Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Discuss two consequences of globalization for the United States. How does the use of technology relate to poverty on a global scale?

One consequence of globalization is expanding international markets for the products of a specific country. This can include 1) making the complete products in the sending country or 2) exporting the technology and having the products made in the receiving country. For the United States, this is often nick-named "Coca-colonialism."
Another consequence for a large, highly-developed country like the United States is mimicry. The plus-side of making distinctive, expensive products like iPhones is the high demand they stimulate overseas. The downside is that they are not too difficult to copy. The fakes made overseas cut into the original companies' sales and profits.
Globalization can exacerbate poverty in the receiving country in several ways. The employees who travel to the receiving country and company elites enjoy a much higher standard of living. Even relatively low-level workers at these multinational companies earn much higher wages than most. These inflated wages push up the cost of living, which adversely affects the vast majority who do not work for those companies.
Technology plays a huge role in widening the gap. The problem is not just that high-tech products are aggressively marketed; these technologies become increasingly necessary to success in business and education. The widening gap between those who have access to updated technology and those who do not tends to disproportionately impact those who are already disadvantaged and to expand the chasm as new products keep coming out.
https://books.google.com/books/about/Globalization_and_Its_Discontents.html?id=geN6MUthHdkC&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button

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