Article posted june 2007:

"The Silent Take Over" By Noreena Hertz

Here are some arguments wich Noreena Hertz uses in her book. The book is about Globalization and the take over by companies ruling the world.

Summery of chapter 2 ‘Living in a Material world’

Boogie Woogie in Bhutan

In the kingdom of Bhutan there is Gross National Happiness more important than Gross National Product. The western Global capitalism is almost reaching the kingdom of Bhutan. It is undertaking a modernisation with caution. They seek to preserve their culture, traditions, value systems and institutions. How soon will before the forces of western globalisation and free market capitalism are entrenched?

The state in control

If the economy has no natural tendency anymore to create full employment, governments must intervene to provide them. Therefore governments should spend money and invest in for example new roads or other high employment productions. Government spending is the key for unemployment.

Rethinking the state

This Keynesianism way of economic had to change after the oil crisis. There had to come a new style of management of the economy. Fiscal restraint and control of the money supply. To cut the public spending had to stimulate the economy. This abandoned the Keynesianism.

The rise of the New Right

Economics believed that the free market was capable of allocating

goods and services more effectively than the state could. Government who control these markets does not good to the free market. The English Woman Magret Thatcher adopted monetarism emphasising tight control of the money supply. The administration of the American Ronald Reagan emphasised that tax cuts gave a great incentive to production. The New Right felt that the government should be a framework within which people and communities could pursue their various goals to positively guarantee general welfare.  Steps were taken to create an economic culture that rewarded enterprise and innovation. Also it was said that if public service industries are turned over to the private sector they will be run more efficiently and provide more jobs for people who will then start disappearing off the welfare rolls. Finally free enterprise was seen as the key to economic success and the task of government was now to create a framework in which individuals and groups can successfully pursue their respective ends.

Exporting capitalism

The New Right went over from America and England to other countries. Governments in countries also privatised public companies.

The end of the Cold War

After the Cold War Communism countries came into crisis’s. In China for example the countries Leaders realized that China was being left behind by the rest of capitalism Asia and began to feel that it was backwardness to poverty.

Trade not aid

Communist countries had seen that capital countries had entered into licensing agreements and joint ventures to technology companies of foreign corporations and investors with notable success. Governments who were before scared to join the race of global capitalism had became a worldwide race for export oriented growth. Aid to friendly countries developed to buy allegiance and compliance.

Ideological consensus

Countries made up agreements for more fairness, but they realized there was a significantly difference in cultures, level of developments and very different needs. In crisis’s governments lowered the taxes, but for example who is paying than the National Health Service. To adopt a liberal policy you should reform welfare and privatisation. Free market capitalism is just an ideology.

One world

The world has been shrinking. For example: The cost of a three minute telephone call between New York and London has fallen from 300 dollar in 1930 to 45 cents nowadays. Corporation’s increased in mobility of international capital which allows them to raise money in offshore locations and move it across exchanges. They locate their production all over the world wherever seem most advantaged. They are investing all over the globe.

I want to be a millionaire

By dreams made on TV screen we all think today that wealth is within reach of all of us. It all looks great. At first glance that is. But as they say, there is no such thing as a free lunch, so what is the price we will have to pay to global capitalism?

Summery of chapter 11 ‘Reclaim the State’

The rise of protest
A new political movement is beginning to emerge. Rooted in protest and not bounded by boundaries. They share same culture and history. We talking here about grassroots movements, campaigning corporations and individuals. These protesters believe that taking the chance that what is good for business, live and environment is good for us and our communities. They have concerns which you will hear on the street, internet and in the shopping malls. These are the places where they can be heard.  They will not trust either government or business except in terms of responsiveness and results. They attack businesses and governments and often with positive effect. The last couple of years these groups are really growing. Individual are getting together and even differed groups with not shared goals are getting to getter. Protest is becoming institutionalised as an acceptable form of expression. Nowadays with the internet it is easy for this group to get to gather on one place the same time, date. If people continue to feel alienated to protest to government or corporations the voice of protest will only grow louder and we will continue to see a shift from the politics of acceptance towards that of dissent.

Protest as the catalyst for change
Protests are emerging as the only way for other voices to be heard. For example we see the president of the U.S who is making decisions on his own, so we see no alternative but to take issues into our own hands. Can protest change politics in the same way as it is beginning to change the corporate agenda?
Can protest serve to reinvent the state?

Power to the people
A combination between the protester and the media is a skilful and an irresistible momentum for progressive protest.

Wither the Takeover?
The silent takeover by global capitalism will end in a collapsing ideology, which fall into cycles of protest, repressions and despair.

The new agenda
Can politics make globalisation working for all and not just a few? Noreena Hertz does believe in it if. For example: Politics prove they are working for the public and not for their own. Politics must be reframed to a global capital too. Noreena made six steps to be taken for a better globalization. A better world is possible; a world of greater equity, justice, and true democracy, but people will always continue to rise up against globalisation. 

Critical opinions

Chapter two
Chapter two is about Globalization all over the world. I believe if a country stay’s with their own culture and own way of living they can put the world development on globalization aside of it. A free market with open boundaries is good way fore fair trade. The government still need a hand in it to care about the freedom of human people. I mean, with that they should give for example the people the right to lent a book in a library.
Like it is told in the book a free market with a framework from the government.

Chapter eleven
Everybody has the right to speak up. The last 50 years the number of protest groups has risen. I think it is the good thing of democracy. There is only one thing Noreena didn’t tell; It is because of the protesters we think more wide about things? Because protester are not thinking with the government like most people do.
Individuals became stronger because of this. An individual can build up a whole protest organization. It is good because why we should follow the western culture? Why is western globalization the best way? Remember there is no west if you think the world is round….all people are different, so there is no good way.

Conclusion

The link between the two chapters is; the silent takeover by Globalization means, people are getting more individual and will have more power by internet and other media. This will follow in a government who doesn’t have the real power anymore, but the private organizations have and the protest groups.
Globalization is just an ideology and it will be like this forever because we all didn’t born in the economic western culture.

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