Globalization: Competition Prompting For A Better Society

Some affects of globalization have been questioned but the most promising affect that I see is the competition that it has brought about. There was a time when once a person specialized in an area they didn’t have to worry about furthering their education or specializing within a specialty, but I a proud to say that I belong to a generation that will have to work harder than the generations before ours. In order for us to stay competitive in our careers we will have to further our education and go for regular professional developmental courses to stay up to date. There are some who are afraid of the competition that globalization brings about but I think that those people are lazy. If you are afraid of competition then go into the military that way you can work in your desired field and not have to worry about your job being outsourced. For other people who love competition choose you professions and be the best you can be by attaining higher education and taking constant professional developmental courses.

There have been professions that required constant professional developmental training like the medical professions, and you don’t hear people complaining about that but when it comes to an Accounting professional that has to deal with a new more computer based system or the fact that some one else can do the job cheaper that brings about fear. Competition is what makes economies thrive it is what builds human capital. Competition could only be a bad thing for some one who isn’t on top of their game. So for the Accounting professional that is in fear of their job being in danger, start your own online based accounting business to cut costs and expenses, get a federal job, find a way to be the best at your profession, don’t run from the competition, join it!

I know that a lot of people will disagree with what I’ve said but I am speaking in regards to the Globalization of jobs and the competition that it brings about, as history has shown competition has never been a bad thing it has only had out comes that benefited society as a whole. I you think that I am wrong please give me an economic example of a time when competition has done harm to an economy. If competition isn’t a positive affect then, why do you think people are still choosing professions that can be outsourced? I’ll answer my own question, it is because they are ready and able to take on the competition full force and it’s that type of determination that will prompt for a better society with some of the most knowledge professionals that the world has ever seen. We will have a society of people who specialize with in specialties and who are not limited by their educational majors but have endless career opportunities.

Change is Good!

"Levelling the Playing Field" as devised and put together by Thomas Friedman in his book The World is Flat, in my opinion, is a wonderful thing. It creates room for innovations and opportunities that would not have existed had these flattening forces not come together.
A family friend of our's decided to branch out his business and started 'ProgressYou.com', a website that offers math education programs to interested students. He devised a knowledge based business , the instructors , mostly Indian(placed in India) , gear up late at night to start educating students in the US (there is a 10.5 hour time lag). Due to this setup, there is an advantage to students who can afford affordable tuition rates and there is an advantage to the instructor as she gets paid for imparting knowledge in her spare time. This idea has created a lot of jobs...the instructor's, the marketer's( credited for the design of the website), the advertiser's, who gain from advertising to the student crowd, and the American based software company's, whose software is used in the process.
In this era where the only thing that seems to be constant is change , the Globalized concept of free trade makes it possible for countries and businesses to co-dwell with each other by increasing the size of the economic pie, thus making it beneficial to all in the long run.What are your views on the concept of free trade, do you think that if easy access was not possible into new ventures between countries and businesses, we would be where we are now? Today's generation is totally dependant on economies of scale through trade in the free world...am I just being overly cautious about how I need to prepare for the new world or are my thoughts there already?

Globalization: What Can We Expect?

The term globalization has become very popular in recent times. The world is becoming more and more leveled economically and technologically than ever before. As Thomas Friedman discusses in his book The World Is Flat, these changes have come about as a result of advances of the web, outsourcing, and many other factors. Globalization is good in the sense that it is making the world a tighter knit place, but not everything about it is positive. Things such as losing jobs, immigration, and violations of human rights have come about because of globalization also. It makes us wonder, is globalization, or so called “leveling the playing field”, going to have good results or a dire outcome?

As Americans, the affects of globalization can really hit close to home. Many important, well-paying jobs can now be done by people in different countries who will do the work for much cheaper. Since the Y2K incident offshore outsourcing has become increasingly popular. The internet and email have made it possible for people on separate sides of the world to communicate. Jobs like radiology and accounting are just acouple of examples of what can be done by people in other countries for a decreased cost. This raises the question, in the future will Americans, and occupants of the more developed countries, have to rethink the careers they want to pursue?

Global competition is definitely escalating as time passes. The world is becoming smaller and more leveled with each advancement of technology. It is up to us to prepare for the undeniable changes that globalization will bring. We need to figure out how to best prepare so we are not taken without notice. Is there really a way we can be totally aware of the affects globalization holds in the future, or will we be left to wait and see?

-Greta

The Democracy of Blogging

Jessica Cutler, of Washingtonienne fame, thinks blogs are “the most democratic thing ever,” and she’s right. You don’t have to have a journalism degree to publish your own blog, and you don’t have to buy a newspaper or magazine to read them. You don’t even have to have your own computer and Internet connection. Just waltz in to your local library and read the blogs that interest you. Blogging gives everyone a chance to be an author, no matter who you are or where you live.

You don’t have to be a particularly gifted author, either. The very nature of blogging allows writers to suspend the rules of composition, and to attract attention, bloggers often put good manners aside, hurl insults, make accusations, and stir up controversy. If they happen to be wrong in what they say, it’s okay. It’s tough to get a libel charge leveled against a blogger, and besides, the offended party can simply set up his or her own blog and return the insults.

Is this a model of democracy that Americans should celebrate and export around the world? Or is this merely the yammerings of an unruly mob who have exploited the freedoms that democracy should protect?

J.