MINUTES: Globalization Study Group
Meeting of March 31, 2006

PRESENT: Barry Devine, Cliff Durand, Gregory E. Diamant (Gregory's new initials: GED), & Arturo Yarish.

Planned Topic of Discussion: Alternatives to Economic Globalization, A Report of the International Forum on Globalization. Chapters 2 & 3.

Below the reader will find a rough summary of the discussion that developed.

The four participants present opened a broader analytical discussion of the changing worldwide political/economic power relations that have formed over the past fifteen years. Broadly agreeing that the reading of alternatives must be contextualized more concretely and read with reference to a more precise analytical framework, the participants launched their own tentative assessment of the changing relations of international political forces within the context of the capitalist, corporate globalization. Challenging the political myth of "One Remaining Superpower" and its companion notion of "TINA" or "There Is No Alternative," each member contributed important thoughts to a spontaneous and preliminary critical evaluation of changes that point to expansion of spaces in which various alternatives to capitalist globalization may take shape.

Individually and collectively the participants broadly evaluated rapidly changing global relationships of economic, military, political and financial power among nations and regional power centers. They reflected broadly on the many variables affecting the rising resistance and challenges to the presumed cultural, economic hegemony of one superpower, and neoliberalism in general. Each participant raised issues concerning the consequences of the increasing weight of the USA's domestic and international debt, rising interest rates, potential volatility of the US dollar in international currency markets, and the question of the future exchangeability of the US dollar as a type of reserve currency. They discussed the possible political and environmental effects of rapid economic growth in India and China, the rising resistance to WTO dictates throughout the world as it is strongly expressed politically among an increasing number of Latin American countries, and the surging rates of poverty and hunger in the context of world-food surpluses and rising worldwide unemployment. As we saw in the boom years prior to The Great Depression, today we can note the devastating effects of the capitalist system's inability or lack of desire to direct food surpluses to areas of human need. Increasing worldwide overproduction, factory underutilization, increasing unemployment, rising rates of worldwide migration cause the people of entire areas and continents such as Africa acute suffering. They live in pain and distress from the most common measures of widespread poverty: increasing infant mortality rates, rapidly declining life expectancy and an increasing rate of curable diseases. This led one participant to ask if the attitude of "benign neglect" once recommended for the black population of the US is now a policy toward the massive suffering of people throughout Africa. That comment called forth the rejoinder that today it is called "Compassionate Conservatism."

The growing worldwide response to such expressions of compassion seems to be forming many powerful regional expressions of note. From the French workers/students response to the new labor laws, to the stronger national-energy policies demonstrated by the Russians, to the successive victories of the parties of the left in Latin America, and to the recent massive defenses of migrant rights in the USA, we noted that very large political and economic spaces may be opening regionally, nationally and among nations.

We all agree that our critical reading of Alternatives is combined with our appreciation for the valuable information it presents, but we feel that we also note the inadequacies that stimulate the incipient analysis that we felt a need to develop. For example the regular, casual and imprecise use of the term Civil Society while lending itself to misuse also serves as an indicator of the lack of analytical rigor. Our first very casual steps toward a critical analysis of the text and our tentative analysis of the realities of changing global relations of force are a harbinger of richer discussion ahead.

My dear compañeros please accept my very loose report of the discussion as humble contribution to preserving some of the major elements of our emerging critical discussion. Personally, I offer the idea that we should think of combining our thoughts and talents to writing a collective evaluation of the Book that we should send to a journal, such as, MR, or at least we should plan to post our finished review on our web site as a product of our work. We agreed that we should elevate our discussions from the level of a type of reading circle to a more deliberative analytical reporting style of the group on the Capitalist Globalization effort.

Expanding my introduction and making it more specific, BD has thoughtfully offered his recollection of our discussion supported by his notes that follow:

BD I think I began with the repeated observation that the US economy is heading into the tank. National Deficit is now at nearly 7 % GDP, where 5% is usually accepted as a level at which an economy crashes! We are still told by Bernanke and the Wall St. types that the economy is strong. Ask around among your friends and see what their reaction is.

With regard to the Forum on Globalization book, I also felt that while the book is very informative, there appears to be a disconnect between observations and analysis. I am surprised to find that apparently worthwhile tasks undertaken by the U.N., which were completed and reported, appear to have been ignored! The models described in the examples need more time to be discussed, e.g. Chile, Citizen's Agenda in Canada.

All in all, the writing is very illuminating, but so far appears too inconclusive. Discussion of the various viable economic axes of the current world was most interesting. It does appear that South America may avoid undue pressure to toe the line, e.g. with regard to the FTAA. It also appears that the African continent is being ignored, even while genocide seems to be prevalent in places like Darfur.

Saludos, Barry

NEXT MEETING: 25 April '06 at Gregory's house at 15:00