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Alternatives to Economic Globalization: A Better World Is Possible

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Globalisation is one of the most complex and influential movements of our time. Driven by major corporations in the West, it seeks to operate financial and commercial transactions to the benefit of all humans. In practice, there are few winners except the transnational corporations themselves. Having monopolised markets and financial institutions, corporations have also drawn up legal procedures whereby they can bypass even the nation state itself. The effects on poorer countries of the planet are devastating.

The impact of globalisation touches the lives of everybody on planet earth today. We need to be aware of how it works;only then do we stand any real chance of challenging and redirecting its movements. Among the many books on the subject, few are as simply but comprehensively written as the present volume. It provides an excellent overview with some valuable suggestions on how we can work together to create alternative startegies for a more just and equitable world order.

We live in a world dominated by corporate superpowers that have no regard for the long-term welfare of the people, the economy, or the environment. These large transnational firms are reshaping the world and perpetuating a mass homogenization of cultures around the world. Many of the largest conglomerates in the world are American-owned. They export products and images that promote their bottom lines, not the welfare of individual countries or people. They covertly shift billions of dollars between different countries overnight or build retail chains that desecrate local economies. The sheer size and power of these organizations leaves many of us paralyzed with a lingering sense of disempowerment and an inability to imagine effective solutions.

This book offers us concrete answers and a list of actions we can take. The topical chapters allow you to go straight to the information you want and discover both grassroots and legislative solutions. As an additional bonus, a panel of experts in the various fields back up their perspectives with solid facts and figures. This is a indispensable book for any concerned citizen and an engaging read from cover to cover.

An excellent cast of authors and leading thinkers cover many aspects of how current forms of market fundamentalist oligarchic corporate interests shape a form of globalisation that limits the benefits and exascerbate the challenges posed by the changes brought on by globalisation. In stark contrast to the media's portrayal of knee jerk reactions to modern realities this book presents a very deep understanding of the challenges and the opportunities before us. It offers alternatives at a time when prevailing dogma has it that there are no alternatives and that the ills we see around us are inevitable and for the better good. It also points out the tremendous cummulative danger of the current direction many international developments are taking. It is not a book about going backwards but about moving into new territory beyond the deadlocks of the past.

This is the year 2012, and we need to seriously consider what kind of community we want to build for humanity.

Are we so impotent and lacking in creativity that we cannot build a better world, one that can overcome, step by step, the many hindrances that plague us and contribute to our suffering?

This book covers a lot of territory, but one essential part deals with the necessity reclaiming the "commons," those resources that should be collectively shared by the human community, not patented, controlled, monitored, and hoarded by corporations and other financial/power interests. These commons include aspects of our planet or social world that humans, apart from class and power, always traditionally had access to, or more recent ones that upon their creation were the openly shared right of the whole population. Examples of the commons are: freshwater lakes & rivers, oceans, the atmosphere, seed and plant species/varietal types, radio/TV bandwidth, the human genome (it is your body, not something a corporation can patent), and the Internet.

This is an important book. If you disagree with the premise, I challenge you to absorb this material and consider the arguments. You may be surprised.

I bought a book I needed for school and got it at a really good rate. It was in the condition described when it arrived, however it took a while for it to arrive at my home. Good packing, good price, all around I'm happy!

This book addresses many significant problems in the world today (2003-to present) from the vantage point of the capitalist critic. It preaches localization of centralized governments in third world countries as alternatives to the dominating presence of the WTO and ICC. Although these organizations allow impoverished countries to create jobs, in many instances the respective jobs come at the expense of the entire communities' well-being (water privatization). The text ties pollution problems to the need to maintain the economic machine. If you see anything on your TV news source (CNN, FOX News) about WTO protests in large cities, and seem troubled, then read this book. It will explain why the people marching on your TV screen are so angry.