19. Globalization problems
As was already mentioned in chapter outsourcing, the need to cut prices leads to certain areas being labeled as low cost production countries and living standards there are really not much.
There is another aspect to it: countries expelling their low productivity production abroad are in effect cancelling labor opportunities for their domestic manual workers. The proclaimed thesis that “…we shell focus on high added margin production, engineering….” is indeed a foolish strategy. The main problem with such thinking is that it anticipates that all people of that country will be able to become IT experts, engineers, doctors and other high tech specialists. However, such anticipation cannot be further from truth.
People are people, they are born with different skills and intelligence and their ability to succeed in high tech world differs significantly. Expectation that all (majority) of people will be suitable and capable of such specialization resembles of fascistic ideas of creating of perfect humans through genetic engineering. We all know where it leads. Not to mention the fact, that such society would be rather dull inflexible, hugely vulnerable in case of changes in global division of labor.
So extensively focusing on certain high productivity production is not an ideal organization of country as it ignores the multilayered nature of any human society. There will always be people, for whom manual labor will be an only option and these people without enough working opportunities will suffer high unemployment. On the other side, in low cost countries there are for sure many highly intelligent and educated people who as a result of their country being destined as “production only” are suffering with their fain brains rotting alive. We are losing huge amounts of innovation and overall life satisfaction by such crude labor divisions covering entire nations.
The other aspect of globalization is high consumption of energy resources needed for transportation of finished goods across whole oceans and continents. It is questionable whether such model of production is efficient and if it is not sustained purely by monopoly power of multinationals running it. We have to remember that our entire civilization is based on burning fossil fuels as means of energy used for transportation. When we run out of oil, and it will happen sooner or later, such model will collapse. Nations will be left with highly specialized production capabilities not sustainable without cheap energy we are wielding today. Some say that oil peak already occurred, and that current economic problems are just manifestation of that fact. Be it true or not yet, we will get there eventually. It might be wise to think forward and to build our economies in a more sustainable way that would take into account that sad but sure fact that good time of abundant energy resources and not here forever.
More decentralized production orientated on minimal transportation needs seems like future, even many people pretend there is no need to plan for it. But one day we are going to find out how well we are able to adapt to the new paradigm and I hope that it will be a shock we shell survive.