to internationalize and modernize their economies. The common commitment to economic progress has wielded these diverse cultures and political systems into a global coalition to facilitate mutual assistance activities and to form a common front vis-a-vis the first and the second world nations. The growing contact with other richer nations has helped to point also to what the third world now accepts as the only answer to this problem, industrial development, with all that entails capital investment, education, technology transfer and sociological modernization. The faith in industrialization is so deep-rooted and profound that it is often looked upon not only as the basic economic objective but also as a political ideology.
The urge to industrialize, to grow in economic strength and political stature is the force that unites the underdeveloped world and propels it to mobilize its energies on a global scale. Yet, capitalism has left some countries who are poor and who are unable to compete in free markets as losers. Third world countries most notably, have neither the resources nor the technology and skills to compete with the West. For poor countries in Asia and Africa free trade and capitalism is a double-edged sword that means prosperity to some but starvation and loss of livelihood to for themselves. They trade cheap raw materials for expensive technology for example, become sidelined and impoverished because they are unable to compete with the cheaper prices or better quality of competing products from other countries. While capitalism has led to prosperity for the many, it has left its weakest and the poorest members with no safety nets.
The gaps between rich and poor have not narrowed because of capitalism, but have grown bigger in some cases. Soup kitchens and shelters serve as shadows to towering skyscrapers, high incomes, and comfortable and lavish lifestyles. The three articles chosen to delve more on this issue provide vital links into what the real essence of capitalism should be. One unifying element in all three articles is the implication that because capitalism in its pure form will not solve the problem of the weakest, the solution is free trade that is mindful of and provides for those who are unable to ride the profit wave. The pursuit of profit must be tempered by a concern for the have-nots. Focus must shift from maximizing profit at the expense of those who are unable to compete, to a focus on win-win trade arrangements that will give poorer trading nations a fair share of the worlds wealth.
These authors maintain that free trade and capitalism still has allowed the other countries of the West to achieve high standards of living for its citizens. In much of the world, there is no arguing that capitalism has clearly won the day because of its ability to bring peace and lasting prosperity to those who embrace it. REFERENCES Apple, M. (1979). Ideology and Curriculum. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 13. Blackstone, W. 1975.
Reverse Discrimination and Compensatory Justice. Black-White Achievement Gap. Class and Schools. Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web Boswell, Terry and Chase Dunn, Christopher. The spiral of capitalism and socialism: Toward global democracy Brooks, Stephen.
The Globalization of Production and the Changing Benefits of Conquest web Copeland, Dale. Economic Interdependence and War: A Theory of Trade Expectations International Security (Spring 1996) Vol. 20, no. 4 (Spring 1996) Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web Freedman, Milton. Capitalism and freedom by Freedman, Milton Goldgeier, James and Michael Mcfaul. A Tale of Two Worlds: Core and Periphery in the Post Cold War Era. Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web Harvey, Larry. Social Capitalism and the Giving of Gifts. < web >.
ONeill, Dennis. Economic Systems: An Introduction to Systems of Distribution and Exchange. Palomar College Behavioral Sciences Department. Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: < web >. Meiksins, Ellen The origin of capitalism by Wood. Ellen National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983.
A Nation at Risk. Washington, DC. U. S. Government Printing Office, 13. New Zealand Economics/Interpretations of Economic History/Monetarism- Neoliberalism.
Wikibooks. Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web Roberts, Peter and Peters, Michael. Information Technologies and Tertiary Education in New Zealand. Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web issues / issue 3 12 /roberts/ Ross, J. Do Some Students Benefit More than Others? Mathematics Reform Retrieved March 27, 2008 at: web Rothstein, R. (May 2004).
Using Social, Economic and Educational Reform to Close the Tucker, Robert C. The Marx-Engels reader by Wood, Ellen. The origin of capitalism by Wood. Ellen Meiksins
Free research essays on topics related to: cold war era, raw materials, post cold war, multi polar, economic freedom
Research essay sample on Cold War Era Post Cold War
