The term “fourth world” was used to define people, generally in third world countries, who have absolutely no ties to any kind of outside world. Commonly slave laborers and slum dwellers, these fourth world inhabitants have no access to the vast amount of information that we luckily do. An example of this can be found in Lagos; although Nigeria is a third world country, the outskirts of Lagos would be considered fourth world because of the condition of the people living there. This is ironic because inner Lagos may be considered a semi-periphery country…very confusing.
Today I stumbled upon the term “fourth world” as used to define countries that have no voice, and are rendered invisible. The article “Fourth World: Invisible Countries” by John Moynihan ( http://www.tiraspoltimes.com/node/826 ) discusses how there are many countries in the world that are not recognized; they have no representative at the United Nations and a desire to become a free state.
These countries are similar in that “they all have in common is a burning desire for independence. They are peoples with common cultures, or histories, or languages, who seek to rule themselves entirely, to govern and legislate and tax and trade independently, to define their own borders and exercise power over who may cross those lines. This is the Fourth World: the stateless and the unrecognized.”
These fourth world countries have a lot in common with fourth world people it seems…
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Globalization
What kind of impact will globalization have on America? Negative aspects include:
-- Millions of Americans have lost jobs due to imports or production shifts abroad. Most find new jobs--that pay less.
-- Millions of others fear losing their jobs, especially at those companies operating under competitive pressure.
-- Workers face pay-cut demands from employers, which often threaten to export jobs.
-- Service and white-collar jobs are increasingly vulnerable to operations moving offshore.
-- U.S. employees can lose their comparative advantage when companies build advanced factories in low-wage countries, making them as productive as those at home.
(For more, check out “The Pros and Cons of Globalization” http://www.businessweek.com/2000/00_17/b3678003.htm)
So, it is understandable that it is cheaper to build a factory in China, for example, and have Chinese workers make a product (such as sneakers). It would cost more than it is worth to run an American factory with American factory workers making such menial products. This is an older example of the types of jobs that have been exported; however, this is a growing phenomenon due to the low cost of labor in other countries.
This raises an issue in America; it assumes that most people will become educated and enter into specialized careers. We will become doctors, lawyers, CEOs, etc. etc. What about the people who cannot afford the education necessary to attain these positions? What about the people who do not have the intellectual capabilities? Normally, these people would probably become service workers, but if these jobs are soon going to be outsourced this lower/middle class group will become the poor/lower class. And those who have the drive, the money, and the time will succeed. America will become a nation without a middle class.
-- Millions of Americans have lost jobs due to imports or production shifts abroad. Most find new jobs--that pay less.
-- Millions of others fear losing their jobs, especially at those companies operating under competitive pressure.
-- Workers face pay-cut demands from employers, which often threaten to export jobs.
-- Service and white-collar jobs are increasingly vulnerable to operations moving offshore.
-- U.S. employees can lose their comparative advantage when companies build advanced factories in low-wage countries, making them as productive as those at home.
(For more, check out “The Pros and Cons of Globalization” http://www.businessweek.com/2000/00_17/b3678003.htm)
So, it is understandable that it is cheaper to build a factory in China, for example, and have Chinese workers make a product (such as sneakers). It would cost more than it is worth to run an American factory with American factory workers making such menial products. This is an older example of the types of jobs that have been exported; however, this is a growing phenomenon due to the low cost of labor in other countries.
This raises an issue in America; it assumes that most people will become educated and enter into specialized careers. We will become doctors, lawyers, CEOs, etc. etc. What about the people who cannot afford the education necessary to attain these positions? What about the people who do not have the intellectual capabilities? Normally, these people would probably become service workers, but if these jobs are soon going to be outsourced this lower/middle class group will become the poor/lower class. And those who have the drive, the money, and the time will succeed. America will become a nation without a middle class.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Slums?
What is a slum exactly? After hearing in class that we do in fact have slums in the United States, I started wondering where they were, or what they were like. I know they existed in the past, but I kept thinking we were too rich of a country today to have slums, at least not like the slums that exist in some developing countries. When I started a Google search on slums, the term “slums of shaolin” automatically popped up. Knowing that this was a reference to Staten Island, I checked it out. Granted, this was a term made popular by rap group the Wu-Tang Clan, yet I was very surprised to find out that they (and many others) consider the North Shore of Staten Island to be “rough and tumble.” Port Richmond, West Brighton, Park Hill, Mariners Harbor…considered slums? I live there! I’ve grown up in these places and I’ve never in my life considered them to be slums; some are worse off than others as far as being low income/high crime areas, yet they would probably be paradise to people coming from slums in places like Lagos, or Mumbai.
In an article from the Boston Globe titled “Learning from Slums” (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/03/01/learning_from_slums/?page=2) states that the term “slum” itself can take on different meaning depending upon the country it is in. I found out that, “In the United States, it is often used to refer simply to marginalized neighborhoods, but in developing countries, it usually means a settlement built in or near a city by the residents themselves, without official authorization or regulation. Housing is typically substandard, and the infrastructure and services range from nonexistent to improvised.” So, this made me feel a bit better, and a little less like a slum-dweller…at least the North Shore of Staten Island has clean drinking water, the ability to effectively get rid of waste, and a somewhat stable infrastructure.
“Learning from Slums” was a really good article actually, for anyone with any interest in the topic, check it out.
In an article from the Boston Globe titled “Learning from Slums” (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/03/01/learning_from_slums/?page=2) states that the term “slum” itself can take on different meaning depending upon the country it is in. I found out that, “In the United States, it is often used to refer simply to marginalized neighborhoods, but in developing countries, it usually means a settlement built in or near a city by the residents themselves, without official authorization or regulation. Housing is typically substandard, and the infrastructure and services range from nonexistent to improvised.” So, this made me feel a bit better, and a little less like a slum-dweller…at least the North Shore of Staten Island has clean drinking water, the ability to effectively get rid of waste, and a somewhat stable infrastructure.
“Learning from Slums” was a really good article actually, for anyone with any interest in the topic, check it out.
Friday, April 3, 2009
It is presumed that ghettos emerged in Venice, Italy in the early 1500’s in order to separate the Jewish community from everyone else. They then spread to Poland and Germany and were particularly prevalent during World War II, when the Jewish community was forced into ghettos. Today, we still have ghettos in the U.S., yet those inhabiting them are probably forced to live there in a different way. They have no money, little chance of finding a job where they will make money, thus they cannot afford to live anywhere else.
If you want to get an idea of what ghettos in America look like, check out this blog (http://ghettoamerica.blogspot.com/) It contain numerous pictures ,some from as early as the 1980’s and many more recent. There are pictures from ghettos all over the country, and it can be rather devastating to see the conditions that many of these people have to live in. I would recommend checking out this blog if you are interested in seeing what some of these places look like, there are also a few blurbs that might make you think about what life in the ghetto could be like.
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