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History of Technology 2: Pros and Cons of Globalization 160 Views


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Description:

Globalization is coming. Fun fact, that was the motto of House Stark before they changed it to "winter is coming." ...Don't hold us to that.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:02

Like everything else that exists globalization has some big advantages

00:06

and some big disadvantages let's start with the pluses like positive around [Rocks fall on person]

00:11

here all right probably the most widely

00:14

agreed-upon advantage of globalization is that it allows a massive exchange of

00:18

information better faster and more popular information technologies are

00:23

spreading around the world and allowing the free dissemination of info and cat

00:28

videos galore hey we're still trying to stay positive here or paw-sitive.... [Man watching video of a cat]

00:32

well some say that globalization is also

00:35

starting to give the world a sense of cultural unity lots of people think that

00:39

the sharing of information languages cultures ideas and stuff will help to

00:43

unite the globe you know like hey we're all humans in this thing together no [People battling with swords]

00:48

matter what our religious or ideological divisions are yay isn't it fun that we

00:53

all believe that and we're not constantly in some terrifying global

00:58

conflict well who knows... maybe one day the entire human population will

01:01

simultaneously hold hands and sing around of kumbaya [family singing songs by a piano]

01:05

all right well globalization is also helping to provide low-cost consumer

01:08

goods through the magical math of globalized economies cheap labor cheap

01:13

natural resources cheap transportation and tons of consumers equals $2 shirts [People grabbing 2 dollar shirts off a rack]

01:19

at Walmart what we never said they were stylish $2 shirts

01:22

well globalization is also creating larger market that's the tons of

01:27

consumers part from the earlier equation if the whole world is our markets and [Earth spinning]

01:31

businesses and corporations and ultimately individuals have the

01:35

potential to make bunches of money while technological equality is also helped

01:39

along by globalization this is another biggie...

01:42

so stop doodling pictures of dogs riding unicycles in your notebook school for [Boy doodling in notebook and man throws book away]

01:47

most of the 20th century there's been a huge technology divide between the super

01:50

developed West and the developing world through globalization that gap is [Man stood outside GAP]

01:55

closing yep charity commercials might show us

01:59

Africa being full of mud huts and sad children with flies on their faces [Children in Africa on the TV]

02:04

but Africans are totally taking advantage of a wave of new technologies

02:07

which is great, slow progress but progress nonetheless...

02:11

okay enough positives when lets change the music here to show we mean business

02:14

that's better nice and gloomy it's time to dig into globalization's [People eating at a cafe]

02:19

downside like how about wealth inequality all that wealth generating

02:24

stuff we mentioned before has a tendency to generate great wealth [Money raining]

02:28

for a select few the workers in the textile factories are definitely not

02:32

benefiting as much from the global economy some might even say that the

02:36

global economy is totally taking advantage event [Boss feeding an elephant]

02:39

well globalization has also created an increase in corporate power ginormous

02:43

corporations have tended to be the main folks regulating the global economy

02:47

which makes them bigger which gives them more dollars which makes them more [Building increases and dollar signs fall from sky]

02:51

powerful well it's kind of like how the Incredible Hulk gets bigger and stronger

02:54

the madder his enemies make him.. some people are totally fine with that but

02:58

others worry about giving power to folks who care more about money than local

03:01

communities.. Well globalization also increases the chances of environmental [Cons of globalization]

03:06

damage we've mostly talked about the money side of making that $2 t-shirt but

03:10

cotton doesn't fall from the sky which wouldn't be all that bad considering [Cotton balls fall from the sky]

03:15

sometimes giant chunks of ice fall from the sky and we take cotton any day every

03:19

stage of production has some pretty nasty environmental side effects too

03:23

growing more cotton means clearing more land and using the soil more intensively [Plane pours water over crops]

03:28

and spraying more chemicals, while harvesting it and transporting it takes

03:32

ton of fossil fuels and turning cotton into t-shirts in solution well throwing the

03:37

t-shirt away when it's stained in six months means growing landfills c'mom guys

03:42

buy a tie to go right... well some also complain that globalization is

03:47

creating a loss of cultural diversity well you know that whole sense of global

03:51

oneness well some people argue that it's taking away the unique awesomeness of [Family enjoying meal at the table]

03:56

each individual culture and smooshing us all toward one huge melting pot well

04:01

after all TGI Fridays is great but does it need to be just everywhere well some

04:07

also worried about financial instability that globalization can cause it looks

04:11

like this gigantic interconnected global economy isn't always stronger when [Economy working out]

04:15

everything happens instantaneously and everything is connected small events on

04:19

one side of the world can have a huge ripple effect [Butterfly flying over map of Earth]

04:22

like how the Great Recession in the US recently rippled across the world so

04:26

what's the verdict is globalization good or bad well it's a whole lot of both it

04:30

seems but either way it's coming and like yet another mediocre Fast and the [Vin Diesel standing as cars whizz past]

04:34

Furious sequel it cannot be stopped.

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