Globalization and Its Discontents

Description

Elucidating the opaque dealings that both weaken and strengthen the national idea, this text presents a portrait of a globe undergoing a radical concentration of resources and might, and a diminishment of accountability. The author suggests that the acknowledgement of the real facts of globalization will help policymakers use the nation state to human advantage. The text discusses the breakneck speed of financial markets and the inability of national regulators to restrict, or even monitor, their behaviour. It looks at how agreements like NAFTA, GATT and the European Common Market depend on national governments to stoke the wildfires of international activity. It also discusses the increasing concentration of wealth and power in global cities and the way they exploit vast numbers of poorly paid immigrants - whose critical presence challenges current notions of citizenship and nationality.

Saskia Sassen is a professor of sociology at the University of Chicago. Her previous books include The Global City, The Mobility of Labor and Capital, Losing Control, and Guests and Aliens.