Question

tIIIs III The collective impact of the above four trends has set in place driving forces that continue to bind diverse peoples together, building the momentum for globalization that we will examine in greater detail in the coming pages. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1 2 Does our definition of "globalization" allow for a nation to selectively participate in the proces 3 Can former colonies, even over 50 years after independence, blame their colonial legacies fo their current state of affairs? out of self-interest? Does the history of a nation influence any of the driving forces of today?

Answer 1

Ans1 -

Colonialism is a major reason for Africa's problems today, but it is certainly not the only cause.

Modern African countries were not created by the Africans; they consist of arbitrary lines drawn on a map by Europeans, who divided up Africa between themselves at the Berlin Conference in the 1880s. These lines scrunched completely different, hostile ethnic or religious groups together into the same country. The European colonialists are gone now, but the lines are still there. We have seen in many places, not just in Africa (Iraq is a perfect example) that a country composed of incompatible ethnic or religious groups can usually only be held together by a dictator who rules by brute force, and in many cases that is just what Africa has suffered.

Furthermore, the colonialists often picked a favored ethnic group, armed and financed it, and invited it to dominate and plunder the others in return for obeying the colonialists' orders. While some people exaggerate the effects of this - Africa, like the rest of the world, was riven by interethnic war long before the colonialists came - there is no denying that the Europeans made it worse. When the neighbors have killed your father, you remember it, and you want revenge, even after the Europeans who gave your neighbors the guns have gone. Thus, new and bloodier wars between Hutu and Tutsi, Ovimbundu and Bakongo have erupted after the Europeans went home.

So the two worst plagues of Africa - civil war and dictatorial governance - were created or at least badly exacerbated by colonialism.

Ans2 -

Depends on what does it mean by globalization really. Why globalization has to be against interest of nations? Why only alternative of capitalism is communism? Why world has to be so bipolar?

Globalization, at its most basic, means simply the long-term, secular trend towards ever-greater interpenetration and interdependence of the world's economies.

Benefits of globalization

• Access to cheap mass-produced goods.

• Economic opportunities for the poorest people in the world.

• Cultural exchange of ideas and values.

• Accelerated scientific advancement due to enhanced communication of discoveries leading to new discoveries.

• Trade dependency makes open conflict (war) between industrialized nations less likely.

So, answering the question, I do support globalization which caters to the best interest of a nation.

Ans3 - yes, following ae the supporting points

Geographical Position – location is critical. Countries sandwiched between two expansionist powers are likely to have a turbulent history – look at Poland that lies between Germany and Russia. Coastal civilizations will rely more on sea power – England, Portugal and the Netherlands. Landlocked countries will develop strong standing Armies – The Mongols and the Austrians

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse – Famine. Plague, Pestilence and War all exert pressure on a population that in turn lead to certain responses. It can be argued that history is the story of a population’s response to adverse conditions.

Influential Personalities - Modern historians tend to downplay the role of the ‘Great Man’ in history but there is no doubt that the personalities of such individuals as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon influenced the course of events of their respective times.

Economic Cycles - There is still much debate as to what causes economic cycles of booms and busts. Everything from sunspot theory, to the whims of human nature have been considered in an attempt to elucidate the trends that influence economic growth.

Ideology and Philosophy – Communism, fascism, capitalism have all been motivators for a change to the status quo as has been the need for liberalism, nationalism and democracy.

Perhaps one day some genius of untold ability will replicate all these drivers in a mathematical model that accurately mimics our story until then its best to look at these factors through qualitative eyes. Besides which its much more fun