A World on the EdgeDiscussion of Amy Chua article

Chua’s personal background• Aunt Leona• 58, ethnic Chinese,

living in Philippines• Murdered by Nilo A.: an

ethnic Filipino, her chauffer

• Why?• What does this have

to do with globalization?• Chua’s premise?

Various Points of Wealth Disparity• Philippines• Serbian conc. Camps

of 1990s• Rwanda – 1994• Jakarta – 1998• Palestine - 1998• NY - 2001

• What do they all have in common re: Chua’s premise

Forces at Work in Globalization• “3 most powerful

forces at work today”• Markets• Democracy• Ethnic hatred

Market-dominant minorities• The “Achilles heel” of

free market democracy• Why?

• What can it lead to?• Ethno-nationalism

• Who is perceived as the primary MDM in the world today?• Perception of global

markets:• Reinforce the power of

United States

Promotional Flaw in Globalization• Major components of

Globalization are the concepts of Free Markets and Democracy• Why promote them/what

makes them so great? (perception)

• Flaws in promoting “Free” Markets and Democracy in the same place at the same time:

Two Views on How to Curb Ethno-nationalism in the face of MDMs

• Globalists view:• What is needed is more

democracy and more free markets

• Chua’s view:• Free market

democracy is the principle aggravating cause of group hatred and ethnic violence in the non-western world• Markets and

democracy are not reinforcing when a MDM is present

Backlashes1. A backlash against

markets that targets the MDMs wealth

2. An attack against democracy by forces favorable to the MDM

3. Violence (sometimes genocidal) directed against the MDM itself

1. Zimbabwe – Robert Mugabe

2. Marcos dictatorship in Philippines; Kenya Pres. Arap Moi vs. Asians

3. “ethnic cleansing” in former Yugoslavia - Milosevic

Market Disparities• Market disparities must

not be overlooked• Otherwise you may miss

the dimension of class conflict and not ethnic conflict when assessing differences in wealth and poverty

• Do not ignore ethnicity• Indigenization

movements are not necessarily good, then.

• Note the clarification of her argument on page 74.

Solutions (according to Chua)1. Isolate the causes of

market dominance of certain groups such as caused by political favoritism.

2. Find ways to spread the benefits of global markets beyond a handful of MDMs and their foreign investors

3. Use direct government intervention to correct wealth imbalances… but do note that such programs can exacerbate ethnic tensions rather than relieve them.• These are best used as

short-term solutions